RIZE

RIZE are a Japanese rock band formed in Tokyo in 1997 by vocalist and guitarist JESSE and drummer Nobuaki Kaneko, with TOKIE on bass in their original line-up. They made their major-label debut with ‘Kaminari’ on Epic Records Japan in 2000, and released their first three albums, ‘ROOKEY’ (2000), ‘FOREPLAY’ (2001), and ‘Natural Vibes’ (2002), through the label.

TOKIE left in 2001, and after further line-up changes, Kaneko’s younger brother KenKen joined on bass in 2006, completing the trio of JESSE, Kaneko, and KenKen. Albums ‘ALTERNA’ (2007), ‘K.O.’ (2008), and ‘EXPERIENCE’ (2010) followed. RIZE returned to Epic Records Japan in 2016, released ‘THUNDERBOLT ~Kaettekita Thunderbolt~’ the following year, and celebrated their 20th anniversary that December with a headline show at Nippon Budokan.

Outside Japan, RIZE spent part of 2003 based in Los Angeles, touring the US, and have also toured in Asia. In 2024 they played SOLU, their first nationwide tour in seven years, followed by NOLU in 2025.