Life in Tokyo

Tomoyasu Hotei

Tomoyasu Hotei (布袋 寅泰, Hotei Tomoyasu?, born February 1, 1962 in Takasaki, Gunma, Japan) is a Japanese musician, singer-songwriter, composer, record producer and actor. Hotei rose to prominence in the 1980s as the guitarist for Boøwy, one of Japan's most popular rock bands, before starting a solo career. In 2003, he was ranked number 70 on HMV Japan's list of the 100 most important Japanese pop acts. He ranked second in a 2011 poll on who the Japanese people thought was the best guitarist to represent Japan. Hotei is best known internationally for his song "Battle Without Honor or Humanity", which has been used in numerous films, commercials, and video games, most notably Quentin Tarantino's feature film Kill Bill. more »