Pile (singer)

Eriko Hori (堀 絵梨子, Hori Eriko, born 2 May 1988),[2] better known by her stage name Pile, is a Japanese singer, actress and voice actress from Tokyo. Her first roles were minor parts in TV series and films during 2006. She debuted as a singer after she was selected in a 2006 Japan-wide audition and she made her voice acting debut in the Love Live! School Idol Project series in 2010.

Pile
Pile at a promotion for her 10th single, "Quasurf", in 2019
Born
Eriko Hori

(1988-05-02) 2 May 1988
Tokyo, Japan
Occupations
Years active2005–present
AgentSpacey Music Entertainment (a division of Nippon Columbia)[1]
Musical career
Genres
Instrument(s)Vocals
Labels
Websitepile.asia

Musical career

In 2006, Hori was chosen from a total of 700 applicants in the Japan-wide Asian Dolls Audition. She later wrote that she wanted to be seen as "warm and enveloping, an artist who can be loved by everyone",[3] so she chose her stage name Pile after the pile towels are made from.[4] In October 2007, she debuted as a singer with the indie single "Your is All...";[1] this song was the opening theme for the third season of the drama TV series Ikari Oyaji Ai no Sekki Youtaikyoku.[5] In 2008, two of her songs were included in Dancemania albums, including "Flower", which was included in Hime Trance Best.[5][6]

Following several Love Live! releases reaching the top of the Oricon charts, Pile and her co-stars have had more success with their own music releases.[7] (Pile's second solo character album, Love Live! Solo Live! from μ's Scarlet Princess, reached #31 on the Oricon Albums Chart.)[8] She and Love Live! co-star Aina Kusuda (the voice of Nozomi Tōjō) formed a duo, Please&Secret, in 2013.[9] They have released two singles and an album, as well as a photo book entitled Girl Meets Girl.[10][11] In June 2014, she and another Love Live! voice actress Riho Iida (the voice of Rin Hoshizora) formed the duo 4to6 (the name referring to the time between the end of classes and returning home in Japanese schools), and their first single was released in August 2014.[12][13][14]

In 2014, Pile released her first single for the Victor Entertainment label, "Densetsu no FLARE",[15][16] which was used as an ending theme for the anime series Tenkai Knights.[17] Her first album for a major label, Jewel Vox, was released on the Tower Records label in March 2015.[18] Her second single for a major label, "Kimi ga Kureta KISEKI", served as the ending theme to the anime series Duel Masters VSR.[19] Pile made an appearance at the Cosplay Mania anime convention in Manila, Philippines in October 2015.[20] Her single "Dream Trigger" served as the opening theme to the second season of the anime series World Trigger.[21] She embarked on an Asian tour in 2017, with stops in Singapore, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur.[22] She released a compilation album titled The Best of Pile on 16 August 2018.[23]

Acting career

In 2005, Hori appeared as a minor character in the TV series 1 Litre no Namida, and in 2006 she appeared in Karera no Umi VII,[24] and the films Ōkoku, Shiroi Asa no Koi, and Tokyo Real.[5]

In 2010, Pile made her voice acting debut for the Love Live! project, a joint project between Kadokawa Corporation's ASCII Media Works publishing label and the Sunrise animation studio, as Maki Nishikino. Maki is one of the main characters of the series, a member of the idol group μ's. Pile has featured in her role in a two-season anime television series, anime music videos, CDs, rhythm games, and an animated film, among others.[7] She is also part of a sub-unit within the Love Live! project, BiBi, alongside Yoshino Nanjō (Eli Ayase) and Sora Tokui (Nico Yazawa).[25] The voice actresses who played members of μ's put on four live concerts between 2013 and 2014, including at Saitama Super Arena,[26] and toured Japan in 2015.[27] She also voiced Frunetti Renzuka in the 2013 video game The Guided Fate Paradox[28][29] as part of a partnership with Love Live!, credited as Maki Nishikino (CV: Pile).[30][31] She is the voice of Cinderella in the 2014 pachislot video game Cinderella Blade 2.[32]

Her Love Live! role has attracted attention to Pile, and created a large base of fans for her.[33] The idol news site GirlsNews called her "currently the most talked-about singer/seiyuu" after the second season of the anime series.[15]

Personal life

Hori was born and grew up in Tokyo, where she went to Shinagawa Women's Academy in Shinagawa Ward for middle school and high school.[24] She attended a college in Tokyo.[34] Her father is Japanese and her mother is Korean.[24][35] She is fluent in Korean and proficient in English. She studied ballet, hip-hop, and jazz dance while in high school, as well as baton twirling and theater.[24]

Discography
See also: Love Live! § Music

Singles
  • "Your is All..." (24 October 2007)[1]
  • "Etarnal" (digital-only release, 2007)[5]
  • "Flower" (digital-only release, 2008)[5]
  • "Love&Joy" (digital-only release, 2009)[5]
  • "Densetsu no Flare" (3 December 2014), #18 on Oricon Singles Chart[36]
  • "Kimi ga Kureta Kiseki" (22 April 2015), #15 on Oricon Singles Chart[37]
  • "Dream Trigger" (4 November 2015), #7 on Oricon Singles Chart
  • "Melody" (18 May 2016), #8 on Oricon Singles Chart
  • "Subarashiki Sekai" (28 December 2016), #8 on Oricon Singles Chart
  • "Kizuna Hero" (16 August 2017), #23 on Oricon Singles Chart
  • "BJ" (2 May 2018)

Albums
  • Pile Lovely Box (dōjin release, 29 December 2013)[38]
  • Pile Lovely Box 2 (dōjin release, 15 August 2014)
  • Jewel Vox (4 March 2015),[18] #19 on Oricon Albums Chart[39]
  • PILE (16 March 2016), #12 on Oricon Albums Chart[40]
  • Tailwind(s) (26 April 2017), #14 on Oricon Albums Chart[41]

Collaborations
Please&Secret (with Aina Kusuda)

Singles:

  • "O.P.E.N Fantasy" (18 September 2013), #42 on Oricon Singles Chart[42]
  • "Kimi no Kokoro ni..." (16 April 2014), #23 on Oricon Singles Chart[43]
  • "Ashita e Saku Hana" (14 December 2014), #22 on Oricon Singles Chart[44]

Album:

  • Anniversary (25 March 2015)
4to6 (with Riho Iida)

Singles:

  • "Watashi no Tokei wa Gyakukaiten!" (20 August 2014), #29 on Oricon Singles Chart[45]

Filmography

Anime television series

OVAs
  • Snow halation (2010), Maki Nishikino
  • Natsuiro egao de 1,2,Jump! (2011), Maki Nishikino
  • Mo gyutto "love" de sekkinchu (2012), Maki Nishikino
  • Wonderful Rush (2012), Maki Nishikino
  • Music S.T.A.R.T!! (2013), Maki Nishikino

Anime films

Live-action TV series

Live-action films
  • Ōkoku (2006)
  • Shiroi Asa no Koi (2006)
  • Tokyo Real (2006), clerk[5]

Video games

References
  1. "Your is All... /Pile". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. 2007. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  2. "Pile". Ota-suke (in Japanese). Nyu-Akiba. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  3. Pile (21 September 2013). ちょっとだけ昔のお話. Ameblo (in Japanese). CyberAgent. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  4. CDJournal. "Pile (声優 / Singer)" (in Japanese). Ongaku Shuppunsha. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  5. "Profile". Pile Official Website (in Japanese). Pile. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  6. "HIME TRANCE (姫トランス) : Track Listing". Dance Groove. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  7. Oricon (11 July 2014). アイドルプロジェクト 相次ぐ声優陣のソロデビュー [Voice actresses of the successful Love Live! series make their solo debuts] (in Japanese). Yahoo! Japan. Archived from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  8. "ラブライブ！ Solo Live! from μ's 西木野真姫 (Pile) SCARLET PRINCESS". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  9. "[Anime] Everything Love Live!". AFA Channel. Anime Festival Asia. 18 June 2013. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  10. "Pile＆AINA（楠田亜衣奈）1st写真集「girl meets girl」が2月14日に発売！発売記念サイン会イベントも開催". KoePota (in Japanese). MFS. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  11. "台湾の人気キャラと日本の人気声優のコラボによるユニット"Please ＆ Secret"が1stシングルをリリース". listenmusic (in Japanese). MTI. 19 September 2013. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  12. Komatsu, Mikazaku (4 June 2014). "'Love Live!' Voice Actresses Pile and Riho Iida Form New Unit '4to6': The voice of Maki Nishikino and Rin Hoshizora". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
  13. "Pileと飯田里穂による超大型声優ユニット"4to6"のメジャーデビュー決定！". De☆view (in Japanese). Oricon. 5 June 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  14. "「ラブライブ！」Pile＆飯田里穂が放課後ユニット結成". Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha. 4 June 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  15. "声優アーティスト Pile(パイル)が今冬メジャーソロデビュー決定！". GirlsNews (in Japanese). 11 September 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  16. "Pile、デビュー曲は12月発売「伝説のFLARE」". Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha. 1 October 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
  17. テンカイナイト「新たなる戦い」 (in Japanese). TV Tokyo. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  18. "μ'sのPile、メジャー・ファーストアルバムを2015年3月4日にリリース". Tower Records Online. 25 December 2014. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  19. Pile 2ndシングル「キミがくれたKISEKI」発売記念イベント開催決定 (in Japanese). Victor Entertainment. 13 March 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  20. "Love Live!'s Pile to Perform in Cosplay Mania 2015 in Philippines". Anime News Network. 20 July 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  21. "Pile Performs Theme Song for New World Trigger Series". Anime News Network. 4 September 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  22. "Love Live!'s Pile Holds Concert in Bangkok on January 14". Anime News Network. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
  23. "The Best of Pile" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  24. Yamamoto, Dai (2 November 2007). "学園祭初日の渋コラ音楽祭に「Pile」さん登場!!". NDGBLOG: Gakusei blog (in Japanese). Nippon Design School. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  25. "Vidéos preview pour le jeu Love Live! School Idol Paradise: Sortie prévue pour cet été" (in French). Crunchyroll. 29 April 2014. Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
  26. Komatsu, Mikikazu (22 June 2014). "VIDEO: "μ's →NEXT Love Live! 2014 ~ENDLESS PARADE~" Digest: With a video for a new character song by Maki and Nico". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  27. "Love Live! School idol project Anime Gets All-New Film". Anime News Network. 29 June 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  28. Nippon Ichi Software. The Guided Fate Paradox. NIS America. Scene: Closing credits, 2 minutes in, Voice Actors.
  29. Dengeki G's Magazine (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. 12 May 2012. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  30. "μ'sが歌う！PS3ソフト「神様と運命革命のパラドクス」キャラソンアルバムが発売決定！". Love Live! Official Web Site (in Japanese). 28 February 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  31. 『神様と運命革命のパラドクス』が2012年12月20日にプレイステーション3で発売決定. Famitsu (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. 16 August 2012. Archived from the original on 7 September 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  32. シンデレラブレイド2 今夏発売予定！ [Cinderella Blade 2 Scheduled For Release This Summer!] (in Japanese). NET CORPORATION. Archived from the original on 7 July 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  33. Komatsu, Mikikazu (11 September 2014). "'Love Live!' Voice Actress Pile to Make Solo Singer Debut This Winter: Victor Entertainment supports her solo singer project". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  34. Pile. "｡*ﾟPile｡*ﾟさんとつながろう♪ (無料)". Ameblo (in Japanese). CyberAgent. Archived from the original on 30 April 2013. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  35. Pile (13 April 2013). "pile_eric: あ、知らない方もいるかもなので、私は母親が韓国、父親が日本の ..." (in Japanese). Twitter. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  36. "伝説のFLARE". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  37. "キミがくれたKISEKI". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  38. "Pileの魅力を120％お届けする「PileちゃんのチャンネルPile」始動！幻のプレミアムアルバム再販決定". KoePota (in Japanese). MFS. 10 February 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
  39. "Jewel Vox (Pile)". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  40. "PILE(初回限定盤A) - Pile". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  41. "Tailwind(s) - Pile". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  42. "O.P.E.N FANTASY". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  43. "Please&Secret: きみのココロに…". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  44. あしたへ咲く花. Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  45. 私の時計は逆回転！（生産限定盤）. Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  46. "ラブライブ! Official Web Site | メンバー紹介" [Love Live! Official Web Site | Member Introduction] (in Japanese). Sunrise. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  47. キャスト&スタッフ [Cast and staff]. Love Live! Official Web Site (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  48. ラブライブ！ スクールアイドルフェスティバル [Love Live! School Idol Festival] (in Japanese). Bushimo. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
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