is a Japanese singer, lyricist, and former actress. Born and raised in

Edogawa, Tokyo is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. It takes its name from the Edo River that runs from north to south along the eastern edge of the ward. In English, it uses the name Edogawa City. The easternmost of the wards, it shares ...

, Goto began her musical career in 1999 when she joined

Morning Musume , formerly simply and colloquially referred to as , are a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most top ten singles with an ...

as the only third generation member. Her first single with the group, " Love Machine", topped the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

singles charts and sold over a million copies. Goto was the lead vocalist of the group up until her graduation from the group in 2002. While still a member of Morning Musume, Goto released her debut solo single, "Ai no Bakayarō", in 2001, which topped the Oricon charts. In 2003 she released her debut album, '' Makking Gold 1'', which debuted at number four on the Oricon album charts. In 2007, at her ''G-Emotion II: How to Use Sexy'' concert, Goto announced that she was graduating from

Hello! Project is a Japanese musical collective consisting of all female recording artists and groups under Up-Front Promotion, a subsidiary of Up-Front Group. The name was initially used as Michiyo Heike and Morning Musume's fan club name in 1999, but has s ...

. In 2008, Goto signed with

Avex Group is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...

sub-label

Rhythm Zone (RZN) is a record label in the Avex Group that releases urban contemporary Japanese music. History The label was founded in 1999 by Max Matsuura with a focus on urban music, signing M-Flo as its first artist, then followed by Exile. In 2000, ...

and returned to the music scene at A-nation '08. In 2009, under the stage name Sweet Black feat. Maki Goto, she released her debut

mini album A mini-LP or mini-album is a short vinyl record album or LP, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered full-length. It is distinct from an EP due to containing more tracks and a slightly longer running length. A ...

''Sweet Black''. Goto transferred to Avex Trax in 2010 and released her second mini-album, ''One'', which marked her official comeback as a singer.

Career

1999–2001: Morning Musume

In 1999, Goto was selected as the only member of the 3rd generation of

. The first single to feature Goto, " Love Machine", sold over a million copies, over nine times the number of copies they had sold for their previous single. Until her graduation from Morning Musume, she was one of the leading vocalists in most of the songs released. During her time in Morning Musume she was one of the founding members of

Petitmoni was a sub-unit of the Japanese idol girl group Morning Musume and associated with Hello! Project. It was formed by Up-Front Promotion in November 1999 as the second sub-group of Morning Musume. History Founded November 1999, the group initi ...

2001–2007: Solo career

Goto started a solo singing career in 2001 with the single "Ai no Bakayarō." Post-graduation she mostly concentrated on her solo career, and occasionally on temporary

units such as Gomattō,

Nochiura Natsumi was a one-off Hello! Project unit formed in 2004. The members were Maki Goto, Aya Matsuura and Natsumi Abe. The group was composed of soloists, similar to Gomattou, and released their only single, , on October 6, 2004. It reached 4th place on ...

, and

Def.Diva Def.Diva (often stylized as DEF.DIVA) was a "special group" formed in 2005 from the Hello! Project idol umbrella, and consisted of Aya Matsuura, Maki Goto, Natsumi Abe and Rika Ishikawa. The band's name is an abbreviation of the phrase "Defin ...

. As time passed, she increasingly concentrated on acting in addition to singing. She also performed at the

Asia Song Festival Asia Song Festival, A-Song-Fe or ASF, is an annual Asian pop music festival held in South Korea, since 2004. It is hosted by Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange (KOFICE) and features artists from Asian countries. Participating ar ...

2005 in Busan, Korea, representing Japan. In early 2007, Goto was chosen to be a member of Morning Musume Tanjō 10 Nen Kinentai – a unit created to celebrate Morning Musume's 10th anniversary as a group. Morning Musume Tanjō 10 Nen Kinentai also consisted of

Natsumi Abe is a Japanese singer and actress, a former member of Morning Musume, and currently a member of Dream Morning Musume. Biography Career She was born in Muroran, Hokkaidō, Japan. On August 13, 2003, she released her first single, "22 Sai no Wat ...

Kaori Iida is a Japanese pop singer and actress, associated with Hello! Project and best known as a founding member of the girl band Morning Musume. She has also recorded with the Morning Musume side project band Tanpopo and is currently a solo artist. Dur ...

Risa Niigaki is a Japanese actress and singer. She was a fifth-generation member of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume. She joined Morning Musume in 2001 along with 3 others- Ai Takahashi, Asami Konno and Makoto Ogawa. She grew up in Yokohama after movin ...

and

Koharu Kusumi is a Japanese actress, model, television personality, singer, and voice actress. In 2005, she became the only seventh generation member of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume, a part of Hello! Project. While Kusumi was in Morning Musume, she p ...

. Their first single, "

Bokura ga Ikiru My Asia is the first single of Morning Musume's tenth anniversary team Morning Musume Tanjō 10nen Kinentai. It was released on January 24, 2007, while the Single V DVD was released on February 21. The CD single had two editions. A limited edition whi ...

", was released on January 24, 2007. Goto's seventeenth single, , was released on April 11, 2007. On September 19, 2007, Goto's fourth original album ''

How to Use Sexy ''How to Use Sexy'' is the fourth studio album by Japanese pop singer Maki Goto. The album was released on September 19, 2007 via Piccolo Town in two editions: a regular edition with catalog number PKCP-5096 and a limited edition with catalog num ...

'' was released. Shortly after her brother's arrest, on October 28, 2007, during the final show of her ''G-Emotion II: How to Use Sexy'' tour, Goto suddenly announced to fans that she would be graduating from Hello! Project and leaving Up-Front Agency. Because of her graduation, she would not be able to participate in the Hello! Project 2008 Winter concert tour, previously said to be because of scheduling conflicts. In 2018, Goto revealed that Up-Front Agency had suddenly asked her to leave the company despite already booking her for work, and at the time, she felt that she was unable to say anything. She had originally planned on retiring from the entertainment industry, but reconsidered upon her mother's advice.

2007–2011: Label change to Avex, ''Sweet Black Project''

Late in 2007, after her sudden Hello! Project graduation, rumors arose the very next day stating that Avex's CEO, Max Matsuura, had shown interest in signing Goto in for Avex. During Goto's brother trial, she disappeared from the media-eye. Goto's official blog reopened on March 25, 2008. Over the course of several entries, she revealed that she was in Los Angeles, California, taking singing and dancing lessons. On June 19, 2008, Goto had signed with the record label

under

Avex is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi Hamasaki and internet sensation PikoTaro. It has also shifted into other busi ...

. Maki debuted with Avex when she participated in the company's shareholders' meeting on June 22, 2008, singing a cover of Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love for You." She also participated in A-nation'08. At A-nation, she performed the self-written song "Hear Me", drawing media attention for the first time since her graduation. She also sang "Saving All My Love for You", and a cover of Diana King's "Shy Guy". In 2008, Goto became involved with The Sweet Black Project, a cross-media collaboration between

J-Wave J-Wave is a commercial radio station based in Tokyo, Japan, broadcasting on 81.3 FM from the Tokyo Skytree to the Tokyo area. J-Wave airs mostly music, covering a wide range of formats. The station is considered the most popular among FM broad ...

and

Mixi is an online Japanese social networking service. It was founded in 1999 and is owned by Mixi, Inc. (). As of September 2012, Mixi had about 14 million monthly active users, with about 8.6 million of those on smartphones. Mixi, Inc. was founded b ...

. Goto herself chose the logo and the name, which is meant to reflect the "positive and negative" side of the life of today's women. On January 5, 2009, J-Wave premiered ''Sweet Black Girls'', a 15-minute segment hosted by Goto and Ryū as part of the popular radio show "PLATOn". The show airs from Monday to Friday and focuses on the life of women in their twenties. 30,000 messages were received during the first week alone. To complete the project, Mixi opened a special space for Sweet Black, and Avex launched a web-documentary on YouTube based on Goto's daily routine as a singer. Promotions were met with immediate success, admittedly beyond expectations. On January 21, 2009, Goto released her first digital single with Avex, titled "Fly Away". The lyrics, penned by Maki herself, are based on Mambo, a story written by

Hitomi Kanehara is a Japanese novelist. Her novel ''Hebi ni piasu'' (''Snakes and Earrings'') won the Shōsetsu Subaru Literary Prize and the Akutagawa Prize, and sold over a million copies in Japan. Her work has been translated into more than a dozen languages ...

. On February 25, Goto released her second digital single, titled Lady-Rise, also penned by herself. This time, Goto collaborated with Erika Sakurazawa, a Japanese

Josei manga , also known as and its abbreviation , is an editorial category of Japanese comics that emerged in the 1980s. In a strict sense, ''josei'' refers to manga marketed to an audience of adult women, contrasting ''shōjo'' manga, which is marke ...

author. On March 7, 2009, Goto modelled at

Tokyo Girls Collection The , sometimes abbreviated as TGC, is a semiannual fashion festival launched in 2005. It is mainly held near Tokyo area and some local cities such as Kitakyushu, Nagoya and Okinawa. The fashion event showcases the seasons fashionable streetwear by ...

. Goto released her second mini album, "One", on July 28, 2010. This album and on she had begun to use her actual name rather than her "Sweet Black" stage name. As promotion for this release, Goto appeared on several television shows. One particular show, "Kinyoubi no Suma tachi e", aired a 2-hour special on her life, and included interviews with Goto as well as a performance of one of her new songs, 華詩-hanauta-, written for her mother. This episode reached 19.3% ratings for the show, making it the most watched program of the day. She released her third EP, ''LOVE'', on May 5, 2011.

2012–present: Recording hiatus and return to public appearances

On June 22, 2011, Goto announced on her official website that she would take an indefinite hiatus from her music career beginning in 2012. She continued to make limited minor appearances at public events, such as

Dream Morning Musume is a Japanese female pop group, consisting of 10 former members of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume. It was created in 2011. As with Morning Musume, the group is managed by the Up-Front Agency and produced by Tsunku. During the announcem ...

's concert and starred in a commercial for ''

Monster Hunter is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fantasy-themed action role-playing video games that started with the game ''Monster Hunter'' for the PlayStation 2, released in 2004. Titles have been released across a variety of platforms, ...

''. However, in 2014, Goto relaunched her blog stating that she was not "resuming activities right now," and that she will "still eon hiatus." In September 2018, Goto made her first television appearance in six years on the variety show ''Trio Idol na Onna''. In August 2022, Goto, wearing the "Venus" character costume, competed in the second season of The Masked Singer Japan. She advanced to the final round, along with Mika Ahn and Kouji Yamamoto, and was ultimately declared the winner. In November of the same year, Goto released her first album in 11 years, a collection of covers originally performed on her YouTube channel, entitled ''Songs of You and Me!''

Personal life

Goto's official nickname in

is "Gomaki", and she is referred to that name sometimes by the press. In 1996, Goto's father died from a fall while mountaineering. Two years after joining

, at the age of 15, Goto purchased a three-story house for her entire family to live in. However, she was also bullied and decided to drop out of high school. Goto has two older sisters and a young brother named Yuki Goto, the rapper of EE Jump. After Yuki was arrested on October 20, 2007 for robbery, the magazine ''Flash'' stated that Goto and one of Yuki's accomplices had been romantically involved for some time after meeting at Yūki's wedding in 2005. They have not been in contact with each other since his arrest. On January 23, 2010, Goto witnessed her mother, Tokiko Goto, falling from the third story of their house in Edogawa, Tokyo at 11 pm. Tokiko was rushed to the hospital, but died from her injuries on January 24 at 1:13 am. Goto announced on her blog on July 22, 2014 that she had married. She gave birth to a daughter and a son on December 7, 2015, and March 27, 2017, respectively. In March 2019, Japanese weekly magazines reported Goto having an extramarital affair with her 28-year-old ex-boyfriend, who she met in 2011 and kept in contact through online games. Messages between them had suggested Goto was abused by her husband and planned to divorce him; however, she apologized for the affair on her blog and called the domestic abuse allegations "misleading." Goto's husband is suing the ex-boyfriend for for damages.

Discography

* '' Makking Gold 1'' (2003) * '' 2 Paint It Gold'' (2004) * '' 3rd Station'' (2005) * ''

'' (2007) * '' Ai Kotoba (Voice) (2011) * ''Songs of You and Me!'' (2022)

Photobooks

* 001.11.06 * 003.03.21Maki * 003.09.?? – ''with

Mari Yaguchi is a Japanese singer, actress, and television personality. She joined the girl group Morning Musume in 1998 as a second generation member and was the leader of subgroups within Hello! Project, such as Mini-Moni, Morning Musume Sakuragumi, and ZY ...

and

'' * 003.06.27More Maki * 004.04.24Prism * 004.07.23 * 005.04.26Dear... * 006.08.21Foxy Fungo * 011.11.27Go to Natura...

Essay books

* 002.09.?? * 002.12.?? * 003.09.23 * 003.12.?? * 005.04.07

Filmography

Films

Television dramas

* 001 *

002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'', *1965 Italian film *Zero Two, a ''Darling in the Franxx'' character Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 ...

003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: *003, fictional British 00 Agent *003, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian ambulance service (until 1986) *1990 OO3, the asteroid 6131 Towen * OO3 gauge model railway *''O03 (O2)'' and other related ...

R.P.G. * 005 * 006

Musicals

* 004 * 007

Radio

* 003–20?? * 003–2005 * 009–

Tours

Headlining

* * (2004) * (2004) * (2004) * (2005) * (2006)

Concert participation

* A-Nation'08: Avex All Cast Special Live (2008) * A-Nation for Life (2011)

References

External links

*
Sweet Black Girls Blog
*
J!-ENT's Dennis A. Amith interviews Maki Goto (English Interview – 10/13/09)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goto, Maki 1985 births Def.Diva members Hello! Project solo singers Japanese women pop singers 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese singers Japanese child singers Japanese female idols Living people Morning Musume members Petitmoni members Actresses from Tokyo Singers from Tokyo 21st-century Japanese actresses Japanese dance music singers Japanese synth-pop singers Japanese women in electronic music