2,000 people get excited about performing their signature song “Eating the Past” English version
Hanafu, a virtual singer affiliated with KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO/PHENOMENON RECORD, held her first North American performance, “HAJIMEMASHITE in Anime Central” at Hyatt Regency O’Hare, in Illinois, USA, on Saturday, May 17th, 2025.
This performance was held at the large-scale anime festival “Anime Central 2025”, which took place in Chicago, USA for three days from Friday, May 16th to Sunday, May 18th, 2025, and attracted over 50,000 visitors. We will be bringing you an official report of the performance, which attracted over 2,000 audiences and was a huge success.
Many fans gathered at the KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO booth and Hanafu stage
A KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO booth was also exhibited at the Anime Central 2025, and long lines had been formed from the first day with local fans seeking merchandise.
As the venue was filled with excitement from anime fans and Japanese culture fans right after the event began, Hanafu finally appeared on the stage on the second day of the event.
He was greeted with a huge cheer, and the first song he chose for his first performance in the US was the English version of his signature song, “Past wa Urau.” The excitement in the venue was already at its peak as the surprises unique to American performances.
The MC, who was in English in the entire story, gave a greeting, and while he spoke, he had a trip to Lake Michigan, tried out the famous deep dish pizza, and enjoyed visiting the venue himself, and he also received a lot of applause from the audience as he also mentioned the English version of “Eating the Past” that was specially prepared for the day.
Next, as a set list for American audiences, we will be bringing a section focusing on anime songs that Hanafu has been in charge of so far, including her signature songs, including “Streamlined May Day” (the ending theme for the TV anime “Jashin-chan Dropkick X”), and “Answer (English ver.)” (the ending theme for the TV anime “Black Clover”). Following this, Hanafu herself also served as the main voice actor, and in July this year she performed the theme song “Pain,” the “Kamitsubaki City Under Construction,” which is scheduled to be made into a TV anime.
In addition, the venue will be expanded to include cover corners of popular anime songs, including EGOIST’s “Sakakeya Sakake”, Ito Kanako’s “Hacking to the gate”, and YOASOBI’s “Idol”, and the venue will be increased. In the MC, who talked about the topic of anime, there was a scene where local fans were laughing when Hanafu herself said that she was a fan of the American sitcom anime “Bojack Horseman.”
In the second half, more popular songs from VWP, the virtual artist group to which Hanafu belongs, will be performed for fans of KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO who came to the long-awaited American performance. Following performances from “Rinrei,” “Hisho,” and “Ai Poem,” there will be a rich set list that will give you a sense of Hanafu’s activities, including songs from the “Suite” series, which Hanafu has collaborated with numerous artists. .
At the end, they sang their hit songs “Gestalt” and “Tokyo Shandy Rendezvous” one after another, and ended with two songs from their latest album “Fable.” The final number was the final performance of the US, with her signature song, “Witch,” condensing Hanafu’s activities.
The performance was a set list and performance that was perfect for a “first time” stage, as the title “HAJIMEMASHITE” suggests, to American fans who were waiting for the local live performance.
In addition, “Past Wo Urau (English ver.),” which was first performed during the live show, will be officially streamed at a later date.
Please continue to keep an eye on Hanafu, who will expand its possibilities both domestically and internationally, appearing at the Anime Festival Asia Indonesia 2025, which will be held at the Jakarta Convention Center in Indonesia on Saturday, June 7th, 2025.
01. Eat the past (English ver.)
02. Nihil *Theme song for the school RPG “Monark”
03. Streamlined May Day *Ed ED of the TV anime “Jashin-chan Dropkick X”
04. For example, * Insert song for the movie “Ponpo-san, who loves movies”
05. Before the night stops *Theme song for the movie “Hot Gimmick Girl Meets Boy”
06. Answer (English ver.) *Edge of the TV anime “Black Clover”
07. Scenery *Episode 10 ED of TV anime “Japan Sink”
08. Pain *Project theme song “Kamitsubaki City under construction.”
09. Sakikake and Sakikake (Cover) *Theme song for the TV anime “Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress: Battle for the Sea Gate”
10.Hacking to the gate (Cover) *TV anime “STEINS;GATE” OP
11. Idol (Cover) *Theme song for the TV anime “Ishinoko”
12. Rinne (VWP) *Theme song for the TV anime “Mu-Luv Alternative”
13. Flying (VWP) *Image song for the action RPG “CRYMACHINA”
14. Love Poetry (VWP) *TV anime “Miru Mirai” OP
15. She is in the Labyrinth Now *TV anime “Chuzenji Sensei Monster Lecture Record: Because the teacher solves the mystery.” ED
16. Secret Words *Episode 6 of the TV anime “Arya-san Next Doors Sometimes I’m Loudly in Russian”
17. My Life
18.Gestalt *ARG “Project:;COLD 2.0 ALTÆR CARNIVAL”
19. Tokyo Shandy Rendezvous *Edge of the TV anime “Urusei Yatsura”
20. Carpe Diem
21. I’m happy to replace it
22. Witch
■Hanafu Artist Profile
A virtual singer who started with “KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO.”
He made his debut in 2018 at the age of 14.
Establishes a virtual artist with a unique singing voice and worldview.
The artist collaboration in the “Suite” series has also become a hot topic, with the current number of YouTube subscribers exceeding 1 million and total views exceeding 300 million. The fanatic community of fans is expanding both domestically and internationally.
The songs he produced with Kanzaki Iori, the main composer from the early days of his activities, received high praise, and in August 2022 they held a solo live performance at Nippon Budokan, “Muslim San (Kuru).”
In January 2024, the 4th ONE-MAN LIVE “Kai-song” was held at Yoyogi First Gymnasium, which could be said to be the beginning of chapter 2, and, following Budokan, successfully performed the first arena performance, the largest virtual singer solo performance.
Several overseas performances have been announced in 2025, so witness this “continuation of the Juvenile” as it plunges into an unexplored world.
Official Website:https://kaf.kamitsubaki.jp/
■About KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO
It is a creative label that brings together the cutting edge of online culture together with the next generation of creators, and operates a new era of artist management business. We have created an operational structure consisting of management staff who discover and develop artists, as well as marketing staff who have the know-how to operate YouTube and social media.
We collaborate with a variety of creators and artists, including virtual singers, singer-songwriters, composers, filmmakers, story writers, illustrators, designers, and other creators and “co-create” our works together with everyone who receives them, creating new creative live shows and works, and updating the music experience itself.
Official website:https://kamitsubaki.jp/
(Operated by THINKR Co., Ltd.: https://thinkr.jp/)
