Japanese Vocaloid artist Kikuo set off on his 15 country tour Aug. 1 and visited ACL Live on Friday night. Vocaloid, the basis of Kikuo’s music since 2003, utilizes an AI-based technology that combines banks of sounds and syllables to create lyrical melodies and synthetic musical elements. With his experimental style and sound layering, the artist’s hit song “Aishite Aishite Aishite” earned the title of the first Vocaloid track to surpass 100 million streams on Spotify. The Daily Texan talked with Kikuo through a translator before his set to discuss the uniqueness of the genre.

The Daily Texan: What sets Vocaloid apart from other production tools and how do those elements facilitate your personal artistry?

Kikuo: When it comes to Vocaloid music, what defines it in (my) perspective is the internet and young people. Those are the two key elements. Being surrounded by these young people on the internet gives (me) a lot of inspiration. … Something about Vocaloid music is that (I am) able to produce everything by (myself) without the help of any (other) people. That’s what allows (me) to express the uniqueness in (my) music.

DT: What are some unique ways you connect with listeners?

K: (My) motto is more to make sure that (my) fans have fun and to create an environment where (my) fans can have the maximum (creativity). … One thing that’s very important is that (I’m providing) an infrastructure so that other creators can use (my) music or sample (songs and) incorporate them into their own pieces of art. (I’m) totally cool with people using (my) music and incorporating (it) into their own creations to create new stuff.

DT: Many of your songs pair heavy topics with upbeat sonics. What factors play into your decision to mix the two?

K: In traditional Japanese music that doesn’t use the Western scale, a lot of the music sounds very lively and happy while the actual content of the music can carry deeper, darker themes. So to (me) that isn’t necessarily a mismatch, it’s just normal. 

DT: You began using the avatar Hatsune Miku in 2010 as a way to engage fans. Tell us the story behind your avatar. What went into the creation process?

K: The Avatar was created by an illustrator si_ku.k. The avatar illustration was made for one of (si_ku.k’s) music videos in the past. What (I) did was design (my) own headdress to put on top of the avatar, and that’s how it was created.

DT: You recently played a set at South by Southwest 2024. What was that experience like?

K: At South by Southwest, one thing that struck (me) was that it was an event where (my) usual fan base was not present, so it felt away from (my) home ground. But separate from South by Southwest, (I) was also doing (my) own concert during that same period. That’s where all of his core fans were. But that being said, at South by Southwest, it was a great opportunity for people that were not familiar with (my) music to hear it. Even though these people were not necessarily (my) original fans, the reaction was very good. It was a great experience.