Lia (born December 20; also stylized in all caps as LIA) is a Japanese singer and songwriter. Lia recorded "Tori no Uta" for Key's 2000 visual novel Air, which was reused in its 2005 anime adaptation and became influential in popular culture. She additionally recorded two other tracks for the visual novel, which were commercially successful. Lia has continued to work with Key by performing songs for their 2004 visual novel Clannad and its 2008 anime adaptation, Clannad After Story, the 2005 adult visual novel Tomoyo After: It's a Wonderful Life, as well as the opening themes for Key's original anime series Angel Beats! in 2010 and Charlotte in 2015. Her other songs used in anime include RF Online and Initial D Fourth Stage. In 2012, the Vocaloid software IA was released, which sampled Lia's voice and earned a large fanbase.

Career

Lia graduated from the Berklee College of Music. Afterwards, she lived in Los Angeles and recorded demo tapes with the help of a friend. Originally asked to help translate between the recording staff and the studio, Visual Arts asked Lia if she could fill in for an absent vocalist. Lia recorded her first song "Tori no Uta" at Paramount Studio. Lia was a member of Japanese techno/trance music production group I've Sound from 2001 to 2003, where she performed "Disintegration" in the Disintegration compilation album. She signed with Key Sounds Label in 2001, and Pony Canyon in 2004. Lia produced four albums in the happy hardcore genre; these albums have her name in all capital letters. Lia performed the opening and ending themes of two of Key's visual novels—Air and Tomoyo After: It's a Wonderful Life—as well as the opening themes for Key's two original anime series—Angel Beats! and Charlotte. She performed the theme song for the MMORPG RF Online entitled "The Force of Love". Lia has also performed some Eurobeat songs for the anime series Initial D Fourth Stage entitled "All Around" and "Sky High" under the Avex Trax label. To celebrate her 20th anniversary as an artist, she released a compilation album titled Lia 20th Best on November 25, 2020.

Personal life

Lia is fluent in English and Japanese. On July 1, 2009, Lia announced on her blog that she was married and pregnant. She gave birth to a daughter on January 31, 2010. On June 27, 2013, Lia gave birth to her second child, a son. She has been living in Hong Kong since 2014.

Discography

Singles

Albums

Original albums

Happy hardcore albums

Other songs