Quotes

Living for today, assuming there is no tomorrow, creates an incredible intensity. (Rolling Stone Japan, 2021)

Music is indispensable in fashion. (Rakuten Fashion Week , 2015)

The fans are the reason I'm still here. Sometimes, I get lost in thoughts like, 'Why am I living in this world?' When I see my fans, they make me feel like I'm OK to be living. (Variety, 2024)

I'm still feeling pain. I'm still struggling every day. It's like, if you have some kind of pain, like if you feel bleeding, physically, eventually that bleeding's going to stop, right? But if your heart is bleeding, I think it's going to bleed forever.

I cannot count how many times I wanted to give up. I never thought I'd be passing my father's age. My father gave up on his life when I was a child. He took his own life. He was a big influence on me, but I didn't give up. I kept on going. Because my fans have been there, my mother had been there. I wanted to prove that nothing is impossible. (TCL Chinese Theater Imprint Ceremony, 2023)

When I was like eight or nine, when I was playing the piano. I thought I was going to become like Beethoven. Around ten, I started composing the musical score. I still do. When I compose a rock song, I write everything in the music score, even drums, double-bass and everything. I'm really weird. (Loudwire, 2014)

Instead of breaking things, I started banging drums. (We Are X)

To my fans, you are the reason I still breathe. You are the reason I still exist. (TCL Chinese Theater Imprint Ceremony, 2023)

A lot of things inspire me - especially pain. (Rolling Stone, 2016)

It's easier for me to convey or express myself through music than actually choosing the words to express. (Variety, 2023)

If everyone unanimously agrees a song is good, it might not be a good song. (Rolling Stone Japan, 2021)

Some people say the way I play is suicidal. (Time, 2023)

[About his wrist brace] I used to have a black one, because I've always had tendonitis. The second time I met Michael Jackson, he happened to be in Japan, he thought it was a fashion item, so he said "Can I have this?" So I gave it to him. (Loudwire, 2014)

Rock saved my life. When I lost my father, I was very angry and I wanted to kill myself, but rock saved me. And at the same time, rock destroyed my body too.

[About Yoshiki: Under the Sky] We are here to support each other, not hate each other. I would like people to watch this film to realize why we're here. We are supposed to spread our love. (Variety, 2023)

I just want to create music that will last hundreds of years. (Time, 2023)

When I compose music, I just use a pen. I don't use musical instruments, I compose everything in my head. (Flaunt, 2025)

All of us are born free to dream what we want without any limits. (Metal Hammer, 2015)

Whenever I had time, whether it be five minutes or five hours, I just practiced piano. And I believe that kind of effort, people feel it, and appreciate it, they appreciate that dedication to the art. And that applies to every art form; film, fashion, anything. The musician puts their entire life into the art. (Flaunt, 2025)

If there is no music, I don't think I exist. (Variety, 2023)