Ryuichi Sakamoto (坂本 龍一 Sakamoto Ryūichi, born January 17, 1952, Nakano, Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese musician, composer, producer and actor. He attended the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, where he earned a B.A. in music composition and an M.A. with special emphasis on both electronic and ethnic music. Sakamoto recorded his first solo album in 1978, which included the songs «Thousand Knives» and «The End of Asia». Around the same time, Sakamoto joined the internationally successful Japanese synth J-Pop trio Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), along with co-founders Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi. The band charted a British top 20 hit with «Firecracker» in the late 1970s (and are also remembered for «Technopolis», «Behind the Mask» and «Tong Poo»), and were a seminal influence on the acid house and techno movements of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
