Have you been rocking out to the opening and ending songs from Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation already this season? Did you know that both of these songs, “Tabibito no Uta” and “Only,” are by the same talented performer? The young woman behind these songs is Yuiko Ohara, and if you have been loving one or both of these songs this season we have great news for you - every song that Ohara has ever released has been used for anime in one way or another!
That’s right, Yuiko Ohara is a true anisong musician. She has been making opening and ending themes for anime since 2015, and has released some really great music that you may or may not already know. Let’s have a look at Ohara’s musical career, from its humble beginnings in the school band to the makings of an anisong star. If you didn’t know her name before today, you’ll do well to remember it going forward because we are sure that Ohara’s future in the anisong world is going to be a bright one.
Hard Work Pays Off
Yuiko Ohara “Tomei na Tsubasa” from Little Witch Academia
Yuiko Ohara has been interested in music for her entire life. Her love for music originally began when she was only three years old and was in a music class her mother put her into, and she never looked back from there. In elementary school, she joined the school orchestra playing the violin. Then in junior high school, Ohara began to play the guitar as well after being inspired by some of her favourite musicians like the famous anisong artist Yui. Her parents soon gave into her dreams to pursue music as a career, and supported her pursuits as she entered a music vocational school over a regular academic high school.
In 2012 at age 20, Yuiko Ohara began to put on live performances around Tokyo. Breaking into the professional music scene is never easy, and Ohara put herself out there as much as she could. She began to enter music competitions and auditions whenever she could find them, and her hard work began to pay off as she became a finalist in several auditions those first couple of years. Her big break didn’t come until 2015, when she became a finalist in a competition to perform the theme song “Magic Parade,” which was used for the anime short film Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade. And Ohara won! “Magic Parade” went on to be her début single by autumn of 2015. Ohara’s first major success was already a great anisong!
From One Anime to the Next
Yuiko Ohara “Only” from Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation!!
Of course, Yuiko Ohara’s anisong career didn’t stop there. Her second single, “Hoshi o Tadoreba,” was used as the first ending song of the Little Witch Academia main anime series in 2017. Then her third single, “Tomei na Tsubasa,” was the second ending song. Ohara’s fourth single saw her performing for another anime, Land of the Lustrous, where her song “Kirameku Hamabe” was the ending theme. By 2018, Ohara was releasing her fifth single, “Iwanaikedo ne,” the opening song for Teasing Master Takagi-san. The song would be covered by another artist, Rie Takahashi, for the ending theme of Teasing Master Takagi-san’s second season. The same year, Ohara released “High Stepper,” which became the ending theme for Hanebado!.
Now in 2021, Yuiko Ohara is back in the anisong world again. She released not just one song for the airing anime Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, but two - “Tabibito no Uta” serves as the opening theme, and “Only” as the ending theme. Its not often that the same artist has the chance to make both theme songs for an anime, so its a sign of success in Ohara’s career that she was asked to do both!
Final Thoughts
Yuiko Ohara may not have imagined that she would become an anisong musician when she was three years old and taking her first music lesson, but her career has been nothing short of successful in the anisong world. She pursued her passions her whole life, and by her early twenties her hard work and dedication paid off in the form of a chance that came her way. She took it, did her best with “Magic Parade,” and the rest is, as they say, history! Yuiko Ohara’s entire music career has been working in the anisong industry so far, and there’s no reason to believe that she will stop any time soon. We certainly hope that even if she does begin to release other music that she will never forget her roots, and keep making some great songs for her otaku fans that have supported her along the way for many years to come.
Did you know Yuiko Ohara before this article? Did you enjoy learning a bit more about her? What is your favourite Yuiko Ohara song? Are there any you’re ready to download now? Would you like to see another similar article about a different anisong musician? Drop us a comment below!
Author: Jet Nebula
