SINGAPORE – Is it haughty to call yourself one of the last rock stars? Perhaps, but samurai guitarist Miyavi embraces the name.
The 41-year-old Japanese guitarist and musician, known for his unique finger-slapping style of playing that has earned him the moniker “samurai” (which refers to members of the warrior caste in Japanese history), is part of a Japanese rock supergroup called The Last Rockstars. Formed in 2022, the quartet includes X Japan’s Yoshiki, L’Arc-en-Ciel’s Hyde and Luna Sea’s Sugizo.
“I was the first one who said yes (to the name). We had some other options, but we were talking about how we were going to make this band like we’re the last rock stars. And I was like, ‘Hey, that’s cool. We should go for it’,” says Miyavi in a video conference call with The Straits Times ahead of his solo gig at Marina Bay Sands on July 22.
Born in Osaka, Miyavi, whose real name is Takamasa Ishihara, is based in Los Angeles. He started his career as part of the visual kei rock band Due le Quartz, which split in 2002, and was part of the short-lived supergroup S.K.I.N with Yoshiki, Sugizo and musician Gackt in 2007.
Visual kei is a Japanese music movement which started in the late 1980s, and is influenced by glam rock and other rock music styles from that period.
“When I’m solo, all the responsibility is on me. Creatively, I can go any way I want, I can experiment. But with a band, there’s always chemistry,” he says in fluent English. “It’s like what Yoshiki said, we’re the Avengers of Japanese rock.”
As the baby of The Last Rockstars (Yoshiki, Sugizo and Hyde are all in their 50s), Miyavi says: “I do feel like they’re my older brothers. But when we’re onstage, we just go crazy.”
Outside of the supergroup, Miyavi has a prolific solo career that includes acting. He has been in Hollywood movies like Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil (2019) and voices the character of Finn in the animated series Arcane (2021 to present).
As a musician, Miyavi does more than rock, collaborating with artistes of different genres, including K-pop. His song Hush Hush featured K-pop soloist Kang Daniel.
Born to a Korean-Japanese father and a Japanese mother, Miyavi says of K-pop’s success in the United States: “I know some K-pop artistes and producers, and I know how ambitious they are and how much effort they put into their work. It’s stunning. I can feel their passion and that aggressiveness in their blood because I am half-Korean as well. I respect the way they have carved a path, not just in music but also in movies. It’s great for all Asians. The door is opening.”
Japanese music, however, has not found as much of a global audience.
The star says: “Japan is so isolated because of the language barrier and our cultural differences. It has pros and cons, it is unique, but at the same time it’s hard to go global. There’s a lack of aggressiveness (in marketing Japanese music to the world), but I think it’s changing. That’s the reason why I’m here, as part of the supergroup, it’s why I’m in Hollywood films.”
Not one to rest on his laurels, Miyavi, who had to stop touring during the Covid-19 pandemic years, staged free virtual live concerts which he streamed on YouTube, including one at the historic 1,200-year-old Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto.
The videos in which he jammed with his daughters Aily, 13, and Jewelie, 12, also gained popularity during that time. Miyavi is married to Japanese-American singer Melody, and the couple also have a two-year-old boy named Skyler.
Asked if he worked hard to cultivate a love of music in his kids, he says: “That’s a delicate thing. As parents, you don’t want to tell your children: ‘You have to be this or that.’ Our stance is that we observe, support and sometimes guide them.
“Aily plays the drums and Jewelie plays the keyboard. They sing well – they get that from their mother. Music is just part of our lives. They could be doctors or lawyers or anything, I’ll give them time to explore.”
While he is a loving father to three kids, Miyavi still has the spirit of rock – specifically visual kei – in him. The smoky eyes, black lipstick and wild, long hair of his Due le Quartz days may have been replaced by bleached short hair, earrings and tattoos, but he says: “I’m still visual kei, it’s all about attitude and creation.”
Book It/Miyavi Live In Singapore 2023
Where: Hall D, Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, 10 Bayfront Avenue
When: July 22, 8.30pm
MRT: Bayfront
Admission: $88 via Marina Bay Sands (marinabaysands.com)
