His clothing label, Moi-même-Moitié, was established in 1999 and is credited with helping popularize the Gothic Lolita fashion movement.

[3] Mana started making music when he was in high school, inspired by Mötley Crüe, and he learned to play the drums because of Tommy Lee.

Mana founded the independent record label Midi:Nette in 1994 for the release of Malice Mizer's debut album, Memoire.

He regularly appears in the scene's top publication, the Gothic & Lolita Bible, modeling his own designs and giving updates on his various other projects.

[2][9] He is recognized internationally for his fashion endeavors; in 2007, British author Philomena Keet included him as one of seven designers in her Tokyo Look Book.

[16] Mana has also produced solo vocalist and cellist Kanon Wakeshima, who debuted in May 2008 on Sony Defstar Records.

He refuses to learn music theory as he wants to create melodies and harmonies unlike other bands and finds regular song progressions dull.

He believes in a natural flow of composing, and thus "his compositions often change rhythm or key, have multiple melodies and are generally unpredictable".

In a 1996 Malice Mizer interview on the TV show Hot Wave, he quietly replied with his name and his position in the band when introduced.

[18] English-language Japanese music website JaME said he started discovering his "feminine side" before Malice Mizer.

[18] Japanese music website Barks stated that after Mana and Malice Mizer, the number of visual kei bands with onnagata members increased.