J-urban songstress JASMINE has shared a brand new song celebrating one of her idols, actress and former singer Aya Sugimoto. The song has been uploaded on JASMINE’s official soundcloud account as a free download. Titled “Aya Sugimoto“, it’s a gift for fans who are currently suffering through Japan’s extremely hot and humid summer, which ties into Aya’s “image” in general.

The song was produced by RIKI (理貴) who is known for his work with AK-69, Miliyah Kato, and KOHH among others.

Aya Sugimoto is seen as an inspirational figure to women of many age groups, including JASMINE (20s).  Aya got her start as model, which eventually lead to a singing career. Aya’s sexy image and outspoken personality was a far cry from the typical young female solo singers Japan was used to. The decision to be herself paid off as she found instant success in the music industry, with some her singles eventually topping the Oricon chart. Aya also played a large role in the creation of her music, writing and co-writing many of her hits, which again was quite rare for young pop singers.

In the mid 90s Aya took a hiatus from the entertainment industry to focus on her marriage, she returned in the early 00s focusing on acting and variety TV appearances. To oversea fans Aya is perhaps best known for playing Queen Beryl in the Sailor Moon live-action television show “Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon”.

In July 2003 Aya divorced her husband, music producer Toshinori Numata, claiming that there wasn’t enough sex in the marriage. The high-profile announcement dominated Japanese headlines and started a conversation that many frustrated Japanese women felt, but never had the opportunity to speak on the matter. “Sexless divorce” become a trending topic among wives in Japan, this phenomenon inspired Aya to publish an essay book titled “Orgasm Life”. It became an instant top seller.

In 2008, Aya broke boundaries again by becoming the first Japanese celebrity to take part in PETA’s famed nude anti fur campaign. She has continued to be one of the very few Japanese celebrities to actively campaign for animal rights. In 2014 she created her own animal welfare organization called Eva, aiming to help fix Japan’s pet industry and how the government deals with stray/abandoned animals. In a press conference announcing Eva, Aya revealed that over 170,000 cats and dogs are inhumanely put down each year.

Besides the standard version, a remix of “Aya Sugimoto” featuring rapper Cherry Brown was also released on Soundcloud. Listen to both versions of “Aya Sugimoto” below!