Toku, born on February 20, 1973 in Niigata Prefecture, Japan, is a trumpet and flugelhorn player known for his contributions to jazz music. Influenced by his father's diverse musical tastes, Toku began playing the cornet during junior high school and later picked up the trumpet and flugelhorn. In college, he joined a cover band and was inspired to pursue jazz after performing "If I Were a Bell" at a campus festival. After moving to the United States for English studies, Toku returned to Japan and started singing at BODY & SOUL jazz club, where he was scouted by Rob Crocker of INTER-FM. This led to his debut album Everything She Said in 2000 under Sony Music Records Inc. His breakthrough came with "Do-Re-Mi" (2002), used in a Honda Odyssey ad campaign. Toku has since released numerous albums, including Toku (2003) and Toku in Paris (2020).
