Japanese actress Kokoro Asano has attracted attention after revealing that performing live on stage once made her far more nervous and embarrassed than appearing in front of a camera.
Known for her large eyes and bright smile, Asano has been gradually expanding her career beyond acting, taking on music and writing while opening up about her experiences growing up in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture.
Unlike many actresses who prefer to keep their hometowns private to avoid being recognized by people they knew growing up, Asano chose to take a different approach. Speaking to SPA!, she revealed that she deliberately decided to film her debut project in Sendai, even using locations that were only about a 10-minute walk from her childhood home. The footage was filmed on streets she used to ride her bicycle along when she was younger.
At first, Asano said the experience felt strange. However, she eventually realized that filming in familiar surroundings allowed her to see her hometown from an entirely different perspective. The decision also reflected her desire to directly confront her choice to pursue a career in entertainment.
While appearing in front of a camera did not particularly frighten Asano, performing live was a completely different story. Not long after beginning her career, the head of her management company unexpectedly asked her to try performing music in front of a live audience.
For Asano, the request was a major challenge. She described herself as a relatively introverted child. When she was younger, she would often hide her face behind long bangs and wear glasses. She had even never sung karaoke in front of her friends. As a result, the idea of standing on a stage with a microphone and performing in front of an audience seemed almost impossible to her.
Asano admitted that live performance was something she had once never imagined herself doing—and that the experience initially made her feel even more embarrassed than appearing on camera.
Despite being extremely nervous at first, Asano gradually learned to overcome her lack of confidence. Her live performances eventually helped her build her own audience and gain a following beyond her acting work. Interestingly, her song choices tend to focus on nostalgic tracks originally performed by some of Japan’s most celebrated male artists, including Keisuke Kuwata, Noriyuki Makihara, and Yutaka Ozaki.
Among the artists she performs, Yutaka Ozaki holds a particularly special place for Asano. Although Ozaki died in 1992—years before Asano was born—the singer’s performances left a powerful impression on her. Asano said she happened to watch a video of Ozaki on YouTube and quickly became fascinated by the intense emotion he displayed while performing on stage. His passionate performance style appears to have influenced the young actress as she continues developing her own musical identity.
Asano is also exploring another creative outlet: writing. Through her personal blog on the Japanese publishing platform note, she regularly shares introspective pieces focusing on her emotions, psychological experiences, and memories from growing up in Sendai.
Rather than presenting herself as a celebrity who is constantly happy and carefree, Asano openly explores difficult memories and negative emotions from her past. She explained that writing about happiness can sometimes feel difficult to express naturally. By contrast, sad experiences can create a stronger sense of empathy with readers.
Asano has said that reading works filled with sadness once helped her feel less alone. Now, she hopes her own writing can provide a similar sense of comfort to people going through difficult periods in their lives.
After experimenting with acting, singing, and writing, Asano is now taking another step in her musical journey by learning to perform with an acoustic guitar. The new skill represents another part of her effort to develop a more personal identity in the entertainment industry. Rather than being known solely as an actress, Asano hopes to show audiences different sides of herself through music and writing.
Her journey—from a shy girl who was too nervous to sing in front of friends to an entertainer capable of performing on stage and connecting with her own audience—highlights how much she has changed in confronting her insecurities.
Moving forward, Asano plans to continue practicing acoustic guitar while developing a more thoughtful and introspective image through her work in entertainment.
Sources: gamek