Tomohisa Yamashita

Tomohisa Yamashita
山下 智久
Yamashita in March 2024
Born (1985-04-09) April 9, 1985 (age 39)
Other namesTomo, Yamapi, YamaP
EducationHorikoshi High School
Alma materMeiji University (BCom)
Occupations
  • Singer
  • actor
  • radio host
  • TV presenter
Years active1998–present
Musical career
GenresJ-pop
InstrumentVocals
Years active1996–present
Labels
Formerly of
Websitetomohisayamashita.com

Tomohisa Yamashita (Japanese: 山下 智久, Hepburn: Yamashita Tomohisa, born April 9, 1985), also widely known as Yamapi (山P, YamaP),[1] or Tomo, is a Japanese singer, actor, and TV host.[2]

Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates as a trainee in 1996 and made his small acting debut for NHK's Shonentachi (1998). He made his musical debut as part of idol group NEWS in 2004 and later debuted as a soloist in 2006. He launched his acting career after portraying Kusano Akira in the hit drama Nobuta Wo Produce (2005). His first major role was in 2006 when he landed the title role in Kurosagi. In October 2011, Johnny & Associates announced that Yamashita would no longer be a member of NEWS, and he would be concentrating on his solo projects as an actor and solo singer. He released his solo music under Warner Music Japan until 2016. In mid-2018, Yamashita began releasing music under Sony Music Japan; however, Johnny & Associates continued to manage the rest of his activities, though he left the agency in October 2020. As early as 2019, he signed a brokerage contract with Westbrook Entertainment, a brokerage company opened by Will Smith, to reach global audiences.

Yamashita is widely known for his many popular dramas such as Nobuta wo Produce (2005), Kurosagi (2006), Operation Love (2007), Buzzer Beat (2009), Code Blue, and 5→9 From Five to Nine (2015). His latest movie Code Blue: The Movie (2018) was the highest-grossing domestic movie in Japan that year and ranked 5th for all-time highest-grossing live action movies in Japan.

  1. ^ "How Yamapi got his name English subtitled" How Tomohisa got his name Yamapi. YouTube. June 30, 2009. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
  2. ^ 山Pバラエティー初司会「80点くらい」. Nikkansports (in Japanese). Japan. January 17, 2013. Archived from the original on October 2, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.