Ichiko Aoba’s journey stretches on like an endless horizon. From her Hong Kong performance in February 2025 she swept across Europe from Barcelona in March to Glasgow in April then traversed North America from Honolulu to Mexico City before gracing the legendary Glastonbury Festival in June. In the latter half of the year she will return to Japan for a long-awaited tour carrying her guitar from stage to stage city to city without pause
Her new album, Luminescent Creatures, released in February ahead of her largest ever world tour, captures the essence of her recent pilgrimages to Hateruma Island in the Yaeyama archipelago of Okinawa. It carries a fresh wind distinct from her previous breakthrough, Adan no Kaze (2020)
Rooted in the local yet reaching for the global, Ichiko Aoba listens closely to the world around her. What stories did she gather from Hateruma and how does she transform them for the world stage? In the midst of her relentless travels, how does she safeguard her own space? When we met again after several months she spoke with the same calm unhurried grace that has always defined her.
INDEX
Born in 1990, Ichiko Aoba is a celebrated musician and the founder of her independent label hermine. Since her debut in 2010, she has released eight original albums, earning acclaim in Japan and internationally for her delicate classical guitar arrangements, ethereal vocals, and poetic sensibilities. She began performing extensively overseas in 2021, appearing at a variety of international music festivals. In 2025, she marked the 15th anniversary of her debut with the release of her first new album in four years, Luminescent Creatures, and followed it with her first essay collection, Hoshisa-tachi, in May.
