Sono Hikari was founded by Renée Hikari, an NYC-based drummer, recording engineer, and producer born in Tokyo and raised in Queens.

Renée's studio credits include work with Shania Twain, The Lumineers, Cigarettes After Sex, P!nk, Melanie De Biasio, Beth Gibbons of Portishead, David Kushner, Darren Kiely, Carly Pearl, and many more, spanning over 1.5 billion streams.

Working alongside artists at every stage, from early development to major releases, made one thing clear: true A&R lives in the process of creation. It's in the room when an artist finds the take that's real, and in the trust that makes that moment possible.

But with developing artists, that understanding rarely makes it to the release plan. Great music gets lost in translation on the way to market, and the artist's identity gets flattened in the process.

That gap inspired Sono Hikari: a creative studio built to connect what happens in the studio with how it reaches the world. From recording and creative direction to release strategy, business infrastructure, and custom AI tools designed around how artists actually work, everything flows from what was discovered in the room, not from a template applied after the fact.

With bilingual expertise across the Japanese and US music industries, Sono Hikari helps artists navigate cross-cultural markets without compromising what makes them original.

Whether you're a developing artist finding your voice or an established one who needs the right roadmap for your vision, the work begins the same way it always does:

with sono hikari - その光 - your light.