Saeko Kitamae is a Japanese female singer-songwriter. Released two albums worldwide, and some independent materials in Japan. Played as a first female Japanese singer in the world's biggest heavy metal festival, Wacken Open Air, in 2005.
Saeko was born in 1974 in Osaka, Japan. At age 14, at a time when she was suffering a lot of emotional turmoil in her life, she happened to hear “heavy metal/hard rock" for the first time. She felt messages through this powerful music-‘Live! Believe in yourself!', which was an amazing, pivotal experience for her who lived in a collectivist country as Japan. She felt clearly that she was born to do this music, the realization that made her vow, "I'll go on tour overseas with my own heavy metal band someday." The determination stayed with her.
Since then, she formed several bands, but she was satisfied with none of them. Eventually, she gave up her dream in 1992: Playing overseas seemed a too big dream for a small Japanese girl. However, after sleepless nights in feeling lost, she began the pursuit of her vow again in 1994; she put up notices in music shops all over Osaka and nearby cities, looking for members serious about music. The following year, 1995, she formed the band called INSANIA.
Please visit the official web site for her further story. There's her bio in English, Japanese and French.
http://www.saeko.biz/pg_profile.html