Toshiko Yamasaki

a star on the rise

toshiko, born to rich and humanitarian parents, was always fated to be the subject of intrigue. her family was as secretive as millionaires in the public eye can be, never even announcing their kids births beyond people recognizing them in public with baby bundles.

although she was fated from birth to be a middle child as the younger twin with another sibling soon to come after, she never felt neglected or uncared for. sure, she saw nannies more than her parents, and sure, it was those nannies who told her parents about her and her sister trading clothes and toys, but they didn’t mind. their son could play with dolls as much as he wanted— though, it wasn’t until toshiko was five she would tell them she wasn’t a son at all.

with that out of the way, the secrecy came in handy. the public never knew what kinds of kids the yamasakis had, and they’d also never know what exactly their out-of-country purchases entailed. when you’re rich, nothing is illegal- sometimes, you just have to pay fines, but that doesn’t even matter if you’re never caught. so what if japan’s laws on trans people are far stricter than they should be? their daughter was going to be happy if they had any say about it, and if puberty blockers from america would help that happiness come to light, they would just have to smuggle in some drugs from the states.

toshiko was somewhat of a quiet kid. her first word came in the form of a full sentence at age three, asking for a toy piano she saw in a commercial. its keys were rainbow colored and made childlike singing sounds as opposed to perfect notes, but her immediate liking of the instrument amused her mom, who’d been roped into lessons as a kid. finally having a use for their abilities, they plopped toshiko on their lap and began teaching her to play.

it wasn’t until she was (reluctantly, her parents might add) enrolled in public school for kindergarten that her charisma with the other kids shined through. she was kind, and funny, and somehow managed to even make teachers laugh at the ripe age of six. when her first talent show came along in the fifth grade, everyone around her knew she’d win. what they didn’t know was that her (school enforced maximum length) five minute routine with a few short gags and a piano jingle would be filmed and quickly grow viral, skyrocketing her into near overnight fame.

picture perfect?

after her big break