Miwa Akihiro in 2014. [Yonhap]
Miwa Akihiro in 2014. [Yonhap]

Miwa Akihiro, a celebrated Japanese singer, actor and voice actor known for his roles in Studio Ghibli films, died Sunday at 91.

His agency, Office Miwa, announced on its official website that Miwa died at 9:03 a.m. on June 20 from age-related illness.

A private funeral was held in Tokyo in accordance with his wishes, attended only by immediate family and close relatives. The agency said no memorial service would be held and that condolence money and flowers would be respectfully declined.

According to the agency, Miwa had scaled back his activities over the past year due to his advanced age and focused on his health, but his condition worsened about three months before his death and he spent his final weeks recuperating at home.

His last words were "thank you," the agency added.

The funeral altar was decorated with yellow roses, his favorite flower, and letters from fans were placed inside his coffin.

The agency said it had been Miwa's wish "to eliminate all discrimination and prejudice from this world and to realize a society where everyone can live peacefully, brightly and joyfully," adding that the world had become "a sad place where countless precious lives are unjustly lost."

In a handwritten letter he prepared during his lifetime, Miwa wrote: "The weapon you need to live in this world is knowing the importance of love. Love is the key to solving all the world's problems. If there is love, there will be no war."

Born in Nagasaki in 1935, Miwa made his debut as a singer in 1952 at 16. He drew wide attention for his gender-transcending performances and, after coming out as gay, went on to work across multiple fields as a singer-songwriter and actor.

He first gained recognition in 1957 with a Japanese-language cover of the French chanson "Mecque Mecque" and later drew further acclaim with his original song "Yoitomake no Uta" (1965), which celebrated the dignity of laborers. The song's enduring popularity led to his first appearance on NHK's "Kohaku Uta Gassen" in 2012. He remained active well into his later years, serving as a counselor on NHK E-tele's advice segment from 2020 to 2025.

Miwa earned wide recognition among younger audiences in South Korea and abroad through his voice roles in two films by director Miyazaki Hayao — as Moro, a wolf goddess, in "Princess Mononoke" (1997), and as the Witch of the Waste in "Howl's Moving Castle" (2004).


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