Katō's musical career began on 11 May 2016, when she passed the auditions for new members of Keyakizaka46's subgroup Hiragana Keyakizaka46, which was hosted on the streaming platform Showroom. Katō, along with ten other people that passed the audition, joined Neru Nagahama in Hiragana Keyakizaka46 and was known as the "first generation".[1] Her first concert occurred on 28 October of the same year at Akasaka Blitz, where she performed Kanji Keyakizaka46's songs "Silent Majority" and "Sekai ni wa Ai Shika Nai", as well as Hiragana Keyakizaka46's own "Hiragana Keyaki".[2]
During her time at Hiragana Keyakizaka46, she has consistently appeared in every single between "Sekai ni wa Ai Shika Nai" and "Kuroi Hitsuji", including a center position in the song "Happy Aura", a B-side for the single "Ambivalent".[3] She also appeared in the Sakamichi AKB song "Kokkyo no Nai Jidai", which included selected members of AKB48 and the Sakamichi Series. With this appearance, Katō became the first Hiragana Keyakizaka46 member to be included in a Sakamichi AKB song, excluding Neru Nagahama.[4]
After Hiragana Keyakizaka46 was renamed into Hinatazaka46, Katō has also appeared in every single to date, including another Sakamichi AKB song, "Hatsukoi Door".[5] She was chosen as the center for the title track of the 5th single "Kimi Shika Katan".[6][7]
On August 6, 2024, Katō announced that she would leave Hinatazaka46 after the promotions for the upcoming twelfth single have concluded, with plans to pursue careers in acting and beauty and fashion.[8] Earlier that year, she has appeared in her first leading roles on terrestrial television dramas outside Hinatazaka46's own shows, on Kore kara Haishin Hajimemasu (TX Network)[9] and Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! (MBS TV).[10]
Modeling
Katō made her runway debut at the GirlsAward 2017 Autumn/Winter fashion show.[11] In February 2019, she became an exclusive model for the fashion magazine CanCam,[12] and appeared on the cover of the October edition with then-Nogizaka46 members Sayuri Matsumura and Mizuki Yamashita as the "Three Sakamichi Sisters".[13]
Katō's first photobook, titled #Aitai, was released by Shogakukan on June 20, 2023, with photographs taken in Oahu, Hawaii.[14] It is the first Hinatazaka46 photobook produced overseas.[lower-alpha 1]