is a Japanese-Taiwanese pop singer.

Early life

Yo Hitoto's mother was Japanese, and her father was a Taiwanese businessman (顏惠民).

Tae Hitoto is a Japanese actress, dentist and author. Her mother was Japanese, and her father was a Taiwanese businessman （顏惠民）. She graduated from Showa University with a degree in Dentistry. Yō Hitoto is her younger sister. External linksOffic ...

is her older sister. Her father died when she was very young, and her mother died when she was 16. Soon after she was born in Tokyo, Hitoto moved to

Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

, and after she completed kindergarten in Taipei, she moved back to Tokyo and she has lived there ever since. Hitoto is her mother's maiden name, which she changed to when she moved back to Japan. She can speak four languages: Japanese, English,

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

, and Taiwanese.

Career

To date, Hitoto has released eleven single CDs and four albums. She graduated from the department of Environmental Information of

Keio University , abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university located in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally established as a school for Rangaku, Western studies in 1858 in Edo. It was granted university status in 1920, becomi ...

and participated in the Keio University

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

group, K.O.E., during her days as a student. She used to have live concerts on the street with fellow K.O.E. members before she met Yōichi Kitayama, a member of the famous Japanese a cappella group the

Gospellers The Gospellers (ゴスペラーズ) are a Japanese a cappella vocal group made up of Tetsuya Murakami, Kaoru Kurosawa, Yuji Sakai, Yoichi Kitayama and Yutaka Yasuoka. History Originally formed by Murakami and Kurosawa (along with 4 other memb ...

. Kitayama encouraged Hitoto to compose her own music. Before this encounter, she had been a backup singer for many other artists. Hitoto's debut single "''Morai naki''" propelled her to stardom, and her songs enjoy wide popularity. Her clear voice and singing style, which is compared to the style of folk songs of

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

, attract many fans. Her subsequent single ''

Hanamizuki is a 2010 Japanese romance drama film inspired by the lyrics of a Hanamizuki (song), love song of the same name by Yo Hitoto. The film is directed by Nobuhiro Doi, and its script was written by Noriko Yoshida. The film spans the ten-year period fr ...

'', released in 2004, was also a hit. The song was inspired by the events of the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

in the United States. In Taiwan she is known for singing a Taiwanese folk song ( Bāng Chhun-hong), which was included in her second album, as part of a Kirin beer commercial aired in Taiwan. Hitoto performed the theme song for the game ''

Dynasty Warriors 3 The Japanese numbering for the ''Dynasty Warriors'' series games differ from the English translations, which start counting the titles from the 1997 fighting game ''Dynasty Warriors''. The original Japanese release of the series' second title ad ...

''. Her latest compilation album sold over 700,000 copies (Triple-Platinum status in Japan), becoming her best selling album yet. On March 11, 2022, Hitoto participated in the Shuichi "Ponta" Murakami tribute concert "One Last Live", performing "Fever" and "Hana Mizuki". She also joined Mie in performing the Pink Lady hit single " Pepper Keibu".

Film career

In 2003 Hitoto debuted in her first film '' Café Lumière'', as the lead character Yoko.

Discography

Albums

* 月天心 '' Tsukitenshin'' (December 18, 2002) * 一青想 ''Hito-Omoi'' (April 7, 2004) * ＆ (December 21, 2005) * Bestyo (November 29, 2006) * Key (March 5, 2008) * Karengai '花蓮街' Hualien City (April 21, 2010) * Hitotoiro '一青十色; Hitoto Color' (June 27, 2012) * Watashi Juusou '私重奏; I Instrumental Ensemble' (Oct 22, 2014)

Singles

* もらい泣き ''Morai-Naki'' (October 30, 2002) * 大家 ''Dajia'' (March 19, 2003) * 金魚すくい ''Kingyo Sukui'' (July 4, 2003) * 江戸ポルカ／夢なかば ''Edo Polka/Yume Nakaba'' (November 12, 2003) * ハナミズキ ''

'' (February 11, 2004), NTV Tuesday Suspense Drama, JRA commercial song * 影踏み ''Kagefumi'' (April 20, 2005), JRA commercial song * かざぐるま ''Kazaguruma'' (September 21, 2005) * 指切り ''Yubikiri'' (December 7, 2005) * つないで手 ''Tsunaide Te'' (September 19, 2007) * 「ただいま」 ''Tadaima'' (December 5, 2007) * 受け入れて ''Uke-Irete'' (January 30, 2008) * はじめて ''Hajimete'' (November 19, 2008), the theme song for "Gyōretsu no Dekiru Hōritsu Sōdanjo Cambodia Gakkō Kensetsu Project" (Nippon Television Network Corp.) * ユアメディスン～私があなたの薬になってあげる; I'll Become Your Medicine (October 7, 2009) * うんと幸せ; Lots Of Happiness (November 4, 2009) * 冬めく / 花のあと; Wintry / Remains Of A Flower (February 24, 2010) * dots and lines / とめる(May 23, 2012) * 道案内 / 愛と誠のファンタアジア (June 6, 2012) * 蛍; Firefly (March 26, 2014)

Videos

* 姿見一青也 ''Sugatami Hitotonari'' (October 1, 2003) * 一青窈 LIVE TOUR 2004 ～てとしゃん ''Hitoto You LIVE TOUR 2004 ~Tetoshan'' (April 11, 2004) * 一青窈★夢街バンスキング～はいらんせ～ ''Hitoto You ★ Yumemachi Vanceking ~Hairanse~'' (February 1, 2006) * Yo&U TOUR '06 (September 6, 2006)

Filmography

Films

*In Cafe Lumiere as Yoko

References

External links

Yō Hitoto Official Site

Hitoto's Webpage

Nippop Profile Yō Hitoto
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hitoto, Yo 1976 births Living people Japanese women pop singers Japanese people of Taiwanese descent Nippon Columbia artists Keio University alumni Singers from Taipei Singers from Tokyo 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese singers