, formerly known by her stage name Yuimetal, is a Japanese musician, singer, and dancer. She is a former member of the

kawaii metal Kawaii metal (also known as cute metal, J-pop metal, or kawaiicore) is a musical genre that blends elements of heavy metal and J-pop that was pioneered in Japan in the early 2010s. The genre combines both Eastern and Western influences that appe ...

group

Babymetal (stylized in all caps as BABYMETAL) is a Japanese kawaii metal band consisting of Suzuka Nakamoto as "Su-metal", Moa Kikuchi as "Moametal" and Momoko Okazaki as "Momometal". The band is produced by Kobametal from the Amuse Inc., Amuse talent a ...

and the idol group

Sakura Gakuin was a Japanese idol girl group formed in 2010 by the Amuse talent agency. The group's membership fell within the age range of Japanese compulsory education, typically containing between 10 and 12 members at a time who fall between the ages of ...

. In October 2018, she left Babymetal due to an undisclosed illness. She is managed by the

Amuse Inc. is a Japanese entertainment company that provides artist management services. The artists include idols, musicians, and more. Amuse produces TV and radio programs, commercial films, and movies. Other interests are in publication, music softwa ...

talent agency.

Biography

On August 2, 2010, at the age of 11, Mizuno joined

, an idol group managed by the talent agency

She joined at the same time as another future

member,

Moa Kikuchi , known by her stage name Moametal, is a Japanese singer and dancer. She is best known as a member of the kawaii metal band Babymetal, and was formerly a member of the idol group Sakura Gakuin. She is represented by the talent agency Amuse Inc ...

. Sakura Gakuin had not yet released its debut single. During their audition, Mizuno and Kikuchi performed a duo dance cover of "Over The Future" by

Karen Girl's was a Japanese three-member girl group formed in 2008 by the Amuse, Inc., Amuse talent agency. The group performed songs for the anime ''Zettai Karen Children'' for the duration of the show. History Karen Girl's was formed from elementary schoo ...

, two former members of which,

Ayami Mutō is a Japanese idol, singer, and model. She was represented by Amuse Inc. from 2004 to 2015, and has been a member of three musical groups formed by the company: Karen Girl's, Sakura Gakuin, and its first sub-unit Twinklestars. Biography Mutō ...

and

Suzuka Nakamoto , known by her stage name Su-metal, is a Japanese singer. She is best known as a member of the kawaii metal band Babymetal, and was formerly a member of Karen Girl's and Sakura Gakuin. She is represented by the talent agency Amuse Inc. Early lif ...

, had also recently joined Sakura Gakuin. Besides performing as a whole group, Sakura Gakuin members were also divided into smaller subgroups known as "clubs". Each club had its own musical group that recorded its own songs. Mizuno and Kikuchi first became members of the "Baton Club" and its musical group Twinklestars. As backing singers and dancers, they were later teamed with lead singer Suzuka Nakamoto in a "Heavy Music Club", with the associated music group being named Babymetal. Before the formation of this club, none of the three members knew what heavy metal was. In 2012, Babymetal became an independent recording group. Mizuno "graduated" from Sakura Gakuin in 2015, and from then on performed with Babymetal exclusively. Mizuno and Kikuchi have a writing credit under the name "Black Babymetal" on the first Babymetal album in 2014, having written "Song 4" together during a bus trip. The second Babymetal album, ''

Metal Resistance ''Metal Resistance'' is the second studio album by Japanese heavy metal band Babymetal. It was first released on , in Japan through BMD Fox Records, and on , worldwide through earMusic, RED Associated Labels (RAL), and Sony Music Entertainmen ...

'', was released in 2016. Following a leave from the show '' Legend S: Baptism XX'', Mizuno was absent from Babymetal's tour of the United States in May 2018, with no advance warning. Amid fan speculation on Mizuno's status with the group, a representative of 5B Management, the American management company representing Babymetal, replied to an inquiry from ''

Alternative Press Magazine ''Alternative Press'' is an American entertainment magazine primarily focused on music and culture. It generally provides readers with band interviews, photos, and relevant news. It was founded in 1985 by Mike Shea in Cleveland, OH. The compan ...

'': "Yuimetal remains a member of the band, but she is not on this current U.S. tour." However, she was also absent from Babymetal's European tour in June 2018. On October 19, 2018, Babymetal officially announced that Yuimetal would not be joining the band for the next phase of their tour and would no longer be a member of the group due to poor health. Mizuno released a statement shortly after about her decision to leave Babymetal, explaining that she may go on to pursue a solo career in the future.

Personal life

In third grade, Mizuno was a fan of

's previous group, and had dreamed of joining the group after their music helped her endure the "life-threatening" illness of a family member. The group disbanded, however, and she attended the group's farewell concert and met all three members. During the Legend "D" concert in 2012, Babymetal performed a cover of the Karen Girl's song "Over the Future". Mizuno says that moment was when her "dreams came true". She and her family are also close friends with Karen Girl's member

and her family; Mizuno and Muto were both members of

. Mizuno has two brothers, one older and one two years younger than her. * *

Associated acts

(2010–2015) **

Twinklestars was a Japanese idol girl group formed in 2010 by the Amuse Inc., Amuse talent agency. The group's membership fell within the age range of education in Japan, Japanese compulsory education, typically containing between 10 and 12 members at a tim ...

(Sakura Gakuin sub-unit) ** Mini-Pati (Sakura Gakuin sub-unit) *

(2010–2018) ** Black Babymetal (Babymetal sub-unit)

Discography

With Sakura Gakuin

* '' Sakura Gakuin 2010 Nendo: Message'' (2011) * '' Sakura Gakuin 2011 Nendo: Friends'' (2012) * '' Sakura Gakuin 2012 Nendo: My Generation'' (2013) * '' Sakura Gakuin 2013 Nendo: Kizuna'' (2014) * '' Sakura Gakuin 2014 Nendo: Kimi ni Todoke'' (2015)

With Babymetal

* ''

'' (2014) * ''

'' (2016)

Filmography

Television

* (2009) * ''Sagasō! Nippon Hito no Wasuremono'' (2009) * ''Kioku no Umi'' (2010)

Film

* ''A Happy Birthday'' (2009)

References

External links

Official profile at Amuse Inc.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mizuno, Yui Babymetal members Sakura Gakuin members 1999 births Living people Japanese female idols Japanese women heavy metal singers 21st-century Japanese women singers Singers from Kanagawa Prefecture Kawaii metal musicians Amuse Inc. talents