Maki Ohguro is a Japanese pop singer and songwriter from Sapporo, Hokkaido, known for her work under the B-Gram Records label and for her ties to the anime and anison world. Her music and public image helped establish her as one of the notable voices of 1990s J-pop.
She entered the music industry in 1989, when she passed the 3rd Annual BAD audition. Early in her career, she provided backup chorus work for several BEING studio artists, including B'z, ZARD, and DEEN, among others. In 1992, she received a contract from Being Inc.'s company president after nearly leaving the company for America because she felt she was not yet the singer she hoped to be.
Her second single, "DA・KA・RA," sold 1.1 million copies and won the Japan Record Grand Prix Newcomer Award of the Year. Because of her rare public appearances, she was often described as a phantom singer, similar to Izumi Sakai of ZARD. That reputation added to her mystique while her singles continued to draw attention for their strong melodies and emotional delivery.
Among her best-known anime-related songs is "Anata Dake Mitsumeteru," the ending theme for Slam Dunk. The song was the number 2 track for January 1994 and was certified as a Million record, selling 1,087,160 copies. These achievements made the song one of the most recognizable anime ending themes of its era.
In 2010, Maki Ohguro took a six-year hiatus due to illness. In 2016, she announced the resumption of her music activities under Being Inc., marking her return after that break and reinforcing her long-standing presence in Japanese pop music.
