POPPRO 2020 Calendar Illustration Contest Now Underway

Cover illustration by Kurisu Toshi.
Source: https://www.weibo.com/6201676755/I2jJB8pBe

POPPRO is now accepting illustration submissions for their 2020 calendar! No matter what your art style or specialty, anyone can enter the contest for the chance to see their illustration featured in an official calendar with the Crypton Future Media VOCALOID characters!

Contest Period

August 15, 2019 at 12:00 PM ~ September 17, 2019 at 12:00 AM (CST)

No. of Winning Entries

12

Characters

Hatsune Miku, Kagamine Rin, Kagamine Len, Megurine Luka, MEIKO, and KAITO

Prizes

Winning illustrations will be featured in the official POPPRO 2020 Calendar, and may also be displayed at future concert venues.

Winners will receive the calendar plus other Miku-related prizes that will be revealed later.

Monthly Themes

Each month will focus on specific characters. Please keep in mind the following characters for each month as you create and submit your illustrations:

January: Luka

February: KAITO

March: Miku and Rin

April: Luka and MEIKO

May: KAITO and Len

June: Rin

July: Miku and Luka

August: Miku

September: MEIKO and KAITO

October: Len

November: MEIKO

December: Rin and Len

Guidelines

Illustration size: 3508 × 4961 pixels (A3 size)

File format: JPG

Color mode: RGB

Resolution: at least 300 dpi

To Participate

Log in to POPPRO.
If you do not yet have an account, you can sign up for free here:
https://www.poppro.cn/html/reg.html

Open the official contest page on POPPRO:
https://www.poppro.cn/html/activity-detail.html?id=MTg=

Click on the arrow that you see on the left side of the page.

Click hover over “我要参加” and click on “插画征集” to start submitting your works.

0: Thumbnail (optional)

1: Batch upload
◯ Yes ◯ No

2: Entry Title

3: Entry Upload
◯ Upload image ◯ Upload 3D

4: Entry Classification
-First option: CRYPTON official character
-Second option: Author’s original illustration
-Third option: Author’s original virtual character
-Fourth option: Another company’s virtual character
-Fifth option: Other

5: Entry description

6: Entry tags
-The character tags are shown from left to right: KAITO, MEIKO, Hatsune Miku, Kagamine Len, Kagamine Rin, Megurine Luka
-You can also add your own tags

7: Non-profit use only
◯ Agree

8: Signature needed?
◯ Needed
◯ No needed

9: Any other requirements?
◯ Yes
◯ No

10: ▢ No licencing conditions

11: Submit

Entry Rules

・Your entry must be your own original work

・You can enter multiple entries

・Entries do not have to be made from scratch; you may enter existing illustrations as long as they are not already being used for commercial purposes, and which you still retain the rights to

・Make sure to title your entry, and designate which month of the calendar it is for. Please be aware that if your entry is selected, it may be used for a different month than intended.

・Multiple characters may be used in a single entry

・Please be aware that if selected, your entry may be trimmed while going through the printing process

・While entries must be made using RGB color mode, selected entries will be using CMYK when printing. Please be aware that this may result in some color difference.

Caution Points

・Entries with text in them will not be accepted, but logos bearing the numbers on each characters’ arm are acceptable

・Derivative characters (ex: Sakura Miku, Snow Miku) will not be accepted

・Concerning the outfits that the characters wear,
Acceptable: official outfits, official outfits with modifications, and original outftis
NOT acceptable: outfits that have been used before in video games, anime, or manga products

Conditions

・Entrants under the age of 18 must submit parental or guardian approval

・For entries with multiple people involved, please assign one representative to submit the entry

・Entries must be made during the contest period – August 15, 2019 at 12:00 PM ~ September 17, 2019 at 12:00 AM (CST) – in order to be accepted

・If a third party files a copyright infringement claim on one of your entries, you must bear all responsibility. No responsibility will be borne by the contest organizers.

・Please confirm that your registered email address can receive emails. In the event that your entry is selected to win, the POPPRO staff will send you an email with relevant information which you must respond to as quickly as possible. If you do not respond within 10 working days of the results announcement, your selection will be cancelled.

・When making merchandise out of the winning entries, you may be asked to provide the source files for your illustration

・Please be aware that winning entries may be used on the contest organizer’s official website or social media

※Any entries that are found to contain false information will be disqualified

——-

Best of luck to all who will be entering. You can visit the contest page and find entries made so far at the bottom of the page!

Xin Hua at the Creative Yunnan Cultural Industries Expo 2019

The 2019 Creative Yunnan Cultural Industries Expo took place at Kunming, China on Thursday, August 8, and fans of Xin Hua who were in attendance had some sights to enjoy!

TANITA Collaboration

During the expo, a collaboration between Xin Hua and TANITA was revealed at their event space. A new design was even created by 朔朔 / Shuo for the event, showing a very sporty side to the VOCALOID character.

A life-size popup display of Xin Hua in her new outfit could be seen alongside TANITA’s posters promoting healthy lifestyles and dieting. It’s very possible that more will come from this collaboration in the near future, so stay tuned for developments!

Info and pic source: https://www.bilibili.com/read/cv3311903/

Xin Hua on Gatebox?

Also at the expo, it was announced that Gatebox will soon be making its way into the Chinese market. Gatebox CEO Jin Nakamura was even present to demonstrate Hikari Azuma to the crowd, and how she interacts as a virtual A.I. to owners of their product.

What is relevant to VOCALOID fans is that Gatebox is being brought into China through a partnership with the Shanghai Fangcheng Group., which Xin Hua’s rights holders, Shanghai Wangcheng Information Technology Co. Ltd., is a part of. The goal of the partnership is to promote Gatebox in China with a focus on “virtual idol culture.”

In fact, towards the end of the official announcement article, Xin Hua is even pictured and introduced to readers while it was hinted that someday, a certain “virtual idol, brimming with the national characteristics of China, will sing beautiful songs for us with her elegant and cute voice.” Could this mean that Xin Hua will become a Gatebox character someday? We’ll have to wait and see, and as always, we will report on any developments!

Info and pic source: https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404405196162727998

Yukari🌙Akari⭐Night Updates

The Yukari🌙Akari⭐Night DJ event takes place in just 3 days, and we have some new updates for fans who plan on attending!

DJ Timetable

The full list of participating DJs and when they will take to the turntable have been revealed! All times are JST:

4:30～5:00 PM: Kizuna Akari

5:00～5:05 PM: Yukari & Akari

5:05～5:35 PM: Yuzuki Yukari

5:35～6:10 PM: かごめP / KagomeP

6:10～6:45 PM: marok

6:45～7:20 PM: ちょむP / ChomP

7:20～7:55 PM: Akihiro Ohtani a.k.a ツナマヨ / Tsunamayo

7:55～8:30 PM: 悠雨 / Yuu

8:30～9:00 )M: Announcements

VJs

すずみやはやや / Suzumiya Hayaya and RENA

Drinks & Coaster Sets

Drinks made from an original recipe by リベラ / Ribera – creator of the Nonbei Yukari series – will be available! Each drink comes with a free coaster bearing the event logo.

Tipsy Yukari Coaster Set: ￥1,000 JPY

Tipsy Akari Coaster Set: ￥1,000 JPY

Non-alcohol Yukari Coaster Set: ￥900 JPY

Non-alcohol Akari Coaster Set: ￥900 JPY

Merchandise

We also got a look at the towel and T-shirts provided by October Beast that will be available at Yukari🌙Akari⭐Night!

To recap, here is the available merch that attendees will be able to purchase.

Yukari Akari Night T-Shirt: ￥4,000 JPY
Available in M, L, and XL sizes

Towel (Yuzuki Yukari, Kizuna Akari, and Tsurumaki Maki versions): ￥2,500 JPY each

Yukari Akari Night T-Shirt + Tote Bag + Yuzuki Yukari Towel Set: ￥7,500 JPY

Yukari Akari Night T-Shirt + Tote Bag + Kizuna Akari Tower Set: ￥7,500 JPY

※The tote bag and T-shirt are the same in both sets
※The tote bag is not being sold separately

Finally, we’d like to also make a note that this event is getting support from high places.

Yukari🌙Akari⭐Night will take place this Friday on August 16, 2019 at Kichijoji Club Seata. If any more updates are announced between now and then, we’ll report them here!

Follow the event organizers on their official Twitter!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 17, 2019**

The event has concluded, and you can see (and watch!) some highlights from the night by people who attended below!

See our initial report here.

Hatsune Miku x Kyoto Nippon Festival Illustration Contest Announced

The 2019 KYOTO NIPPON FESTIVAL will be taking place from October 25 through December 8 at the Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kyoto, and one of their planned attractions will be a display of no less than 36 different Hatsune Miku illustrations! In order to collect them, a contest is now underway on Pixiv.

Pixiv Art Contest

Source: https://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=76233141

Contest Date Range:

August 13 through September 23

Main Visual Artist

Rella

Contest Page

https://www.pixiv.net/contest/kyotonippon

Theme

Miku and “Kyoto”

Prize

￥30,000 JPY

(Total of ￥108,000 JPY across 36 winners)

How to Enter

Visit this page and upload your illustration of Hatsune Miku, themed around “Kyoto”

Entries must be in JPEG, GIF, or PNG format, no more than 32 MB, and no more than 200 of them at a time

1. Select your entry
2. Title
3. Caption
4. Make sure that the tag #三十六画仙 is present

5. Set age group: All ages (全年齢), R-18, or R-18G
6. Set how publicly the upload can be viewed: fully public (全体に公開), only to your friends on Pixiv (マイピクに公開), or not public (非公開)
7. Check the box to mark your entry as an original piece
8. Check the box to upload to Twitter as well
9. Set upload date
10. Upload

Best of luck those who will be entering! For those who are planning on visiting the Kitano Tenmangu during the KYOTO NIPPON FESTIVAL, they are also planning a performance of the latest Cho Kabuki show featuring Hatsune Miku!

**UPDATE ON SEPTEMBER 20, 2019**

The full main visual for the festival has been revealed!

Information source: Official Pixiv Contest Page

You’re Invited to the Hatsune Miku Halloween Mad Tea Party, MEIKO 15th Anniversary

A pair of events have been announced for this upcoming Halloween: the Hatsune Miku Halloween Mad Tea Party, and the MEIKO 15th Anniversary celebration, both taking place at the Shinjuku Marui Annex courtesy of ETERNO RECIT! Consider the below flyer as your official invitation.

Event 1 Details

Name

Hatsune Miku Halloween Mad Tea Party

Artwork

Main visual: Hou
Chibi illustrations: まご / mago, 羊野 (Youno)

Event 2 Details

Name

MEIKO 15th Anniversary

Artwork

Main visual: さいね / Saine
Chibi illustrations: 羊野 (Youno)

For both events

Dates

October 25 ~ November 5

Location

Shinjuku Marui Annex, 6F Event Space

Stay tuned for more details and illustration reveals! In the meantime, you can follow ETERNO RECIT’s official Twitter account to keep up to date!

Information and image source: ETERNO RECIT’s official event site

Stardust’s Birthday 2019 Sale

August 12, 2019 marks Stardust’s 4th birthday! To celebrate, 原子Dan / ATdan made a wonderful new illustration of the Quadimension VOCALOID, which can be found below on Twitter or here on Weibo.

New Merchandise

The illustration also serves as the main visual for new Stardust merchandise now available on Quadimension’s Taobao store! They are even currently being offered at a discounted price.

Stardust’s 2019 Birthday Main Visual Replica

Regular version, regular price: ￥98 RMB
Regular version, discounted price: ￥59 RMB

Artist autographed version, regular price: ￥198 RMB
Artist autographed version, discounted price: ￥119 RMB

Stardust 2019 Birthday Acrylic Stand

Regular price: ￥80 RMB
Discounted price: ￥64 RMB

Stardust’s Official CG Works Collection + A3 Poster & 2pc Can Badge Set

Regular price: ￥150 RMB
Discounted price: ￥120 RMB

Stardust 2019 Birthday Can Badge Set

Regular price: ￥45 RMB
Discounter price: ￥25 RMB

“星语 Star Whisper” Carved Paper Lantern

Regular price: ￥198 RMB
Discounted price: ￥128 RMB

Existing Merchandise on Sale

See below for other items that are also currently being offered at a discounted price.

Quadimension Live Tour Happi Coat
Regular price: ￥260 RMB
Discounted price: ￥156 RMB

Quadimension Live Tour Acrylic Stand (Type 1)
Regular price: ￥70 RMB
Discounted price: ￥42 RMB

Quadimension Live Tour Acrylic Stand (Type 2)
Regular price: ￥90 RMB
Discounted price: ￥54 RMB

Quadimension Live Tour Acrylic Stands (Types 3, 4, 5, and 6)
Regular price: ￥80 RMB
Discounted price: ￥48 RMB

Stardust T-Shirt
Regular price: ￥53 RMB
Discounted price: ￥20 RMB

Stardust Dakimakura Set (Hanasa ver.)
40% off

Stardust Dakimakura Set (TOMATO ver.)
40% off

You can find the products page for all Stardust 2019 Birthday goods here:
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=600683874702

2nd Hatsune Miku x BanG Dream! Girls Band Party Collaboration Details

The second collaboration event between Hatsune Miku and BanG Dream! Girls Band Party will go live on August 23 in the Japanese version of the popular mobile rhythm game! Below is the main visual for the event featuring Miku with the members of Pastel＊Palettes. The Miku-themed skins for live performances will also make a return!

The cover song that the idol band will be performing for the event is からくりピエロ / Karakuri Pierrot by 40mP. Just like with the first Miku collaboration, they will soon have the music video for the cover on YouTube and Niconico. The short version will be revealed first on August 22, 12:00 PM (JST) and will stay available until August 25, 11:59 AM (JST). The full version will then be made public on August 26.

Speaking of the first Miku collab, it has also been announced that the music videos for its three cover songs will soon be made available again for viewing!

Players in the game can also soon unlock the Karakuri Pierrot-themed outfits for the Pastel＊Palettes members when the event goes live, and the outfits from the previous collaboration will be made available again through the Michelle sticker exchange.

Finally, no less than four different retweet campaigns will be taking place back-to-back this month! By following the official Bandori Twitter account and retweeting the appropriate tweets, three winners in each campaign will receive autographed acrylic stands of each band’s vocalist member in their respective collaboration song outfits! Here is the timetable for each campaign, which is also when the music videos for each cover song will be made available for viewing (all times are JST):

Campaign for the Afterglow cover of ロストワンの号哭 / Lost One’s Weeping:
August 13, 12:00 PM ~ August 16, 11:59 AM

Campaign for the Hello, Happy World! cover of エイリアンエイリアン / Alien Alien:
August 16, 12:00 PM ~ August 19, 11:59 AM

Campaign for the Poppin’ Party cover of ロミオとシンデレラ / Romeo & Cinderella:
August 19, 12:00 PM ~ August 22, 11:59 AM

Campaign for the Pastel＊Palettes cover of からくりピエロ / Karakuri Pierrot (short version):
August 22, 12:00 PM ~ August 25, 11:59 AM

Stay tuned to the Bandori official collaboration website and Twitter as more information gets revealed. You can also watch the announcement livestream on YouTube!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 12, 2019**

The Afterglow cover of ロストワンの号哭 / Lost One’s Weeping is now available on YouTube and Niconico!

Furthermore, the retweet campaign is now live as well! Follow @bang_dream_gbp on Twitter and retweet the tweet directly below before August 16, 11:59 AM (JST) for your chance to win one of three autographed acrylic stands of Ran Mitake!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 23, 2019**

The music video for the cover song is now viewable in-game when you select and play Lost One’s Weeping!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 15, 2019**

The Hello, Happy World! cover of エイリアンエイリアン / Alien Alien is now available on YouTube and Niconico!

The retweet campaign is also now going on, so if you retweet the below tweet before August 22 at 11:59 AM (JST), you can win one of three autographed acrylic stands of Kokoro Tsurumaki!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 18, 2019**

The Poppin’ Party cover of ロミオとシンデレラ / Romeo & Cinderella is now available on YouTube and Niconico!

The next retweet campaign is on as well. Between now and August 25 at 11:59 AM (JST), anyone who retweets the blow tweet will have the chance to win one of three autographed acrylic stands of Kasumi Toyama!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 21, 2019**

Now the new Pastel＊Palettes cover of からくりピエロ / Karakuri Pierrot is available for viewing on YouTube and Niconico!

This is just the short version of the song; the full version will be made public soon on August 26.

This also means that the final retweet campaign is underway as well. Follow @bang_dream_gbp and retweet the below tweet by August 25, 11:59 AM (JST) for the chance to win one of three autographed acrylic character stands of Aya Maruyama!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 22, 2019**

The collaboration is now in full swing in the Japanese version of the game! See below for what players can now enjoy!

Login Campaign

First, players can now participate in a daily login campaign just by booting up the game. Doing so each day until September 9 at 2:59 PM will earn you the new Karakuri Pierrot outfits for the Pastel＊Palettes members, a Hatsune Miku collaboration drink, and a total of 500 Stars!

Furthermore, those who log in to the game before the login campaign ends will instantly receive 50 Tone Crystals!

New Cover Song

And players will be able to put those Tone Crystals to good use right away, too. That’s because the new Pastel＊Palettes cover song, からくりピエロ / Karakuri Pierrot, can now be purchased at CiRCLE!

What’s more, the short version of the music video for the new cover song that is now available online can also be viewed in-game when you select and play Karakuri Pierrot!

**UPDATE ON AUGUST 25, 2019**

And now for the final part of the collaboration: the full version of the Pastel＊Palettes cover song, からくりピエロ / Karakuri Pierrot on YouTube and Niconico!

Links

Official collaboration site
Bandori Official Twitter (JP version)
Bandori Official Twitter (WW version)
Bandori Official Facebook (WW version)

Download BanG Dream! Girls Band Party on:
iTunes Store
Google Play

Kono Koe Todoke, Tsuki Made mo 6

The new illustration from チェリ子 / Cherico that will serve as the main visual for Kono Koe Todoke, Tsuki Made mo 6 (a.k.a. “Koetsuki 6”) has been revealed! And with it also comes the date and location for the annual VOICEROID-only doujin event!

Event Information

Date: February 11, 2020

Location: Ota City International Plaza PiO

Booth Information

Stay tuned as booths for Koetsuki 6 are confirmed. In the meantime, you can follow the Koetsuki 6 organization team through the links below!

Official site
Official Twitter

CeVIO FeSTA 5

For those who enjoyed reading about CeVIO FeSTA 4, you’ll want to see this: the new main visual piece for the follow-up CeVIO FeSTA 5, illustrated by 立花いな実 / Tachibana Inami!

Currently at Comiket 96, the doujin event organizers are even handing out flyers, as well as selling the following items!

2016 CeVIO FeSTA clear file folder: ￥300 JPY
2017 CeVIO FeSTA clear file folder (2pc set): ￥500 JPY
2018 CeVIO FeSTA clear file folder: ￥300 JPY
2019 CeVIO FeSTA clear file folder: ￥300 JPY

We Love CeVIO Silicone Band: ￥300 JPY

They are also working in tandem with the Kono Koe Todoke, Tsuki Made mo 6 organizers to sell official Koetsuki 5 clear file folders for￥300 JPY.

Event Information

Date: April 5, 2020

Location: Kyoto International Exhibition Hall Miyako Messe

Booth Information

Be sure to check back later for booth information as they come to light!

Follow CeVIO FeSTA:
Official site
Official Twitter

Voicemith Confirms OSCAR neo

Voicemith fans, rejoice! OSCAR neo has been confirmed to be in development!

The confirmation comes from a post on Voicemith’s Facebook page. OSCAR neo’s existence was previously teased with a cover photo update a few days earlier.

In their confirmation post, Voicemith promises fans of Oscar’s current voice bank that they will not make any big changes with his neo bank, mainly just improve his singing and speech capabilities. His current voice bank will even still be kept available for anyone to download for free, with the possibility of further development for it if better voice synth technology presents itself.

神子 / Jinko will be in charge of character design for OSCAR neo, and his 3D model is being created by the MMD modeler 椛暗.

As for those who love Joan as well, fret not. Voicemith promises that they will also make a JOAN neo in due time!

Voicemith also mentions that there have been quite a few people asking about the 3D model for Xia Yu Yao as well. They assure fans that Yu Yao’s 3D model is actually already complete, but they are currently planning out her big debut, and will be letting fans know before long!

Finally, Voicemith thanks all their fans for their support, which these projects would not be possible without!