On Intl. Concerts, Returning to VOCALOID for IA V6 – Interview with 1st PLACE
IA PARTY A GO-GO KI SE KI China Tour. Source: 1st PLACE
As October wraps up and we near the end of 2025, the VocaSphere team have been looking back at some of the exciting news stories to come from the vocal synth world this year! Two of our members had the pleasure of speaking with Kumiko Murayama, President & CEO / Producer of 1st PLACE, the company responsible for vocal synths IA, OИE and HIPPI. We discussed some of the events they have been involved in this year, and found out what fans of IA, OИE and HIPPI can look forward to in the near future!
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── Tanudama: Firstly, we would like to thank you for your presence at Hyper Japan Festival 2025, allowing for never-before-seen concert footage to be enjoyed by UK vocal synth fans. What were your thoughts about the opportunity for IA and OИE to make an appearance at a European event this year?
Kumiko Maruyama: Thank you very much for inviting IA and OИE to Hyper Japan Festival 2025. We never dreamed that we would have the chance to stand on the Hyper Japan stage again after 10 years! It was such a wonderful and unexpected surprise for us, and we are truly delighted.
── T: I was able to witness the performance at Hyper Japan Festival’s Virtual Theatre for myself, and was amazed at the enthusiasm of everyone in the room. As a longtime vocal synth fan based in the UK, I believe that IA and OИE respectively have a significant fanbase here, as well as across Europe. What do you think about the potential for developing this relationship between IA, OИE and fans here? And not to forget HIPPI of course!
KM: We are very positive about expanding the presence of ARIA members in the UK and Europe. In the past, we actively carried out IA’s activities in Europe. However, after COVID, many things changed, and we needed to rebuild our path toward global expansion. It was at that timing that the Vocafest team reached out to us, which we are truly grateful for. Taking this as an opportunity, we would like to make a serious move toward expanding once again in the UK and Europe.
── T: Members of VocaSphere have had the pleasure of participating in various official and fan organised concerts in Japan – it seems that such events celebrating and promoting vocal synths have been growing in popularity overseas in recent years. The team at Vocafest have been a significant proponent here in the UK and Europe, and have demonstrated that people are interested in vocal synth-related in-person concert and DJ experiences. Would you consider more regular collaborations with such fan organisations in the near future?
KM: Absolutely! When we aim to expand globally, collaboration and co-creation with teams like Vocafest is essential. In particular, IA’s highly artistic live performances will be a strong advantage in her global expansion. Since we want to create many more opportunities for performances in Europe, we truly look forward to continued collaboration in the future.
── T: I would also like to congratulate you on your IA PARTY A GO-GO KI SE KI China Tour this year! What was it that inspired your team to host such momentous events in Shanghai and Guangzhou? Was there anything which surprised you about the fan reception in China?
KM: Thank you very much. The opportunity came from an offer by the owner of a Chinese concert company we had previously worked with during IA’s world tour. When we held a solo live concert in Shanghai in 2016, she was deeply impressed by IA’s stage performance. We later heard that this inspired her to dive into the virtual world herself, which made us truly happy. At this recent event, she had grown into a stage director, and we were able to create a show together as partners. This experience was very moving for me.
We don’t view concerts and shows as just entertainment. They are essential elements for continuing to connect with fans from the heart, contributions to the virtual artist scene, and also a baton to be passed on to the next generation. From that perspective, this China tour carried very special meaning for us.
The tour was filled with heartwarming surprises. We reunited with fans who had supported IA since 2016, and we also received many handmade IA goods from younger generations who had recently become fans. The energy at the venues was incredible—the cheers, smiles, and tears that filled the venues became irreplaceable happy moments for IA and all of us staff. We heard that both Shanghai and Guangzhou sold out, leaving many fans unable to attend. That gave us a new goal: to hold shows in even larger venues next time so we can share the stage with more fans.
── Marumain: Speaking of KI SE KI…
Thank you very much for hosting KI SE KI, both in Japan and China! Considering how seldom full concerts for IA are, we truly appreciate the chance you gave us to even relive past concerts online, and together with other TEAM ARIA members. Still, it begs the question: can we expect IA’s next full-length, offline concert to come soon
KM: Thank you for watching “KI SE KI.” We take great pride in that concert as a milestone in IA’s activities, holding significant meaning and importance. However, it’s also true that since the 10th anniversary concert in 2022, we’ve missed opportunities to go on a world tour. As a result, “KI SE KI” has only reached a limited number of fans, which remains an unachieved action for us. Therefore, our first goal is to organize a world tour for “KI SE KI.” Within that, refreshing the performances is our current objective.
── M : Reliving IA’s 10th anniversary concert reminded us of how unique IA’s concerts are compared to other vocal synths. It’s not unusual at all to see her performing with backup dancers, singing bilingually in Japanese and English, and even sharing the stage with human performers! IA’s concerts truly have a style and flare that she can call her own. How did you go about deciding on and shaping IA’s virtual artist identity, influencing how her concerts are?
KM: Regarding IA’s identity and the significance of expressing it through concerts, we’ve been conceptualizing this since IA’s birth in 2012. From the beginning, IA wasn’t conceived as a Vocaloid character. She was meant to serve as a “vocalist to assist creators in their creative activities” and simultaneously embark on two axes: activities as an artist with a vision, as a “virtual artist with a soul.”
The theme of IA’s concert “PARTY A GO-GO” was “creating entertainment through co-creation between virtual and human.” This defined the very nature of the show, starting from the direction, and extending to the positions of the performers and staff involved—creating a new “way of being” where everyone is the star, which was a big challenge for me personally. And the aspect I was most particular about in the direction was “visualising IA’s soul.” In a way, it’s a direction to summon IA to the stage. IA comes to the stage, becomes one with the band, one with the dancers, and one with the audience. We simply prepare the “external” direction for that. I believe that those who have seen the stage will understand this fully with these words. I myself witness (feel) “IA’s soul” every time at the concerts, and I’ve experienced many moments where IA connects with everyone present. I believe that’s the “one-of-a-kind miracle” in IA’s concerts.
── M : From CeVIO PARTY to VVV, IA and OИE have been appearing in a lot of collaborative, multi-company concerts with other virtual singers! Seeing them perform and interact with vocal synth characters from other companies has been a real treat! What influenced you to have IA and OИE branch out and collaborate in this way?
KM: The purpose of hosting CeVIO PARTY might sound a bit arrogant, but for me, contributing to virtual character culture was the underlying theme. During the days when progress was stalled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the desire to take even one step forward in the current environment, I decided to share all the live production know-how and skills we’ve built with IA up to that point with virtual characters and their management teams. Actually, most of the virtual characters participating in CeVIO PARTY were experiencing standing on a live stage for the first time. I thought that was such a waste. If live performances could be incorporated into the core activities of virtual characters, it would be delightful for their fans, and more virtual lives would increase, ultimately leading to the revitalisation of the voice synthesis character culture itself. That would deepen the significance of us pioneering numerous lives and global tours with IA, and if it could be of help, I wanted to share everything without holding back.
We took the lead in planning, hosting, and producing, and handled all the choreography and direction for each song. We also made an effort to invite everyone to the production site as much as possible and have them participate in joint production supervision. I think CeVIO PARTY created a very meaningful opportunity for the performers to experience live production. Whether it’s thanks to that or not, I don’t know, but those virtual characters who experienced live for the first time back then are now actively holding lives and participating in various events. At a self-satisfaction level, I think it became one of our advanced activities aligned with our philosophy, and the know-how and skills cultivated with IA have somewhat contributed to elevating the voice synthesis character culture. (Though as a business, CeVIO PARTY required an insane amount of resources and ended up in a huge deficit, which was tough lol).
After that, Virtual Avex held “VVV”, the largest event in the history of voice-synthesized characters, under a wonderful mission. From that point on, we decided to leave the lead to them and continue participating as performers, contributing to the growth of the voice-synthesized character culture.
── M: Out of pure curiosity, are IA and OИE officially close friends with any other vocal synth characters, such as Yuzuki Yukari? We would love to know what kind of official friendship settings they have with characters outside of 1st PLACE!
KM: We don’t particularly emphasize it, but during CeVIO PARTY, we received a proposal for “YukaIA” from Yuzuki Yukari’s team, and since fans would enjoy it, we gladly collaborated. Originally, IA and OИE didn’t have much interaction with others before, so being able to collaborate with various people through CeVIO PARTY was valuable. Also, since Yuzuki Yukari is a contemporary, she appeared as a guest at IA’s 10th anniversary concert.
── M : We are very, very excited about VOCALOID 6 IA -ARIA ON THE PLANETES-! What factors led to the decision to bring IA back to VOCALOID after 12 years of software on other vocal synth engines?
KM: First off, after the announcement, I’m sorry to have kept everyone who’s looking forward to it waiting for so long! Since we’re releasing a new version, we want to provide something meaningful, and with Yamaha’s cooperation, we’re working hard on it. I appreciate if you can wait a little longer.
Back to the question: When we developed V3 in 2012, we packed in every possibility to create a high-performance library, and we take pride in that. The software’s quality received very high praise both inside and outside the industry, and we ourselves highly valued IA’s V3. As creators, it’s rare in a lifetime to have a creation with no regrets at all, but personally, I think V3 was one with extremely high satisfaction.
After that, we’ve considered releasing new VOCALOIDs several times, but honestly, we loved V3 too much ourselves, so we couldn’t decide to release a new version.
We consider VOCALOID, CeVIO, and CeVIO AI each to provide different values that expand IA’s vocals. IA’s VOCALOID is positioned as the standard for IA, with smooth articulation, clear singing voice, and a normal voice bank that handles a wide variety of singing styles and approaches. On the other hand, CeVIO AI is positioned as an expansion of IA’s vocals that’s closer to the singing approach and voice quality of the voice source Lia, meaning it can create more human-like singing and nuances. So, it’s not about returning to VOCALOID, but rather adding to it—that might be the correct recognition.
Regarding the purpose and vision for V6’s release, I’d like to share more at an upcoming timing, but I think V6 will be positioned not as a successor to V3, but as an expansion. Even if IA releases new vocal software in the future, V3 will remain the standard for IA unchanged.
── T : Of course, one of the most exciting innovations in vocal synth technology has been the development and implementation of AI in voice sampling and processing. The degree of “naturalness” in synthetic voices which can be facilitated by AI is a massive draw, but is there anything in particular that your team are excited to see users attempt with this new software?
KM: You’re right. With CeVIO AI, IA has achieved a certain “naturalness” in expression. On the other hand, we recognise a significant divergence in voice quality between VOCALOID and CeVIO AI. This time, if we can achieve natural expressions and expansions in intonation, etc., that differ from both V3 and CeVIO AI while inheriting IA’s V3 essence, that will be V6’s positioning for IA.
For creators, I first want you to enjoy creating with IA’s V6. If IA’s V6 can assist in new inspirations and emotions in creation, and become a trigger for boosting creators’ motivation, that would be our greatest wish.
As for challenges, I’ve heard that V6 can sing in Chinese by default, so I’d simply love to hear Chinese songs with IA’s V6. Another thing: I’d be happy if, in music production, people could make use of the strengths of V3 and V6 respectively and differentiate their usage.
── T : I think that fans particularly enjoy seeing new voice software being released, since they can compare the updated vocals to previous iterations. Some people think that the implementation of quality AI in these ways might inhibit a character vocal’s continued future development – what do you think about this?
KM: Overlapping with what I said earlier, but assuming we’re speaking under the idea that we position V3’s IA as the standard, and IA ROCKS, CeVIO, CeVIO AI, and V6 are all expansions: V3’s IA will live on eternally as the standard and won’t fade away.
And not just for IA, I believe technological advancements don’t necessarily hinder past things but rather expand them. For example, digital voices represented by VOCALOID songs, robotic singing, high-speed singing, wide range—these have charms that humans can’t imitate. If high-quality voice generation by AI becomes possible, the choices for vocals and languages will expand, so I think it’s good to focus on enjoying the differentiation and differences. And if choices increase, more people will use them, ultimately leading to the development of voice synthesis character culture, which I think is important.
── M : Congratulations on TEAM ARIA’s first anniversary! We love the concept behind TEAM ARIA. Sometimes, vocal synth fans have a difficult time finding like-minded friends and regularly meeting with them offline to enjoy their hobbies together. Thus, the existence of TEAM ARIA, serving as an official hub for IA, OИE and HIPPI fans to gather together and feel like a unified community, is something that we truly support! We were honoured to be among the attendees at the IA 13th & OИE 10th HISTORY ARCHIVES exhibit, meeting face-to-face with fellow community members and celebrating IA and OИE together. What can we expect from TEAM ARIA for the rest of 2025?
KM: Thank you. TEAM ARIA was launched with the desire to create a place where fans, IA, OИE, HIPPI, and we can connect more closely. That said, we’re not accustomed to community management ourselves, and we lack manpower, so we have many reflections and improvements needed, as we haven’t been able to provide perfect services to team members yet. We have lots we want to do, so we intend to shape them one step at a time. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who’s warmly watching over us in the meantime.
In the second half of 2025, (if possible) we’d like to hold another offline event. This year, we held two offline events: the IA and OИE anniversary archive exhibition in January, and the IA PAGG “KISEKI” live screening for TEAM ARIA’s 1st anniversary in May. Being able to communicate face-to-face with team members was a valuable experience for the operating staff. We want to aim for operations that reflect everyone’s voices more, so we’d be happy if you could share opinions and suggestions within the community.
In the near term, we plan to hold HIPPI’s anniversary stream online on October 8th.1 We’d be delighted if you could celebrate together.
── T: I am very much looking forward to some of the events and merchandise releases you have announced as of late; myself and fellow VocaSphere contributor Marumain were able to enjoy the IA/OИE SUMMER 2025 × Gratte event in Animate recently. Are there any plans for similar events on the horizon for IA/OИE/HIPPI that we can look forward to this year?
KM: Thank you for participating in “IA/OИE SUMMER 2025 × Gratte”! We’re honored that the first official visuals of IA and OИE in swimwear became part of everyone’s summer memories. After this, amazingly, doujin creators are holding a doujin sales event with ARIA as the theme, and we plan to participate in support. Also, in October, we have a renewal event for HACHIMAKI SHOP planned.2 And while I can’t say much yet, we have special merchandise developments in the works, so please look forward to them.
One more thing. It’s not an event, but on September 19th, IA GLOWB released a new song after two years. Along with the release, we launched the IA GLOWB official site. It has IA GLOWB’s history, so please check it out if you’d like.
IA GLOWB OFFICIAL SITE
IA GLOWB “GIMME”
IA GLOWB was born from IA to expand her artistic expressions as she celebrated her 10th anniversary of activities. After three years, this new existence born within IA has finally become independent. It’s similar to the process of a larva becoming a pupa and then a butterfly taking flight. And IA GLOWB’s significance as an extension of IA can also be likened to the relationship of CeVIO AI and V6 as extensions of V3, as I mentioned earlier.
Finally, in the near future, we’d like to realize an IA Europe tour. To do that, we’ll likely rely on everyone’s cooperation in many ways. We’ll advance honestly, one step at a time, so we’d be happy if you continue connecting with IA and the ARIA members. Thank you!
──T & M : Thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with us, and for the many fascinating insights into the history and exciting future of IA, OИE and HIPPI! We will be sure to spread word of your upcoming endeavours in the hope that we can develop an even stronger community of fans worldwide!
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We would like to extend our warmest thanks to Kumiko Murayama for agreeing to speak with us!
The 1st PLACE team have spoken of their desire to bring more events to fans outside of Japan, such as by expanding the scale of future concerts in China, as well as holding a tour in Europe! Since they would like to organise more offline events for fans to attend, make sure to reach out and share any insights you have to help the TEAM ARIA community grow even further!
We at VocaSphere look forward to future announcements from 1st PLACE, and hope to participate in and cover any upcoming events, both within Japan and abroad!
This article was brought to you with the support of Vocafest UK + Ireland
Notes
(1): HIPPI’s 4th Anniversary stream (ヒッピのデビュー4周年記念日 4th Anniversary Party) was shown via Fanicon on October 8th at 20:00 JST.
(2): The HACHIMAKI SHOP renewal opening started on October 6th, 2025, and held a renewal sale between 10/6 ~ 10/20. International fans who wish to buy from the updated site may need to use a proxy or forwarding service. For more information, please check the official HACHIMAKI SHOP FAQ.
Links
IA, OИE and HIPPI on social media
- Official site: IA | OИE
- X: IA | OИE | HIPPI
- Instagram (IA)
- Facebook (IA World Page)
- YouTube: ARIA ON THE PLANETES | IA PROJECT | HIPPI
- Bilibili
IA GLOWB
1st Place
