Yoko Takahashi


Yoko Takahashi is a Japanese singer, who is best known for her work throughout the 1990s, most particularly for her singles which were performed for and featured in anime, most notably the Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise.

Early life

Takahashi began learning piano from her father at the age of two, and was a member of the Takinogawa Boys and Girls Choir when she was in elementary school. At the age of ten, she participated in an image album for Osamu Tezuka's work. In high school, she formed a band. In college, she was active in a light music club and aimed to become an opera singer.
Her younger brother is composer Gou Takahashi. His wife, Arimi Matsuno, is her sister-in-law. She has an older sister who is a voice trainer. She also has an older brother. Her parents are from Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture. Her paternal grandfather was a palace carpenter.

Career

Takahashi began her career in 1991, and released her first album, Pizzicato, in 1992, which reached #28 on the Oricon weekly charts. In the following years, she released the albums Kugatsu no Sotsugyō which charted, and Watashi wo Mitsukete, which did not achieve the same success of her previous albums.
In 1995, she released the single "A Cruel Angel's Thesis", which was used as the opening song in the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. The song has received gold and platinum certifications, charted on the Oricon weekly chart numerous times, and has frequently been cited as one of the most influential songs used in anime. She has remixed and released several versions of the single, which have been met with the same commercial success.
In 1996, she released the album Living with Joy. Following her achievements with music, she continued to release singles and albums throughout the 2000s and 2010s, for which she was met with mixed success.
Takahashi's other works in anime includes performing an "acid bossa" version of "Fly Me to the Moon", and Tamashii No Refrain, the closing theme of Evangelion: Death and Rebirth.
She also performed "Metamorphose", the opening theme to studio Gainax's 20th anniversary series, This Ugly Yet Beautiful World, the ending theme "Yoake Umarekuru Shōjo" for the anime Shakugan no Shana, and the opening theme "Aoki Flamme" for Pumpkin Scissors.

Discography

Singles

As Yawmin

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