ANIMAX MUSIX, a large-scale anime music event, is now in its ninth year. We asked the producer about its aims.

ANIMAX MUSIX" is an anime music event produced by "Animax," known as a channel specializing in anime. The event, now in its ninth year, has become a major event, attracting 10,000 people in each of the major cities in the East and West, with the Yokohama Arena concert held on November 23, 2016 (Wednesday, national holiday) and the Osaka-jo Hall concert scheduled for January 14, 2017 (Saturday). We interviewed Mr. Takashi Sonoda of Animax Broadcast Japan, the event's general producer, about how "ANIMAX MUSIX" got started, its aims, and future developments.

--What kind of event is "ANIMAX MUSIX" in the first place?

Sonoda:ANIMAX MUSIX is an anime music event that we have been holding since 2009, and the concept has remained the same: to "bring the appeal of anime music to the world. In addition to the audience that comes to the event venue, the event is also viewed by anime music fans nationwide through cable TV, BS and CS broadcasts, taking advantage of the unique merits of Animax as a broadcasting station. We also take advantage of the Sony Pictures Group network to broadcast on "Animax" channels around the world. Last year, the event was broadcast in 26 countries.

--So, from the very beginning, you have been aiming to transmit the event to the world?

Sonoda:Yes, when we started the event in 2009, we started with a venue for 1,600 people, but from the very beginning, we had the goal of "sending the event to the world. Since then, it has become a standard practice to hold the event at Yokohama Arena every year since 2010. In the past, we have also held the event in Taiwan twice. Since 2014, the festival has also been held in Osaka in addition to Yokohama Arena. At the same time, we also held a DJ main event called "ANIMAX MUSIX DJ Night" in Tokyo and Osaka.

ANIMAX MUSIX 2016 Yokohama Arena Performance

--What are the highlights of this year's ANIMAX MUSIX 2016-2017?

Sonoda:The Yokohama Arena performance on November 23 was so successful that tickets were sold out, including standing room only. In addition, on January 14, we will be performing at Osaka-jo Hall, the first venue in Osaka with a capacity of 10,000 people. Also this year, "ANIMAX MUSIX NEXTAGE", a live event for the next generation of artists, will be held on February 25. This event will be a gateway to success for new animation music artists who have just debuted to perform at Yokohama Arena and Osaka-jo Hall in the future.

--It is amazing that the Yokohama Arena, with its capacity of 10,000 people, was sold out, including standing room only.

Sonoda:The volume of the event itself is also impressive; it is a very long event, lasting a net 6.5 hours. However, while the guests are happy to be able to listen to so much of their favorite anime music, it may be physically demanding on them. In the case of MSUIX, the audience basically stands and holds the penlights down the whole time, so many of them are probably exhausted at the end of the event.

As for Osaka, the number of performers has increased significantly from the 10 or so groups that performed last year to 16 groups this year, which is the same number as at the Yokohama Arena. The performance time is also expected to be about 6 hours.