Yūho Iwasato

nihongo|Yuho Iwasato|岩里 祐穂|Iwasato Yūho|born December 3, 1957 Born in Niigata, she debuted as a singer-songwriter in 1980 under the name "Yuko Iwasaki," and transitioned to full-time lyricist in 1988 following her collaborations with Miki Imai. Iwasato has collaborated with multiple music producers, including Tomoyasu Hotei, Yoko Kanno, Yobun Teraoka, Jeff Miyahara, and Katsutoshi Kitagawa of Round Table, and is known for her work across multiple genres, including hits for Japanese idol artists and anime songs.

Biography Iwasato was born in Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture. In 1983, she changed her pen name to "Yuho Iwasato" and made her debut as a lyricist and composer with Chiemi Hori's "Sayonara no Monogatari." During the early 1980s idol kayōkyoku boom, she wrote three singles for Hori amid her breakout in the drama Stewardess Monogatari: "Sayonara no Monogatari," "Natsuiro Diary," and "Aoi Natsu no Epilogue," forming a trilogy. She also wrote "Bin Kan Rouge," an insert song for the anime Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel, which became the first lyrics she wrote for an anime song.

Her encounter with Miki Imai in 1988 led her to focus exclusively on lyric writing. Notable early successes include Imai's 1989 single "Hitomi ga Hohoemu kara," which charted for forty weeks on the Oricon Singles Chart, and her 1991 hit "Piece of My Wish," which reached number one on the Oricon chart, selling over one million copies. Her 1994 song for Imai, "Miss You," also topped the Oricon chart.

In 1996, through Imai's album Love Of My Life, Iwasato met composer Yoko Kanno, which subsequently led to begin working on Maaya Sakamoto's singing debut on the anime The Vision of Escaflowne.

In 2016, she released a compilation album entitled Ms. Lyricist for celebrating her thirty-fifth anniversary in the music industry.

Works Albums Magical Liqueur (1980, King Records)

Books Koi no Kiroku (1996, Magazine House) Iikagen ni Katazukete Utsukushiku Kurasu (2005, Shueisha) Osōji, Ryōri ga Nigate Demo, Kaji ga Motto Suki ni Naru (2006, Shueisha) Hon no Sukoshi de Kurashi Jōzu Ouchi Jōzu (2008, Shueisha)

Songwriting credits Chiemi Hori – "Sayonara no Monogatari" (1983) Miki Imai – "Hitomi ga Hohoemu Kara" (1989) Miki Imai – "Piece of My Wish" (1991) Miki Imai – "Miss You" (1994) Maaya Sakamoto – "Yakusoku wa Iranai" (1997) Maaya Sakamoto – "Kiseki no Umi" (1998) Maaya Sakamoto – "Platinum" (1999) Maaya Sakamoto - "Hemisphere" (2002) Maaya Sakamoto - "Tune the Rainbow" (2003) Maaya Sakamoto - "More Than Words" (2012) Maaya Sakamoto - "Shiawase ni Tsuite Watashi ga Shitte Iru Itsutsu no Hōhō" (2015) Maaya Sakamoto - "Un_mute" (2023) Maaya Sakamoto - "Drops" (2025) Mai Yamane - "The Real Folk Blues" (1998) Akino - "Genesis of Aquarion" (2005) Buono! - "Honto no Jibun" (2007) Buono! - "Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" (2008) Buono! - "Gachinko de Ikō!" (2008) Sheryl Nome (May'n) - "Northern Cross" (2008) Momoiro Clover Z – "Saraba, Itoshiki Kanashimi-tachi yo" (2012) Momoiro Clover Z vs. Kiss – "Yume no Ukiyo ni Saite Mi na" (2015) Kana Hanazawa - "Koisuru Wakusei" (2013) Kana Hanazawa - "Hohoemi Mode" (2014) Shoko Nakagawa – "Doridori" (2015) Shoko Nakagawa – "Across the World" (2024) Sexy Zone – "Kimi ni Hitomebore" (2014) Sexy Zone – "Cha-Cha-Cha Champion" (2015) Junna - "Here" (2017) May'n - "You" (2017) TeddyLoid feat. Yoshikazu Mera - "Red Doors" (2017) Kiyono Yasuno - "Rocket Beat" (2018) Minori Suzuki - "Musical" (2023) Sumire Morohoshi - "Kanaeru" (2023)