Bigfumi

Overview

Bigfumi (real name Fumiya Okawachi) is a singer-songwriter born on January 12, 1993 in Miyazaki, Miyazaki Prefecture. Standing 179 cm and weighing 140 kg, he bills himself as the biggest singer-songwriter in western Japan. Early on he called himself a "singer-song-wrestler" in a nod to his wrestling past; he later adopted "Otodokemono" (音届者, "one who delivers music"), reflecting his theme of music that reaches people. His fans are called "Fumily," a blend of "fumi" and "family." His songs have been used as walk-up music by many professional baseball players, and his work has reached rugby and soccer as well.

Career

Early life and background

Born the youngest of three brothers to a father who played in a band and brothers who dreamed of becoming singers, he grew up in one of Miyazaki's best-known musical families. In his third year of junior high he made his first live appearance, opening for his father's band at Aoshima Shrine. At Miyazaki Daiichi High School he joined the wrestling team and finished third in the 120 kg Greco-Roman class at the national sports festival in his final year. He entered Fukuoka University's sports science department on a special recommendation, but after setbacks he retired from wrestling after one year, saying "music is all I have," and left university in his third year. In school he founded the volunteer circle "Crazy Favors" and took part in disaster relief in the Tohoku region and Yame, Fukuoka.

2014–2017

He began serious live work in 2014, busking in Fukuoka's Kego Park with his junior Yusuke on guitar. After switching to a regular Thursday spot, his audience grew, sometimes reaching nearly 100 people. In March 2015 he was a finalist on KBC's "V3 New Artist Audition," and an appearance on TBS's "SingSingSing" brought a flood of support messages on social media. His first mini-album, Otodokemono, came out in February 2016 and quickly sold out, and in September he won the grand prix at the audition for the main stage of Music City Tenjin. In 2017 his song "Life" was chosen as walk-up music by Hanshin Tigers player Ryutaro Umeno, a Fukuoka University senior. His first solo concert on May 21 at Fukuoka Chuo Shimin Center Concert Hall drew over 500 people, and his first full album, Itadakimasu., released the same day, also sold out.

2018–2022

He moved his base to the Kansai region in 2018. At the request of Hanshin's Masahiro Nakatani he wrote "Trust," which became the player's walk-up song, and many more players followed. On July 11, 2018 he made his indie debut with the double A-side single Trust/Life, his first nationally distributed release, which reached No. 12 on Oricon's weekly indie chart. In 2019 he held "Fumily 1000 Can Do It?" at the Osaka International Exchange Center Main Hall and released "Sono Jinsei wa Subarashii / Issho ni Yume o Kanadeyou" in September and "Challenger / Anata ni" in December. In 2020 he issued "LIFE (2020 ver.)," "Party o Nukedashite," "Ai," and "Sorairo." In 2021 his rugby cheer song "Tsunaide Ike" was used in a video looking back on the history of NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes, and "Giant Killing," born from his friendship with former Japan national soccer player Takashi Inui, featured Inui in its music video.

2023 onward

In 2023 he moved to Village Again Association, the label of Def Tech and Hitomi Yaida. After the singles "Taiyo no Yona Hito de Aritai" (April) and "Soredemo Ikiteikunda" (June), he released his first label full album, Bigfumi 1, on November 10. Its track "Koukai Naki Koukai" was written for Chiba Lotte Marines player Koki Yamaguchi; its music video, shot at ZOZO Marine Stadium and featuring Yamaguchi himself, was released on December 23, 2023. In 2024 he released "WE RISE UP" (March) and "Namonaki Ai no Uta" (July). When Fukuya Yamasaki, who used "Life" as walk-up music, moved from the Orix Buffaloes to the Nippon-Ham Fighters, he wrote "Sachi Are!" (released January 2025). He also wrote a cheer song for the Himeji Egrettas, a Kansai independent league team, at owner Shinichiro Mio's request, drawing on Himeji Castle's nickname "White Heron Castle." In 2025 he served as regular DJ for FM Osaka's "E∞Tracks Selection" from January to June, hosting his first named radio show, "Bigfumi's Otodokemono Radio," released "Life↑" in March, and held the Otodokemono Project 2025 shows in Kobe, Nagoya, Sapporo, and Hiroshima. In March 2026 he was invited back to Miyazaki Daiichi High School as a special lecturer and sang words of encouragement to students at the closing ceremony of Tsuma Junior High School in Saito, which closes this year. He also makes his stage debut in 2026 in Scrap and Chorus: The Melody You Lit, starring Hikaru Yaotome.

Musical style

Bigfumi's music is J-POP, rooted in his musical upbringing and the theme of music that is delivered to the listener. He is known for commissioned-style songs written closely around the recipient: he shares meals and conversation with athletes and weaves characters from their names or the image of their team into the lyrics. His early work centered on acoustic street performances, and he later broadened his style to singing over recorded tracks.