In April 1996, Aiko became a radio host of FM Osaka after graduating from college.
She released a CD which she produced independently with her friends of college in August.
[citation needed] In July 1998, Aiko debuted on a major label with her first single, "Ashita" (あした), which was used as the theme song for the movie Toire no Hanako-san.
In 2000, her second album, Sakura no Ki no Shita (桜の木の下), reached number one on the Oricon weekly charts, with the total CD sales amounting to 1.4 million copies.
On December 14, 2021, Aiko revealed on her live show performance that she had tied the knot with her significant other a year earlier.