Sayuri Japanese Singer (1996–2024)

Early life

Sayuri was born on 7 June 1996 in Fukuoka, Japan, and came from Shika Island in the city's Higashi ward. She picked up the guitar as a hobby, drawn to the idol group Kanjani Eight, and began composing in the second year of middle school. In her teens she played in the band Muu as guitarist and vocalist and in an acoustic duo called Longtal, where she used the name Asuka. She also performed on the street and at live venues in cities such as Hiroshima, Osaka and Nagoya.

Career

In 2012 Sayuri took the Grand Prix at the fifth Music Revolution finals as the youngest contestant. The following year she left school and moved to Tokyo. Although she played at live houses, she preferred street performances, which she had first treated as practice. Her first solo concert, "Yoake no Shitaku", took place in March 2015 at Tsutaya O-East in Tokyo. On 26 August 2015 she made her major debut with the single "Mikazuki", the closing theme of the anime Rampo Kitan: Game of Laplace.

Anime tie-ins shaped much of her recorded output. Her second single, "Sore wa Chiisana Hikari no Youna", released on 24 February 2016, was the ending theme of Erased and was written and composed by Yuki Kajiura. In December 2016 she collaborated with Yojiro Noda of Radwimps on "Furaregai Girl". "Parallel Line", released on 1 March 2017, was the closing song for both the anime and live-action versions of Scum's Wish, her first ending song for a Japanese television drama.

Her first album, Mikazuki no Koukai, was released on 17 May 2017. It reached the top of Oricon's daily album chart the day after release and placed third on the weekly chart. In November 2017 she performed at Tokyo Dome City Hall in what was then her largest solo concert.

In 2018 she released "Tsuki to Hanataba", the ending theme of Fate/Extra Last Encore, and performed at Anisong World Matsuri during Anime Expo in Los Angeles that July. In November that year she worked with My First Story on "Reimei", the second opening theme of Golden Kamuy. In August 2019 she gave two concerts in Mannheim at the AnimagiC convention, her first in Germany and her European concert debut. Her single "Kōkai no Uta", released on 27 November 2019, was the ending theme of the fourth season of My Hero Academia, and a world edition EP issued through Milan Records served as her international debut.

In 2020 she released "Aoibashi", the theme of the anime Sing "Yesterday" for Me, and an acoustic album titled Me. In October of that year she announced that she would sign with iTony Entertainment. Her recordings are also listed under the label Ariola Japan. The song "Kamisama" served as the opening theme of the drama Tokyo Kaiki Zake in March 2021, and "Sekai no Himitsu" became an ending theme of Edens Zero in September 2021. In July 2022 she released "Hana no Tō", the ending theme of Lycoris Recoil, and on 10 August 2022 her second album, Sanketsu Shōjo, followed. In October 2023 she appeared on the song "Akuma no Uta" by BAK. In July 2024 she announced a break from singing.

She worked mainly in J-pop. Her guitar playing was part of her act from the start. She called herself "2.5D Parallel Singer-Songwriter", and she was known for performing barefoot in a poncho.

Recognition

Her early success included the Music Revolution Grand Prix in 2012, which she won as the youngest finalist. Mikazuki no Koukai finished third on Oricon's weekly album chart. Her songs were chosen as theme music for a long list of anime series, including Erased, Scum's Wish, Fate/Extra Last Encore, Golden Kamuy, My Hero Academia, Sing "Yesterday" for Me, Edens Zero and Lycoris Recoil. Her YouTube channel had about 729,000 subscribers as of March 2025.

Personal life

On 18 March 2024 Sayuri announced that she had married Amaarashi, one half of the J-pop duo Misekai. She died on 20 September 2024.