© 2026 ABC News

The transition to YouTube

In early 2020, a YouTuber named Paolo contacted Moe to ask if she'd be willing to be filmed for his \"Japan Day in the Life\" series. Her video focused on a day in the life of a Japanese mom and, with 15 million views at the time of writing, is his most popular in the series.

\"At the time I was featured in Paolo's video, I had never seen YouTube,\" Moe said, adding that Paolo was the first YouTuber she'd ever met. \"I intuitively thought, 'Maybe I can do it too.'\"

\"PHOTO:
Kimono Mom
PHOTO: Moe, known as Kimono Mom, is a mom and former geisha who just hit one million subscribers on YouTube.
>

For her channel, Moe thought to feature what was familiar.

\"When I thought about what I could do now, I had an idea that I'd try to combine kimono and cooking,\" she said. \"I make recipes because I want people from overseas to see them. ... I use ingredients that are easily available overseas.\"

Armed with just an iPhone and laptop, \"Kimono Mom\" was born.

The videos have a universal appeal

In her first video on Feb. 21, 2020, Moe is in a kimono as she demonstrates how to make a deep-fried lotus root sandwich. Throughout the video, she has to stop what she's doing multiple times because of Sutan crying or wanting to be held -- an experience that parents everywhere know all too well.

While some may edit out those clips or reshoot, Moe doesn't shy away from them, leaving them in the final product. It's this level of authenticity that Moe believes is the reason her channel has garnered such an international following.

\"The image of mothers is international,\" Moe said. \"It doesn't change so much in Japan, the United States or Brazil. There are mothers all over the world so even if the person watching isn't a mother ... a mother's presence is close to people's hearts.\"

Initially, Moe didn't want her daughter to appear in the videos for privacy reasons, but said the nature of being a mom to a young child made it \"inevitable.\"

\"My daughter hasn't left me alone since she started talking,\" Moe said. \"It feels like she's always next to me.\"

\"PHOTO:
Kimono Mom
PHOTO: Moe cooks with her daughter Sutan in an undated photo. Moe, known as Kimono Mom, is a mom and former geisha who just hit one million subscribers on YouTube.
>

With her videos, Moe hopes to provide a lens into Japanese culture, food and motherhood. In addition to cooking, Moe also vlogs about other aspects of her life, such as her family's daily activities, how they spend their holidays and her daughter's \"terrible twos\".

Moe's most popular video, with 10.9 million views, is the first of a two-part series that follows her for a 24-hour period as she goes about a normal day. She wakes up at 5 a.m., has a couple hours to herself to work on personal stuff and then once Sutan wakes up at 7 a.m., she spends the rest of the day with her daughter taking care of any and all family duties.

Though she has little time for herself nowadays, Moe said she feels fulfilled and her viewers' encouragement keeps her going.

\"Making videos is now a part of my life,\" she said. \"At first, I wasn't connected to society, I was only a parent and I was depressed as a housewife, but the viewers' comments and messages saved me. I'm lucky to make friends all over the world. ... I feel that I'm very connected to every one of them.\"

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/GMA/Family/meet-mom-geisha-hit-million-subscribers-youtube/story?id=79407638","legacySlug":"/family/story/meet-mom-geisha-hit-million-subscribers-youtube-79407638","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"08:00","publishDate":"08-17-2021","updatedTime":"13:13","updatedDate":"08-17-2021","socialImage":{"alt":"Moe, known as Kimono Mom, is a mom and former geisha who just hit one million subscribers on YouTube.","credit":"Kimono Mom","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/kimono-mom-01-ht-iwb-210816_1629130924737_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"8/17/2021 08:00:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":79407638,"headline":"Mom, former geisha hits 1 million subs on YouTube","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA KIMONO MOM","description":"The YouTuber started her account in February 2020.","duration":"2:07","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/08/210816_gma_digital_kimonomom_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["77341564","77992305","77600064"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"story","date":"May 6, 2021","headline":"Fare from afar: Chefs share ingredients, authentic Japanese cuisine","section":"food","slug":"/food/story/fare-afar-chefs-share-authentic-japanese-cuisine-transport-77341564","id":77341564,"image":{"alt":"Fare from afar: Chefs share ingredients, authentic Japanese cuisine","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/FareFromFar_JapanFood_v02_LY_1620261336046_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"ABC News","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"May 31, 2021","headline":"How Korean American mom and attorney's growing soju brand supports the AAPI community","section":"food","slug":"/food/story/korean-american-mom-attorneys-growing-soju-brand-supports-77992305","id":77992305,"image":{"alt":"How Korean American mom and attorney's growing soju brand supports the AAPI community","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/kim-kumm-ht-rc-210531_1622462382677_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Courtesy Yobo Soju","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"May 11, 2021","headline":"Pastry chef creates stunning desserts with a nostalgic story","section":"food","slug":"/food/story/clarice-lam-whips-culturally-significant-confections-highlight-cantonese-77600064","id":77600064,"image":{"alt":"Pastry chef creates stunning desserts with a nostalgic story","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/claricelam-kitchen-kimika_1620753341181_hpMain_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Kimika","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Mom, former geisha hits 1 million subs on YouTube","description":"The YouTuber started her account in February 2020.","duration":"2:07","uploadDate":"08-17-2021","publication":"08-17-2021","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/08/210816_gma_digital_kimonomom_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2021/08/210816_gma_digital_kimonomom_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/family/story/meet-mom-geisha-hit-million-subscribers-youtube-79407638"}},"playlist":[{"id":"133220149","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133179167","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144373","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133144059","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133143081","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133075455","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133063114","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133063086","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"133015093","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132998564","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132998072","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132977374","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132977531","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132962364","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132958371","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132932494","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132927870","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132911868","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132911765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132880952","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:family:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"family","title":"Mom, former geisha hits 1 million subs on YouTube","pubTime":"04:00","pubDate":"08-17-2021","modTime":"09:13","modDate":"08-17-2021","taxonomyTags":"none","id":79407638,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Mom, former geisha hits 1 million subs on YouTube","mediaAssetTitle":"GMA KIMONO MOM","videoId":79407638,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/family/story/meet-mom-geisha-hit-million-subscribers-youtube-79407638"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/79407638","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/79407638","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};