Biography

Ai Otsuka (大塚 愛) is a Japanese pop female singer-songwriter and pianist who was born on the 9th of September, 1982, in Osaka, Japan. As a child she wanted to be a ballerina. She made her solo debut on September 10, 2003 with the single, “Momo no Hanabira” (桃ノ花ビラ). Her second single, “Sakuranbo” (さくらんぼ), released on the 17th of December 2003, was a major success, staying in the Top 200 Oricon Weekly Singles Chart for 85 weeks.

A piano player since the age of 4, Ai Otsuka started composition and songwriting at the age of 15. Her music ranges from upbeat catchy pop/rock music that can be heard in tracks like “Happy Days” and “さくらんぼ” to touching ballads like “大好きだよ。” and “甘えんぼ”. Several of her songs have also been used as theme songs, such as Planetarium in Hana Yori Dango, Cherish in Love for Nana, and フレンズ and ユメクイ for the Tokyo Friends drama and movie respectively (which she starred in).

She studied to go to Osaka University, and her highest level of education is junior college. She has stated in the past that when her music career ends, she’ll teach kindergarten (which she has a license to).