The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry. It was founded in 1942 as the Japan Phonogram Record Cultural Association, and adopted its current name in 1969.

The RIAJ's activities include promotion of music sales, enforcement of copyright law, and research related to the Japanese music industry. It publishes the annual RIAJ Year Book, a statistical summary of each year's music sales, as well as distributing a variety of other data.

Headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, the RIAJ has twenty member companies and a smaller number of associate and supporting members; some member companies are the Japanese branches of multinational corporations headquartered elsewhere.

The association is responsible for certifying gold and platinum albums and singles in Japan.

RIAJ Certification[link]

In 1989, the Recording Industry Association of Japan introduced the music recording certification systems. It is awarded based on shipment figures of compact disc or cassette tape which was reported by record labels. In principle, the criteria are limitedly applied to the materials released after January 21, 1989.

Certification awards[link]

Currently, all music sales including singles, albums, digital download singles are on the same criteria. Unlike many countries, the highest certification is not called "Diamond" or "Platinum", but "Million".

Old criteria (until June 2003)[link]

Before the unification of criteria and introduction of music videos category in July 2003, a separate scale had been used for certification awards.^[2]

Members[link]

Main members[link]

• Avex Group¹
  • Avex Entertainment (supporting member)
• Being Inc.
• Dreamusic Incorporated
• EMI Music Japan¹
• For Life Music
• Geneon Universal Entertainment¹
• King Records¹
  • Bellwood Records (supporting member)
  • King Records International (supporting member)
• Nippon Columbia
• Nippon Crown¹
• Pony Canyon¹
  • Exit Tunes (associate member)
• Sony Music Entertainment Japan¹
  • Ariola Japan (supporting member)
  • DefStar Records (supporting member)
  • Epic Records Japan (supporting member)
  • Ki/oon Records (supporting member)
  • SME Records (supporting member)
  • Sony Music Artists (supporting member)
  • Sony Music Associated Records(supporting member)
  • Sony Music Direct(supporting member)
  • Sony Music Distribution(supporting member)
  • Sony Music Japan International (supporting member)
  • Sony Music Records (supporting member)
• Tokuma Japan Communications¹
• Universal Music Group¹
• VAP Inc.¹
• Victor Entertainment¹
  • Teichiku Records¹
• Warner Music Group¹
• Yamaha Music Communications
• Yoshimoto R&C

Associate members[link]

• Amuse Soft Entertainment
• HATS Unlimited
• Johnny and Associates
  • J Storm
  • Johnny's Entertainment
• Konami Digital Entertainment
• Bandai Visual
  • Lantis
• LD&K Records
• Naxos Records
• Pryaid Records¹
• Space Shower Networks
• Spiritual Beast
• Venus Records
• Village Again Association

Supporting members[link]

• Aniplex (subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan)
• Crown-Tokuma Music (joint venture of Nippon Crown and Tokuma Japan Communications)
• Free Board
• Holiday Japan
• Jei One
• NPPDevelop
• T-Toc Records
• TV Asahi Music
• Ward Records

¹Member, International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

See also[link]

• List of best-selling albums in Japan
• List of best-selling singles in Japan
• List of 50 Best Selling Artists of All-Time in Japan
• Recording Industry Association of America
• Australian Recording Industry Association
• List of music recording sales certifications
• RIAJ Digital Track Chart
• Global music industry market share data

External links[link]

• Recording Industry Association of Japan - in English

References[link]

Sabina Yasmin (Bengali: সাবিনা ইয়াসমীন; born 1953) is a Bangladeshi singer. She is renowned in Bangladesh for her patriotic songs as well as her playback singing in Bangladeshi cinema. She achieved many awards for her music in Bangladesh and has become an iconic^{[peacock term]} figure in Bangladeshi music world.

Career[link]

Sabina started singing for films (soundtrack), radio, television and gramophone companies as a child. She has been active in the Bangladeshi music industry since 1970s. She is one of those few vocalists who is equally sought after in East Bengal (Bangladesh) as well as in West Bengal (in India). She has recorded more than some 10 thousand songs., April 2012 

She established her position in the late 70s and early 80s with numerous patriotic songs and folk songs as well. Over the years she has also recorded with the composers of India including the R. D. Burman and sang duet with famous Indian singer Kishore Kumar.

She has made numerous concert tours in the UK, US, Canada, Italy, France, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Pakistan and Australia. In addition as a member of the Bangladesh National Cultural Delegations she has performed in China, Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, India, UAE, Uzbekistan, Greece, Germany, Sweden and Norway.

Personal life[link]

Sabina has three sisters - Farida Yasmin, Fauzia Yasmin, Nilufar Yasmin. Her father, Lutfar Rahman, belonged to former Provincial Civil Service of British India and her mother Begum Mouluda Khatun was a vocal artist who took music lessons from musician Ustaad Kader Baksh. Sabina is also the aunt of Agun, a musician and Reenat Fauzia, a sitar player.

Sabina has married three times. She has a daughter Fairooz Yasmin (Badhon), a singer, from her first marriage with Anisur Rahman, and a son, Srabon, from her second marriage with Amir Hossain. After her first two marriages ended in divorces, she married Suman Chattopadhyay, an Indian Bengali lyricist, composer, singer and political activist.

Awards[link]

• Bangladesh
  • Shadhinota Padak
  • Ekushey Padak
  • Jatiyo Cholochchitro Puroshkar (The National Film Award)

• India
  • Best Playback Singer Award (Bengal Film Journalists' Association)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Short Bio
• Bangla Movie Songs of Sabina Yasmin
• Sabina Yasmin Songs
• Sabina Yasmin and others in Concert

Sources[link]

• Sanskriti