Angela Aki facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Angela Aki
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| アンジェラ・アキ | |
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Aki at Join Alive rock festival in Iwamizawa, Hokkaido, 2013
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Kiyomi Angela Aki
September 15, 1977 Itano, Tokushima, Japan
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| Years active | 1999–present |
| Height | 166 cm (5 ft 5 in) |
| Children | 1 |
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Kiyomi Angela Aki, known professionally as Angela Aki (アンジェラ・アキ), is a Japanese pop singer, songwriter, and pianist. She was born on September 15, 1977.
Contents
About Angela Aki
Early Life and Music
Angela Aki was born in a small town called Itano, located on the island of Shikoku in Japan. Her mom is Italian American, and her dad is Japanese.
She started playing the piano when she was just three years old. She lived in Tokushima until sixth grade, then moved to Okayama for junior high. Growing up in the countryside was tough for her. She was bullied, and playing the piano became her way to feel better and escape loneliness. She listened to different kinds of music, like traditional Japanese enka, and bands such as The Carpenters and The Bee Gees.
When Angela was 15, she moved to Hawaii. She attended Hawaii Preparatory Academy and later graduated from Iolani School. She learned a lot about music during her four years there. She speaks both English and Japanese. After Hawaii, she went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where she studied political science.
Family Life
Angela Aki was first married to Tony Alany, an engineer and producer who helped with her first album, These Words. On March 9, 2007, she announced that she had married Taro Hamano, a Japanese music executive. She also shared that she had been married before and was divorced.
In September 2011, Angela announced she was expecting a baby. In February 2012, she shared the happy news that she had given birth to a baby boy. She is good friends with J-Pop singer Yuna Ito, as they went to the same Japanese language school. The famous singer Janis Ian is also her mentor and friend. Angela currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband and son.
Angela Aki's Music Career
Starting Her Journey
In 1997, when Angela was 20, she went to a Sarah McLachlan concert. This experience inspired her to become a singer-songwriter. In 2000, she released an independent album called These Words in the United States. After college, she worked as a secretary in Washington, D.C. However, she couldn't give up her dream of singing.
In 2001, she quit her job. She worked as a waitress during the day and performed her songs at a nightclub at night. In 2002, she wrote two songs for a teenage pop singer from the Philippines named Dianne Eclar.
Debut in Japan
Angela Aki wrote music for several Japanese companies, including a commercial for the milk drink Yakult. After this, she decided to move back to Japan. On September 27, 2003, she saw a concert by Shiina Ringo at Nippon Budokan Hall. She made a promise to herself that she would perform at that same famous venue within three years. At that time, she was not well-known and didn't have a record deal.
She performed live in many small places and bars in Tokyo. She also worked as a waitress in a Chinese restaurant. During this time, she wrote over 100 songs and made several demo CDs. In 2005, she released an independent mini-album called "One." It became the best-selling independent album of that year. This album caught the attention of Nobuo Uematsu, a famous video game composer. He asked her to write the lyrics and sing the theme song for the video game Final Fantasy XII, which was called "Kiss Me Good-Bye."
She signed with Epic Records and officially debuted with her single "HOME" in September 2005. Her album sold over half a million copies and reached number two on the Oricon music charts. On December 26, 2006, Angela Aki made history at Nippon Budokan. She was the first artist to perform there solo, with just her and her piano, without any backup singers or a band.
Reaching English Audiences
In May 2006, Angela Aki signed with Tofu Records to release her English songs and albums. Her first release with Tofu was "Kiss Me Good-Bye" as a digital single in the US. Later that month, she performed "Kiss Me Good-Bye" at the first PLAY! A Video Game Symphony concert in Chicago. She played the piano and sang the English lyrics she had written, with an orchestra playing along. She also sang a cover of "Eyes On Me" from Final Fantasy VIII, playing her piano. In 2007, Angela Aki's second major album, Today, reached number one on the charts.
Music from 2009 to 2014
In February 2009, Angela Aki released her third full album in Japan, called Answer. This was special because she produced the entire album herself. She was chosen to sing Bob Dylan's "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" with her own Japanese lyrics for the movie Heaven's Door. She also wrote and performed the theme song "Ai no Kisetsu" for the NHK morning drama Tsubasa, which started in March 2009.
In September 2010, Aki released her fourth full album, Life. Then, in September 2011, she released her fifth album, White. Songbook, an album of cover songs by Aki, came out on January 11, 2012. BLUE was released as her seventh full Japanese studio album on July 18, 2012. The single "Confession" (告白) from the same album was released on July 11, 2012. On March 5, 2014, Tapestry of Songs: The Best of Angela Aki was released. It came in two versions: a standard one with her singles since 2005, and a two-disc version that included her favorite songs on the second disc.
Break from Music and Songwriting
In 2014, Angela Aki announced she would take a break from her music career. She moved to America to study music. She wanted to prepare for a role as a musical director for a Broadway project with a friend. Her last performance before her break was the final show of her "Angela Aki Concert Tour 2014 Tapestry of Songs: The Best of Angela Aki" at Budokan. This concert was recorded and released as a film.
After her tour, Angela and her family moved to Los Angeles, California. She attended the University of Southern California for two years. After that, she took courses at Berklee College of Music. Later, she and her family moved again to Nashville, Tennessee. During this time, Angela started writing music for other projects and artists. In 2016, she wrote three original songs for the musical Out of Shadowland at Tokyo DisneySea. That same year, she composed a song for Masayuki Suzuki. In 2017, she wrote and produced music for May J.. In 2022, she wrote, composed, and produced "Canary Song" (カナリアの歌) for J-pop singer Emiko Suzuki.
Return to Music (2023 - Present)
In November 2023, Angela Aki announced on her social media that she would be returning to music in Japan. She released "Here and There in This World" (この世界のあちこちに) in February 2024. This song is the main single from the musical version of Fumiyo Kouno's In This Corner of the World. Angela composed all the music for this musical. The musical first opened in May 2024 and toured Japan from June to July, ending in Hiroshima. Before the tour, Angela released her own version of the music from In This Corner of the World, called Angela Aki Sings Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni, on April 24, 2024. This album included two duets with Naoto Kaihō.
On March 3, 2025, Angela Aki shared that she was working on a new original studio album. On May 20, 2025, she released a documentary movie about recording her first single from the album, "Pledge." She described "Pledge" as a love song to herself. Angela Aki was also in charge of composing music for the thriller movie Eugene the Marine, which is set to be released in the US in 2025.
Discography
Studio albums
- These Words (2001)
- Home (2006)
- Today (2007)
- Answer (2009)
- Life (2010)
- White (2011)
- Blue (2012)
- Angela Aki Sings Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni (2024)
See also
In Spanish: Angela Aki para niños
