Kiko Mizuhara is an American-Japanese model, actress, singer, and designer who has lived in Japan since childhood. She is best known for her edgy sense of style. Second lead as Kozue Yoshikawa in the psychological horror, Helter Skelter (2012). The lead role of Mikasa Ackerman in the film Attack on Titan (2015).
Born Name Audrie Noriko Daniel
Nick Name Kiko, Kiko Mizuhara
Occupation Model, Actress, Designer, Singer
Born: October 15, 1990, 32 years old and 7 months, Dallas, Texas, United States
Sun Sign Libra
Hair Color Black
Eye Color Dark Brown
Height 5 ft 6 in or 168 cm
Measurements 29.5-23.6-33.5 in or 75-60-85 cm
Bra size 28C
Genre Electronic
Instruments Vocals
Labels MACH
Family
Father – Todd Daniel
Mother – Yae Toyama (English Teacher)
Siblings – Ashley Yuka Daniel (Younger Sister) (Model)
Manager
Kiko is signed with these –
Mimi Ye (Manager)
Asia Cross Inc, Tokyo, Japan (Agency)
Ethnicity
She has American father (who has English and possibly Scottish and German ancestry), while Kiko mother is Zainichi Korean. She was based in Nagasaki, Japan before she moved to USA temporarily and married Kiko father.
Distinctive Features
Petite, slender physical frame (Coveted Size Zero figure)
Long, slender face
Flawless, clear skin
Kiko Mizuhara started her modeling career at the age of twelve when she entered an audition contest for Seventeen magazine in which readers selected their favorite new face for the magazine. Later, she signed as a model under ViVi and MAQUIA magazine. Mizuhara had her acting debut in 2010 in Norwegian Wood and from that year on, she has been continuously appearing in the big screen and has been part of Japanese dramas Yae no Sakura, Shitsuren Chocolatier and Nobunaga Concerto. In 2011 and 2013 respectively, she was featured as a singer in Towa Tei The Burning Plain and in M-Flo No Way track under their Neven album. Mizuhara has also done a collaboration with Opening Ceremony where singers Rihanna and Beyonce have worn her designs. To date, she has already teamed up with the said clothing line for the fourth time, earning her rank as an upperclassmen of Opening Ceremony collaborators. In 2014, Mizuhara has been listed as part of the Business of Fashion 500: The People Shaping the Global Fashion Industry.
Early life
Mizuhara was born Audrie Kiko Daniel in Dallas, Texas, and moved to Tokyo at age 2 and then to Kobe, Japan, at age 3 with her family. Her father Todd Daniel is an American from Texas and her mother Yae Toyama is Zainichi Korean from Nagasaki, Japan. She has a sister named Ashley Yuka Daniel who is 4 years younger than her who also works in the modeling industry under the name Yuka Mizuhara. When she was 13 years old, her parents divorced and her father moved back to the United States.
Career
Modelling
In 2002, Mizuhara participated in a contest and won an audition for fashion magazine Seventeen. At the audition, she was picked as Miss Seventeen and became an exclusive model for Seventeen for the next 3 years. At age 16, she moved to Tokyo alone, living separately from her mother and sister in Kobe to advance her career in modeling. In July 2007, Kiko Mizuhara became an exclusive model for fashion magazine ViVi.
Starting 2008 Kiko Mizuhara has been a regular runway model at the Tokyo Girls Collection. Her international runway debut was at The Paris Collections in Olympia Le Tan Spring/Summer 2014 Show. In the same year, Mizuhara was invited by British Fashion Designer Nasir Mazhar to walk for his S/S 2014 Collection at London Fashion Week and at Fashion Designer Jeremy Scott debut show for Moschino in Milan Fashion Week. Considering her experiences in runways, Mizuhara was chosen to open and close the Fall/Winter 2014 Show of Sretsis, a Thai-brand clothing line, during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Tokyo. She has also participated in Nicola Formichetti first full collection show for Diesel in Venice, Italy.
Aside from her runway experiences, Mizuhara has graced numerous magazine covers and features not only in Japan but also in Asia and Europe. She has appeared in major Vogue editorials for Vogue Japan, Vogue China, Vogue Taiwan, Vogue Italia, American Vogue, Vogue Girl Japan and L’Uomo Vogue. She has done covers and spreads for Nylon, Numero, Vivi, Seventeen, Grazia, GQ, Elle, Harper Bazaar, L’Officiel, MAQUIA, GISELe, V Magazine, Another Magazine, Dazed and Confused, Cosmopolitan, Dedicate Magazine, Jalouse Magazine, etc. Being a top it-girl in their country, she has filmed advertisements locally and internationally which made her known by huge fashion people such as Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Anna Dello Russo, etc. Mizuhara has also shot ad campaigns for Diesel, Phillip Lim, Vivienne Tam, Reebok, Kitsune, Tiffany and Co., Shiseido, etc. She has also been appointed as a CHANEL ambassador making her way to receive VIP and front row invitations for fashion week and all other events of the brand. In 2012, Mizuhara has been photographed by Karl Lagerfeld himself for CHANEL The Little Black Jacket campaign. Dec 2013 Kiko Mizuhara participated in the Chanel Metiers d’Art Show in Dallas, Texas.
Mizuhara starred in the Marc Jacobs Eyewear 2017 ad campaign. In 2018, she was appointed as the first Asian ambassador for Dior. She was also welcomed into the Coach family in the same year.
Acting
Mizuhara co-starred in Tran Anh Hung Norwegian Wood (2010) with Kenichi Matsuyama and Rinko Kikuchi. She played a supporting role in Mika Ninagawa Helter Skelter (2012), which is based on the award-winning manga of the same name by Kyoko Okazaki. She has also played a supporting role in Toshiaki Toyoda I’m Flash! (2012), and co-starred in Keishi Otomo Platinum Data with Kazunari Ninomiya. In addition to her films, Mizuhara played as a witch doctor in Trick The Movie: Last Stage (2014) where she spoke Bahasa as the movie was filmed in Kuching, Malaysia. In July 2014, Mizuhara was announced to part of the live action Attack on Titan set to be released in summer (2015).
Mizuhara has made her first small screen appearance in Japanese television series Yae no Sakura. In 2014, she starred in the drama Shitsuren Chocolatier and Nobunaga Concerto. And was part of the main cast of the Japanese drama Kokoro ga Pokitto ne (Crazy For Me) in 2015.
Designing
Mizuhara first started her collaboration with Opening Ceremony during Spring 2013 in celebration of the Opening Ceremony flagship store in Japan. The collection was inspired by 1920s Paris creating a collection of tres jolies blouses, lingerie, and frilled short-shorts. In the same year, she entitled her F/W collection Bad Girl of the 90s in which the famous pizza outfit made headlines as it was worn by top celebrity Beyonce, other items she designed worn by Rihanna and others. Mizuhara is also debuting a collection of high-octane headgear that blends Harajuku style with ’90s streetwear, in collaboration with Opening Ceremony Japan and Harlem-based label Gypsy Sport. In 2014, Mizuhara launched her Spring/Summer Girlfriend of the Rockstar collection with a new set of chic, sexy and sweet pieces while a 1980s inspired Disco Bowling collection was released for Fall/Winter items. In Opening Ceremony Japan, Mizuhara has also collaborated with Photographer Nobuyoshi Araki and Designer Yoshikasu Yamagata in line with the opening of the brand first branch in Osaka, Japan.
Brand Endorsements
As a model, the following are some of the brands Kiko has worked for:
Vivienne Tam MY Garden Campaign (2012)
Chanel Fall/Winter (2012), Spring/Summer (2013)
Olympia Le-Tan (2013)
Philip Lim Fall/Winter (2013)
Diesel Reboot Campaign Fall/Winter (2013)
Diesel Pre-Fall (June 2014), Spring/Summer (2016)
Adidas Originals Fall/Winter (2016)
Marc Jacobs Spring 2017 Eyewear
Alexander Wang Spring/Summer 2018 (September 2017)
Krizia Spring/Summer 2018 (September 2017)
As a Singer
Collaborated with Japanese Korean DJ Towa Tei in a digital single called The Burning Plain (2011).
First Film
A Japanese romantic drama based on Haruki Murakami novel called Norwegian Wood (2010) in which she played the role of Midori.
First TV Show
One episode appearance in the 50-episode TV series Yae No Sakura in 2013.
Personal Trainer
As long as Kiko was merely modeling, she did not exercise at all, as she is naturally lean. She claims she has to be careful about eating enough as she loses weight very quickly and easily.
Since late 2014, fitness in terms of strength became a major priority for Kiko to become a convincing part of all the action movies she signs up for. Particularly for Attack on Titan Part 1 and 2 (2015), she underwent two months of intense physical training that focused on core strength, balance, and stability.
Kiko adds that although her abs are not developed enough to look shredded yet, she hopes to attain that appearance one day.
Kiko Mizuhara Favorite Things
Hang out Spot in Tokyo – Shinjuku Ni-chōme – gay town, The Komazawa Olympic Park
Shopping Venue – Harajuku, Shibuya, and Aoyama (in Tokyo)
Website – Style.com, Tumblr
Social Media App – Instagram
Ramen-type – Soy-sauce based, Osaka style ramen
Venue for Ramen Noodles – Kamukura in Shibuya
Guilty Pleasure – Late night hanging out with friends
Karaoke song – Plastic Love by Mariya Takeuchi, L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole
American TV Show – S*x and the City
American TV Characters – Charlotte and Miranda in S*x and the City
Passion – Buying and designing clothes
Hollywood Movie Character – Angelina Jolie in Gia
About Being an Actress – She feels happy when her audience gets emotional watching her character in any of her movies.
Films – Bound by The Wachowskis, Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki, Bridget Jones’ Diary by Sharon McGuire, Kids by Larry Clark, Fallen Angels by Wong Kar Wai
About Japan –
Lots of geeks
Good food everywhere
Cleanliness
Harajuku
Hot Spring Onsens
Fashion Inspiration – Kids, Street style
Actress – Chloe Sevigny
Clothing Item – High waist pants
Make-up Item – Red Lipstick
Korean Dishes – Grilled intestines (Gopchang), Oxtail soup (Seolleongtang).
Kiko Mizuhara Facts
Kiko parents relocated to Japan when she was 2 years old.
Growing up in Hyogo, Kobe, Japan Kiko felt embarrassed by her bi-racial ethnicity. She avoided speaking English for a long time to fit in among her school friends and asked her father not to visit her at school because he was blonde, blue-eyed and nearly 6’3” tall. He looked very different from the parents of her schoolmates.
Her nickname Kiko is inspired from the name of Princess Akishino who is also known as Princess Kiko but the last alphabet of Kiko name is spelled differently in Japanese as per a fortune teller advice.
Kiko started modeling at the age of 12 when her mother entered her in an audition for Seventeen magazine. She won the title of Miss Seventeen and along with it, a 3-year contract with the magazine.
Even though Kiko won a 3-year contract, she says that she was not first in the contest. Her name caught fame very gradually that allowed her to finish her schooling without any interruption.
As a child, Kiko was first influenced by fashion upon seeing several high-heeled, stylish women visit her mother for English language lessons.
Her parents got divorced when she was 13.
She speaks Japanese, English, and Korean.
Kiko Mizuhara is a stage name given to her by her mother to carve a professional identity, separate from her personal life.
Once embarrassed of her parent lineage, she finally embraced her unique identity when she moved to Tokyo at the age of 16 to pursue modeling full time where she realized being original is a strength.
She loves to dress up as famous celebrities (such as Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, and Madonna) for her birthday and Halloween every year.
No matter what country or big city Kiko visits, she looks for a gay club to hang out at first and foremost because she feels the safest at those places. She adds that gay clubs are also the best places to avoid attention.
Kiko would have pursued a career as a dancer, had she not been a model and actress.
Her residence in Tokyo is furnished only with vintage furniture and she fills her room with colorful candles and cushions.
She was officially credited as a designer when she collaborated with a Japanese store, Opening Ceremony in 2013.
Her first Fall/Winter collection as a designer was called, Bad Girl of the 90s (2013). It showcased the famous pizza outfit worn by Beyonce and another outfit that was worn by Rihanna.
Kiko would love to become a professional singer but she confesses she is not very good at it. One of her dreams on her wish list is to participate in the Fuji Rock festival.
While shooting for her debut movie role in Norwegian Wood (2010), Kiko confessed that she was constantly crying and depressed throughout the period as the director was very hard on her.
She has two tattoos on her body – a daisy on the left side of her midriff and a small heart behind her left ear.
Kiko is a cat person and owns two pet cats named, Ciccio and Bubu.
She first got a bob haircut to impress her then-boyfriend who had a crush on a leading movie actress with the same hairstyle. Even though she is no longer dating that guy, Kiko fans consider shoulder length bob as her signature style.
She is very fond of riding a kickboard also known as a micro-scooter in the Western countries.
