SOTA (2001年1月18日生) は、6人組ダンス＆ヴォーカルグループBE:FIRSTのメンバー。神奈川県出身。
インストラクターである母の影響で、幼い頃からダンスに親しんでいた。小学2年のとき、自宅で母親と喧嘩し落ち込んでいる時に偶然目にしたThe Jackson 5の ”I Want You Back” の映像に、号泣するほど心を動かされのめり込み、本格的にダンススクールに通い始めた。この時の記憶がSOTAの音楽愛の原点となっている。

所属するスクールのチームで出場したHHI世界大会 (World Hip Hop Dance Championship)にて5回の優勝を果たしたほか、単独でも世界各国のワークショップに招聘されるなど、ダンサー・コレオグラファーとしての活躍はめざましかったが、各国のトップダンサーとの交流の中で「みんなカッコいいし、何が頂点なのかわからなくなった」と言う。その後コロナ禍により活動が限られた中、「自分は何を一番やりたいのか」を初心に戻って考えた時、誰よりもカッコよく見えたのがブルーノ・マーズだった。

ダンススキルとかじゃなく、音楽表現するために生まれたダンスの原点的なところが一番美しい人なんです。
ー スポーツ報知 | スペシャルインタビュー より

この頃日本で立ち上がったDリーグプロダンサー契約のオファーもあったが、結局は「マイクを持って歌って踊りたい」という気持ちが、SOTAをオーディション “THE FIRST” へ向かわせた。

オーディションでは、未経験だったヴォーカルやラップのトレーニングに打ち込み、課題曲のコレオグラフを担当したり、似た音楽的ルーツを持つMANATOやAile The ShotaとともにユニットShowMinorSavageを結成しクリエイティヴにも才能を見せ、最終審査にて主催者のSKY-HIから

SOTAの音楽に向かう姿勢、そして心のブレなさ、まっすぐさは、BE:FIRSTを作る上で不可欠
ー YouTube | BMSG Official Channel “THE FIRST 本編 #20” より

と評され、1番目に名前を呼ばれた。

BE:FIRSTでは、アグレッシヴなラップと、対照的に甘く切ない歌声でのヴォーカル、そして何よりコレオグラフ全般に関わりチームを牽引している。コレオグラファーとして ”Mainstream”、“Masterplan” (ReiNaとの共作)、”Spacecraft” (SOTA単独) など多数の曲に関わるほか、曲調や表現したい内容によって知己のコレオグラファーへオファーを出すなど、ダンサー時代の経験と人脈が遺憾なく発揮されている。

コレオにおいては、

視界の斜め前にいつも黄色い砂のような小さい、何でも自由に踊ってのける自分が見えている

と語る (のちに音楽雑誌MUSICA – 2025年11月号のインタビューにて、「たまにそいつが消える瞬間があって。そういう時がいい時なんですよ。で、最近はもう、マイク持って出るとそいつが見えることはないですね」と発言している）。

2025年、BE:FIRSTはグループとしてのデビュー4周年を迎え、発表された初のベストアルバムBE:STの表題曲として、SOTAの原点となった ”I Want You Back” のリメイクカヴァーをリリースした。

SOTA (born January 18, 2001) is a member of the six-member dance and vocal group BE:FIRST. He is from Kanagawa Prefecture.

Influenced by his mother, who is a dance instructor, he has been into dancing since a little kid. When he was a second grader, he had a spat with his mother and, while feeling depressed, happened to come across a video of The Jackson 5 performing “I Want You Back.” He was so moved that he couldn’t stop crying and became completely absorbed in it, which led him to start attending dance school in earnest. This memory became the origin of SOTA’s love for music.

As a member of his dance school team, he won the HHI World Championship (World Hip Hop Dance Championship) five times. He was also invited to dance workshops in various countries, achieving remarkable success as a dancer and choreographer. However, through his interactions with top dancers from around the world, he began to feel, as he put it, “Everyone’s so cool that I couldn’t tell what the pinnacle really was.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, when his activities were limited, “What is it that I truly want to do?” — When he went back to that starting point and thought about it, the person who looked the coolest to him was Bruno Mars.

It’s not about dance skills; he’s someone who embodies the most beautiful essence of dance — the kind that was born to express music.
ーvia Sports Hochi | Special Interview

Around that time, he received an offer to sign as a professional dancer in Japan’s newly launched D.LEAGUE, but in the end, his desire to “hold a mic, sing, and dance” drove him to the audition “THE FIRST”.

During the audition, he devoted himself to vocal and rap training, which he had never done before. Also he choreographed several performance pieces, and showed his creativity by forming the unit ShowMinorSavage with MANATO and Aile The Shota, who shared similar musical roots. In the final round, SKY-HI praised him, saying,

SOTA’s attitude toward music, his unwavering heart, and his steadiness are essential to creating BE:FIRST,
ーvia YouTube | BMSG Official Channel “THE FIRST Full Episode #20”

and called his name first among the seven.

Within BE:FIRST, SOTA plays a leading role with his aggressive rap, contrastingly sweet and emotional singing voice, and, above all, his commitment to choreography. As a choreographer, he has contributed to numerous songs including “Mainstream”, “Masterplan” (co-created with ReiNa), and “Spacecraft” (solo choreography by SOTA). Depending on the song’s style and message, he also commissions other choreographers he knows, making full use of his experience and network from his dancer days.

Regarding choreography, he said,

I always see a small version of myself, like yellow sand, who can dance freely to anything, just a little ahead in my field of vision.

(Later, in an interview with the music magazine MUSICA – November 2025 issue, he stated, “There are moments when that little guy disappears — which indicates I’m in the zone. And lately, when I go out holding a mic, he never appears anymore.”)

In 2025, BE:FIRST celebrated the fourth anniversary of their debut. As the title track of their first best album BE:ST, they released a remake cover of “I Want You Back” — the song that marked the beginning of SOTA’s journey with music.