Mai Kuraki

Mai Kuraki (倉木麻衣, born October 28, 1982) is a Japanese singer-songwriter from Funabashi, Chiba, whose work spans J-pop, contemporary R&B, and pop soul. Early on, she was influenced by Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson. While still in junior high school, she began sending demo tapes and later secured a recording contract with Giza Studio. She first appeared in the United States in 1999 under the name Mai-K with "Baby I Like." Later that year, she made her Japanese debut with "Love, Day After Tomorrow." The follow-up singles "Stay by my side," "Secret of my heart," and "Never Gonna Give You Up" were also major hits. Her 2000 debut album Delicious Way opened at number one and sold more than 2.2 million copies in its first week. Kuraki has had a long association with Detective Conan. At age 17, "Secret of my heart" became her first tie-in with the franchise, and "Winter Bells" served as the series' 10th opening theme. She later recorded numerous opening and ending themes for Meitantei Conan. She has also recorded songs such as "Feel fine!" for commercial campaigns. In 2026, she contributed the new song "ハレルヤ" to the franchise's 30th-anniversary special.