Yoshiki dedicates Hollywood handprint ceremony to victims of Japanese earthquake

Yoshiki said he hopes those experiencing grief would “find hope and inspiration” in his hand and footprints, during an unveiling ceremony outside the TCL Chinese Theatres in Hollywood.

The Japanese rock star, concert pianist and composer said he wanted to dedicate the moment to those who had lost loved ones in the New Year’s Day earthquake in central Japan, which killed more than 160 people.

During the ceremony, the 58-year-old revealed he had decided to auction off his crystal piano, with all proceeds going to victims of the fatal earthquake which he said “hit me so hard”.

“If I may, I’d love to take the opportunity of this special event to give something back,” Yoshiki told the crowd, who were all making an X with their arms in reference to his band X Japan.

Yoshiki also spoke about his own loss, having recently experienced the death of a bandmate, as well as processing the death of his mother, father, and former bandmates Hideto Matsumoto and Taiji Sawada.

“I don’t know how to deal with this pain,” he said.

“To be honest, it is hard to make it day by day, you might feel it in my hand prints, sometimes my hands feel very fragile, sometimes my hands feel very strong so as my heart.

“I have been going through some kind of mental upheaval, but my fans have been supporting me and bringing me back to a positive place, so I am still making it through every day.”

He said: “The title of the film means even though people closest to my heart went up in the sky, I’m still here. We’re still here. Still living here under the sky.

“I’m telling myself we should live as much as we can, we should live for them.”

He described the film-making process as “addictive”, teasing future projects in the pipeline.

Yoshiki, who composed the Golden Globe Awards theme song, is the first Japanese-born artist to be honoured by the theatre since the tradition began in 1927.

“I never thought my name could be etched next to amazing Oscar-winners such as Tom Hanks, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and amazing athletes such as Kobe Bryant.”

Yoshiki is currently composing the official theme song for the 50th anniversary of Hello Kitty.