Kaho Minami was born in Hyogo, Japan and is of third-generation Korean descent. She graduated from Toho Gakuen College of Drama & Music in Tokyo, Japan. While attending college, Minami auditioned for the first time and got the main role in her debut film, Kohei Oguri's "For Kanako" (1984). Soon after, Minami played the main role on TBS television's drama series in 1985. Her stage play debut was as Juliet in "Romeo & Juliet" directed by Tamasaburo Bando, the legendary Kabuki actor. In the many decades following, she has appeared in numerous projects that span across the theater, movies, television dramas, in both main and supporting roles. She starred in many films by various filmmakers including Gakuryu Ishii's "Angel Dust" (1994), Masayuki Ochiai's Horror film "Infection" (2004), Tian Zhuangzhuang's "The Go Master" (2006), and Kazuyoshi Kumakiri's "Sketches of Kaitan City" (2010) . In private, Minami had married actor Ken Watanabe from 2005 until 2018. She focuses on various volunteer projects including the enlightenment activities of sharing her own experience as a breast cancer survivor. She is regarded as one of the most powerful players who influence many Japanese females. Other notable appearances internationally are "Oh, Lucy!" (2018) with actor Josh Hartnett, "Gensan Punch" (2022) by Philippines' master, Brillante Mendoza and "Pachinko" (2022, Apple TV+drama) based on Min Jin Lee's original book.