Biography
Japanese singer/songwriter Ichiko Aoba crafts atmospheric folk pieces whose layered arrangements center on classical guitar, with lyrics drawn directly from her dreams. Outside Japan her output has received scant coverage, yet online discussions on multiple forums have built her a loyal global audience. Since issuing her first recordings in 2010 she has produced numerous studio albums and live sets, ranging from the spare acoustic folk of 2013’s 0 and 2018’s qp to the sweeping, cinematic dream-pop of 2020’s Windswept Adan. Beyond solo work she has joined forces with Cornelius, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, and Kazuhisa Uchihashi, and has composed for theater, commercials, anime, and video games.
Born in Urayasu, Chiba, in 1990 and raised in Kyoto Prefecture, Aoba first encountered music through Disney and Studio Ghibli soundtracks. At age 17 she began classical-guitar studies under the guidance of singer/songwriter Anmi Yamada. Her debut, the 2010 album Kamisori Otome (“Razor Girl”), was followed the next year by Origami and the live sets Kaizokuban and Hinoko, the latter recorded with Kazuhisa Uchihashi, formerly of Ground Zero. In 2012 she issued Utabiko and the limited-edition collaboration Meteor with Haruka Nakamura. Early in 2013 she joined Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, Cornelius, and percussionist U-Zhaan for an NHK-FM New Year Concert Program session later released by Sakamoto’s Commmons label as Radio. That same year she contributed to Sakamoto and Taylor Deupree’s Disappearance, worked with Cornelius on a track for the Ghost in the Shell: Arise soundtrack, and delivered her first Speedstar Records release, the ambitious 0, which marked her commercial breakthrough. She also began appearing in theater productions, beginning with Go Aoki’s 9 Days Queen, and completed a nationwide tour of all 47 prefectures in support of 0; the live album 0% appeared in 2014.
That year she partnered with Gezan's Mahito the People on NUUAMM. Her fifth studio album, Mahoroboshiya, followed in 2016. In 2017 she recorded “ANGELNOIR” for the anime series 18if, issued a second NUUAMM album, w/ave, again with Mahito the People, and released the live set Pneuma featuring Hitoshi Watanabe on cello and double bass, Tatsuhisa Yamamoto on drums, and Jun Miyake on piano and flugelhorn. The Sweet William collaboration “Karakai” preceded her sixth studio album, qp, in 2018. The following year she supplied music for both the Nintendo Switch remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and its advertising campaign, issued the field-recording collection Ayukawa no shizuku, released a second Sweet William single titled “Amaneki,” and appeared on Polish composer Albert Karch’s Celestially Light.
Aoba established her own imprint, hermine, in 2020 and promptly issued the two-song single amuletum bouquet, the live recording “gift” at Sogetsu Hall, and the ambient piece “gift” BGM. She closed the year with the richly arranged chamber-folk release Windswept Adan, which quickly emerged as one of her most celebrated works. In February 2021 she released the acoustic single “Asleep Among Endives,” drawing inspiration from Kenji Miyazawa’s animated film Night on the Galactic Railroad.
Born in Urayasu, Chiba, in 1990 and raised in Kyoto Prefecture, Aoba first encountered music through Disney and Studio Ghibli soundtracks. At age 17 she began classical-guitar studies under the guidance of singer/songwriter Anmi Yamada. Her debut, the 2010 album Kamisori Otome (“Razor Girl”), was followed the next year by Origami and the live sets Kaizokuban and Hinoko, the latter recorded with Kazuhisa Uchihashi, formerly of Ground Zero. In 2012 she issued Utabiko and the limited-edition collaboration Meteor with Haruka Nakamura. Early in 2013 she joined Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, Cornelius, and percussionist U-Zhaan for an NHK-FM New Year Concert Program session later released by Sakamoto’s Commmons label as Radio. That same year she contributed to Sakamoto and Taylor Deupree’s Disappearance, worked with Cornelius on a track for the Ghost in the Shell: Arise soundtrack, and delivered her first Speedstar Records release, the ambitious 0, which marked her commercial breakthrough. She also began appearing in theater productions, beginning with Go Aoki’s 9 Days Queen, and completed a nationwide tour of all 47 prefectures in support of 0; the live album 0% appeared in 2014.
That year she partnered with Gezan's Mahito the People on NUUAMM. Her fifth studio album, Mahoroboshiya, followed in 2016. In 2017 she recorded “ANGELNOIR” for the anime series 18if, issued a second NUUAMM album, w/ave, again with Mahito the People, and released the live set Pneuma featuring Hitoshi Watanabe on cello and double bass, Tatsuhisa Yamamoto on drums, and Jun Miyake on piano and flugelhorn. The Sweet William collaboration “Karakai” preceded her sixth studio album, qp, in 2018. The following year she supplied music for both the Nintendo Switch remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and its advertising campaign, issued the field-recording collection Ayukawa no shizuku, released a second Sweet William single titled “Amaneki,” and appeared on Polish composer Albert Karch’s Celestially Light.
Aoba established her own imprint, hermine, in 2020 and promptly issued the two-song single amuletum bouquet, the live recording “gift” at Sogetsu Hall, and the ambient piece “gift” BGM. She closed the year with the richly arranged chamber-folk release Windswept Adan, which quickly emerged as one of her most celebrated works. In February 2021 she released the acoustic single “Asleep Among Endives,” drawing inspiration from Kenji Miyazawa’s animated film Night on the Galactic Railroad.
Albums
Singles
