Airi Miyagawa (宮川愛李) has announced that she will end her career as a recording artist by the close of the year, terminating her exclusive management contract with her agency, NiM Publishers.
Miyagawa shared the news directly with fans, explaining that the decision came after extensive discussions with her management. “Because I want to keep making music for the rest of my life, I’ve decided to put a pause on my activities for now,” she wrote. “I’m truly sorry for surprising you all with such a sudden announcement. I want to use the experience I’ve gained over these seven years since my debut to find my own path forward, and hopefully meet you all again in this world one day.” Her statement leaves the door open to a possible return to music down the line, even as this specific chapter closes.
Miyagawa will bring her career to a close with one last solo concert, titled “Hakuchuumu” (白昼夢, meaning “Daydream”), scheduled for December 19 at LIVE STUDIO LODGE in Tokyo.
Who is Airi Miyagawa?
Miyagawa is a singer and creator from Shikinejima, a small island off the coast of Tokyo. She first gained attention on social media as “Imouto-ko,” the singing younger sister of popular singer-songwriter Miyakawa-kun (みやかわくん, real name Taisei Miyagawa). She stepped out under her own name in April 2019 with her first solo concert at Minami Aoyama’s Mynavi Blitz Akasaka venue in Tokyo, followed two months later by her major-label debut mini-album, “Sumahobae no Mukou no Sekai” (“The World Beyond the Instagrammable Shot”). She released her debut full-length album, “Reboot,” in March 2021. Miyagawa is perhaps best known internationally for performing two ending themes for the long-running anime series Detective Conan, “Sissy Sky” and “Reboot.”
Author’s Comment
Seven years, two Detective Conan theme songs, and one very famous big brother later, and Airi’s quietly closing the book — for now. I say "for now" because if you read her statement closely, she didn’t say goodbye to music, she said goodbye to this particular grind, which, honestly, tracks. Japan’s idol-adjacent pop machine is brutal on artists who started as somebody’s kid sister on the internet and had to claw out their own identity in public. I love that she’s owning the decision instead of letting the agency quietly memory-hole her. Go enjoy your daydream concert, Airi — I’ll be first in line whenever you decide to wake back up.
