THE KIDDIE's career had it's ups and downs, but with their catchy and upbeat pop-rock as well as their casual yet stylish looks they have secured their place as one of the most significant visual kei acts of the early 21st century.
After the unexpected dissolution of the young band Kazoku, vocalist Yusa and drummer Yuu - now known as Yuudai - stuck together and created a new band. Along with their former bandmate Jun, Yuusei (ex-Maruru) and Sorao (ex-Shelly ~Jazz Rock Children~), they formed THE KIDDIE in May 2007. The band played their first live on July 1st at Meguro Rockmaykan.
The band kept themselves busy with a number of concerts until they released their first single, Little SENOBI, on October 3rd. Although limited to 1000 copies, it reached 14th on the Oricon Indies chart. They played their first one-man live SHIBUYA BRAND NEW WAVE at SHIBUYA BOXX on December 7th, and ended the year playing in an event held by Bergerac at Shibuya O-WEST.
January 2008 saw the re-release of Little SENOBI, leading to further Oricon success. THE KIDDIE participated in a series of events organized by labels like SPEEDDISK, PS COMPANY and S’CUBE, and embarked on the three-date KYpresents [Interpersonal Relationship] tour'08. In March, THE KIDDIE released their second single, Plastic Art, to greater commercial success. The next few months were spent playing lives and taking part in many tours>. In October, third single Sayonara Setsuna was released - it was their most successful yet, hitting fifth on the Oricon Indies chart. They also held the Mangoose tour, ending with the curiously-named one-man live vs Mangoose at Omotesando FAB on October 19th.
The group ended 2008 joining in the traditional New Year’s Eve event stylish wave COUNTDOWN'08-'09 at Yokohama Akarenga Hall. 2009 started badly, however, as vocalist Yusa had to undergo surgery to remove polyps from his vocal cords. They didn't stay quiet for too long though, and between April to August, they released two new singles and performed their third one-man, this time at SHIBUYA O-WEST. August also saw the launch of THE KIDDIE's official fanclub "kidd's", and the announcement of a three-month release campaign for the last months of the year, which involved the release of singles soar, BLACK SIDE and Poplar—all by major label VAP.
2010 saw THE KIDDIE reach a whole new level. They signed with King Records, released their first singles compilation in March, followed by the debut album Brave New World on November 24th. In 2011, the band focused on releasing singles, and released their first live DVD. In September, they contributed a cover of Supercalifraglisticexpialidocious from "Mary Poppins" in a Disney-themed V.A. release. Second studio album Ma★Piece materialized in March 2012.
The following two years were quite quiet for the band, as they were mainly given over to touring. This resulted in a second live DVD, Wonder World, in August 2013. In July that year, they played Damage on a tribute album to hide. 2014 saw a slew of singles, followed by third album Dystopia in November. It would be their last, for on December 29th came the shock announcement that THE KIDDIE would be disbanding. They played their last live yume wo hakobu ne in March 2015.
Their eight-year career had it's ups and downs, but their catchy and upbeat pop-rock, as well as their casual yet stylish looks, will continue to be held dear by their fanbase. Unafraid to experiment with different musical styles, THE KIDDIE have secured their place as one of the most significant visual kei acts of the early 21st century.
