Biography
Emerging within the crowded 2000s J-urban landscape shaped by Beyoncé and Christina Aguilera yet spearheaded by Misia and Hikaru Utada, May Nakabayashi—professionally known as May'n—required what promoters billed as a double debut before attaining notice, due largely to her Macross Frontier association. She entered the industry through a standard contest route, claiming one of four prizes at the intensely competitive 2003 Love Music Audition staged by Horipro, which drew nearly 35,000 entrants. Universal signed her, and at age 14 she issued material under her birth name, yet the three 2005-2006 singles, among them the Seamo-assisted “Fallin’ in or Not,” registered no chart impact, prompting a hiatus.
Resuming in 2007 on Victor Entertainment’s Flying Dog imprint as May’n, she issued the Yoko Kanno-composed single “Diamond Crevasse”/“Iteza Gogo Kuji Don’t Be Late,” which supported Macross Frontier; Nakabayashi simultaneously voiced the in-story idol Sheryl Nome. The track succeeded, as did its Kanno-penned successor “Lion,” performed with Megumi Nakajima and likewise tied to the series. That year she appeared at the Macross Budokan concert and made her first overseas appearance at a Singapore festival. Early in 2009 the EP May’n Street reached number two and underpinned her inaugural domestic tour.
She further embodied Sheryl Nome for the franchise’s theatrical release while releasing the Nome-linked singles “Pink Monsoon,” which peaked at number five on the Oricon ranking, and “My Teens, My Tears,” plus the EP Universal Bunny credited to “Sheryl Nome starring May’n.” Retaining her own persona, Nakabayashi simultaneously issued the full-length Styles on the same date and secured the Budokan for a headline concert in early 2010.
Resuming in 2007 on Victor Entertainment’s Flying Dog imprint as May’n, she issued the Yoko Kanno-composed single “Diamond Crevasse”/“Iteza Gogo Kuji Don’t Be Late,” which supported Macross Frontier; Nakabayashi simultaneously voiced the in-story idol Sheryl Nome. The track succeeded, as did its Kanno-penned successor “Lion,” performed with Megumi Nakajima and likewise tied to the series. That year she appeared at the Macross Budokan concert and made her first overseas appearance at a Singapore festival. Early in 2009 the EP May’n Street reached number two and underpinned her inaugural domestic tour.
She further embodied Sheryl Nome for the franchise’s theatrical release while releasing the Nome-linked singles “Pink Monsoon,” which peaked at number five on the Oricon ranking, and “My Teens, My Tears,” plus the EP Universal Bunny credited to “Sheryl Nome starring May’n.” Retaining her own persona, Nakabayashi simultaneously issued the full-length Styles on the same date and secured the Budokan for a headline concert in early 2010.