KOTOKO

j-pop

KOTOKO (real name 堀川ことこ—Horikawa Kotoko), born on January 19, 1980 in Sapporo, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan, is a female j-pop electronic/dance vocalist whose songs draws on electro rock, techno and trance. She has released five albums (three associated with Geneon and two associated with I've Sound), twelve maxi singles (seventeen overall) and two DVDs that were released in the US. She also composes and writes lyrics (for herself as well as other singers in I've Sound) for numerous other song collections. She frequently works with the producers I've Sound, and has contributed songs to numerous anime and video games including Onegai Teacher, Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu, Onegai Twins, Ren'ai CHU!, Maria-sama ga Miteru, Hayate the Combat Butler, Colorful Kiss, Kannazuki no Miko, Starship Operators, Shakugan no Shana, and BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger. In 1999, she became a professional singer. Her first successful audition was with I've Sound, a team of producers using the talents of various female vocalists for their productions—best recognized for their many dating sim and eroge game soundtracks. Since then, she has performed opening and ending themes for a few anime and has gained significant recognition from her two I've Sound-related album releases. Her second album, Garasu no Kaze, released in June 2005 has been praised within multiple online communities. On October 13, 2005, she released her fourth maxi single, which featured a song from her Garasu no Kaze album, 4...