Derek Hui, the Manager Behind a Triple-Platinum Hit, Is Documenting Year Three of Starting Over in Tokyo
Derek Hui, the Manager Behind a Triple-Platinum Hit
The self-funded Toronto entrepreneur moved to Japan alone at 34. His YouTube series is built on one idea he repeats on camera: there is no life later.
I put my own money into an artist because I believed in him before the market did. That's the whole job. See it before other people see it, and pay for the right to be early.”
TOKYO, THAILAND, September 17, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Derek Hui, a Toronto-born entrepreneur who self-funded the career of the singer Anders before walking away from an established life to move to Tokyo alone in 2023, is marking three years since the move with a documentary series chronicling the transition.— Derek Hui
Hui, a self-taught photographer, founded the Mariner Agency, a Toronto wedding studio that shot more than 400 weddings, 300 of them with Hui behind the camera. From 24 to 31, he managed music artists, funding the work entirely with photography income. He put his own money behind the singer Anders and played a central role in the relationships, creative direction and rollout behind "Love No More," Anders' collaboration with Loud Luxury. In 2023, at 34, Hui left Toronto to start over in Tokyo without the language and knowing no one.
He filmed it. Three years on, that footage forms a YouTube documentary series (@imderekhui), covering the money, the friendships, the ordinary difficulties, and the decision behind the move.
"Love No More," released on Armada Music in August 2018, passed one million streams in two days, reached the Canadian Hot 100, charted in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia, and was certified triple platinum by Music Canada, with gold certifications in Australia and New Zealand. Hui had no label behind him. He funded Anders' development himself, before Armada Music released the track.
"I put my own money into an artist because I believed in him before the market did," Hui said. "That's the whole job. See it before other people see it, and pay for the right to be early."
Hui, 37, lives in Azabujuban, Tokyo. New episodes of the series are released roughly every two weeks, produced with Tokyo-based editor and videographer Darren Ha.
FIND DEREK HUI YouTube: youtube.com/@imderekhui Instagram: instagram.com/everything_derek TikTok: tiktok.com/@everything_derek Substack: letters.derekhui.com All links: linktr.ee/everythingderek
ABOUT DEREK HUI Derek Hui is a Toronto-born entrepreneur and creator living in Tokyo, Japan. He taught himself photography at 21 and founded the Mariner Agency, a Toronto wedding studio that shot more than 400 weddings, 300 of them by Hui himself. From 24 to 31 he managed artists in the music industry, funding it entirely with his photography income. He self-funded the career of the singer Anders, co-founded the NST Collective around him with William Nguyen (Photo Will), and played a central role in the relationships, creative direction and rollout behind Loud Luxury and Anders' "Love No More," certified triple platinum by Music Canada. He also managed Always Never, The Theorist and Aria Ohlsson, and has founded several e-commerce companies. In 2023, at 34, he moved to Tokyo alone and began documenting the experience on YouTube, a series built on the belief that there is no life later. He publishes a newsletter on Substack.
MEDIA Derek Hui is available for interview in English from Tokyo (JST). High-resolution images and episode links available on request.
Derek Hui
https://www.derekhui.com/
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