Music From its formation in 2000 until its disbandment in 2015, Hoshino led the
instrumental band
Sakerock, where he played
marimba and guitar. They released over ten albums. As a solo artist, he debuted with his first album
Baka no Uta on June 23, 2010. His first physical single, "
Kudaranai no Naka ni" was released on March 2, 2011, and peaked at number 17 on the
Oricon Singles Chart. The subsequent singles – "Film", "Yume no Soto e", "Shiranai" (2012), and "
Gag" (2013) – all charted in the top 10. His second album,
Episode, released on September 28, 2011, peaked at number five. Hoshino's third album,
Stranger, followed on May 1, 2013. It peaked at number two on the
Oricon Albums Chart and was certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). Since 2011, Hoshino has co-hosted the
Ustream program with
Ichirō Yamaguchi of
Sakanaction. In 2014, the program officially changed its name to
Yoru no Television. Hoshino's fourth album,
Yellow Dancer, was released on December 2, 2015, in Japan through
Speedstar Records; it debuted atop both Oricon and
Billboard Japans album charts.
Yellow Dancer was certified platinum by the RIAJ that same month for surpassing 250,000 physical shipments, and became one of the few albums to receive a gold certification for digital downloads. On February 18, 2018, Hoshino uploaded a music video for his song "Doraemon", which was written in tribute to the
Japanese franchise of the same name. The song was used as the theme of the 38th
Doraemon movie, ''Nobita's Treasure Island
, and has been used as the opening theme of the Doraemon
anime from October 5, 2019, to November 2, 2024. Pop Virus'', Hoshino's fifth album, was released on December 17. It spent four consecutive weeks atop the Oricon Album Chart and was certified double platinum by the RIAJ that same month. The album's commercial performance, within just a few months of its release, earned Hoshino a Best Album prize at the
33rd Japan Gold Disc Awards in 2019, as well as a Best Song prize for the digital success of the single "Idea", which was used as a theme for
Asadora. In March 2019, Hoshino also became the first artist to win four trophies at the
Space Shower Music Awards. On August 30, all of Hoshino's music was made available on streaming services. In April 2022, Hoshino's song "
Comedy" was used as the ending theme of the
season one anime adaptation of
Spy × Family. The following July, he released the single "
I Wanna Be Your Ghost", as the main theme for the film
Yokaipedia (2022). It debuted at number one on Oricon's weekly
Digital Singles Chart. On December 27, 2023, Hoshino released the double A-side single "
Why" / "
Life" (光の跡／生命体). It features the song "Why", used in the end credits of the movie
Spy × Family Code: White.
Acting Hoshino's movie debut,
Lee Sang-il's
69, was an
adaptation of the
Ryū Murakami novel of the
same name. He previously acted in various
television dramas and
stage plays. In 2012, he debuted as a voice actor, voicing Buddha in the
original video animation (OVA)
adaptation of
Hikaru Nakamura's
manga Saint Young Men, and also provided a theme song called "Gag" for its 2013 theatrical version, where he reprised his role. In 2013, he played the lead character in Masahide Ichii's alongside
Kaho, and starred in the
Sion Sono film ''
Why Don't You Play in Hell?''. In 2016, Hoshino starred in TBS's
The Full-Time Wife Escapist. With
Yui Aragaki as his co-star, he portrayed a salaryman named Hiramasa Tsuzaki. The drama achieved steadily rising ratings, with a real-time viewership peak rating of 20.8% on the final episode, and an overall rating of 14.5%. Hoshino's performance earned him several Best Supporting Actor awards. He also provided the theme song for the drama, titled "
Koi." Gen Hoshino created the parody character "Akira Nise" (ニセ明,
Nise Akira, literally
Fake Akira) as a tribute to
Akira Fuse. In 2017, Hoshino lent his voice to the main character of award-winning animated film
Night Is Short, Walk On Girl. He also became the voice of the Father in
Mamoru Hosoda's
Mirai, which was released into theaters in Japan on July 20, 2018. On April 30, 2018, it was announced that Hoshino would star in
Samurai Shifters, the film adaptation of Akihiro Dobashi's historical novel
Hikkoshi Daimyo Sanzenri, set to premier on August 30, 2019. In the movie, he plays a bookworm samurai called Harunosuke Katagiri, who receives the mission to help a daimyo move. It would be Hoshino's first lead role in a live-action movie since
Blindly in Love in 2013. In
Idaten, NHK's 2019 Taiga drama, chosen for the theme to encourage
the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Hoshino portrayed Kazushige Hirasawa, who delivered the persuasive speech that helped determine the venue for
the Tokyo 1964 Olympic Games. ==Personal life==