Takako Matsu

Matsu starred in her stage debut Ninjō-banashi: Bunshichi Mottoi at Kabuki-za. Her first television role was in the NHK Drama Hana no Ran and starred in the NHK drama Kura. Because Shirayuri Gakuen, her high school, prohibited working in the industry, she moved to Horikoshi High School. Matsu starred in the drama Long Vacation after matriculating to college. She had a supporting role, but established in full-scale her position, because the drama was a major hit. She hosted the 47th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen and debuted with the single "Ashita, Haru ga Kitara". She returned to the show as a singer on the last day of the year. In an interview with NHK, Matsu recalled the incident with her musical debut. She sang karaoke which was heard by the director who suggested she gave a song. Although she declined it and was not confident enough with the song, she accepted because she saw it as "[a] chance that not everyone got".

In the same year, she starred in the drama Love Generation in a leading role. She starred in Hero. She published a photo essay book, Matsu no Hitorigoto, through Asahi Shimbun Publishers. She released "Toki no Fune" in September 2004, which was composed by Akeboshi. It is similar to the song, "A nine days' wonder", which was released after the "Toki no Fune" single. The single contained a cover of Akeboshi's "White Reply" previously recorded on her sixth album, Harvest Songs.

Matsu won the Best Actress of the Year of the 29th Hochi Film Award and the 28th Japan Academy Prize at the same time for The Hidden Blade. In July 2006, she and Takuya Kimura starred in a special one-night edition of Hero. In October 2006, Matsu and Makoto Fujita starred in a weekly drama Yakusha Damashii. Matsu left the third concert tour in May 2007 to commemorate her tenth year as a singer. In her album Cherish You, the song "Ashita Haru ga Kitara" was redone to combine her voice on her youth.

On November 27, 2014, Matsu revealed on her official website that she was pregnant with her first child. Her daughter was born on March 30, 2015, and had 3466 grams. On February 9, 2020, Matsu was called to join Idina Menzel, Aurora and eight more of Elsa's international dubbers to perform the song “Into the Unknown” at the 92nd Academy Awards. Every international performer sang one line of the song in a different languages, including Maria Lucia Rosenberg, Willemijn Verkaik, Carmen Sarahí, Lisa Stokke, Katarzyna Łaska, Anna Buturlina, Gisela and Wichayanee Pearklin. Matsu worked with the producers. Her third album, Sakura no Ame, Itsuka was released at Universal Music.