Born in Paris, France. He was the eldest son of the painter Kozo Inoue and grew up in Paris until he was nine years old.Influenced by the Japanese manga he occasionally reads when he returns home, he aspires to become a manga artist.
He made his debut in 1989 when his work "Maadaa" won the Young Sunday Newcomer Award.
He moved to Los Angeles in the end of 2017.
A new series called "Zange" will start in Young Champion in March 2021.
Volume 2024 of "Sanka" will be released by Akita Shoten on February 2, 20.

(Japanese; b. 1968 in Paris, France}
Parisian-born Japanese artist Santa lnoue[aka "King of Street Comics"] made his debut as a comic book author in 1989, when he won the Young Sunday Newcomer Prize (organized by the preeminent publishing house Shogakukan) for his piece "Murder" .

"Tokyo Tribe2" was serialized in men's style magazine Boon, and has been translated and released in the US, France and several other countries (as "Tokyo Tribes").
In 2006 "Tokyo Tribe2" was also made into an animation film and broadcast on the Japanese cable TV station Wowow. Prior to that, in the previous year, another of his serial works "The Neighbor No. Thirteen" (1994) was made into a feature film. And in 2014, "Tokyo Tribe2"
was also made into a film directed by Sion Sono and had a successful theatrical run in Japan and other countries.
Currently Inoue has an on-going serial: "Tokyo Tribe Waru" in monthly manga magazine "Bessatu Young Champion" and its comic book was released on June 20, 2016.
In addition to his comic book work, Inoue is often commissioned to produce original artwork for advertisements and music album covers. Known as a dedicated black music aficionado himself, Inoue has directed three music compilations inspired by the "Tokyo Tribe" series.