01
The Weird Music Kid
I was a pretty unusual kid.
While most of my friends were listening to J-pop, I was obsessed with Pixar films and their soundtracks. When I was eight years old, one of my school assignments asked us to write down our favorite music artist. Most kids wrote the names of pop stars. I wrote Randy Newman.
I was also constantly singing. Whether it was songs from Pokémon or J-pop, music was always playing in my head.
My mom was a huge fan of K-pop and K-dramas, so Korean music was a big part of my childhood. Growing up, I was more familiar with K-pop than Japanese music.
I had already fallen in love with movies, songs, and the emotions that music could create. When I was ten years old, I started taking piano lessons.
I didn't know it yet, but that was the first step toward becoming a composer.
02
The Music Behind the Magic
By the time I reached junior high and high school, my love for music had turned into a full-blown obsession.
I was completely immersed in the world of Disney. Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars weren't just movies to me. They were part of my daily life. I watched Disney Channel every day, spent weekends watching Disney films, and made sure to see every new release in theaters.
The music followed me everywhere. While studying, I listened to film scores instead of regular playlists. Long before I understood orchestration or composition, I was fascinated by how music could make a scene feel exciting, emotional, or unforgettable.
I also loved singing songs from Disney Channel shows and movies. Looking back, I think that's where my two passions first came together: storytelling through film music and the joy of performing songs.
At the time, I was just a fan. I had no idea those two passions would eventually become my career.
03
I Could Do It Too
Getting my first PC changed everything.
Until then, I had only admired music from the outside. Suddenly, I realized I could create it myself. With a microphone, a guitar, and a computer, I started writing and recording my own songs.
Wanting to improve, I joined online beatmaker communities where producers from around the world shared music, challenged each other, and learned together. The internet became my classroom.
Before long, I wanted to bring orchestral sounds into my music. That's when I discovered virtual instruments and realized that cinematic music could be created from a bedroom studio. It felt like an entirely new world had opened up.
But that excitement came with a difficult realization.
I had started later than many musicians around me. I often wished I had continued piano lessons, learned more instruments, or gone to music school. For a long time, music was the thing I loved most, but life always seemed to demand my attention elsewhere. Even today, I have more ideas than hours in the day.
Instead of letting those obstacles define me, I decided to learn whatever stood between me and the music I wanted to create. Music production. Film scoring. Orchestration. Even English because I wanted to collaborate with people around the world.
I couldn't stop composing. Somewhere along the way, I realized I had fallen in love with film scoring.
04
The Journey Is Just Beginning
Eventually, all those late nights started to lead somewhere.
I decided to send some of my music to Yuki Hayashi, one of Japan's most renowned film composers. To my surprise, he replied. After a Zoom call, I visited his studio that very night, and before long, I became his assistant.
Today, I work alongside him, helping create music for films and television while continuing to learn from experienced professionals every day.
But I haven't forgotten where I came from.
I still love writing pop songs, collaborating with producers around the world, and exploring the K-pop influences that have been part of my life since childhood. My dream isn't to choose between being a film composer and a pop artist.
It's to become both.
Growing up, films gave me courage, and music stayed with me through every stage of my life. That's the kind of music I want to create, whether it's a film score that gives someone hope or a song that becomes part of their story.
If one day I can share that music with people around the world, it'll be my way of giving back to everyone who has believed in me. And if my journey encourages even one person to believe it's not too late to chase their dream, then every step will have been worth it.