Ai Higuchi’s journey into music began with classical piano at just two years old, but her artistic evolution has been far from traditional. Over the years, she added violin, drums, guitar, and vocals to her toolkit, building a rich, multi-instrumental foundation. “Since my roots are in classical piano, I think my sense of tempo is more flexible compared to those who started with pop music,” she explains. “Even when performing live with the band, I often talk with the support members about how we approach rhythm.”

This flexibility and layered musicality are woven across her albums, including her most recent release, Unfinished Business. The title itself is a reflection of life’s persistent forward motion. “There are moments in life, especially as we get older, when we think, ‘Maybe that was my peak,’ or ‘This might be as good as it gets.’ But life keeps going beyond those points,” Ai says. “As long as we don’t give up, we can keep climbing new mountains. That’s the feeling I put into it.”

International audiences came to know Ai more intimately when she lent her haunting voice to Attack on Titan’s closing theme Akuma no Ko. Despite the global spotlight, her creative process remained the same. “I wrote the songs thinking, ‘What kind of music would make people have fun?’ or ‘What would get them excited?’” she says. “But after the songs were released, I was honestly shocked to see people overseas singing along to Japanese lyrics, or even getting tattoos of them! I never imagined my life would turn out this way, even now, it still surprises me.”

Ai’s openness to collaboration also led to the cross-cultural project Endless Love, created with French Celtic artist Cécile Corbel. The track beautifully merges Japanese and Celtic traditions, reflecting Ai’s willingness to cross musical and cultural boundaries in pursuit of emotion.

Her sense of place and personal identity are equally vital to her songwriting. “I really love Tokyo, but if I hadn’t lived in Nagano, a place you could call the countryside, I don’t think I could’ve written these kinds of songs,” she reflects. “That small world was everything to me, and the things that happened within it were, in my eyes, the entire world. The joys and sorrows I felt there became my songs.”

Unexpected inspirations also come from her hobbies, particularly football. “I’m a huge fan of the Premier League and watch most of the matches every weekend, especially as an Arsenal supporter!” she says with a laugh. “After hearing the anthems sung before matches, I was inspired to write a song that could unite people’s hearts and lift their spirits, just like those anthems do.”

Ai Higuchi’s music covers a wide range of feelings, from quiet reflections to songs fit for big stages. As she prepares to appear at Hyper Japan in London, her fans can look forward to a performance filled with the same sincerity and spirit that define her career.

Written and interviewed by Maggie Gogler

Image courtesy of Kazuharu Igarashi

_{View of the Arts is an online publication dedicated to films, music, and the arts, with a strong focus on the Asian entertainment industry. With rich content already available to our readers, we aim to expand our reach and grow alongside our audience by delving deeper into emerging platforms such as K-pop and Asian music more broadly. At the same time, we remain committed to exploring the vibrant and ever-evolving global landscape of film, music, and the arts, celebrating the immense talent and creativity that define these industries worldwide.}