Kiko Mizuhara On Stepping Into A New Sound With Her Debut Solo Single
The creative multi-hyphenate talks to Billboard Philippines about the sounds and vibrations of making music as she makes her debut as a solo artist.
KIKO MIZUHARA: Photographed by Chiara Croserio
KIKO MIZUHARA: Photographed by Chiara Croserio
After years in film, fashion, beauty, and lifestyle, Kiko Mizuhara has established herself as a multifaceted creative force.
The Japanese-American model-actress made her acting debut in the 2010 film Norwegian Wood, an adaptation of one of Haruki Murakami’s seminal works.
In 2012, she went on to star as Yoshikawa Kozue in the live-action adaptation of Kyoko Okazaki’s manga Helter Skelter, as well as Mikasa Ackerman in the two-part live-action adaptation of Attack on Titan in 2015.
Beyond the world of film, she has been a mainstay in fashion, with collaborations with the fashion brand Opening Ceremony, as well as the launch of her own fashion brand and creative space, “OK” or Office Kiko.
For Kiko, entering the realm of music wasn’t a deliberate decision but rather a natural, organic happenstance that eventually felt like opening Pandora’s box.
Photographed by Chiara Croserio
She and her then-partner, musician John Carroll Kirby, would make music just for fun, with John’s trusty electric piano as a companion on their travels. Before long, coming up with melodies and lyrics became something they did together.
“We kept making songs like that, and eventually we realized we had made something really special. So it all happened very naturally from there,” Kiko tells Billboard Philippines in an exclusive interview.
Coming from the worlds of fashion, modeling, design, film, and television, music had always been part of Kiko’s life, albeit in the background. “I think music is something very instinctive. It’s vibration. Of course, lyrics can be really powerful, but there’s something about music that can move you beyond words,” she explains.
Just like almost everybody else, music has been there for many moments in her life, stating that it has saved her many times. “Sometimes a song will just come on at exactly the right moment, without me even looking for it. There’s something really mysterious about that, and I think that’s why music feels so special to me,” she adds.
Kiko marched towards her entry into the music scene with the release of her debut solo single, “Feelin’ Wee,” via Stones Throw Records on September 2, 2026.
Photographed by Chiara Croserio
She made the track while she was still living in Altadena, California, and a funny anecdote ties in with what inspired the song.
“Around that time, I met this guy who was kind of like a stalker. He somehow thought I liked him and that I was trying to seduce him, which was definitely not the case. It made me wonder what was going on inside his head, and that became the inspiration for the song,” she reveals.
Through songwriting, Kiko imagined his perspective while also adding her response to the situation. “But I also like that people can listen to the song and interpret it however they want,” she adds.
Now with her voice front and center in her debut solo single, Kiko likens her voice to another instrument in the song. Without thinking too much about her vocals on the track, the vibes are what move through, with her voice part of the music and not separate.
Kiko isn’t just one and done with this release, though. “Feelin’ Wee” is just a taste of the things to come, with an album on the horizon. “The album happened very naturally too,” she reveals. “John and I were making a lot of music together, without really thinking about making an album.”
Having already a chunk of songs floating around, making an album was the only way to go. It wasn’t what Kiko had planned from the beginning, but as she lent her vocals to the music, the album came together through the process of making music with John, who produced all of her songs.
“I think it’s a really interesting album. We were inspired by a lot of music that we both loved, but it also holds so many memories from the time when we were together,” she adds. “There are things we experienced, things we were feeling, and different moments from that time in our lives throughout the album.”
The upcoming record acts as a time capsule that captures a very specific time in her life with John then and everything they were feeling. Her relationship with music, moreover, has always been part of the process in her creative endeavors.
With fashion, modeling, and acting, she has always felt free with music. “I also feel like I was able to express the mix of Japan and America that naturally exists in me through the music,” she explains. “It felt different from modeling or acting because I wasn’t really thinking about performing or becoming something. I was just following the vibe and having fun with it.”
Coming from a place where she feels most free, she made music that is filled with purity and fun. Now, what she is making on her own terms as an artist, collaboration has also been there. Having this kind of go-with-the-flow approach and letting things go as they go, there is less restraint in making the craft.
“Sometimes I find myself doing things I’ve always loved but never imagined I would actually do. People around me might encourage me to try something, and through that I learn or discover a new side of myself,” she shares. “So I think there’s a lot that happens outside of my own intentions.”
Photographed by Chiara Croserio
The best collaborations, according to her, are born from the simple things, with less overthinking and complication. “I think when you start from that place, something unexpected can come out of it. That’s something I always try to keep in mind,” she adds.
That’s why Kiko hopes that, as she has fun making the songs, people get to feel good listening to them. “If someone listens to it during their day and it gives them a little bit of happiness, fun, or positive energy, that would make me really happy,” she says. “I hope the music can be there for people in those little moments.”
It seems as if her venture into music wasn’t something that felt abrupt or forced. In fact, it was probably the most natural progression forward. As an artist at heart, her perspective is that it starts with loving something and having the knack to explore more of it.
“That could mean going really deep into one thing, or being curious about many different things and continuing to learn,” she says. “I think what’s important is being inspired by things and then finding your own way to express that inspiration.”
For Kiko, the makings of an artist come down to being inspired and sharing that inspiration with the world in her own way. As she continues to explore different creative spaces, including starring alongside Charli XCX in Takashi Miike’s upcoming untitled slasher film, music remains something special in her heart.
Listen to “Feelin’ Wee” below:
Frequently Asked Questions
Kiko Mizuhara released “Feelin’ Wee,” her debut solo single, on September 2, 2026, via Stones Throw Records. She wrote the track while living in Altadena, California, and it previews her upcoming debut album, which was produced entirely by musician John Carroll Kirby.
Musician John Carroll Kirby produced all of Kiko Mizuhara’s songs. The two began making music casually while traveling with his electric piano, and the material gradually grew into an album without a deliberate plan. Mizuhara describes the record as a time capsule of their time together.
“Feelin’ Wee” was inspired by a man Kiko Mizuhara met in Altadena who mistakenly believed she was trying to seduce him. She wrote the song imagining his perspective alongside her own response, while leaving listeners free to interpret it however they like.
Yes. Kiko Mizuhara has an album on the horizon, with “Feelin’ Wee” as a first taste. The record came together naturally from songs she made with John Carroll Kirby, who produced every track, and draws on shared influences and memories from their time together.
Kiko Mizuhara made her acting debut in Norwegian Wood in 2010, then starred in Helter Skelter in 2012 and played Mikasa Ackerman in the two-part Attack on Titan live-action films in 2015. She is also set to appear opposite Charli XCX in a Takashi Miike slasher film.
