VOCALOID

Hatsune Miku is a singing voice synthesizer who has been featured in over 100,000 songs released worldwide. Codenamed CV01, she was one of the first Vocaloids to be both developed and distributed by Crypton Future Media, INC. A 16-year-old girl with turquoise hair, she was released on August 31, 2006. The name Hatsune Miku means "The First Sound From the Future". The primary differentiation between Miku and other singers is that she is not technically a real person, and her music is created by the fanbase who are not necessarily professional but want to improve their abilities and expand their reach. Her voice is provided by the Japanese voice actress Saki Fujita, and Miku is considered the most popular and well known Vocaloid.

Developer

Crypton Future Media, INC. is a music technology company based in Sapporo, Japan, and is the official licensor of Hatsune Miku and other Vocaloid members. It develops and sells products related to music including, but not limited to, sound generation software. The company provides services for online shopping of their software as well as the digital distribution of music using their Vocaloid software under the KARENT record label.

Voice Actress

Born October 19, 1984, Saki Fujita is a voice actress and narrator who hails from Tokyo, Japan. Having her debut in voice acting in 2001, she became a household name when, in 2016, she provided the voice for Hatsune Miku. Other high-profile projects that Fujita has performed in include Angel Beats!, Pokemon, Attack on Titan, Kantai Collection, and Sword Art Online.

Character Designer

Kei Garou (stylized as KEI) is a Japanese illustrator who was born in Chitose, Hokkaido, Japan. He started drawing fan works as a student and made his debut as an illustrator for the novel Kiseki no Hyougen. In 2007, he was commissioned by Crypton Future Media to draw an illustration for their first Character Vocal Series product, Hatsune Miku. Although he was provided with detailed concepts, KEI took over a month to complete the illustration due to his lack of understanding of what Vocaloid was, as the concept was still quite new at the time. His style is defined as watercolor-like moe.

MikuMikuDance

MikuMikuDance (MMD, for short) is a freeware animation program that allows users to create and animate 3D movies. It was originally produced for fans of Hatsune Miku to allow them to create and produce music videos without the need to buy high-end expensive animation software. Nowadays, innumerable characters and designs can be created using MMD and its flexibility has allowed for amazing videos to be created and uploaded to Nico Nico Douga and YouTube, resulting in a newfound appreciation for 3D animation, the world over.

History

Since her creation in 2006, Hatsune Miku has partaken in various collaborations and events, including but not limited to:
Since 2010, Racing Miku has represented Goodsmile Racing for the Super GT.
Since 2011, Snow Miku (event) has played a prominent role in Sapporo’s annual Snow Festival held in late January-early February for several weeks.
From 2012 till 2015, Family Mart held special seasonal campaigns featuring Hatsune Miku where customers could purchase limited-edition foods and beverages, as well as have the chance to win various prizes from each convenience store’s lottery.
In 2013, Domino's Pizza Japan teamed with Hatsune Miku for a special campaign lasting approximately 2 months.
Mikupa. An annual event in Japan that lasted from 2009 to 2011.
Hatsune Miku Magical Mirai. An annual event in Japan that started in 2013 and has continued to this day.
HATSUNE MIKU EXPO. A global world tour organized by Crypton Future Media. It began in 2014 in Indonesia and has since extended its reach to the Americas, other areas of Asia, and Europe.
THE END (opera). An ambitious opera that debuted in 2013 comprised entirely of 3D computer-generated graphics, no human performers, and no orchestra. It was the brainchild of writer Toshiki Okada and music producer Keiichiro Shibuya, with costumes designed by Louis Vuitton.
Miku Symphony. A 2-day live concert from Crypton Future Media that is performed in Japan. It is the sequel to the Miku Symphony 2016 concert and is the very first official concert to feature all Crypton-based Vocaloid members.

Merchandise

On top of being a voicebank software, Hatsune Miku takes many forms, including merchandise, CDs, figurines, apparel, and decor, as well as food and drinks. In most cases, these items are officially licensed by Crypton Future Media, though due to the success of the brand, Hatsune Miku also has unofficial manga, music, games, and figurines.

Cosplay

With the massive success of Hatsune Miku, she and the other Vocaloids have been cosplayed numerous times for leisure or specifically for events, especially by many professional cosplayers. In many cases, all clothing is handmade, but there are also stores dedicated to selling clothes and attachments for anyone to buy around the world.

Legacy

In the over a decade that Hatsune Miku and Vocaloid have appeared, her influence is felt around the world. For fans overseas, interest in Japanese music as well as Japan and its culture has increased dramatically, which aides the Japanese economy. For fans in Japan, the incredibly large variety of music has created some professional musicians.
For a strong example, Hachi now produces music professionally under his real name, Kenshi Yonezu, and at one point in 2019, had 10 singles in the Oricon Top 100 at the same time. He still maintains a strong fanbase post-Vocaloid music production, with any new song almost always breaking into the top 3 of the Oricon charts.
Vocaloid, and Hatsune Miku in particular, has started to break down the language barriers around the world and has begun to unite everyone through the power of music.

Table of Contents

DECO*27 (DECO*Nina) (born December 16, 1986) is a Japanese musician and producer who grew up in Fukushima prefecture.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Kenshi Yonezu (born March 10, 1991) is a Japanese singer-songwriter, illustrator, and filmmaker who was born in Tokushima prefecture. He is currently affiliated with SME Records (Sony Music Labels).

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Jin (born October 20, 1990) is a Japanese musician, music producer, novelist, and scriptwriter. He is currently affiliated with 1st PLACE.

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livetune is a Japanese music unit or more specifically, a doujin music circle. Currently, it consists solely of musician kz. It was originally signed on to Victor Entertainment, and signed on to Sony Music Direct and Toy’s Factory before returning to Victor Entertainment. The ...

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Mikito-P (みきとP) (born August 30) is a Japanese songwriter and music producer. He originally mainly used Miki, and produced the titular song MikitoP, translating to "Miki and P", which he eventually adopted as his producer name, Mikito-P. Despite this name, he produces s...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Mitchie M is a Japanese music producer.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Nayutalien is a Vocaloid artist/producer. His most popular song is "Alien Alien". It has been played over 3 million times and counting. 13 songs produced by Nayutalien currently have over 1 million views.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

OSTER project is the name of a Japanese musical unit, though it only consists of a single member, OSTER (born November 24, 1986). She likes extremely spicy curry and cinnamon rolls. Her favorite artists include famed French composer Michel Legrand, plus-tech squeeze box, and jazz...

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PinocchioP (ピノキオピー) is a music producer, illustrator and character designer. He works for P._nc (pronounced pink) and is signed to the label, U/M/A/A (pronounced yuma). His producer name comes from his first song "Hanauta", which means "humming" but can be tra...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Rerulili (stylized as rerulili) is a Tokyo-based Vocaloid producer/singer. He produces various songs of rock, jazz, funk, and blues. rerulili is also referred to as ToushahiP(当社比P); the nickname is a running joke by fans on how some the title of his songs include "the greate...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

supercell is a doujin music band in 2007, led by Japanese musician and songwriter ryo. supercell is comprised of 11 members, with ryo producing the music and lyrics for the group, while the other members provide illustrations and support. They originally produced music with vocal...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Takayuki Sano (佐野貴幸) (born September 9, 1984, died September 24, 2015), better known by his stage name samfree, was a popular Japanese Vocaloid music producer. He was one of few producers to have used a variety of Vocaloids and released music using Hatsune Miku, Kagamine Rin, Meg...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Hiroaki Arai 荒井 洋明 (born August 3, 1983), better known as Signal-P (シグナルP), is a Japanese musician. Having released music as both "Signal-P" and the alias "Dios", he eventually decided to use the combined alias "Dios/Signal-P". Signal-P debuted as an...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Toku-P (born March 5, 1978), real name Abe Yoshinori, 阿部 尚徳, is a Japanese musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and keyboardist. Other than his Vocaloid works on Nico Nico Douga, he has also worked with popular artists such as Angela Aki, LiSA and Harada Hitomi, amongst othe...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Utsu-P (born December 1, 1990) is a Japanese musician who hails from Nagoya and currently resides in Setagaya. In June, 2008, Utsu-P started producing music. His musical style features heavy use of shouts which is often difficult to express in the Vocaloid software, while also i...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

WOWAKA (November 4, 1987 - April 5, 2019) was a Japanese musician. Songs using the voice synthesis software, such as Hatsune Miku, were uploaded onto the Japanese video platform, Nico Nico Douga. Since 2011, he had been active as vocals and lead guitar for the rock band, Hitorie....

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

“Ai Kotoba” (愛言葉), known by its official English title as "Love Password" was released on July 21, 2009, and was composed by DECO*27. One of his most popular works, it is about Hatsune Miku expressing all of her feelings toward a special someone who has always taken car...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"BLACK★ROCK SHOOTER"(ブラックロックシューター), commonly abbreviated as BRS, is a character designed by Japanese illustrator huke (Ryohei Huke), which has since spawned a song, animation, and video game based around the character and her world. The song was released on June 13, 200...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Shinkai Shoujo" (深海少女), known by its official English title as "Deep-Sea Girl" was released on September 1, 2010. It was composed by Yuuyu-P. The song appears on the compilation albums EXIT TUNES PRESENTS Vocalodream feat. 初音ミク, V Love 25 -Gloria-, as well as...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"HIBANA" (ヒバナ) was released on August 4, 2017, and is written by DECO*27. While its title’s translation is "Spark", the official English title remains as "HIBANA". HIBANA reached 1 million views on Nico Nico Douga on October 19, 2017, and, at the tim...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

“Ievan Polkka”, known by its official English title as "Eva's Polka" is a 1930s traditional Finnish song. It was revived in the mid-1990s by Finnish band Loituma where it has amassed over 6 million views on YouTube. In 2007, a cover by Otomania was released featurin...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Kagerou Daze" (カゲロウデイズ), also known by its translated English title as "Heat-Haze Daze", was released on September 30, 2011. It was composed by Jin. It was his third song and one of the tracks for his Kagerou Project. The story revolves around a boy who witne...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Love is War" (恋は戦争), known by its official English title as "EAGER LOVE REVENGE" was composed by ryo. It details the story about how Miku will fight for her crush. Due to the song's popularity, it has been translated into various languages, with some of t...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Matryoshka" (マトリョシカ), was released on August 19, 2010, on Nico Nico Douga and October 1, 2013, on YouTube. The song is written by Hachi. Matryoshka currently has over 11 million views on Nico Nico Douga and 28 million views on YouTube. In addition to becoming one of...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Melt" (メルト), was released on December 7, 2007, on Nico Nico Douga. The song is written by ryo and was one of his first Hatsune Miku songs to be publicly released.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

“Miku Miku ni Shite Ageru” (みくみくにしてあげる♪【してやんよ】), known by its official English title as "I'll Miku-Miku You♪ (For Reals)" was released on September 20, 2007. It is a denpa-style song written and composed by ika (real name Kamo Tsuruta, 鶴田加茂), and uses the voice synt...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"ODDS&ENDS" was released on February 27, 2013 was produced by ryo. Its theme parallels ryo's own story of being a composer and Vocaloid producer. It describes someone unknown and his struggles of being recognized, but then with the help of Hatsune Miku's voi...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"PoPiPo" (ぽっぴっぽー), known by its official English title as "Vegetable Juice" was released on December 11, 2008, and was composed by Lamaze-P. Hatsune Miku sings about vegetable juice and how amazing it is to her. "PoPiPo" is one of Hatsune Miku's ...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Rolling Girl" (ローリンガール), was released on February 14, 2010, and reached 2nd place in the Weekly VOCALOID Ranking in its first week of release. It was produced by wowaka and was his 9th song. The song has gained over 7 million views on Nico Nico Douga and over 3 million...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Romeo and Cinderella" (ロミオとシンデレラ), was released on April 6, 2009 and was composed by doriko. Its thumbnail was illustrated by nezuki. The song tells the story of a girl who has fallen in love with her "Romeo" much to her parents' disapproval. And while sh...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Himitsu Keisatsu" (秘密警察), known by its official English title as "Secret Police" was released on November 9, 2010. It was composed by Buriru-P, performed by Hatsune Miku and is Buriru-P's most notable work. The song is fast-paced and has repetitive lyrics...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Senbonzakura" (千本桜), known by its official English title "Thousand Cherry Blossoms", was released on September 17, 2011, is a song written, composed, and arranged by Kurousa-P and is hailed as one of the most significantly important VOCALOID songs ever. It wa...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Sharuru" (シャルル), also known by its official English title "Charles", was released on October 12, 2016. This song was written by Vocaloid producer balloon, but instead of using Hatsune Miku as the song's Vocaloid, balloon instead chose to employ flower'...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Suna no Wakusei" (砂の惑星), known by its official title "DUNE", is a song by Hachi, a very popular musician from Tokushima prefecture. On July 21, 2017, the music video was released simultaneously on Nico Nico Douga and YouTube. The song was produced as the them...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Tell Your World" was produced by kz. He was asked by Google Japan to create a song for a commercial to promote the web browser Google Chrome.It has garnered over 5 million views and is the most viewed Japanese Google Chrome commercial, beating the likes of popular sing...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

The Disappearance of Hatsune Miku (初音ミクの消失 -DEAD END-), known by its official English title as "THE END OF HATSUNE MIKU -DEAD END-", or by fans using the kanji phrase "Shoushitsu", was released on April 8, 2008. It was composed by cosMo and is one of his most ...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"World is Mine" (ワールドイズマイン), was released on May 31, 2018. It was produced by ryo of supercell fame. The song is about an earnest girl in love who, through many indirect sentences which make her sound like a spoiled brat craving for attention, just wants the person she ...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Unhappy Refrain" (アンハッピーリフレイン) was composed by the late Japanese musician wowaka.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Ura-Omote Lovers" (裏表ラバーズ), known by its official English title as "Two-Faced Lovers" was released on August 30, 2009, and was composed by wowaka. It was his 6th release, and is one of wowaka's most notable songs. On March 25, 2010, the song reached its f...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

"Viva Happy" (ビバハピ), was released on July 26, 2013, and was composed by Mitchie M. The song is his 7th work, and like many of his other works, is notable due to his extremely realistic tuning of Hatsune Miku's voice, which results in a sound that is extremely simila...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

MEIKO is speech synthesis and desktop music (DTM) software sold by Crypton Future Media that was released on November 5, 2004.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

KAITO is a voice synthesis software distributed by Crypton Future Media. The software uses the VOCALOID engine developed by Yamaha. Vocals and backing vocals can be synthesized by inputting lyrics and musical scale. Developer Crypton Future Media Operating System Windows V...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Megurine Luka is the product and character name of the speech synthesis and desktop music (DTM) software that was released by Crypton Future Media on January 30. The third installment of the Character Vocal Series (CV Series), numerous works using Megurine Luka have been publi...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Kagamine Rin and Kagamine Len are VOCALOIDs developed by Crypton Future Media. They use the VOCALOID 2 and VOCALOID 4 singing synthesizing technology and are both voiced by Asami Shimoda. As with many other VOCALOIDs, they have performed in live concerts around the world using pr...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Derivative character designs are ones that deviate from the originally released concept art. In general, they are fan-made creations, but some are still recognized by their respective official brands, having merchandise and art of their designs developed and distributed. Some of...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Sakiko Fujita (born October 19, 1984), known better as Saki Fujita, is a Japanese voice actress who hails from Tokyo. She is currently affiliated with the talent agency Arts Vision. She is best known for providing the voice sampling for Hatsune Miku, a character of the synthesis ...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Asami Shimoda (born January 30, 1986) is a Japanese voice actor, stage actress, and singer. She belongs to the Arts Vision talent agency. Born in Tottori City, Tottori prefecture, her most popular works include "IS ", "THE IDOLM@ASTER", and "VOCALOID2&quo...

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

Yuu Asakawa (born March 20, 1975) is a Japanese voice actor who works as a freelancer. She was born in Tokyo.

Last updated at, 12 Jan 2021

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