Yoshiki’s involvement in philanthropy encompasses a diverse range of causes, with his family and upbringing being core influences.
“I lost my father when I was young,” Yoshiki says. “He actually took his own life. I was 10 years old, and since then, I have always wondered, why do people live? The reason I do charitable work is because I want to give it back.”
Since the 1990s, Yoshiki has given his talent and money to philanthropic projects.
One of Yoshiki’s earliest moments of giving came in response to the 1995 Japan earthquake that claimed more than 6,000 lives; he staged a benefit concert with X Japan, and presented new pianos to students whose schools were damaged.
In the years since, Yoshiki has helped provide relief, aid and donations for other disasters that have affected in Asia, Australia, South America and the United States. On Jan. 16, Yoshiki auctioned the crystal Kawai CR-40N piano that accompanied him in the studio and on tour to raise funds after Japan’s deadly earthquakes on the Noto Peninsula. The four-day auction raised 40 million yen ($265,000) beyond Yoshiki’s previous $66,275 donation to the Japanese Red Cross.
During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, Yoshiki stepped up with a $100,000 donation to the Recording Academy’s MusiCares Foundation COVID-19 relief fund and $24,000 to several Meals on Wheels locations in the Southern California region. For his home country, he donated millions of yen to the Japanese Red Cross and Japan’s National Center for Global Health and Medicine.
“I kind of feel the pain that kids have,” he says. “I grew up without a father, and I had severe asthma as a kid, so I was always hospitalized. Some kids have a hard time because they don’t have both parents or other unfortunate causes. I started charitable work by trying to help and tutor.”
Next year, his California-based nonprofit corporation, the Yoshiki Foundation America, will celebrate 15 years of providing aid to the likes of the Grammy Foundation, MusiCares Foundation, Make-a-Wish Foundation and St. Vincent Meals on Wheels. Alongside MusiCares, the foundation launched a $100,000 annual grant in 2021 to bring programs for music creators and industry professionals like himself dealing with depression, anxiety, suicide prevention and other mental health concerns.
“More and more people are going to need mental health [services],” he says. “I’ve always had problems. In Japan, or really anywhere in the world, talking about death can be kind of a no-no, but I think it’s important to share this kind of pain and it’s an issue that we can help one another [with]. When you get injured, you can see somebody bleeding or that they’re physically not right. But if it’s inside, people cannot see you’re suffering. Because I’m going through the dark, I’d like to help people as well.”
While Yoshiki speaks passionately about an array of causes close to his heart, he recently stepped up for Ukrainian refugees across Europe with Yoshiki Foundation America donating $199,000 to the U.N.’s Intl. Organization for Migration in support of those displaced by war. Yoshiki’s Ukraine donation and other charity work are accompanied by global press releases and media blasts, a practice that’s criticized in Japan.
“In Japan, I rarely speak about it because sometimes when you donate, they say, ‘Don’t announce it,’” he explains. “I say, ‘why?’ By me announcing it, people find out who actually needs actual help and from which country or where. They can also join these kinds of charitable work. I understand [the criticism] too, but this is my way of spreading that chain of love.”