Momo Hirai
Japanese singer (born 1996)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Momo Hirai (Japanese: 平井 もも, Hepburn: Hirai Momo; 平井 桃; born November 9, 1996), known mononymously as Momo (Korean: 모모; Japanese: モモ), is a Japanese singer, dancer, and rapper based in South Korea. She is a member of South Korean girl group Twice under JYP Entertainment and its subunit MiSaMo.
- Singer
- dancer
- rapper
Momo Hirai | |
|---|---|
Momo in 2024 | |
| Born | November 9, 1996 Kyōtanabe, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan |
| Occupations |
|
| Musical career | |
| Origin | Seoul, South Korea |
| Genres | |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Labels | |
| Member of | |
| Website | twice |
| Japanese name | |
| Kanji | 平井 もも |
| Romanization | Hirai Momo |
| Signature | |
 | |
Life and career
Early life and pre-debut activities
Momo Hirai was born in Kyōtanabe, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan.[1][2][3] She began dancing at the age of three, together with her elder sister, Hana.[3]
Momo gained exposure to the South Korean music industry early, appearing in a music video for Lexy in 2008 and on the talent show Superstar K in 2011.[4] Momo and her sister were originally spotted by JYP Entertainment in an online video in 2012.[3][4][5] They were both asked to audition, although only Momo was successful, prompting her to move to South Korea in April 2012.[4][6] Before joining Twice, she danced in a number of music videos as a "K-Pop trainee".[3][5] Momo was originally planned to debut in a four-member girl group in Japan in 2012; however, JYP suspended the plan due to the deterioration of the Korean-Japanese relationship following the Liancourt Rocks dispute.[7] In 2015, Momo participated in the South Korean reality television show Sixteen, created by JYP Entertainment and co-produced by Mnet.[8][9] She was initially eliminated from the show but was brought back by Park Jin-young at the end to become part of the final lineup of girl group Twice, due to her performance abilities.[8][3][10][11]
Debut with Twice and MiSaMo
In October 2015, Momo officially debuted as a member of Twice with the release of their first extended play (EP), The Story Begins,[12] and its lead single "Like Ooh-Ahh".[13] On February 9, 2023, JYP announced that Momo, alongside bandmates Sana and Mina, would officially debut in Japan on July 26 as a sub-unit named MiSaMo with the extended play titled Masterpiece.[14] Prior to the trio's debut, on January 25, they released the track "Bouquet" as part of the soundtrack of TV Asahi's drama series Liaison: Kodomo no Kokoro Shinryōjo.[15]
Artistry
Momo revealed that she was influenced by her older sister Hana from an early age; where she began dancing with her at the age of three.[10] She also revealed that the J-pop singer Namie Amuro is her role model and that she "wanted to be like her someday."[10] She noted that she loves 2NE1 and Rain, explaining, "I always wanted to thrill people with my dance, and K-pop dance thrilled me."[10]
Endorsements
In 2022, Momo was appointed as the brand muse of Wonjungyo, a cosmetic brand supervised by Won Jung-yo, Twice's makeup artist.[16] In October 2022, she was announced as the brand ambassador of the Japanese sports brand, Onitsuka Tiger.[17] In May 2023, she made an appearance as a model to promote the Japanese news app SmartNews.[18] In June 2023, Momo was selected as Japanese ambassador for the Italian fashion brand Miu Miu.[19] In May 2025, Momo was selected to be a brand ambassador for the perfume brand AMAFFI.[20]
Image and influence
Known for her physical fitness and body movements, she was nicknamed "Dance Machine" among her fans,[21] and is considered Twice's best dancer.[8][3][22]
_at_Asian_Artist_Awards_on_November_28,_2018_(2)_(cropped).jpg)
In Gallup Korea's annual music poll for 2018, Momo was voted the 20th most popular idol in South Korea,[23] the second highest-ranked Japanese individual in the poll, behind Twice bandmate Sana.[23] She has been one of the most popular non-Korean K-pop stars since her debut,[3] and The Chosun Ilbo credits her popularity with helping improve relations between South Korea and Japan.[6] In 2019, Momo received attention on Twitter after a video trailer of her was released for Feel Special[8] and ranked as the tenth most popular female K-pop idol in a survey of soldiers completing mandatory military service in South Korea.[24] In 2023, she surpassed Naomi Watanabe and became the first Japanese person to hit 10 million followers on Instagram only after eight months of opening her page on said platform.[25]
Discography
Collaborations
Other charted songs
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| KOR Down. [27] | |||
| "Move Like That"[a] | 2025 | 179 | Ten: The Story Goes On |
Songwriting credits
All song credits are adapted from the Korea Music Copyright Association's database unless stated otherwise.[28]
| Title | Year | Artist | Album | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Shot Thru the Heart" | 2018 | Twice | Summer Nights | As lyricist |
| "Hot" | 2019 | Fancy You | ||
| "Love Foolish" | Feel Special | |||
| "21:29" | ||||
| "Celebrate" | 2022 | Celebrate | ||
| "Funny Valentine" | 2023 | MiSaMo | Masterpiece | |
| "Money in My Pocket"[b] | 2024 | Haute Couture | ||
| "Me+You"[29] | 2025 | Twice | Ten: The Story Goes On |
Filmography
Television shows
| Year | Title | Role | Note | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Sixteen | Contestant | [8] | |
| 2016 | Hit the Stage | Episode 1–4 | [30] | |
| 2017 | Real Class – Elementary Kid Teachers | Cast | Lunar New Year special (2 Parts) | [31] |
Hosting
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Suwon K-pop Super Concert | with Kim Hee-chul, Zhou Mi and Chaeyoung | [32] |
