The Tokyo-based girl artists and creators' collective bala has released the music video for its first single barla, released on March 8. The song was produced by Shinichi Osawa (Mondo Grosso) and written by Kenmochi Hidefumi (Wednesday Campanella).   Music Video

  The music video fuses the virtual and real balallel world’ multiverse and includes futuristic footage using 3D scan data of bala members, surrealistic dance scenes, and street-style location shots. Fans can also spot BI, an adorable avatar character created by bala member KANO.   Directed by YUKARI of the digital creative crew OFBYFOR TOKYO, the music video is already making a major splash. “This video packs in the charm of each individual bala member and is filled with cuteness, maturity, and retro-pop style,” said YUKARI.   bala put the unique ‘balallel world’ on display during αU spring week 2023. The event was held from March 8 to 12 to celebrate KDDI's αU, a new Web3 metaverse platform. An exhibition was held inside the aU apartment within Hz-Shibuya, a photo-realistic 3D experience set in virtual Shibuya. The girls appeared virtually during their αU Live, giving a special performance with their character avatars in the metaverse, allowing fans to gather and chat with one another. On March 12, the last day of the event, a real live event titled ‘bala presents balalell-party’ was held at Hz-Shibuya. The group has impressed audiences by moving back and forth seamlessly between the real and virtual worlds.   A video of bala’s special live performance in the αU metaverse is now available on bala's official YouTube channel. In addition, the bala exhibition featuring photos of the members is still available to view inside the αU metaverse through March 31.   「balallel-meta-Party Ver2.0＠αU metaverse」

The Metaverse Music Festival, a virtual event organized by the global Web3 platform Decentraland, took place starting on November 10, 2022, featuring a number of Japanese artists.    FRUITS ZIPPER was one of the performing acts, appearing on the MetaTokyo stage on November 11 and November 12.According to data from MetaTokyo, a total of 20,000 viewers from 101 countries around the world watched the performances, including those from the United States, Canada, Japan, Spain, Germany, and Brazil.This spring, the idol group FRUITS ZIPPER released the track Watashino Ichiban Kawaiitokoro, which racked up over 600 million views on TikTok. The music video has amassed over 5.5 million views on YouTube, and despite having just debuted, the girls performed at all major idol festivals over the summer.   In November, the group’s second solo concert at Shibuya WWW X was a major success. In February 2023, the girls will begin the FRUITS ZIPPER 1st LIVE TOUR 2023 WINTER scheduled to conclude at LINE CUBE SHIBUYA on February 12. The group will also perform at a New Year’s Eve event in Tainan, Taiwan. Keep an eye out for them in 2023!

BAPE KIDS®︎ is celebrating its 16th anniversary with a wholesome new collaboration with illustrator Chocomoo! The artist has become popular around the world for his pop style, and this new collection is sure to have kids heading to school in style.   The new items are available for kids of all ages and include everything from T-shirts and sweatshirts to skirts and rompers.   The design also incorporates the classic APE HEAD from A BATHING APE®︎, the popular BABY MILO®︎ character, and Chocomoo’s heart character.Chocomoo will participate in the special lookbook for this collaboration. A triple collaboration with the popular zipper bag brand Pake®︎ is also underway. Some of the products will have special Pake®︎ packaging for a limited time.   The Chocomoo collaboration items will be available at authorized BAPE KIDS®︎ stores and the BAPE.COM web store starting December 17, 2022. 

SINGAPORE, Dec. 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- "City Pop TOKYO," an NFT project inspired by "City Pop," a popular music genre from Japan, will hold a talent audition event named " METAVERSE'S GOT TALENT" along with Entertainment metaverse platform GEMIE (CEO: John Fung). "METAVERSE'S GOT TALENT" is a brand new talent audition project which enables artists to showcase their talents in the metaverse and subsequently win a chance to become a metaverse superstar.   ■City Pop TOKYO As an NFT project, "City Pop TOKYO" is jointly funded by three companies: ASOBISYSTEM (CEO: Yusuke Nakagawa), which has a large number of diverse artists; Kingdom Labs (CEO: Maurice Ng), a venture studio in Hong Kong; and UPBOND (CEO: Gin Takahashi Mizuoka), which is developing a blockchain wallet for Web3 social adoption.   "City Pop TOKYO" plans to release 1984 NFTs based on "City Pop", a music genre from Japan that is immensely popular worldwide, particularly among Gen Z. The project's characters are featured in trendy outfits and makeup representing symbolic fashion styles in Japan, such as "GAL," "SHOWA," and "REIWA". To enter "METAVERSE'S GOT TALENT", participants will first purchase a "City Pop TOKYO" NFT. NFT holders can then take part in auditions held in the GEMIE metaverse. The winner, represented by their City Pop TOKYO NFT, will be onboarded as a virtual idol under ASOBISYSTEM, and will start appearing in advertisements, releasing songs, etc. Other NFT holders from around the world can enjoy engaging in the project from various perspectives, including appearing and voting in audition events in the METAVERSE.   *These are part of the NFTs for some characters. *Designs may change without further notice.  

■METAVERSE’S GOT TALENT

The METAVERSE is powered by project partner GEMIE, Asia’s leading entertainment metaverse built around fan culture which act as the virtual hub to bridge the gap between celebrities and fans through virtual experiences and utility-focused NFTs. Users worldwide can participate in the decision making process of the show via the GEMIE metavese. Through this project, we will work to reaffirm the usefulness of Web 3.0 technology and NFT; and further promote Japanese culture to people worldwide. More details will be available soon, please stay tuned for updates.

Metaverse Music Festival will feature a MetaTokyo area this year! The event is being organized by Decentraland, a global Web3 Metaverse platform. A number of Japanese artists will perform, including Edo Lena, MISOSHITA, and Atarashii Gakko!    In the special MetaTokyo area, a giant Metaani x Kyary Pamyu Pamyu character will be dancing to the beat. The popular collab appeared in April of this year and was an instant hit with NFT fans around the world. Those with an interest in Japanese culture can also enjoy some unique content streamed in the area. The Metaverse Music Festival will be held from November 10 until November 13, 2022.  

Participating Japanese Artists

According to a recent announcement from Decentraland, Ozzy Osbourne, Soulja Boy, Dillon Francis, SNH48, and others will perform at OZZFEST, a festival organized by Ozzy Osbourne. Atarashii Gakko! will perform on the main Tower of Babel Stage.The festival area will also feature special stages and areas in collaboration with a number of partners. MetaTokyo is one such partner sure to be a hit with audiences around the world!   Within the MetaTokyo area, Metaverse diva and artist Edo Lena and Metaverse creator MISOSHITA will perform. Other J-pop artists are scheduled to perform for audiences worldwide.  

Giant Metaani x Kyary Pamyu Pamyu 

A giant Metaani x Kyary Pamyu Pamyu will appear within the Metaverse. First appearing in April 2022, guests will be treated to Kyary’s popular song Dodonpa when they first enter, and will be able to take selfies with the huge character in a way not possible in the real world.

A BATHING APE®︎ and MEDICOM TOY’s iconic BE@RBRICK block figure is getting a makeover! Fans will be able to grab Color Camo Tiger versions in three shades for a limited time only.    Collectors can grab a figure in blue, red, or purple. These will be on sale at authorized A BATHING APE®︎ retailers, project 1/6, MEDICOM TOY Tokyo Skytree Solamachi, 2G Tokyo, 2G Osaka, and online starting October 1, 2022. BE@RBRICK BAPE®︎ CAMO TIGER100% & 400% (Height: 7cm and 28cm) Colors: Navy / Purple / RedPrice: ¥19,800 (Tax Included)    BE@RBRICK BAPE®︎ CAMO TIGER1000% (Height: 70cm)Colors: Navy / Purple / RedPrice: ¥107,800 (Tax Included)