Sendai, Japan
Yoko Kanno
The composer of Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, from jazz to pop and orchestra.
A Japanese composer, she made her name in anime with Macross Plus (1994). With Cowboy Bebop (1998) and her band, The Seatbelts, she mixed jazz, blues and rock in one of the genre's most admired series, followed by a film in 2001. She went on to score Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and its sequel, Solid State Society.
- Style
- Jazz big band, electronics, pop and orchestra, all in the same work.
- Awards
- No major film awards: included for her very well-known anime work.
Discography
- Macross Plus (Original Soundtrack II) (1995) Spotify · Apple Music
- Macross Plus (Original Soundtrack Plus) (1995) Spotify
- NHK Special: China, the Inspired Dragon (1995) Spotify
- Natsujikan no otonatachi: Happy Go Lucky (1997) Spotify
- Brain Powerd (Original Soundtrack 2) (1998) Spotify · Apple Music
- Cowboy Bebop (1998) Spotify
- Turn A Gundam (Original Soundtrack III) (2000) Spotify
- Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door (2001) Spotify
- Earth Maiden Arjuna (2001) Spotify
- tokyo.sora (2002) Spotify · Apple Music
- Wolf's Rain (2003) Spotify
- Genesis of Aquarion (2005) Spotify
- Genesis of Aquarion 2 (2005) Spotify
- Say Hello! anokoni-yoroshiku. (2007) Spotify
- Macross Frontier (Original Soundtrack 1) (2008) Spotify · Apple Music
- Macross Frontier (Original Soundtrack 2) (2008) Spotify · Apple Music
- Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society (album 2011) Spotify
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (O.S.T. 2) (album 2011) Spotify
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (O.S.T. 3) (album 2011) Spotify
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (O.S.T.+) (album 2011) Spotify
- Our Little Sister (2015) Spotify
- Naotora: The Lady Warlord (2017) Spotify · Apple Music
- Cowboy Bebop (Netflix series) (2021) Spotify
- The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House (2023) Spotify · Apple Music
- Under The Midnight Rainbow (2025) Spotify · Apple Music
"Spotify" and "Apple Music" open the album directly on each platform; if only Spotify appears, we have not yet been able to check that album on Apple Music. "Search Spotify" opens an album search for that title. If a link does not lead to the right album, write to [email protected]. "Album" marks the year of that album edition when it differs from the film's.
Listen
- Tank! · Cowboy BebopSpotifyApple MusicYouTube
- Cosmos · Cowboy Bebop: The MovieSpotifyApple MusicYouTube
Awards counted up to the 2026 Academy Awards. Facts reviewed in October 2026.