Musician and actor Gen Hoshino and actor Yui Aragaki have announced the birth of their first child. The news was shared on October 13 through the official sites of their respective talent agencies: Amuse, which represents Hoshino, and LesPros Entertainment, which manages Aragaki.
The joint announcement read, “We hope to cherish this new life and spend peaceful, fulfilling days together. As parents, and as people, we want to keep growing together.” No further details, such as the baby’s sex or birth date, were disclosed.
Hoshino and Aragaki first worked together on the hit 2016 drama We Married as a Job! (Nigeru wa Haji daga Yaku ni Tatsu), in which they played a couple in a contract marriage. The show’s theme song, Hoshino’s single “Koi,” became a nationwide phenomenon, largely thanks to the “Koi Dance” performed by the cast during the ending credits. The two announced their real-life marriage in May 2021, five years after the drama aired.
Fans quickly connected the dots back to that show following the birth announcement. One widely shared reaction on social media joked, “Mom, how are babies made? If a couple does the Koi Dance together, a stork brings them one,” referencing the dance that first linked the pair in the public eye.
Who is Gen Hoshino?
Gen Hoshino (星野源), born January 28, 1981, in Saitama Prefecture, is a musician, actor, and writer. He first gained attention as the leader of the instrumental band SAKEROCK, formed in 2000, before launching his solo music career with the 2010 album Baka no Uta. His 2016 single “Koi” became a cultural touchstone in Japan, and in 2020, during the COVID-19 state of emergency, he released “Uchi de Odoro” (“Let’s Dance at Home”) as a message of solidarity, later performing a special version of the song on NHK’s year-end broadcast Kohaku Uta Gassen. He has also written theme songs for the anime Spy x Family and various films, hosted the long-running radio show Gen Hoshino’s All Night Nippon since 2016, and appeared as an actor in numerous dramas and films, including Girl in the Sunny Place and The Sound of Silence.
Who is Yui Aragaki?
Yui Aragaki (新垣結衣), born June 11, 1988, in Okinawa Prefecture, began her career as a model for the teen magazine nicola before transitioning into acting. Her breakout role came with the 2007 film Koizora, a box-office hit that earned her the Best New Actor award at the Japan Academy Film Prize. She has since starred in the medical drama series Code Blue, the drama We Married as a Job!, and films including Hanamizuki and Mix., as well as the 2024 film Ikoku Nikki. She is widely regarded as one of Japan’s most popular actors of her generation.
Author’s Comment
A baby announcement from these two was never going to stay a simple press release, was it? The internet went straight for the Koi Dance jokes, and honestly, I respect the commitment to the bit five years into this marriage. That dance is basically their origin story at this point, so fair game. What I actually find charming here is the restraint in the statement itself — no photos, no gender reveal, no cute nickname teased for later content. Just two famously private people asking to be left to get on with the hard, unglamorous work of raising a kid. In an industry that monetizes every milestone down to the pregnancy reveal photoshoot, that’s almost a radical move. Congratulations to them, and here’s hoping the paparazzi take the hint.
