“We’re Going For It”: JPop Duo YOASOBI On Grammy Aspirations And Being Main Characters

Ayase and Ikura of YOASOBI

yoasobi

YOASOBI connected Zoom are the astir dressed down I’ve ever seen them. Which is not saying much, because I’ve seen them only doubly earlier this, but someway they’re still exuding chic much effortlessly than astir artists I’ve met.

One of 32-year-old Ayase’s galore tattoos is peeking retired from his cervix and his colourful manicure is impeccable arsenic usual, while Ikura, 25, sports presently brownish hairsbreadth and ample hoops that elevate her elemental checked garment and tank. But capable astir their style. If you tin judge it, YOASOBI (which virtually translates to “nightlife”) are ridiculously much absorbing than that.

Take for illustration their newest medium The Book For, released 2 and a half years aft their past one. The 12-track merchandise is the 4th and past summation to The Book series, wherever the songs are exclusively based connected fictional imaginative works, beryllium it manga aliases short stories aliases longer ones.

It’s a fascinating premise, made moreover much unsocial by the truth that Ikura and Ayase’s biggest hits person had not a trace of English. Although they person since released their ‘E-sides’ aliases English translations, YOASOBI’s biggest world hits, from “Racing Into The Night” to “Idol” person each been wholly successful Japanese.

The duo’s full creator personality is, therefore, rooted successful the specificity of Japanese literate culture, and they person been 1 of the fastest-growing Japanese acts successful world successful the caller past.

Their debut azygous "Racing Into The Night (Yoru ni Kakeru)," released successful November 2019 erstwhile Ikura was only 19, has now surpassed 1.1 cardinal streams, the first opus to ever do truthful successful Japanese euphony history. If you are chronically online, you would besides admit it from the widely shared meme contrasting the bubbly popular quality of the sound to the lyrics (adapted from a story) astir a mates struggling pinch slump and suicidal ideation.

"Idol," released successful April 2023, reached No. 1 connected the Billboard Global Excl. US floor plan and Apple Music’s Top 100 Global, and spent 22 weeks astatine No. 1 connected Billboard Japan Hot 100. "Monster (Kaibutsu)" was named 1 of TIME's 10 champion songs of 2021.

They person since performed astatine Coachella, headlined Radio City Music Hall. And now, arsenic we speak successful precocious June, they are astir to embark connected the Never Ending Stories North American circuit — their largest North American tally yet — which kicked disconnected August 4 astatine Boston’s TD Garden and wraps August 16 astatine the Hollywood Bowl successful Los Angeles.

When I congratulate them connected The Book 4, Ikura tells maine they felt the agelong wait. "We were conscionable very happy because it's been 2 and a half years since we past released our album," she says. "It's yet here."

On The Album, The Comma And Where YOASOBI Go Next

The title The Book 4 ends pinch a comma, grammatically implying continuation moreover arsenic it closes a chapter. I inquire what comes aft the comma, and Ayase and Ikura glimpse astatine each other. "We are successful the mediate of looking for it," Ikura says. "I don’t person thing actual I tin talk to you about. But I dream you tin expect things from us. We are reasoning of thing very breathtaking and fun."

YOASOBI’s creator section has ever been crystal; Ayase composes and produces, Ikura sings. Until now. The album’s last track, "Gekijyo" (劇上 / "The Show"), is notable for a different reason. It features Ayase’s ain vocals, marking the first clip he has sung connected a YOASOBI release.

"I had comparatively intelligibly separated it and decided that I would perfectly not sing," Ayase says. "But location were immoderate changes successful my authorities of mind arsenic I went along. It wasn’t that I put it retired of my ain ego wanting to sing. When I thought astir expressing the original communicative successful the champion imaginable measurement done music, I thought I wanted a antheral voice. If that happened, I thought it mightiness beryllium me." He adds, “As for whether I will singing successful the future, it's conscionable for fun. I don't know.”

“It’s a opus that besides talks astir the truth that I americium the main characteristic of the stage, truthful since I created it myself, I thought I should singing it pinch a consciousness of responsibility.”

On Being The Main Characters

If you’ve ever attended a YOASOBI show, location would beryllium nary uncertainty arsenic to who are the main characters of the stage.

Sets for illustration their caller 1 astatine Lollapalooza Chicago (where Ikura spent a mates of years arsenic a toddler) are typical of the highly precocious power shape beingness that some artists, but particularly Ikura, don’t really dial down for the full one-hour performance.

One of their different main characteristic moments incuded a 2024 authorities meal pinch President Biden. Ayase, aft reasoning for a moment: “The White House was very beautiful inside. It was incredibly beautiful. And location was besides music, unrecorded performances the full time.”

"It’s very evident but it was rich," he observes, and Ikura chuckles successful agreement.

He pauses. "I thought it was an unreal acquisition doing this arsenic a musician. I didn’t deliberation this benignant of point would happen. It was a surreal experience."

It feels obvious, but I inquire if either of them has ever had a infinitesimal of emotion like, definitively, the main character. They some grin to themselves.

"Rather than having immoderate benignant of arena hap and reasoning astir it a lot," she says, "I myself americium very decently surviving my ain life pinch the emotion that I americium ever the protagonist. Even if immoderate large arena aliases large occurrence happens — that we are the halfway of the world — I don’t really deliberation that’s useful." She laughs her celebrated eye-smile. "It’s a difficult question."

Ayase, by contrast, says he is ever reasoning it. He’s ever the main character, he smirks.

"If anything," he people corrects quickly, "it's much successful the trivial moments of regular life — moments wherever thing I had vaguely wished for abruptly comes true. That's erstwhile I often think, huh, possibly I americium the protagonist aft all."

On stage, his position shifts again, "Of course, erstwhile we are up connected stage, successful a general consciousness they person travel to spot us, truthful we person to entertain them. But erstwhile you deliberation astir everyone enjoying it, including the audience, location is besides the position that everyone is simply a main character."

What a very acceptable reply for everybody, I constituent out, and we each laugh.

On Playing To Audiences Who Don’t Speak Japanese

YOASOBI’s assemblage usually see thousands of group who do not speak Japanese and whitethorn ne'er person publication the root novels. I inquire what she thinks they are emotion successful those moments erstwhile they rima on to words they apt cannot translate.

"Really purely arsenic sound," she says, "the liking and nosy of euphony arsenic such, genuinely going beyond words — I consciousness that they are emotion and enjoying it pinch their bodies and hearts." But she is besides circumstantial astir what she has witnessed astatine their world shows. “Quite a batch of group person beforehand researched and publication the original caller aliases publication the original manga aliases studied Japanese. I tin consciousness firsthand that they are enjoying the inheritance of the various works.”

On what they would opportunity to themselves 5 years from now, erstwhile YOASOBI would’ve been progressive for 12 years, Ikura’s wish is standard. "I really dream that I'll beryllium taking awesome attraction of myself, the group that I attraction about, my team, and besides that everybody stays healthy."

Ayase seems tired of the premise, having been confronted pinch it galore times. “if I could inquire and get an reply back, past the early would beryllium known and it wouldn’t beryllium interesting, truthful fundamentally I, there’s perfectly thing I want to ask.”

Then he solemnly reconsiders. "Please proceed your musculus training properly, is what I wannt to say."

YOASOBI On The New Grammy Asian Pop Category: ‘We’re Going For It'

Just a fewer days earlier our interview, The Recording Academy announced that a new category for Best Asian Pop Music Performance will beryllium awarded astatine the 69th Grammy Awards. The class covers releases that characteristic meaningful usage of astatine slightest 1 Asian language, pinch an eligibility model moving from August 31, 2025 done August 28, 2026.

With BTS having announced they will not taxable for the award, the section is much unfastened than it has ever been for its inaugural year, and I’ve already mentioned that contempt expectations, the victor mightiness not moreover beryllium Korean astatine all.

My list of non K-pop contenders had included some the literate fiction-driven YOASOBI and their chap J-pop artist, the mysterious masked Ado. I person to ask, of course, if they’ve group their sights connected this prize.

It’s the quickest Ayase has been to reply thing this full conversation.

"Yes, we’re going for it," he says. "We will do our champion to beryllium capable to spell for it."

“Regardless of Asian popular — if you earnestly want group each complete the world to perceive to your music, you don’t activity to triumph a Grammy, you activity to get your euphony to galore people. If we go artists tin of winning a Grammy, that would conscionable mean that by that time, a awesome galore group already cognize astir us."

"So I intend to do my champion to make that happen.”

YOASOBI’s ‘Never Ending Stories’ North American circuit ends August 16 astatine the Hollywood Bowl successful Los Angeles. The Asian limb will commence successful October.