Yuki Goto is a Japanese author, model, and former singer. In 2000, while he was in middle school, he joined the group EE Jump as their lead rapper under the stage name Yuki. Goto is also the younger brother of singer and former Morning Musume member Maki Goto.
Career
2000-2002: EE Jump
In 1999, when he was in 6th grade, Goto was scouted by Harmony Promotion while he was at one of Maki Goto's events. He was assigned to a group with Sonim and Ken under the name EE Jump as their lead rapper. Together, they made their first televised appearance on the variety showWarau Inu no Bōken. Though Ken left the group before their CD debut, EE Jump released their first single on October 18, 2000 with the song "Love is Energy!" and achieved mainstream success with their summer hit "Otto Totto Natsu da ze!" on May 16, 2001. Despite EE Jump's success, Goto disliked performing in the group and was constantly told by staff that he lacked skill in singing and keeping in rhythm. During promotions for EE Jump's fourth single, "Iki na Rhythm!", Goto had an argument with the group's female manager over their crowded schedules, which led him to physically assault her and check out of his hotel room without permission, fleeing to Tochigi Prefecture. The chief manager of Harmony Promotion, Kaoru Wada, suspended his activities for three months while Sonim continued promoting without him. After issuing an apology, Goto rejoined EE Jump in February 2002; however, shortly after graduating middle school, tabloid magazineFriday published photographs of him drinking alcohol while underage at a cabaret club in a VIP room with a member of Johnny's Jr. Wada warned Goto to keep his personal life private, but when Goto refused, he and EE Jump's music producer, Tsunku, agreed to terminate his contract, which led to EE Jump disbanding on April 13, 2002.
2013-present: ''Sange'' and comeback
After serving five years in prison, in 2013, Goto released a memoir titled Sange: Gomaki no Otōto to Yobarete, which discussed his parents' deaths, his relationship with his sister Maki, and his struggles with fame. In 2016, Goto appeared as a hair model, representing the salon Gossip Hair. In 2017, Goto appeared as a guest on the webtalk showImada-Higashi no Curricular, making his first televised appearance in 15 years. In 2018, he appeared again on the show's second season.
Personal life
Goto's older sister is singer Maki Goto, a former member of Morning Musume. In 1996, while Goto was on a hiking trip in the mountains with his father and a family friend, his father died from a fall. Goto himself had noticed it first, as he had stated, "Hey, didn't you hear a loud thump just now?" Goto dropped out of high school in the middle of his first year. In 2005, he married a non-celebrity woman whose name was not disclosed. Goto has several tattoos, receiving his first one, a carp on his neck, when he was 20 years old. On October 20, 2007, Goto was arrested and plead guilty for breaking into a construction site in Edogawa, Tokyo on July 15, 2007 and stealing 80 reels of electric cable worth approximately ¥1 million. His accomplices included two of his friends, who were 18 and 19 years old respectively. He was identified by the police by his tattoos. He was sentenced to five and a half years in jail by the Tokyo District Court in May 2008. On January 23, 2010, Goto's mother, Tokiko Goto, fell from the third story of their house in Edogawa, Tokyo at 11 PM. She was rushed to the hospital, but died from her injuries on January 24 at 1:13 AM. Goto was incarcerated at the time from his 2007 arrest and was not allowed to attend her funeral.
