was the president of the Yamaha Corporation from 1950 to 1977, and again from 1980 to 1983. He is often credited with the international success of Yamaha and was also widely influential as a community music educator.

Born in Hamakita, Kawakami was a graduate of Takachiho College of Commerce

Takachiho University

is a private university in Suginami, Tokyo, Japan, established in 1950. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1903.This university is called "Edo University of Commerce" in Gregory S. Poole's book The Japanese Professor: An Ethnography of a University Faculty .-External links:*...

. He started working for Yamaha in 1937, where his father, Kaichi Kawakami had been the president since 1927. Kawakami succeeded his father and introduced motorcycle

Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...

 production to Yamaha (Yamaha Motor Corporation). He was very widely known for introducing motorcycles to Yamaha's corp. Retired in 1976, he wrote several books on music

Music

Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...

 and founded the largest and most popular system of community music schools in the world. He died in Hamamatsu at the age of 90 of natural causes.

Kawakami was married to Tamiko and had a son and a daughter.