[Exclusive] Interview with Yuyoyuppe (ゆよゆっぺ)

Adding on to the list of guest musicians for Comic Fiesta 2016. (ゆよゆっぺ) Yuyoyuppe is a singer, DJ and producer in Japan. He has an impressive resume because the man himself touches on all types of music roles. He was the last performance to end the night for Comic Fiesta 2016, and electrified the stage with his presence and brought the audience an experience they will never forget. Yuyoyuppe incorporated popular pop culture songs and remix them, including the infamous PPAP and also using Michael Jackson’s Thriller. It is no wonder Yuyoyuppe is popular among the young adults as his style of music appeals to them. When gracing the stage, he encourages the audience to scream more and makes sure that they are truly enjoying themselves. We hope to see more of Yuyoyuppe in Malaysia soon and more songs to be released. To know more, check out the interview.

(Answers were translated from Japanese to English)

Q : You are known as Yuyoyuppe and DJ Tekina Something, what’s the difference between the two names?

A : For the name Yuyoyuppe is actually used during Nico Nico Douga when I makes music using vocaloid. Now that I’m performing in different countries, I somewhat regret my stage name. It’s quite difficult to read as well. For DJ Tekina Something, I had a chance to become a DJ and when I started, I was on Skype with my manager to discuss all sorts of name and decided on DJ Tekina Something. But then when I got the DJ work for events, it was somewhat accidently confirmed as DJ Tekina Something.

Q : How did you start your career through Nico Nico Douga and started as a vocaloid producer?

A : I used to be in a band we met a lot of people. Unfortunately, meeting that many people, I had missed out with some of them and grew uncomfortable with the whole scene. My girlfriend introduced me to Nico Nico Douga and encouraged me try to create songs. I was also inspired when watching people like Livetune.

Q : You have made and produced music a couple of years now, what did you learn now compared to back then?

A : In the past, I started making music was rooted from my opinion and my own imagination. It’s all my creativity and what I wanted to do at the specific moment. But when you do this for a long long time, your creativity just runs out.

When I’m out of creativity juice, I will go to a public bathhouse. My pattern is that when I think of a song, I would record voice memos on my phone at the bathhouse. I go in and out and the person in charge of the bathhouse thinks I’m a weird dude. I will have to say sorry to the old lady who’s working at the bathhouse.

Q : You were the former producer for Baby Metal, were there any challenges when working with them?

A : For Baby Metal, the jobs with them have no deadline so working with Baby Metal is a continuous process. I have some health issues so I’ll be in the hospital at times but when producing for Baby Metal, I would forget I’m in the hospital and do my best. Me working with this project was a difficult path. I really put my effort and hope that what I produced for Baby Metal will inspire people.

Q : Until this day, your vocaloid songs are still popular but these days, you are leaning towards commercial music, will you continue to make more vocaloid songs?

A : I’ll be truthful and I think that the vocaloid community now is not interesting.

Q : How do you see the future of vocaloid? Will it stay or fade out?

A :  Nico Nico Douga is reaching their 10^th anniversary, for me this platform is where people come and create from their imagination. Now it’s getting more commercialized because big companies are targeting on these individuals. I don’t think commercializing these artists but I feel like they’re interfering too much. It feels like the songs are no longer representing the artist, now it’s being charted and it feels it does not feel it belongs to the artist itself. Because when I started producing vocaloid songs, it’s because of the passion and creativity side but if I were to make vocaloid songs now, I don’t feel like doing so. It would be interesting to see South East Asia’s amateur artist and come to Noco Nico Douga and present their own work. I would encourage Malaysian artist to showcase their masterpiece. 

Q : You dive into diverse genres, which one do you feel like reflects you the best?

A : I love music itself and it’s difficult to choose a specific genre. I think of it as a borderless thing without boundaries. If I only concentrate on one genre, it feels wasteful to not explore the others. I don’t want to limit myself and I want to try everything. What I really like now is metal and EDM. I feel both compliments each other really well, and there are a lot of aspects that can improve each genre somewhat. I wants to try a lot of different genres to create an interesting masterpiece.

Q : Since you take on many roles of singer, producer and DJ. What’s your main focus right now?

A : If possible, I don’t want to put a stop in what field I go into. I would like to try everything, what I feel is important is the passion for music from the heart. Music is a powerful thing for a human. I want to make music as a core in my life. I don’t think my voice is very good but I want to challenge myself and improve.

Q : Do you have any role models?

A : I don’t unfortunately but I have a lot of people I look up to, I also look up towards the president of Comic Fiesta because he invited me all the way from Japan. I’ll do my best!

Q : Can you hint a little for tomorrow’s performance?

A : I’m the on the spot person, and when I go along with the moment and passion reaches out towards the audience.