HIRAIDAI (平井 大)

Overview

HIRAIDAI (Hirai Dai, born May 3, 1991 in Toshima, Tokyo) is a Japanese singer-songwriter, ukulele player, guitarist, lyricist, composer and arranger. He is signed to TV Asahi Music, with Avex Entertainment as his record company and avex trax as his label. His official fan club is called "LOCALS ONLY."

Rooted in surf music, he has drawn attention for an organic lifestyle and a sound built on ukulele and acoustic guitar. A graduate of the music vocational school Mother House, he is known for music that stays close to listeners' lives, and has been praised by artists such as YOASOBI and Eito.

Career

2011-2013: Debut and major-label start

• 2011: His song "ONE LOVE Pacific Harmony" was chosen as the official image song of Hawaii's largest event, the Honolulu Festival. His debut mini album "OHANA" came out in May and reached No. 3 on the iTunes overall chart. He appeared at festivals including Aloha YOKOHAMA, ZUSHI FES, SUNSET LIVE and SUMMER SONIC.
• 2012: His first full album "ALOHA" (May) hit No. 1 on the iTunes overall chart, and he was named iTunes BEST OF 2012 J-POP Best New Artist.
• 2013: He made his major debut in July with the mini album "Dream."

2014-2016

• 2014: He released the mini album "The Light" (January), the Disney cover album "Disney Island Music" (June), and "ALOOOOHANA!!" (July), his first full album since moving to a major label.
• 2015: The album "Slow & Easy" (May) was followed by a 12-stop summer tour. The "More Slow & Easy" tour in November sold out at every venue.
• 2016: "Life is Beautiful" (June) topped the iTunes overall chart. In July he held his largest tour yet at 13 venues, including his first hall shows. The acoustic cover album "Love is Beautiful" followed in November, and the 14-show "Premium Acoustic Tour 2016" at venues such as Billboard Live and Blue Note sold out entirely. In December "Life is Beautiful" was chosen as one of the best albums of 2016 by iTunes / Apple Music staff.

2017-2019

• 2017: The five-city "Live Tour 2017 LOCALS ONLY" (February) sold out. The album "ON THE ROAD" (July) was supported by a 13-venue national tour, and "HIRAIDAI plays DISNEY," his second Disney cover album, arrived in November. He also appeared at Jonetsu Tairiku live, ROCK IN JAPAN FESTIVAL and SPACE SHOWER SWEET LOVE SHOWER.
• 2018: He toured Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka in January and held the "Premium Acoustic Tour 2018 LOCALS ONLY" in March. The album "WAVE on WAVES" (July) led to his first hall tour, an 18-date run in August, and summer festival appearances including FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL, CORONA SUNSETS FESTIVAL 2018 and RISING SUN ROCK FESTIVAL 2018 in EZO. A live DVD of the 2017 tour came out on October 30, and on December 15 he played his first show at Makuhari Messe.
• 2019: He held the solo acoustic tour "LOCALS ONLY 'HOME'" in January. In February he was chosen to perform the theme song for the film Doraemon: Nobita's Chronicle of the Moon Exploration, releasing the single "THE GIFT." The album "THE GIFT" followed in July, with a 15-date tour in August. Its first vinyl edition was released on November 3, and on November 17 he played his first Yokohama Arena show.

2020 onward

• 2020: In May he announced on social media that he would release a new song every two weeks through the summer. His digital single "Stand by me, Stand by you." in September took a double crown on LINE MUSIC charts and ranked No. 1 on four major streaming charts, including Spotify and AWA.
• 2021: The digital album "Life Goes On" (February) collected all 13 songs from the 2020 series plus new tracks such as "Daimei no Nai Kyo" and "Romeo+Juliet -Love goes on-." On December 31 he made his first appearance on the 72nd NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen.
• 2022: In February he announced that his wife, photographer Lady Brown, was expecting; their first child was born on August 12. On May 9 he released the album "HOPE / WISH" (Disc 1: 23 tracks; Disc 2: "Life Goes On <Bonus Disc>," 16 tracks, among other content).
• 2023: His first best-of album, "LOVE&PEACE," came out on May 10 (LOVE with 19 tracks, PEACE with 18, plus a 13-track disc), and includes footage of "HIRAIDAI TOUR 2022 at NIPPON BUDOKAN."

Recent activity (2024-2025)

Starting with the single "片隅のファンタジー" on November 27, 2024, he followed with "Christmas Wish" (December) and "幸せのレシピ" (January 2025). March 2025 brought "また逢う日まで - From THE FIRST TAKE," "美しき日々" and "幸せのレシピ - From THE FIRST TAKE." Further singles include "Heartbreaker (I fell in love with a cowgirl)" and "完璧な二人。" (April), "Summer of Love" and "half moon" (May), "ラブとピース" (June), "Happy birthday to my son." (August), "このオンガクと共に" (September), "f.r.i.e.n.d.s" (October) and "LALALA (Baby it takes two)" on November 26, 2025, keeping up a near-monthly release pace.

Musical style

HIRAIDAI's sound is built on surf music, with ukulele and acoustic guitar at its center. His warm, organic approach is designed to stay close to listeners' lives, and he regularly releases acoustic cover work, including Disney song albums. As a singer-songwriter he handles lyrics, composition and arrangement himself.