WARPs UP Holds First Online Concert & Fan Meeting on April 23!

Japanese-Chinese boys’ collective WARPs UP will follow their hit January 14 single ‘POWER_xin’ with their first ever online concert, titled WARPs UP First ONLINE SHOW -Light UP Miracle-, to be held on April 23.

The show will feature many of WARPs UP’s original songs, presented with freshly arranged performances just for this concert. It will be followed by a fan meeting held exclusively for live viewers, while participants will receive a special background wallpaper featuring the stage set. Fans should not miss this exclusive event!

Event title: WARPs UP First ONLINE SHOW -Light UP Miracle-

Ticket purchase link: https://warapsup-live.zaiko.io/e/warpsup-live1st

Ticket sale period: April 5, 2022 thru April 23, 2022 at 19:00 JST

Concert date and time: April 23, 2022, from 19:00 JST

Ticket purchase benefits: Post-performance fan meeting, WARPs UP First ONLINE SHOW -Light UP Miracle- original wallpaper 

Also, to commemorate this debut online live event, original merchandise will be on sale for a limited time only!

Purchase link: https://warps.avex-shop.jp/

Sale period: April 6, 2022 at 22:00 JST thru April 25, 2022 at 23:59 JST

Maaya Sakamoto to Release Double A-side Single!

During vocalist Maaya Sakamoto’s birthday, she announced that she will be releasing a double A-side single containing the theme songs of two anime starting in April in Japan.

The first is the opening theme for Deaimon, a story set in an old confectionery store in Kyoto. The title is “Sumire.” The lyrics were written by Sakamoto herself, with composition and arrangement by Shigeru Kishida of Kururi, a Japanese rock band from Kyoto, matching the setting of the anime.

The second song is “Kotoba ni Dekinai,” the ED theme for the third season of the popular anime Ascendance of a Bookworm, which has sold over 6 million copies (including e-books). Maaya Sakamoto wrote and composed this song herself. The coupling track will be a studio live version of “Senri no Michi,” a song created to commemorate the 1,000th broadcast of Vitamin M, a radio program hosted by Maaya Sakamoto.

The limited first edition will come with a bonus Blu-ray containing the final day of Maaya Sakamoto’s Acoustic Live & Talk 2020 tour, which was held on November 29, 2020, at Zepp Tokyo.

In addition, two cover photos (limited first edition and regular edition) and a music video (short ver.) for “Sumire” have been released. The music video features Kento Ohgiya, who co-arranged and played the piano for Sumire which you can view below along with the pre-order links for the upcoming single!

Standard edition

Limited edition

Nippon Broadcasting System and PONYCANYON USA have Announced the Launch of "Anime Roomy", A Podcast for Overseas Anime Fans!

Nippon Broadcasting System and PONYCANYON USA are pleased to announce the launch of "Anime Roomy", a podcast for international anime fans!

Anime Roomy" is an all-English audio content for anime fans around the world hosted by Mikan, Yuzu, Yuri, and Sakura, who are anime fans living in North America and also members of PONYCANYON USA's "World Otafy Project". It features a lot of anime, from well-known classics to the latest titles, as well as "Funny Nihongo" and "Oshi-kai" that goes beyond anime, based on the concept of a fun otaku chat between roomies. Cast profiles and character voices are available on World Otafy Project official website.

The podcast is available on various distribution sites and PONYCANYON USA YouTube, and new episodes go up every Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. (Japan Time). Moreover, special guests are now being arranged. It will be a super exciting podcast for those who love Japanese anime and pop culture. Follow the official Twitter and subscribe to the channel, and look forward to the updates.

Be sure to check out here!


<Cast Profiles >

Mikan (Character Color: Orange):

A wholesome girl whose cute smile is her trademark. An accomplished fan artist who loves to share her work with friends. Loves shonen manga and anime based on them. Working toward her dream of becoming a designer.

Yuzu (Character Color: Yellow)

A cool beauty who’s also the group’s youngest member. Quick-witted and often serves as the MC of the program. Loves cats and anime. A self-proclaimed fujoshi.

Yuri (Character Color: Blue)

Her kindhearted, nurturing personality makes her the oneesan of the Roomies. Possesses a calming aura. Loves SF and hot-blooded anime. When she gets fired up about one of her many interests, she’s unstoppable.

Sakura (Character Color: Pink)

A multifaceted comedienne, by turns sexy and hilarious. Loves magical girl anime more than anything. The chameleon of the group, known for her sudden funny interjections.

<What is "World Otafy Project"?>

A project by PONYCANYON USA that aims to "otaku-fy" the world with the main focus on "translation by otaku for otaku". The members are native English-speaking anime fans who are fluent in Japanese, and are involved in anime-related translation and research from their otaku perspectives. If you’re interested in being a part of “Otafy”, please check the website for the details and achievements.

Keiko Watanabe Brings New Life with Latest Release!

“ALIVE” Jacket Cover

Voice actress Keiko Watanabe released her original song called “ALIVE” on Tuesday the 29th of March across all digital music streaming platforms. She acted as Momoko Suou in “THE iDOLM@STER Million Live!”, which has been a very popular and leading anime in the anime scene. She also acted as Narita Taishin in “Uma Musume Pretty Derby”. This is her first original song to be released even though she has been releasing her cover songs on her official YouTube channel previously. This project started from her wish to leave milestones of, “My own voice right now”, and the release date is actually on her birthday.

She put her strong belief into the song that “I will never be satisfied with how things are now and I will keep on moving forward to the unknown future even going through a difficult path.” The song has a heavy rock feeling which is catchy and has a fast tempo. With her strong and passionate vocals this song is perfect to show the real her in this moment.

One of her major works is acting as the character, Momoko Suou in “THE iDOLM@STER Million Live!”. Momoko Sumo is a girl who has a strong character but also has childish naivety as she is an 11 years old girl. Keiko Watanabe acted Momoko amazingly and viewers almost believed that the voice actress must be a young girl. Her acting skills made fans say “This is the best acting from Keiko Watanabe!”.

On the other hand, she played a woman named Rea Katagiri in “World’s End Harem” perfectly. Rea Katagiri is a character who is a mature woman with a strict nature and also a sexy and attractive atmosphere. Keiko Watanabe has played many different types of characters and many fans are surprised to find out who she has played so far. Her amazing talent for acting different roles and her perfect acting is highly recognised by many anime fans.

She has released many character songs related to the anime’s “THE iDOLM@STER Million Live!” and “Uma Musume Pretty Derby”. She has sung beautifully on many stages and her great performances made many people loyal fans.

It’s easy to imagine that her original songs have been longed for by many fans, especially when people see her great history. This song will definitely be a great chance to get to know her better. 

On Tuesday the 29th of March, the lyric video of this new song will be released on her official YouTube Channel. In April, she will appear on a radio show to talk more about her song. Please check out her interview on the radio program as well as her song, where she will be talking about the song in her own words, along with the streaming link for the track here!

Kaede Higuchi Announces 1st Mini Album, Along with A Early Digital Release for “Irodore Fashionista”!

Kaede Higuchi, a virtual YouTuber who belongs to the popular Nijisanji group, has announced on her YouTube channel that she will be releasing her first mini-album on Wednesday May 25, 2022. The title of the mini-album is i^x=K. It will be released in three formats: a standard edition (Higuchi Edition), a limited edition A (Kaede Edition), and a limited edition B (Deron Edition).

In addition to newly written songs by a team of outstanding creators including Hajime Mitsumasu, YASUHIRO, Saeki YouthK, and Zainichi Funk, the mini-album will feature a song with lyrics by fellow virtual YouTuber Joe Rikiichi. The limited editions will also each include two cover songs as bonus tracks. The jacket visuals were created by illustrators lack (Higuchi Edition), Shigeki Maeshima (Kaede Edition), and Anya (Deron Edition).

In addition, the song “Irodore Fashionista!” will be available early on music subscription and download sites from March 26, 2022. This danceable song was written by Ando Sasa, composed by Kento Nagatsuka, and arranged by PandaBoY. The visual was designed by the illustrator Sobamaru. As the title suggests, it gives us a glimpse of the fashionable side of Kaede Higuchi, who never slacks off on her daily fashion coordination.

Be sure to pre-order all three editions of i^x=K, along with the music video for “Baddest” below!

Standard edition

Limited edition A

Limited edition B