{"id":214577,"date":"2025-09-10T04:18:21","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T04:18:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/214577\/"},"modified":"2025-09-10T04:18:21","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T04:18:21","slug":"yoshiki-its-a-whole-package","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/214577\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoshiki | It\u2019s a Whole Package"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/VERSACE<\/strong><\/a> coat. GOODFIGHT<\/strong><\/a> top and tie.<\/p>\n

At a time when the word is so frequently overused, Yoshiki is perhaps the modern era\u2019s first true multi-hyphenate. A once-in-multiple-generations musical talent from Japan\u2014Yoshiki is both a prodigious classical pianist and former frontman of epochal 80s glam rock band, X Japan. Decades removed from the tragedies that plagued the ill-fated group, it\u2019s still difficult to overstate\u2014or even metabolize\u2014Yoshiki\u2019s lasting impact on the musical history of his country, and consequently, the cultural landscape of the world at large. Now a lauded philanthropist, vintner, and owner of Y by Yoshiki, as well as clothing designer for Maison Yoshiki Paris and Yoshikimono, Yoshiki extends himself to all of his pursuits with a nonpareil zealousness. But the focus, the majority of the time, is music.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

His journey began very young, displaying savant-like ability, writing a classical song at the age of 10 to the surprise of his mother.\u00a0 Following the tragic, sudden death of his father, Yoshiki parlayed his grief and innate musicianship into a penchant for drumming: he started a rock band with bosom friend Toshimitsu Deyama (Toshi)\u00a0 and played in front of his school. \u201cPeople kind of freaked out,\u201d Yoshiki reflects.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rest is very rich, nuanced, and heavily mythologized musical history.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/DOLCE & GABBANA<\/strong><\/a> sweater and shoes. ENTIRE STUDIOS<\/strong> <\/a>tank top.\u00a0ATELIER CILLIAN<\/strong> <\/a>pants. AKILA<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>sunglasses. PIANEGONDA<\/strong><\/a> bracelets.<\/p>\n

In 1982, Yoshiki and Toshi formed X Japan. Lasting roughly 15 years, the band was one of the first Japanese acts to achieve mainstream success on an independent label. They\u2019re credited as being pioneers of the Visual Kei movement, an onstage aesthetic with pyrotechnical qualities and makeup similar to that of Western glam rock. In their heyday, X Japan sold 30 million copies, played sold-out stadiums to crowds of tens of thousands, and put out a consistent stream of radio hits.<\/p>\n

This was until 1997, when Toshi left the group because he\u2019d been brainwashed into the cult \u201cHome of Heart.\u201d The band played one final legendary stadium show. The following year, the guitarist, Hide, committed suicide, causing a wave of copycat suicides among fans. The band remained apart until 2008, after which Toshi reintegrated from the \u201cHome of Heart\u201d cult\u2014X Japan was back together, and played at Coachella in 2018, before going silent once again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\/FERRARI<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>coat. ENTIRE STUDIOS<\/strong> <\/a>tank top. SAAF GARMENTS<\/strong><\/a> pants. MAISON YOSHIKI <\/strong><\/a>bracelet. PIANEGONDA<\/strong><\/a> ring.<\/p>\n

In 2023, Yoshiki was the first Japanese artist to be honored with a hand and footprint ceremony in nearly 100 years at Grauman\u2019s Chinese Theatre. He was named one of Time Magazine\u2019s 100 most influential people in 2025, and he has played sold out shows as a concert pianist at Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, and alongside the Tokyo Philharmonic.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yoshiki\u2019s mysterious yet solid presence has been carved out of decades of hard work. Although he has a natural ability, he says that ability would not matter if it weren\u2019t for dedicated practice at his craft. \u201cYou need to go through years or decades of practicing to get to the point where you can play somewhere like Carnegie Hall,\u201d Yoshiki says, his voice soft and full of an honest-to-goodness humility not often found in someone so lauded. \u201cFor instance, the first year they asked me to play Carnegie I went through hell. Whenever I had time, whether it be five minutes or five hours, I just practiced piano.\u201d Note: this dedication hasn\u2019t changed. \u201cI have another show coming next year, so when I have 30 seconds or one minute I just practice piano. And I believe that kind of effort, people feel it, and appreciate it, they appreciate that dedication to the art. And that applies to every art form; film, fashion, anything.\u201d So, in order to be a great musician, it takes natural ability and work ethic? \u201cAlso,\u201d he adds, \u201cthe musician puts their entire life into the art.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\/THEO<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>coat. <\/strong>DSQUARED2<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>sunglasses.<\/p>\n

Yoshiki is deeply intelligent and thoughtful. He thinks often about the state of music currently, and where it\u2019s going\u2014notably, what human music looks like with the addition of artificial intelligence. Yoshiki, always the forward-thinking creator, responds to AI in music with laughter and curiosity. \u201cWell, we can have a piano robot. And it plays by itself as amazing as people can play, but at the same time, will people appreciate it the same way?\u201d Yoshiki then expands, \u201cIf, with just one button and five seconds, you can create art, who cares? People want to be impressed with art and appreciate it, and I think it\u2019s the process of creating the art that is very important, as important as creating the art itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yoshiki\u2019s creative process is a necessarily intuitive one. \u201cWhen I compose music I just use a pen. I don\u2019t use musical instruments, I compose everything in my head.\u201d The process is made all the more interesting because, currently, Yoshiki is producing new albums from three different genres: classical, EDM, and rock. \u201cThe most important part of my process is about making a great melody. Sometimes the same melody applies to every genre. To me the genres are not that different.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though he dabbles in genre, Yoshiki operates primarily in classical modalities. His favorite composers are Beethoven, Chopin, and Rachmaninoff because \u201cAfter 200 years people still play and listen to them.\u201d If he had to listen to a singular song for the rest of his life, it would be \u2018Rachmaninoff\u2019s Piano Concerto No. 2.\u2019 It\u2019s a long song,\u201d he says laughing, \u201cIt\u2019s not like two minutes that you would have to repeat for the rest of your life. It\u2019s like 30 minutes or so.\u201d<\/p>\n

What if it was a rock song? \u201cI gotta choose a long rock song. I composed a song called \u2018Art of Life.\u2019 It\u2019s like 30 minutes long. So, I would listen to my own song.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\/DZOJCHEN<\/strong><\/a> jacket. PIANEGONDA<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>necklace and ring.<\/p>\n

That difference between listening to a long classical song as opposed to a shorter one catalyzes within us the unavoidable ritual within the industry today: a conversation regarding the ever-shortening human attention span and what it means for the business. The musician versus the algorithm, the industry versus the platform. These days, it seems hard to find a song longer than two minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s because of the streaming format. The algorithm.\u201d Yoshiki says. \u201cAll you have to do is get people to listen to more than 30 seconds and that is considered a whole listen. From a business side, even if you compose something that is five or 10 minutes, technically only the first 30 seconds matter to the algorithm.\u201d<\/p>\n

But we didn\u2019t just wake up one day and find ourselves here, Yoshiki notes. The interplay between medium and profit has been an engineer of change in the industry for as long as it\u2019s existed. \u201cThe CD was born [to hold about 70-something minutes.] Because Sony\u2014who contributed a lot in creating the CD\u2014wanted to have something with a symphony on it without going from A side to B side.\u201d He continues, \u201cMy point is that the distribution systems influence people who compose music. Right now, obviously streaming is the main thing, so that\u2019s affecting it. Unless we change how artists make money for whatever the format, it will stay very short. Also, consider social media like TikTok shortening music. I\u2019m not saying these are bad\u2014it just is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\/LOEWE<\/strong><\/a> jacket, shirt, and shorts. MAISON YOSHIKI<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>necklace. DSQUARED2<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>boots.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yoshiki\u2019s career has outlasted a handful of musical medium mutations. He\u2019s been rocking for decades now, but when asked about his nostalgia for other eras, he responds \u201cI like where we are. Obviously I don\u2019t know what will happen 100 years from now. But I\u2019ve seen all of it, from when I was born going from vinyl to CD, then from CD to download, then from download to stream. I got to deal with all of those format changes. When I started music there was no internet or anything. I\u2019m a positive person. It\u2019s a very challenging time, but I don\u2019t hate it.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is a quality to Yoshiki that feels incredibly grounded. It is funny to speak to him when you think of the way he expresses himself sartorially: Yoshiki, the rock legend, is a vibrant mononymous entity boasting both feminine and masculine qualities\u2014his clothes vibrant, his aura curated from years of studying punk rock. But he remains working and eschews any sort of legend or grandiose status. \u201cAs of now I don\u2019t have a life,\u201d he says, \u201cI just work like 16 or 18 hours a day. As soon as I wake up I\u2019m working. Practicing the piano in the morning. Then going to a recording or a fashion thing or tasting the wine [Yoshiki speaks of his own wine brand Y by Yoshiki]. But at the same time I feel grateful. I love what I do. It\u2019s all creating art.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\/DZOJCHEN<\/strong><\/a> jacket and pants. PIANEGONDA<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>necklace and ring.<\/p>\n

As for being a legend? \u201cI say, \u2018Wow, that\u2019s kind of cool people say that,\u2019 but I don\u2019t feel like that at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yoshiki is confident, not only about where his music is going but also the future of music. Alongside creating his own albums, he produces various bands: a new girls J-Pop group called Bi-ray and a boys group XY, as well as keeping the flame alive for future classical musicians, an art form that one could say may be waning in the world of short-form music. \u201cIt\u2019s a whole package with classical music,\u201d he considers. \u201cHow to make things exciting? The visuals. The stage. But classical music has a good side, where it can be very strict-ish or conservative-ish, but last time I played Carnegie Hall I brought my drums and I played one drum solo with an orchestra. I also played Royal Albert Hall, and with that I made classical music flashy. Either way, I\u2019m making classical music right now\u2026 I hope I can contribute and incentivize people to make classical music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yoshiki is vast. That may explain why he can be hard to find at times, or, figure out how to categorize him. Why would you want to do that, anyway? But, what does he have his hands on? His famous drum set? His famous piano? Or is he diving into his passion as a philanthropist, as an entrepreneur, as a clothing designer.<\/p>\n

Or. Or. Or.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Maybe he can make a melody out of that one day.<\/p>\n

Until then:<\/p>\n

Yoshiki rocks. Yoshiki rolls.<\/p>\n

With the hardcore nature of a headbanger.<\/p>\n

And the beautiful grace of an orchestra.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/FERRARI<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>coat.<\/p>\n

Photographed by Yanran Xiong<\/a><\/p>\n

Styled by Chris Chidi<\/a><\/p>\n

Written by Augustus Britton<\/a><\/p>\n

Hair: Virginie Pineda<\/a> at the Visionaries Agency<\/a><\/p>\n

Makeup: Carolina Ballesteros<\/a> at Opus Beauty<\/a><\/p>\n

Production Assistant: Rachel Lee<\/a><\/p>\n

Flaunt Film: Simon Gulergun<\/a><\/p>\n