JAM Project – The Kings and Queen of Anisong

6 years had passed since they first appeared in AFA Singapore back in  2010 , and now they’re back!! The kings and queen of Japanese Anime Music, JAM Project.

“Japan Animationsong Makers Project” or JAM Project , comprising of members, Hironobu Kageyama(founding member), Masaaki Endoh(founding member), Hiroshi Kitadani(joined 2002), Masami Okui(joined 2003) and Yoshiki Fukuyama(joined 2003), has been in the anime music industry for more than 15 years.

This group of talented singers has been active through the years lending their vocals to anime such as One Punch Man(“The Hero!! – Ikareru Kobushini Hiwo Tsukero”), The SoulTaker (“SOULTAKER”), Cardfight!! Vanguard (“LIMIT BREAK”), Garo (“GARO ~SAVIOR IN THE DARK~”) to name a few, and some songs for tokusatsu and video games. Aside from that long list of credentials as JAM Project, each of the members are already established singers in their own right, with each of them having performed at least one famous song under their belt. Truly, these are artistes that have propelled the anime music industry into greater heights and we’re proud to have them back onstage for AFASG 2016.

During AFASG 2016, we sat down and had a quick chat with these legends.We asked about their take on anisong and how they feel about the current anisong playing in the airwaves. We also asked them about what they missed in Singapore!

Here’s a lowdown of what happened in the interview:

Q: What’s that one thing that you love about when you’re all singing anisong?
Kageyama: Originally, anisongs were created to make the listeners feel happy. So when we sing them live onstage, and at that moment when everyone in the audience is hyped and pumped up — that’s really the moment when we feel happy.
Endoh: Anisongs are the kind of song where everyone sings, right? When everyone remembers the lyrics to the song (or even if they don’t know about the song and hums along), as long as everyone is having fun and feeling happy..
Fukuyama: As long as everyone can sing at the karaoke, (as I’d imagine it) then I’d be more happy ..

Q: What are your impressions on the current anisong?
Kageyama: Anisong is always changing as time goes by..
Okui: I also thought so too…
Kageyama: For example
Okui: As an example, there’s quite a variety of genre these days. Anime nowadays are having a much darker(themes) but there’s also some that are Ghibli-like, it’s really a wide range. So if you combine them altogether, the genre can cover a lot of ground.
Kageyama: If you’re comparing from the time that we debuted to now, there’s now a lot of artiste with their own individuality, and there’s also been a lot of progress in anisong, and we think it’s really a good thing!

Look out for this page for more AFASG 2016 I Love Anisong artistes interview.