Yoko Takahashi

Biography

Yoko Takahashi (高橋 洋子, Takahashi Yōko; born August 28, 1966) 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" (残酷な天使のテーゼ, Zankoku na Tenshi no Tēze), 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×Living with joy25 October 1996 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1新しいシャツ4:272Living with joy4:423Ooo baby baby4:484Hello winter〜Do space men pass dead souls on their way to the moon?3:335つめたい部屋の世界地図4:406ウェンディーの瞳4:067めぐり逢い4:148どこかにあるよ4:129シャンプー4:0810Snowscape4:4711Fly me to the moon ～Night In Indigo Blue Version～2:39. 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×FLY ME TO THE MOON25 October 1995 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1FLY ME TO THE MOON4:332FLY ME TO THE MOON –4 BEAT VERSION–4:393FLY ME TO THE MOON <OFF VOCAL VERSION>4:334FLY ME TO THE MOON –4 BEAT VERSION– <OFF VOCAL VERSION>4:37", and "Soul's 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" (夜明け生まれ来る少女; "The Girl Who was Born at Dawn") for the anime Shakugan no Shana (灼眼のシャナ; "Blazing-Eyed Shana"), and the opening theme "Aoki Flamme" (蒼き炎, Aoki Honō; "Blue Flame") for Pumpkin Scissors (パンプキン・シザーズ, Panpukin Shizāzu).