2011 in Japanese music
{{Year in music|2011}}
{{Year nav topic5|2011|Japanese music}}
The following is an overview of the year 2011 in Japanese music. It includes notable awards, lists of number-ones, yearly best-sellers, albums released, groups established and disestablished, deaths of notable Japanese music-related people as well as any other relevant Japanese music-related events. For overviews of the year in music from other countries, see 2011 in music.
Events
- May 31 – July 18 – The First Japan Arena Tour (Girls' Generation)
- December 31 – 62nd NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen
Awards
- June 25 – 2011 MTV Video Music Aid Japan
- December 30 – 53rd Japan Record Awards
Number-ones
Best-sellers
=Artists=
The following is a list of the 5 best-selling music artists in Japan in 2011 by value of sales, including sales of records and of DVDs and Blu-rays, according to Oricon.{{cite web |url= http://www.tokyohive.com/article/2011/12/oricon-announces-2011s-yearly-ranking-for-artist-total-sales/|title= Oricon announces 2011's yearly ranking for "Artist Total Sales"!|date= December 19, 2011|accessdate= September 9, 2016|work= tokyohive|publisher= 6Theory Media, LLC}}
| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:auto; margin:auto;" | ||
| Rank | Artist | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1
| AKB48 | {{JPY|16.282 billion}} | ||
| 2
| Arashi | {{JPY|15.369 billion}} | ||
| 3
| Exile | {{JPY|5.603 billion}} | ||
| 4
| Kara | {{JPY|4.926 billion}} | ||
| 5
| {{JPY|4.049 billion}} |
=Albums=
The following is a list of the top 10 best-selling albums in Japan in 2011, according to Oricon.{{cite web |url= http://www.tokyohive.com/article/2011/12/oricon-announces-full-list-for-2011-yearly-album-ranking|title= Oricon announces full list for "2011 Yearly Album Ranking"|date= December 19, 2011|accessdate= September 9, 2016|work= tokyohive|publisher= 6Theory Media, LLC}}
| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:auto; margin:auto;" | |||
| Rank | Album | Artist | Copies |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1
| Arashi | 907,589 | |||
| 2
| AKB48 | 829,645 | |||
| 3
| {{Interlanguage link multi|Negai no Tō|ja|3=願いの塔|lt=Negai no Tō}} | Exile | 743,242 | |||
| 4
| 658,554 | |||
| 5
| 642,054 | |||
| 6
| 484,336 | |||
| 7
| Kara | 450,595 | |||
| 8
| {{Interlanguage link multi|Musicman (album)|ja|3=MUSICMAN (桑田佳祐のアルバム)|lt=Musicman}} | 414,725 | |||
| 9
| {{Interlanguage link multi|SMAP Aid|ja|3=SMAP AID|lt=SMAP Aid}} | SMAP | 413,943 | |||
| 10
| Ikimonobakari: Members Best Selection | 397,459 |
Albums released
The following section includes albums by Japanese artists released in Japan in 2011 as well as Japanese-language albums by foreign artists released in the country during this year.
- January 19 – Eight by Do As Infinity
- January 26 – Go by Girugamesh
- February 23 – {{Interlanguage link multi|Musicman (album)|ja|3=MUSICMAN (桑田佳祐のアルバム)|lt=Musicman}} by Keisuke Kuwata
- March 9 – {{Interlanguage link multi|Negai no Tō|ja|3=願いの塔|lt=Negai no Tō}} by Exile
- March 23 – Brand-new idol Society by BiS
- March 30 – 7 Berryz Times by Berryz Kobo
- April 27 – Checkmate! by Namie Amuro
- June 1 – Cherish by Seiko Matsuda
- June 1 – Girls' Generation by Girls' Generation
- June 8 – Echo by Nothing's Carved in Stone
- June 8 – Koko ni Ita Koto by AKB48
- July 6 – Beautiful World by Arashi
- July 20 – Luv Songs by Che'Nelle
- July 27 – C'mon by B'z
- August 3 – Dum Spiro Spero by Dir En Grey
- August 10 – Baby Action by Scandal
- August 17 – {{Interlanguage link multi|SMAP Aid|ja|3=SMAP AID|lt=SMAP Aid}} by SMAP
- September 21 – After Eden by Kalafina
- September 28 - DocumentaLy by Sakanaction
- November 17 – Fight by Kanjani Eight
- November 23 – Super Girl by Kara
- November 30 – Republic of 2PM by 2PM
- December 7 – Memories by Garnet Crow
Debuting artists
{{main|List of Japanese musical groups (2010s)#2011}}