Especia

Especia is a Japanese Idol Group that originated in Osaka, Japan. The group was formed in 2012 around vocalist Haruka Tominaga, and officially disbanded in 2017. The name Especia is Spanish for "spice" and is indicative of the blend of various elements - fashion, music, each member's individuality - that make up the group, like spices in a spice blend. Their sound takes cues from Japanese city pop, jazz fusion, European disco records from the 1980s and AOR (album-oriented rock), while their visual aesthetic is indebted to city pop and vaporwave albums. Produced by Schtein & Longer (BiS, etc.) Haruka Tominaga and Erika Mori were the only members who were in the group for its entire existence. Erena Inoue, Akari Imai, and Mizuki Uesaka all left the group shortly after its formation, and were not featured on any releases or in any music videos. Yuka Itachida also left by the end of 2012; she can be seen in some of their early music videos as the group's little-known (and short-lived) seventh member. Akane Sugimoto graduated in 2014. Monari Wakita, Chihiro Mise, and Chiko Sannomiya graduated in 2016. Haruka and Erika were joined by Brazilian import Mia Nascimento soon afterwards. That trio was the lineup for Especia's final year of existence. Shortly after leaving, Monari started releasing solo recordings. Haruka has released tracks under the name HALLCA, Mia has dabbled in some solo and group work too. Aside from those three, the other ex-members have not been active musically post-Especia.