Born October 11, 1973 in Taiwan, Takeshi is one of three sons of a Japanese father and Taiwanese mother. He was raised in Taiwan and visited Japan for the first time at the age of 18. He enrolled in the Taipei American School after being constantly harassed by former classmates at a regular Taiwanese high school about his mixed blood. 

He is able to speak fluent Mandarin, Japanese, Cantonese, Taiwanese, and English. When asked, however, Takeshi will probably tell you that he considers himself to be Japanese, accounting for the fact that his father is Japanese and that he was raised with a Japanese name. 

During his high school years at the Taipei American School, Takeshi entered show business doing television commercials. From there, he made his debut as a singer in 1992. He instantly became a star of the Chinese-speaking region, singing in both Mandarin and Cantonese. Contracted to EMI, he composes and writes many of his own songs. 

In 1993, he began his career as an actor. He is probably best known for his role in the critically-acclaimed film "Chungking Express", directed by Wong Kar-Wai. The film was also well-received in Japan, where his popularity is now steadly rising. He was featured with Rie Miyazawa in Fuji TV's "Seiya no Kiseki (A Miracle on a Holy Night)" aired on December 23, 1995, and he has also recently released a photographic journal.