Kenshi Yonezu facts for kids

Kenshi Yonezu (米津 玄師, Yonezu Kenshi, born March 10, 1991) is a Japanese singer, songwriter, and illustrator. He started making music using Vocaloid software in 2009. Back then, he used the name Hachi (ハチ). In 2012, he began releasing music using his own voice under his real name. He has sold millions of copies of his music in Japan.

His song "Kick Back" from 2022 became very popular outside Japan. It appeared on international music charts. It was even certified Gold in the United States, meaning it sold 500,000 copies. This was the first time a song with Japanese lyrics achieved this award.

Kenshi Yonezu's Journey in Music

Early Life and Starting Music

Kenshi Yonezu was born in Tokushima, Japan. When he was young, he found it hard to talk to other people, especially his father. He felt his mother understood him best. At age 20, he learned he had high-functioning autism.

He first started making music in 2006, when he was in junior high school. Kenshi Yonezu and his friend Hiroshi Nakajima formed a band called Late Rabbit Edda. Kenshi Yonezu was the singer and songwriter. He also sometimes played guitar. He uploaded 24 original songs to a video website called Nico Nico Douga. However, these songs did not get many views.

Becoming "Hachi" with Vocaloid

After high school, Kenshi Yonezu moved to Osaka and went to an art school. He started uploading songs using Vocaloid software, like Hatsune Miku. These songs became very popular! His 2009 song "Musunde Hiraite Rasetsu to Mukuro" (結ンデ開イテ羅刹ト骸) was the first to get over one million views on Nico Nico Douga. He uploaded more than 30 Vocaloid songs.

His songs started appearing on popular music albums. In 2010, his song "Clock Lock Works" was on the Supernova album. Another song, "Musunde Hiraite Rasetsu to Mukuro," was on Vocalolegend feat. Hatsune Miku, which was a top 10 album. His songs were also featured in video games like Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Extend and Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F. By 2012, seven of his songs as Hachi had over one million views, including "Matryoshka," which reached 5 million views.

Kenshi Yonezu also joined an animation group called Minakata Kenkyūjo in 2010. He stopped uploading Vocaloid videos for about three years in 2011. His band, Late Rabbit Edda, changed its name to Ernst Eckman but eventually, Kenshi Yonezu decided to work alone. He felt he worked better by himself.

Debuting as Kenshi Yonezu

In March 2011, Kenshi Yonezu and other musicians created a music label called Balloom. This label helped internet musicians share their music. His first album, Diorama, came out on May 16, 2012. It was very successful, selling over 45,000 copies. This album even won an award voted on by music store workers.

Kenshi Yonezu then joined a bigger music company, Universal Sigma, in May 2013. He released his first single, "Santa Maria." He wanted to work with other musicians who were doing similar things. In October 2013, he released a Vocaloid song called "Donut Hole" (ドーナツホール, Dōnatsu Hōru). This song used a live band and the Vocaloid voice Gumi. His second album, Yankee, was released in April 2014. After this, he held his very first concert in June 2014.

Rising Popularity and Hit Songs

Kenshi Yonezu became even more popular with his albums Bremen and Bootleg. Bootleg included hit songs like "Uchiage Hanabi", "Loser", "Orion", and "Peace Sign". Bootleg won the Album of the Year award at the 60th Japan Record Awards.

In December 2018, Kenshi Yonezu performed live on TV for the first time on the 69th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen. This is a very famous music show in Japan. He sang his hit song "Lemon" from his hometown, Tokushima. He also produced the songs "Uchiage Hanabi" and "Paprika", which were performed at the same event.

In January 2019, Kenshi Yonezu started his first arena tour, which included concerts in China and Taiwan. His song "Paprika" won a big award called the Grand Prix at the 61st Japan Record Awards. He also helped write the song "Kite" for the Japanese boy band Arashi. This song was the theme for NHK's coverage of the 2020 Summer Olympics.

In February 2020, Kenshi Yonezu had to cancel his "HYPE" tour because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In August 2020, he performed in Fortnite's Party Royale, singing songs from his album Stray Sheep. This album had been released just two days before. He also received a Special Achievement Award at the 62nd Japan Record Awards in December.

In 2022, Kenshi Yonezu released "Kick Back," which became the opening theme song for the popular anime series Chainsaw Man. He also went on a 10-show arena tour called "HENSHIN." In 2023, he released "Tsuki wo miteita - Moongazing" for the video game Final Fantasy XVI. He also released "Spinning Globe" as the theme song for Hayao Miyazaki's film The Boy and the Heron. Miyazaki, a famous director, asked him to write the song after hearing children sing Kenshi Yonezu's song "Paprika." Kenshi Yonezu said this was the biggest honor of his life.

His sixth album, Lost Corner, was released on August 21, 2024. It is his longest album with 20 songs. On December 31, 2024, Kenshi Yonezu performed "Sayonara, Mata Itsuka!" at the 75th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen. He wrote this song for the TV show The Tiger and Her Wings. In January 2025, he started his biggest tour yet, called "JUNK." This tour had 26 concerts and included his first world tour with shows in Shanghai, Taipei, Seoul, Paris, London, Los Angeles, and New York City. He was very happy with how warmly he was welcomed by fans. On March 5, 2025, Kenshi Yonezu worked with Olympic figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu. Yuzuru Hanyu performed a skating routine for the music video of Kenshi Yonezu's song "Bow and Arrow," which was the opening theme for the anime Medalist. On April 21, 2025, NetEase Cloud Music announced that Kenshi Yonezu was the most streamed Japanese artist on their platform ever, with over 5.5 billion streams.

Kenshi Yonezu's Artistic Style

Kenshi Yonezu writes and creates all of his own music. For his Vocaloid songs and his album Diorama, he even did all the arranging, programming, mixing, and played all the instruments himself. When he joined Universal, he started working with a band to perform his music.

He says that Japanese bands like Bump of Chicken, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, and Radwimps have greatly influenced his music. For his lyrics, he is inspired by Japanese authors Kenji Miyazawa and Yukio Mishima. As an illustrator, he likes the drawings of Edward Gorey. Kenshi Yonezu usually writes songs on the guitar, but sometimes uses drums to find a melody.

Kenshi Yonezu sees his music career in two parts: music made as Hachi using Vocaloids, and music made with his own voice as Kenshi Yonezu. He feels that Hachi's music was made for the Nico Nico Douga community. Songs under his real name are not tied to that community in the same way.

He has also produced music for other artists. He composed and arranged "Nilgiri" for singer Lasah in 2010. He also produced "Escape Game" for anime singer LiSA. He even worked on a remix for the ending theme song of the anime Anohana in 2013.

Kenshi Yonezu illustrates many of his own music videos and album covers. He uses computer programs like Adobe Photoshop Elements and Adobe After Effects for his animations. His illustrations also appear in the music magazine Rockin' On Japan. He has a series of drawings called Kaijū Zukan (かいじゅうずかん, "Monster Picture Index") which features imaginary creatures he has drawn.

To create songs, Kenshi Yonezu uses music software called Cakewalk Sonar. When he started making Vocaloid music, he used Vocaloid 2 software and only Hatsune Miku's voice. Later, he also used Megurine Luka and Gumi in his songs.

Kenshi Yonezu once said that the song "MOTHER" by Susumu Hirasawa changed his life. He listened to it before he was 18 and started his music career. He felt that Susumu Hirasawa's songs had a unique sound he had never heard before, and they influenced him a lot.

Kenshi Yonezu's Albums

• Diorama (2012)
• Yankee (2014)
• Bremen (2015)
• Bootleg (2017)
• Stray Sheep (2020)
• Lost Corner (2024)

Awards and Recognitions

Kenshi Yonezu has won many awards for his music. Here are some of them:

See also

In Spanish: Kenshi Yonezu para niños