yama first made their debut on YouTube making cover songs, and they have taken the web by storm, attracting millions of views for their music. They have also sung songs for popular anime series such as Ranking of Kings, Pokémon Horizons, and SPY x FAMILY.
With San Diego Comic-Con 2025 being yama’s first live performance in North America, Anime Trending got the opportunity to talk to yama about their career and beyond.
This interview was conducted through an interpreter and has been edited for clarity. Questions submitted by Gerrymelyn Casupang, Isabelle Lee, and Melvyn Tan.
Anime Trending: Thank you for taking the time to speak with us! You first started creating Vocaloid covers, and now you’re a popular singer who composes songs for anime series that people recognize globally. How does it feel knowing your songs are well known globally?
yama: I’m just as surprised as you are, honestly. I started with Vocaloid covers, and when I was doing that, I couldn’t imagine the scale of what was waiting for me. In fact, I used to work at a regular company and had a regular day job, so being involved now in the caliber and type of anime that I am now is just unimaginable.
Your recent fourth album, ; semicolon, is described as a new step and a break from everything before this point. You also discussed with billboard Japan the title’s connection with the mental health movement. Now that it’s been out for a few months, how do you feel about what you’ve accomplished with the album as well as its reception?
yama: ; semicolon was something I’d always wanted to make. I recently was finally able to realize that vision. It really began when my fans told me about this movement, the Semicolon Project, and they would say through my music, they were able to change their outlook or enjoy life. I thought that my music had a lot of overlap with the movement itself. I thought, “Well, if there’s some way I can combine my music and help this movement in some way, that would be really amazing.”
I think [since] everything overlapped and went in the same direction, I was able to put this project together.
You sang the second opening theme song for the new Pokémon anime series Pokémon Horizons: The Search for Laquia with BotchiBoromaru. Pokémon is a popular franchise, both in Japan and abroad. Are you a fan of Pokémon, and how does it feel to be part of this well-known franchise?
yama: I’m a huge fan of Pokémon, and I watched the very first anime. I don’t know if you call it “vanilla,” but the original Pokémon anime. When you say “Pokémon Geto daze” from that era, I was watching that in real time actually on TV.
As far as the video games, I’ve played the Nintendo Switch version. To be able to write the music for the anime of course, for a franchise so big, I’m really flattered and happy. When I’m performing live, there are these kids in the audience who are fans of Pokémon I can tell are having a lot of fun, which is a very humbling experience.
I’m a big fan of Pokémon, and your song is one of my favorites. I always have it on my Spotify playlist every time I drive. What was your thought process in making this song, and what was it like to work with BotchiBoromaru?
yama: Working on this together with BotchiBoromaru, he first created this image of what the song would be like. BotchiBoromaru and I talked about the music sounding very bright, almost having this open, vast feeling to it, blue skies, blue ocean, aligning with the imagery of Pokémon that we knew was going to be used as a backdrop. That music has to carry that imagery. Initially, BotchiBoromaru would send me some samples, some sounds to which I would suggest some lyrics or additions, and some different chorus and melodies as well. That was kind of the collaborative process between us.
Now that you are performing abroad, how do you hope your music will connect with international audiences beyond Japan and Asia?
yama: It’s a very valuable opportunity, and I’m very happy to be here right now. I think it’s going to be different from performing in Japan and in Asia. San Diego is going to have its own color, or vibes if you will. I’m very much looking forward to that and hope I can enjoy it as much as the fans do.
Is there an anime or story you’d love to create a theme song for in the future?
yama: Personally, I’m a huge Golden Kamuy fan. I’ve been tweeting for quite some time that I want to sing a theme song, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Wow! We’d love to hear that theme song.
yama: Someday! (laughs)
You’ve been a professional singer for a few years now. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned?
yama: This relates to the mask a little bit, but I was always sort of traumatized of speaking in front of people. I absolutely hated it. But through performing live, I believe there was a lot of growth and I was able to see myself through the lens of the fans. I realized when I first started performing I was thinking only of myself in a way. However, over the years, I’ve grown to understand and think more about, “How do we enjoy this time, this experience, and this performance together with the fans?”
So I think through performing on stage, I was able to grow, which is a huge lesson for me.
You mentioned your mask earlier, and in another interview, you mentioned Kaiho suggested the opening of your mask to make it easier to see. Beyond that, what other considerations went into the design of your mask? Do its color and shape carry a specific connotation you sought to have?
yama: Of course, incorporating the idea of making it easy to sing with the mask was a huge consideration. In the beginning, I didn’t even have an image of what I thought the mask should look like, so I just said, “Kaiho-san, please take this and run with it and help me make an image.”
When it came to the mask itself though, I think it almost has this medieval quality, but at the same time it’s got mystery. It’s not too pretty, and there’s a lot of attention to detail if you look really close. It’s the balance of all these components that I think make it very interesting and unique.
Now that you’ve done so many things, what’s next for you?
yama: First, it’s the Japanese domestic market — I would like to perform at the Budokan. That’s on my list.
This is also going to mark my first North American live performance, but eventually, hopefully, I can do a solo performance or solo tour.
We’re looking forward to it!
Anime Trending would like to thank yama for taking the time to answer our questions and Crunchyroll and Sony Music Entertainment Japan for the opportunity.
