Ryoko Shinohara

Ryoko Shinohara (篠原 涼子 Shinohara Ryōko, born August 13, 1973 in Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture) is a Japanese singer and actress. She began her career as a singer in the Japanese female pop band Tokyo Performance Doll, and after its break-up, began a solo singing career with producer Tetsuya Komuro. She is perhaps most famous among anime enthusiasts for providing the theme song to the Japanese version of Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie. The single produced by Tetsuya Komuro sold over 2 million copies. She released singles regularly until 1998, then concentrated on her acting career, which is successful today. By 2004 she was one of the most popular actresses in Japan.

She married on December 8 2005 to actor Masachika Ichimura, 24 years her senior. She gave birth to a boy on May 10, 2008, just one day before the Mother's Day of that year. Shinohara mainly focused on shooting commercials while taking care of her son. After continuously receiving casting offers, however, she made her return as an actress in September 2009 with the 2-hour special drama, Hataraku Gon!.

In May 2010, Shinohara starred in her first drama series in three years titled, Tsuki no Koibito ~Moon Lovers~. Then, in October, she landed the lead role in Ogon no Buta

On August 31, 2011, it was announced that the actress was pregnant with her second child. Currently, Shinohara plays a role in six commercials, and is about to launch in November 2011 the movie Unfair: The Answer, the sequel to the original movie launched in 2007.