Maki Gotō
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is a Japanese singer, lyricist, and former actress. Born and raised in
Edogawa, Tokyo is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in 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 easternmo ...
, Goto began her musical career in 1999 when she joined
Morning Musume , formerly and commonly known as and colloquially referred to as , is a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon, Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most to ...
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 Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that ...
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 is the first studio album from Hello! Project solo artist Maki Goto. It was released on February 5, 2003. The first-press version comes in a special package with a photobook. Track listing # # # # # # # # # # # Oricon , esta ...
'', 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 ...
. In 2008, Goto signed with
Avex Group Avex Inc. ( kabushiki gaisha , commonly known as Avex and stylized as avex) is a Japanese Conglomerate (company), entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J- ...
sub-label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...
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 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 mini- ...
''Sweet Black''. Goto transferred to
Avex Trax is a record label owned by Japanese entertainment conglomerate Avex Inc. The label was launched in September 1990, and was the first label by the Group. History Two years after Max Matsuura began a career distributing studio albums from othe ...
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
Morning Musume , formerly and commonly known as and colloquially referred to as , is a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon, Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most to ...
. 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. Members First generation * Kei Yasuda * Say ...
.


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
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 ...
units such as
Gomattō was a one-shot Hello! Project group, similar to the Hello! Project shuffle units, that released one single called "Shall We Love?". The formation of Gomattō was announced in October 2002. The idea behind the trio was an R&B style dance-based ...
,
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 "Definite ...
. 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 a ...
2005 in Busan, Korea, representing Japan. In early 2007, Goto was chosen to be a member of
Morning Musume Tanjō 10 Nen Kinentai Morning is either the period from sunrise to noon, or the period from midnight to noon. In the first definition it is preceded by the twilight period of dawn, and there are no exact times for when morning begins (also true of evening and night) b ...
– 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 a member of Dream Morning Musume. Biography She was born in Muroran, Hokkaidō, Japan. Career On August 13, 2003, she released her first single, "22 Sai no Watash ...
,
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. ...
,
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 mo ...
and
Koharu Kusumi is a Japanese actress, model, television personality, and singer. In 2005, she became the only seventh generation member of the Japanese idol girl group Morning Musume, a part of Hello! Project. While Kusumi was in Morning Musume, she provided t ...
. Their first single, " Bokura ga Ikiru My Asia", 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 numb ...
'' 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
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 ...
under
Avex Avex Inc. ( kabushiki gaisha , commonly known as Avex and stylized as 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 ...
. 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 an 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, including J-pop, C-pop, and Western music, covering a wide range of formats. The station i ...
,
Avex Avex Inc. ( kabushiki gaisha , commonly known as Avex and stylized as 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 ...
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 ...
. 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 people, Japanese Japanese author, 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 translate ...
. 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 Prefecture, Okinawa. The fashion event showcases the seasons fas ...
. 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'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, beginning with first installment '' Monster Hunter'' for the PlayStation 2, released in 2004. Titles have been released across a variety of pl ...
''. 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 Mika is a given name, a nickname, and a surname. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People known just as Mika * Mika (singer) (born 1983), Lebanese-born British singer-songwriter Michael Penniman, Jr. * Mika (footba ...
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!'' On October 26, 2023, Goto debuted as a
virtual Youtuber A or is an online entertainer who uses a virtual Avatar (computing), avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated i ...
.


Personal life

Goto's official nickname in
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 ...
is , 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
Morning Musume , formerly and commonly known as and colloquially referred to as , is a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon, Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most to ...
, 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 younger brother named Yuki Goto, the rapper of
EE Jump EE Jump (stylized as EE JUMP) was a Japanese duo formed by Harmony Production in 2000. The duo's music was produced by Tsunku, with songs released through Toy's Factory. The members consisted of Sonim (lead vocals) and Yuki (rapper). EE Jump b ...
. After her brother 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, whom 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 Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. In a broader sense, abuse including nonphysical abuse in such settings is called domestic abuse. The term "domestic violence" is often use ...
allegations "misleading." Goto's husband is suing the ex-boyfriend for for damages.


Discography

* ''
Makking Gold 1 is the first studio album from Hello! Project solo artist Maki Goto. It was released on February 5, 2003. The first-press version comes in a special package with a photobook. Track listing # # # # # # # # # # # Oricon , esta ...
'' (2003) * ''
2 Paint It Gold is a Japanese singer, lyricist, and former actress. Born and raised in Edogawa, Tokyo, Goto began her musical career in 1999 when she joined Morning Musume as the only third generation member. Her first single with the group, " Love Machine", ...
'' (2004) * '' 3rd Station'' (2005) * ''
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 numb ...
'' (2007) * '' Ai Kotoba (Voice) (2011) * ''Songs of You and Me!'' (2022)


Photobooks

* 001.11.06 *
003.03.21 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''3'', a 2004 novel by Julie Hilden * ''Three'', a 1946 nov ...
Maki * 003.09.?? – ''with
Natsumi Abe is a Japanese singer and actress, a former member of Morning Musume, and a member of Dream Morning Musume. Biography She was born in Muroran, Hokkaidō, Japan. Career On August 13, 2003, she released her first single, "22 Sai no Watash ...
,
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
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. ...
'' *
003.06.27 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''3'', a 2004 novel by Julie Hilden * ''Three'', a 1946 n ...
More Maki *
004.04.24 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is a square number, the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. Evolution of the Hi ...
Prism * 004.07.23 *
005.04.26 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. Humans, and many other animals, have 5 digits on their limbs. Mathematics 5 is a Fermat pri ...
Dear... * 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: Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 OO2, the minor planet 7499 L'Aquila *1990 OO2, the asteroid 9175 Graun Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'' ...
*
002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 OO2, the minor planet 7499 L'Aquila *1990 OO2, the asteroid 9175 Graun Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'' ...
*
003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: * 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 blood type alleles in the AB ...
R.P.G. *
005 ''005'' (pronounced "''double-o five''") is a 1981 arcade video game by Sega. They advertised it as the first of their RasterScan Convert-a-Game series, designed so that it could be changed into another game in minutes "at a substantial savings. ...
*
006 Alec Trevelyan is a fictional character who is the main antagonist in the 1995 James Bond film ''GoldenEye,'' portrayed by actor Sean Bean. Bean's likeness was also used as the model for Alec Trevelyan in the 1997 video game '' GoldenEye 007' ...


Musicals

*
003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: * 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 blood type alleles in the AB ...
*
004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to: * 004, fictional British 00 Agent * 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California) * O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation * Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004 * Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine * La ...
*
007 The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...


Radio

* 003–20?? * 003–2005 * 009–


Tours


Headlining

* * (2004) * (2004) * (2004) * (2005) * (2006) * (2023) * (2024)


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 actresses 21st-century Japanese women singers 21st-century Japanese singers Japanese child singers Japanese female idols Living people Morning Musume members People from Edogawa, Tokyo Petitmoni members Actresses from Tokyo Singers from Tokyo Japanese dance music singers Japanese synth-pop singers Japanese women in electronic music VTubers Masked Singer winners