Eric Fukusaki

Eric Fukusaki was born on April 27, 1991 in Lima, Peru.[1][2] His mother is Chinese Peruvian and his father is Japanese Peruvian.[3] Part of the third generation of Japanese diaspora,[2] Fukusaki is the middle child between brothers Dennis and Kenneth.[4] He was raised listening to enka from his parents. Starting at the age of 12, he participated in singing competitions, winning several of them.[5][6] In 2008, he traveled to Brazil and won a competition meant to "represent the colony". He later traveled to Japan with his parents for a month to participate in another contest.[5] With his siblings, along Hisae and Mabi, they formed the band Akinee. However, he decided to emigrate to Japan in 2009 at the age of 18 to pursue a music career in enka.[2][7][8] He lived in Japan for a year in order to "take in the ambience [of the music in the country]". Upon his return to Peru, musician Kazufumi Miyazawa called him to suggest taking part in Nipponia, a concert which takes place in Okinawa targeting Japanese diaspora.[5]

Together with Munehiko Ohno, Fukusaki was selected by Up-Front Works in February 2011 to establish a group to sing in Japanese, Spanish, and English.[7] Seeking to "unite Japan with the world", Alma Kaminiito released its debut single in April 2012.[9][10] It ranked in the top 10 of the Billboard Japan Hot 100.[7] In August, the pair embarked on its first Alma Kaminiito 1st Live "Uno" concert.[11] In December of that year, Alma Kaminnito released its first album Alma Covers, which contains Spanish and English-language covers of Japanese songs from the 1980s and 1990s.[7][10] In 2013, Ohno announced his departure from the group, resulting in its dissolution.[12]

By the end of the year, Fukusaki announced his plan to debut as a soloist.[12] On April 9, 2014, Fukusaki released his debut single "Shinjiru Mono ni Sukuwareru"/"Subete no Kanashimi ni Sayonarasuru tame ni"/"Tsuioku".[2] "Ai Yai Yai!"/"Ikanaide Señorita" was released as his second single on August 19, 2015.[2] In 2017, he composed the single "Peanut Butter Jelly Love" for idol girl group Country Girls, his first contribution for another music act.[13] He also wrote "Fiesta! Fiesta!" for idol girl group Juice=Juice, where he also provided the Spanish lines on the track.[14] Following two years of absence, Fukusaki released his first cover mini-album Aru Koi no Monogatari on August 23.[15] This was followed by the release of his third single "Kazaranai Uta" on October 4.[16]

• Official website