About
Kan Kimura (木村 和, Kimura Kan; September 24, 1962 – November 12, 2023), known by his stage name Kan (commonly stylized as KAN), was a Japanese singer-songwriter.
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In 1983, he joined his first band, which was called Annette, before going solo in 1984. Kan wrote the background music for a 1986 film directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi, and started his major recording career the following year. He is best known for the chart-topping hit "Ai wa Katsu", released as a single in 1990. It sold over 2 million copies and won the 33rd Japan Record Award, bringing the artist into prominence. Subsequently, he spawned five top-ten singles and four top-ten albums on the Japanese record chart during the first half of the 1990s.
As of 2010, Kan had released 33 singles and 15 studio albums. According to the Oricon, he sold over 4.6 million copies of albums and singles in his home country.
Kan died of Meckel's diverticulum cancer on November 12, 2023, at the age of 61.
Members
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Brian Finnegan flute, tin whistle
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Jim Goodwin membranophone, percussion
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Aidan O’Rourke fiddle
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Ian Stephenson guitar
Discography
Albums
Links
Identifiers
- MusicBrainz
- 3f014afe-5170-43e1-aa10-91efb6beb398
Data from MusicBrainz, saved 10 Nov 2026. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, covers from the Cover Art Archive and Apple Music.