J-pop artist and model Yun*chi will released her first new work in almost 2 years on August 2nd. To celebrate the release of the mini album, titled Canvas*, Yun*chi will hold a remix contest for her new song Ima Boku no Iru Basho ga Risou to Chigattemo. A special event will also be held called Yun*chi to Karaoke Party ("A Karaoke Party with Yun*chi").

"Ima Boku no Iru Basho ga Risou to Chigattemo," which will be used for the remix contest, is the lead track on her new mini album. After downloading part of the song, users are free to arrange and remix it in any way they like. Yun*chi herself will listen to all of the remixed songs that are sent in and judge the winner.

This will be one special contest indeed as there are some amazing prizes for winners. The song that acquires the "Grand Prix" prize will receive a limited-time free download at OTOTOY. The song chosen as the overall victor for the contest will have their track released publicly with a comment from Yun*chi herself.

Everybody is welcome and encouraged to join in with the contest, whether as a professional remixer, artist, or complete beginner. Why not give it a go yourself?

The special "Yun*chi to Karaokoe Party" event will also be held in collaboration with "DAM★tomo," a karaoke user community service associated with the online karaoke company "DAM." "DAM★tomo" are taking a limited number of applications for the event. You can apply in-store at Karaoke DAM. After logging into the song-selection tablet, pick a song to sing, and afterwards you'll be able to apply at the DAM★tomo website. (Applications are running from August 2nd to August 31st).

Don't miss this exciting opportunity to karaoke together with Yun*chi. Get involved!

Related Article：Music video for “HIMAWARI*” from Yun*chi’s new mini album now released!

Related Article：The music video of Yun*chi’s new song “Ima Boku no Iru Basyo ga Riso to Chigattemo” was released!

It has been about two years since the release of the music video for “Ima Boku no Iru Basho ga Risou to Chigattemo” from Yun*chi’s new mini album “Canvas*”. Yun*chi has made a quick follow up with the release of the music video for “HIMAWARI*”.

「HIMAWARI*」music video

https://youtu.be/IvkT9cKrFxQ

“HIMAWARI*” expresses the unforgettable memories of one’s love during the “Himawari” season (sunflower season). This relaxing ballad paints a scene that everybody can relate to.

The music video was filmed at the coastline of Hayama. Feel Yun*chi’s outlook on the world through her music and expression. Let the feeling of the end of summer and the sorrow of lost love capture you through this music video and wonderful ballad.

This song will also be the ending theme song for NHK-FM’s Music Line during August and September. If you’re in Japan and own a radio, make sure you tune in!

HIMAWARI will also be available for advanced sale on iTunes, so please don’t forget to check it out!

Related aticle：Yun*chi Goes Natural In New Artwork For Upcoming Mini-Album ‘Canvas*’

Related article：The music video of Yun*chi’s new song “Ima Boku no Iru Basyo ga Riso to Chigattemo” was released!

Yun*chi recently announced the release of her first new work in almost 2 years at her birthday event which was held at Club Asia in Shibuya. The cover art for the mini-album, Canvas*, has finally been unveiled.

In Canvas*, Yun*chi imagines her dreams and her future and endeavours to draw them freely in her own way and in her colour of choice.

Canvas* is a must-listen for all those aspiring students, workers and besotted girls who are working hard to achieve their dreams. The album features a number of cheery love songs as well as the lead track Ima Boku no Iru Basho ga Risou to Chigattemo, a song with emotionally-rich singing made to inspire and encourage people not to give up on their dreams.

The artwork for the new release lives up to the title of the record—it's a canvas, and was shot along the seaside, showcasing Yun*chi in totally natural light for the first time ever on her cover art. Her face is lit up by the warm rays of the sun, giving it a real natural vibe. Yun*chi looks as if she was taken straight out of a real-life scene, truly capturing that natural feel.

The person behind the design of the CD jacket is none other than popular illustrator WATABOKU. They took a real photograph and added water colours to create a truly unique fusion of both dream and reality.

Light is finally being shined on Yun*chi's highly anticipated album—in fact, it was announced today that there will be a special bonus for people who buy it. The bonus will differ depending on how you purchase the album, so if you're interested, make sure to check out her official website!

Yun*chi will be announcing live shows after the album has been released. Keep your eyes peeled!

Related Article：Yun*chi announced the released her mini album” Canvas*” at her birthday event!

Related Article：Yun*chi’s Interactive LIVE Showcase at SXSW 2016 a huge success!!

February saw the launch of ASOBISYSTEM’s newest event: “KAKERU.” With “KAKERU” roughly translated to bridging in Japanese, the event spurs never-before-sighted collabs between artists coming from different creative backgrounds. Here’s our second half of interviews with the participating artists!

Photo：Atsushi Yamada / Interview: Sahori Hyaku

Neeko Man

――What is your interpretation of KAKERU?

Neeko：Since everything’s a collaboration, I see it as an opportunity to reveal a new side to myself.

――Can you elaborate on “new”?

Maybe different is a better word for it. I usually do everything on my own, but since I’ve got a band with me today, I get to do something more rock, punk, pop. It’s a side of me that’s being revealed through a band set.

――Anything you’d like to do in particular at your performance today?

Neeko：I just want to have fun and keep it loose. I don’t want to feel restrained, like I have to do this or that, I just hope I can create something different along with the crowd who’s here.

――What are you looking forward to at this KAKERU event?

Neeko：I’ve got a lot of friends who are performing as well so I’m excited to see them on stage. Other than that, since I usually MC at ASOBI-hosted events, I'm excited to take part in one as an artist!

――Please give us a message to your fans abroad.

Neeko：I think Japan’s a super liberating country. There’s nothing you can do wrong, you can collaborate with whoever you want. It’s fascinating. Try it out in your daily life!

Yun*chi

――What is your interpretation of KAKERU?

Yun*chi：I don’t get to attend an event where I can collaborate with people, so this was something very new for me.

――Anything particular you’d like to do for your performance today?

When they asked me who I wanted to collaborate with, KASICO-san came straight to my mind. He creates GIF animations called “Graphic Girl” and I thought it’d be fun to collaborate with him! Since it’s animated, the GIFs move.

Graphic Girl is quite new in itself -- it’d be great if people get to know it along with a Yun*chi collaboration. I’ve actually previously done “Graphic Girl”, but we’re thinking of creating something new again. This time, we’re going to have the audience scan a QR code and carry home the artwork we've created on their smartphones!

――What else are you looking forward to at KAKERU?

I think each and every artist is planning on a never-before-sighted-collab, so I’m excited to see all the magic and chemistry that’s going to bring.

――Please give us a message to your fans abroad!

I’ve already announced a couple of dates for shows abroad, so I hope all of you will come and support me there.

――Where are you headed?

First I’m performing at SXSW in Austin, Texas this March. We’re currently deciding which countries to go to after that, but I’m sure the dates and venues will be announced soon. Keep in tuned!

TEMPURA KIDZ

Members：P→★、NaNaHo、AO、KARIN、YU-KA

――What is your interpretation of KAKERU?

NaNaHo：KAKERU is an event where people from different creative backgrounds (artists, models, etc.) get together. We collaborated with Yutaro-san (reader model), but it really gets you excited just imagining the chemistry that happens when two varying creatives bind together.

U-KA：Yutaro-san styled our outfits this time, and we got to transform into a different TEMPURA KIDZ through this event. That made me happy.

――How was the outfit?

U-KA：Santo nibunno ichi (the store where Yutaro-san works) was already daily gear for KARIN and P→★, but the rest of us hadn’t, so it was fresh to see all of us sporting clothing fromSanto nibunno ichi. It ended up being really cute.

――So you would go there to shop?

KARIN：Yeah, P→★-kun and I love our clothes secondhand.

――What got you into it Santo nibunno ichi?

P→★: I think it was Twitter. I’d always wanted to go, and we decided to go together for the first time. I think it was something like that.

AO：P→★ and KARIN are very close to the staff who work there as well. We were performing at an event when Yutaro-san suddenly appeared and announced the collab.

U-KA：We were told about this out of the blue!

――How did you feel when you first heard about the collab?

AO：It was exciting to wear our regular outfits on stage. Since we’re known for our crazy, flashy outfits, we never really have the opportunity to go on stage with what we normally wear.

NaNaHo：It was the first time we were ever on stage with a model, so I was looking forward to what exactly was going to play out on stage.

――What would you like to bring on the stage today?

NaNaHo：Since the lineup’s really diverse, I’d imagined the crowd would be equally as diverse. I’m sure there are people out there who’ll be seeing us for the first time, but I hope we all have fun!

U-KA：We usually dance and sing with the audience, making the performance really engaging. Since we’re performing at the very end this time, we’re set to make the crowd squeal with excitement!

――What else are you looking forward to at KAKERU?

KARIN：I’m excited for Una, Culumi Nakada and AMIAYA’S “KAKERU.” It's exciting to see what a model collab would bring out.

AO：We’ve put up outfits that were styled by Yutaro-san on Twitter where Tweeters can vote for their favorites, so we’re excited to see who gets chosen.

KARIN：I’m curious how the crowd is going to react to our outfits when they see us come up on stage.

――Any goals you’ve set for the near future?

NaNaHo：There are still lots of places we haven’t been able to visit in Japan, so I’d love to keep discovering new ground. U-KA’S currently studying Thai. I also want to work on my English so I can communicate more with the people rather than just performing there.

――Please give us a message to your foreign fans!

U-KA：Up until now, we’ve traveled mainly within Asia, so without saying, there are still a bunch of countries we haven’t visited yet. Our final goal is to do a solo World Tour. We hope all of you can watch us perform live.

NaNaHo：It’d be a dream to have people enjoy us at first sighting or even if they spotted us by chance.

P→★: We’ve gone to Thailand eight times, but we’ve only visited France in the whole of Europe. We’re going to do our best to visit all the other countries we’ve never been to!

AO：We’re actually going to Myanmar next week. We’d like to have more and more people fall in love with what we do, so we’re going to continue giving it our all.

KARIN：We get a lot of comments from our foreign audience on YouTube, so we’re very grateful for that. There are lots of countries we haven’t been able to visit yet, so I’d like to study lots and keep working at it to prepare myself for when the time comes. Please continue to give us all your support!

South by South West (SXSW) is the world’s biggest festivals and conferences event held every year in Austin, Texas in the US, and is currently being held for SXSW 2016. Yun*chi held her first ever interactive live experience on March 15th at “SXSW JAPAN HOUSE 2016”. Titled “Yun*chi Interactive LIVE Showcase presented by NTT”, the show saw Yun*chi’s pulse being displayed in real time onto a screen for the audience to see as it changed throughout the performance. Adorned in Japanese kimono arranged by Yun*chi herself, a great cheer sounded from the audience as she stepped onto the stage.

Using special sensor technology developed by research company NTT, the audience enjoyed an incredible interactive experience as Yun*chi’s pulse wave was displayed in real time onto a large screen.

Yun*chi performed a total of 9 songs to an amazing response, including “Jelly*” which is featured on her latest album “Pixie Dust*” and is produced by Chara, “Your song*” which is used as the ending theme to the anime series “Log Horizon”, as well as the song “Wonderful Wonder World*” and more.

A special paper craft item that can be used together with one’s smartphone by using NTT’s “Kirari! for Mobile” was also distributed to the audience which displays a 3D figure of Yun*chi in the palm of your hands, making this premium gift enjoyable for fans.