#livedoor

[Changes of the Times] From “No Japanese Songs in Clubs” → Frenzy Over Anime Songs

Japanese anime songs—once seen as the very symbol of “otaku culture”—and dance music that excites crowds at clubs and festivals. Not long ago, these two genres were considered “off-limits for collaboration,” but in recent years they have fused together and created major excitement both in Japan and abroad. This time, we have DJ WILDPARTY—active in a genreless style and scheduled to perform at the dance music festival ULTRA JAPAN 2025 (to be held in Odaiba on September 13–14)—in conversation with Kenta Terunuma, a freelance editor, writer, and photographer who also shares the latest music insights on his YouTube channel Tekeshun Music Info | Understanding Today’s Music.

Together, they discussed why dance music and anime songs are now sparking such frenzy.

Terunuma: I think there’s also a big cultural aspect to it, but the way dance music—made with the assumption it’ll be played on huge club speakers—gets put together is different from J-POP or anime songs, which are intended to be listened to on home speakers or TVs, right?

DJ WILDPARTY: Exactly. That’s why, when Perfume came out, it really shocked a lot of DJs. It was like, “Finally, J-POP you can play in a club as-is!” (laughs)

Terunuma: That was around the mid-to-late 2000s. It was also the same time when Vocaloid’s “Hatsune Miku” came out. I think the presence of Vocaloid is also an essential part of understanding today’s Japanese music.

Interview: Perfume – "Being ordinary isn't interesting / fun" 2007.09.12

――It’s true that people don’t really have the typical idol image when it comes to Perfume. A~chan: Probably because idols don’t usually throw shade like we do (laughs). Nocchi: I don’t think idols say words like “money,” either. Kashiyuka: Idols are supposed to be more dreamy, right? A~chan: Like, “I love fantasy~ and pink is my absolute favorite color! I just loooove sweets~” and everything is “Kawaii~!” all the time. Nocchi: “No way, that’s not true~” (laughs) Kashiyuka: It’s not like we’re making fun of them or anything… (awkward laugh)

――By the way, is it okay to categorize Perfume as idols?

Nocchi: We don’t mind. Any category is fine.

――This year, you performed at SUMMER SONIC. I was surprised because I had never seen “idol-like” performers at a rock festival like Summer Sonic before.

A~chan: Yeah, you don’t really see people dancing at those kinds of festivals.

――How did it feel to actually perform there?

Kashiyuka: It was so much fun. It felt like a dream, and it’s become a personal treasure for me.

――If the response this year was good, you might get to perform on a better stage next year.

Nocchi: No waaay, that’s impossible.

Kashiyuka: I don’t think we’ll get to perform next year (laughs).

A~chan: This time was just a miracle (laughs).

――This year, you performed in Osaka, but you might be able to perform in Tokyo next year.

Kashiyuka: Eeeeh!

Nocchi: Oh no, that makes me so happy.

A~chan: Tokyo…

Kashiyuka: We’d love to perform there!

Nocchi: But, you know, we shouldn’t get too greedy…

A~chan: Yeah, we still can’t say it out loud yet!

A-chan (36), a member of the techno pop group "Perfume," updated her Instagram stories on the 11th, revealing that she had lost a part of her AirPods.

Titled "Sad News: AirPods Departure," she wrote, "To anyone with my AirPods, those AirPods are my children. Where will I take them?" along with a crying face emoji. "I have the R in my hand, but the L, the device itself, and the pink leather cover…" she wrote, along with a photo of a pink AirPods case. She detailed the situation by saying, "I had removed the strap."

In the next post, she explained how the AirPods had gone missing. "I was sitting in a chair in front of the boarding gate at Haneda Airport, and I put the earphone in my right ear (R). At the time, I thought I had put it in my bag," she recalled, "It was on the plane that I realized it was gone!! I realized it was gone when I was taking a picture of the right ear (R) on the plane that hadn't yet taken off at Haneda Airport and trying to put it back in the device. I looked for it on my seat, but it was gone. I turned my bag upside down, but it was gone." She revealed that she had noticed the device was gone on the plane.

"Then the location information showed that they were at Haneda Airport, so I thought, 'Oh, I must have left them on the chair in front of the gate,' but when I opened 'Search' for Sapporo, I was surprised! They had arrived in Sapporo together," she said, revealing that the AirPods she thought she had left behind at Haneda had traveled with her to Sapporo upon their arrival. "I was surprised that they were still there, but only my left ear (L) started to move along the route," she reported, reporting that only the left ear had started to move.

A-chan said she had traveled from the airport by car. She humorously added the hashtag "Traveling AirPods," but continued to track the whereabouts of the left ear.

I opened Livedoor yesterday and the first news that appeared on the homepage was one of my favorite Japanese artists, Akina Nakamori. She has rarely appeared in public since 2014.