POiSON GiRL FRiEND is the moniker of Japanese electronic musician Noriko Sekiguchi, whose work emerged in the mid-1990s at the intersection of lounge, shibuya-kei, electronica, and downtempo pop. A pioneer of the "Japanese whisper voice" aesthetic, POiSON GiRL FRiEND cultivated a distinct style marked by breathy vocals, sensuous lyricism often delivered in both Japanese and English, and sleek, futuristic production. Her early albums, such as Shyness (1995) and Mr.

Polyglot Remix (1996), garnered a cult following for their clever melding of jazz, trip hop, and bossa nova influences, wrapped in a playful, avant-garde sensibility. After a hiatus, her music has experienced renewed global interest through reissues and retrospectives, with a new generation of listeners drawn to her understated yet adventurous sound. POiSON GiRL FRiEND continues to inspire artists across genres for her innovative approach to electronic pop and her influential contribution to the ‘90s Japanese underground music scene.