Seiko Oomori is a unique musician who expresses in her songs how much she loves music and writing lyrics. Seiko debuted in 2014 with her single “Kyuru Kyuru,” which was released by her record label Avex Trax. The song peaked at Number 32 on Japan’s billboards charts and soon after became a massive hit to alternative music lovers.
In 2024, she released This is Japanese Girl on the same day as her official debut anniversary ten years earlier. However, shortly after the album was released, Oomori announced that she would be leaving Avex Trax, which she recorded ten albums for, to work as a “DIY” soloist. This was a big deal for fans as it was unclear what she would be able to do without a label behind her.
I originally discovered her when I heard “Kyuru Kyuru” on Tik Tok. I also heard the song “Magic Mirror” which is from her album Tokyo Black Hole, which came out in 2016, and these two songs spurred my interest. This album is one of my favorites from her because the majority of the songs have a dreamy vibe and share different melodies in rock. For example, there will be a mixture of jazz piano in one song and in another there might be punk rock. All of the songs on the album have insane amounts of random instrumentals, and touch on rock and idol punk. This is a Japanese Girl got me further interested in her music and performances. The songs on this album have great melodies and collaborations. Her performances were different from the original audios, as she instead sings live using imitated emotions and plays bass using her own guitar. The album was a big success, and most of the songs received music videos which introduced new fans, like me, to her music.
One small problem is that her music can be hard to find in the U.S. I have listened to her on Youtube Music, but to really experience the album I had to buy a CD player in order to hear Tokyo Black Hole on CD. It was worth it though as it was enjoyable and an amazing album.
One of my favorite things about her is that she is insanely impressive as both a singer and songwriter. Oomori’s skills are so good that she has created her own agency, Tokyo Pink. The agency works with other rock and pop artists and has signed with The Pink Records. There will be multiple idol groups and more to come in the future. I like the groups she has created, which are called ZOC and ZOCX, two idol groups where she acts as the producer and is an active member. Now that she has remained an idol member while being a soloist, it can be a lot of work for her to take on.
Oomori has continued to perform as a soloist, continuously releasing albums and singles. Eventually, she moved into founding an independent agency in order to manage ZOC and her future idol groups. ZOC became a big failure due to verbal abuse initiated by Oomori. According to “This side of Japan” written by Ryo Miyauchi, Oomori said of the issue, “To explain how it got to the way it did, I made myself busy last year to protect myself mentally after so many things happening. But last month, I got some time off from work, and it messed up the rhythm I had and I started to lose a handle on myself.” Ultimately, the issue was due to stress and excessive work. The group came together and apologized for their actions. The incident impacted fans greatly, losing trust and hope in its leader and producer. ZOC now stands as ZOCX, a rebranded co-ed group with six members. From its comeback in 2025, Oomori successfully brought the group into a new light and direction, and today she and the group continue to thrive in the music industry.
