On June 16, the girls’ vocal and dance group ATARASHII GAKKO! released OTONABLUE – From THE FIRST TAKE on streaming services.

Originally released in 2020, OTONABLUE has become incredibly popular over the past year, with its ‘neck-dance’ choreography trending on TikTok. With views on the social media site surpassing 2.5 billion, a music video was thrown together and released, pulling in over 20 million views in two months.

On April 7, ATARASHII GAKKO! performed a special version of OTONABLUE on THE FIRST TAKE, commemorating their first time on the program with new choreography. Filmed in a single take, their appearance pulled in 20 million views in record time, becoming the channel’s most popular video of 2023. This special live version is now available to stream.

Atarashii Gakko! took to the stage on THE FIRST TAKE for the first time. The members performed their hit song Otonablue, which has become a major hit on social media for its unique choreography during the chorus.

Since its release, Otonablue has continued to be a hot topic, with the live performance video racking up over 8 million views on YouTube and related TikTok videos pulling in over 400 million views.

Takuma Usa appears in the new YouTube short drama series Sarashiai, Konna Yoru wa Dare no Sei? (Exposed Love: Who’s to Blame for a Night Like This?)

The romance-focused ensemble drama touches on a wide array of difficult subjects found in today’s society, like adultery, sugar daddies, plastic surgery, friends with benefits, doxxing, betrayal, and redemption.

Takuma Usa, who portrays the host Tsukasa, appears in the third episode.

Eve has announced a special YouTube LIVE scheduled to take place on December 24 at 19:00. The stream will take place on the artist’s official YouTube channel and those with YouTube Premium memberships will be able to take place in an Afterparty starting at 19:30. 

Starting at 19:00 on Christmas Eve, fans can enjoy a rare live studio performance complete with a full band. The Afterparty will include a special chat with Eve in which the artist reflects on the past year and gives hints on what’s to come. Fans won’t want to miss this exclusive opportunity!

Aniplex Online Fest 2022 will be available to stream worldwide on September 24, 2022! This is the third such event, with the first streaming in 2020. The large-scale online festival will share the latest information on Aniplex’s anime works and a number of live performances are planned. Participating artists will be announced soon, so keep an eye out for more information. 

Last year’s Aniplex Online Fest featured information on 11 anime series and had a lineup of incredible musical artists, DJs, and live drawing events. The festival was streamed on YouTube worldwide in both English and Japanese for over six hours and recorded a total of 850,000 viewers.

To commemorate the upcoming event, the main visual has been revealed. The illustration was done by Kerorira, the character designer for Bocchi the Rock!

Comment from Kerorira

“It’s not often I get to create an original image from scratch, so I’ve been given a very rare opportunity! Please enjoy it!”

Stay tuned for more Aniplex Online Fest 2022 information!

The anime series My Isekai Life will air in July 2022!

The light novel series has been a huge hit since its release in 2017, selling over 5 million copies to date. The tenth volume went on sale in November 2021, and a manga series is running in Manga UP! magazine. An anime series is on the horizon, set to premiere in 2022 It will be animated by REVOROOT, with Pony Canyon is producing the music.

The opening theme will be performed by Non Stop Rabbit, Japan’s first YouTuber band to make a major debut, with over 900,000 subscribers and 400 million video views. The group made the announcement during their first concert after their major debut. The number of ticket sales tallied up to 43 times higher than the venue’s capacity. 

Comment from Non Stop Rabbit

“My dream to perform the opening song for an anime series is coming true! I read the manga and was instantly captivated by the story. I wrote one of our best songs to help bring the story to life. The three of us are musicians and YouTubers, and I hope you’ll listen to this track we created together.”

Tatsuya Taguchi – Non Stop Rabbit

©進行諸島・SBクリエイティブ／転生賢者の製作委員会

In a new interview posted to YouTube, Yuichiro Hayashi, the director of Attack on Titan The Final Season, and Yusuke Tannawa, the CG Producer and Screen Designer for the show, are discussing the series’ incredible success. Both creators also chat about the struggles they’ve faced during production, their relationship with the original manga creator Hajime Isayama, and much more. 

Attack on Titan The Final Season Part 2 – Yuichiro Hayashi (Director) × Yusuke Tannawa (CG Producer, Screen Design) Special Interview

Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2 is currently airing on NHK General each Sunday at 24:05. It is also available to stream on dTV, d Anime Store, GYAO!, Netflix, TELASA, Hikari TV, and Amazon Prime Video.

©諫山創・講談社／「進撃の巨人」The Final Season製作委員会

The new cover song project ‘CrosSing- Music & Voice’ is live!

CrosSing brings together voice actors, anime song artists, VTubers, 2.5D actors, and other artists through music. The cast of the first season is featured in the channel teaser.

 In addition to popular voice actors Maaya Uchida, Kana Hanazawa, and Akari Kito, the project also includes towana, vocalist of popular ani-song unit fhána. Toshiki Tateishi, active mainly in 2.5D stage plays and musicals, and VTuber Hal Shibuya will also be participating!

Channel Teaser

All of the songs featured in the project are tracks that personally mean something to the cast. The music will be available on YouTube and on streaming services, and those interested are asked to follow the project on Twitter and TikTok!

On February 22, Hello Kitty released her first collaboration video with the popular YouTube channel Mochimaru Diary, which currently has over 1.6 million subscribers!

Mochimaru Diary follows the uneventful life of Mochimaru, a Scottish Fold, whose life is documented by his owner. The collaboration was planned as a celebration of Cat Day, which takes place in Japan on February 22. 

In the video, Hello Kitty talks passionately about the 10 most adorable things about Mochimaru. Be sure to give it a watch!

Hello Kitty is a Mega-fan?! Video Highlights and Screencaps

Comment from Hello Kitty

I’ve been such a big fan of Mochimaru for so long, I can’t believe we finally get to collab~

We had a super happy day talking about all the things Mochi likes!

I’m a little embarrassed to be THIS excited, but I’m just so happy to bring everyone this video for Cat Day!

Give it a watch for me! ♡

©’22 SANRIO　S/F・G　著作（株）サンリオ

Peanuts Cafe Nakameguro and six other locations have begun selling love-themed desserts and drinks for a limited time! Be sure to stop in by March 14 to try these tasty treats based on your favorite characters.

Lucy’s Ruby Chocolate Mousse / Sally’s Pink Dress Hot Chocolate

Love Each Other Special Donut

Love Each Other Latte Art

USHIO CHOCOLATL Collaboration Chocolate

Love Each Other Chocolate Brownie

Join Snoopy, Lucy, Sally, and other Peanuts characters as they express love for their family and friends. Guests ordering one of these love-themed desserts or drinks will receive a special paper lunch mat perfect for posting on social media!

(C) 2022 Peanuts Worldwide LLC　(短縮形 (C) 2022 Peanuts)

BAND-MAID’s guitarist and vocalist Miku Kobato and vocalist SAIKI will appear on YOSHIKI CHANNEL on February 25, 2022 at 19:30!

This will be BAND-MAID’s second appearance on YOSHIKI CHANNEL, with their first in 2019. During their last broadcast, SAIKI and YOSHIKI had a very fun impromptu chat, so fans can look forward to that (likely) happening again! Don’t miss this global chat between BAND-MAID and YOSHIKI, who both have made waves in Japan and the U.S. 

BAND-MAID released the official band scorebook for ‘Unseen World’ last month, which includes exclusive photos and interviews fully translated into English.

Be sure to keep an eye on the band during 2022!

Masayoshi Oishi has been chosen to perform the theme song for the upcoming anime series Love After World Domination, scheduled to premiere in April 2022. The new track is a duet with popular voice actress Yukari Tamura, and a preview of the track can be heard in the newest trailer. 

Based on the manga series written by Hiroshi Noda and illustrated by Takahiro Wakamatsu, the show tells the story of a hero and villain pursuing a forbidden love.

Love After World Domination Trailer

Masayoshi Oishi has also announced a three-stop concert tour! The artist will perform at Zepp Namba on May 6, at Zepp Nagoya on June 9, and at KT Zepp Yokohama on June 17. Ticket details will be announced on the official website at a later date. This will be the first solo concert for the artist in about eight months. 

Comment from Masayoshi Oishi

“From the beginning, I wanted to make the opening song a male/female duet track, and I was so thrilled to work with Yukari Tamura! Thanks to her, it became an incredibly emotional song. I hope everyone enjoys the series as much as I enjoyed creating the theme.”

Comment from Yukari Tamura

“Masayoshi Oishi invited me to perform a duet with him! I was so nervous about recording as a guest vocalist in this major track rather than performing a character song, but I ended up really enjoying it! I hope this becomes a famous duet song, please enjoy it!”

©野田宏・若松卓宏・講談社／恋せか製作委員会