When Should a Producer Retire?

[@TomOrTammy]

I'm glad Giga's doing more vocaloid stuff these days, man basically went on a hiatus until Bring It On, or GETCHA because that was a whole 2 years later lol

[@thisannoyinggirlrightthere9359]

I feel like bro is at his peak rn, like you can check so many songs In anime, or regular jpop and you will see his name in the credits as producer it's crazy. The amount of collab he made this year and last year alone is insane

[@hoangminhle256]

The man remembers his password finally

[@obscurequestions]

“the idea of deco*27 taking a break from music sounds unheard of” 😭😭😭 It’s been over 15 years hasn’t it

[@I-wanna-kiss-kaito]

Huh? I'm confused?

[@Alteviler]

Man you are the best vocaloid documentary channel I’ve ever seen PLEASE do not stop making videos

[@wilmhosenfeld1777]

Art can be made for art's sake alone, not necessarily for the sake of fan approval or for fame either, even if the quality drops. If Deco27 or Maretu are still kicking and producing songs a decade or even two from now, that's there choice, not ours. So long as they feel the urge to express themselves through music, through vocaloid, they don't ever have to stop if they don't want to.

[@joakkar]

I'm surprised you didn't mention how lots of the songs you counted for 2016 were commissioned songs that would've gotten popular due to the extra exposure of the source material anyways. I know it's hard to care about #compass in the west but them all being on the same game being constantly shown to people outside of the community would inevitably increase their numbers. Same with the songs currently being commissioned for project sekai or the pokemon collab songs. Them not appearing on a ranking would be rare. Also, I missed seeing some footage from the album Chimera when you started talking about how producers don't interact with each other. There's a lot of collaboration of producers behind the scenes, usually in the person writing lyrics, doing mastering or arrangements of songs. It's probably how something like Sangatsu no Phantasia was created in the first place. It's just that from a consumer point of view it's easier to associate a song with a single name instead. Like, I tend to forget both MKDR and Otome Kaibou were arranged by Emon because you have to go out of your way to find that out and are otherwise considered entirely Deco songs.

[@ubnubmaster]

Hi joakkar love your comment and you gave some great points. If you see this would you mind compiling some more examples of this for me? No pressure thank you

[@joakkar]

@@ubnubmaster I'm not exactly an expert either lol. Other examples I can think of is how KagomeP basically does mastering for everyone or how kemu sometimes playes specific instruments for other people's songs. KurageP has also played guitar for other producers like in balloon's Inochi Bakkari. You can find this stuff by going to vocaloid wiki for specific producers and seeing the "Roles" column on the far right.

[@lalala1452]

@ubnubmaster Sorry to chime in unpromptedly, but for “commission songs originated from other projects”, I can also think of Maimaimaigoen. It’s a currently ongoing multi-media project by Sanrio that started in 2022. Commission songs for official vocal-synth albums can also technically count in this category as I figure it’s also commercial works. Like how Kafu’s first album consists of Phony and Marshall-Maximizer. Tho these projects mostly include already established artists in order to promote the “source material”, so I think it’s quite natural that they’d garner more attention. As for vocaloid-p collabs I definitely think it’s not as rare or scarce as you put in the video. Like Chimera mentioned by @/joakkar or FinGErtip Amusement, a series of compilation albums that features songs with the same chord progression by different producers. (A lot of these collaboration projects are contained to local conventions, which is probably why these works are significantly less popular than the producer’s more mainstream/commercial works, especially in the eyes of foreign fans) Even tho collabs might not be common compared to other music genres, I’m confident collaborations between producers definitely happens. Like Mizan by Balloon and Nuyuri (and Avogado 6 for the mv), or Fireঌfly by Nilfruits and Iyowa that just came out 2 days ago. Haraguchi Sasuke also just did a DJ event in Shanghai featuring Frog96 as the opening act a few days ago, so I think the community is definitely pretty connected. (Please excuse me for the long paragraphs, just wanted to share what I know and join the conversation :p )

[@tsukodome6132]

​​@@lalala1452Not to mention GABULI, A Manga Series that the comissioned songs are focused on the Characters. Or when it comes to collabs very niche ones I find AruseChika's numbeeeer series where producers were collabed/comissioned to make a song on a single number, Do you remember Chinozo posted the song 2036? (Funfact AruseChika is the illustrator of Goodbye Sengen). There are so many collabs/events out there if you find the right places.

[@ubnubmaster]

@@joakkar Thank you very much I'll definitively keep an eye out for this going forward. I bet there's a whole spiderweb and it might be a fun project to map all this out

[@d0min3ven]

its either they retire completely, switch industries (like nbuna and hachiP), have a LONG hiatus (like kiichi/nantokaP and iroha(sasaki)) or vanish from the internet completely (i think it was dr.willy or something), or in a indefinite hiatus one of my favourite hiatus comebacks are from lamazeP, sure i can argue i say love EP was better than re:habilis but i still respect the dedication to release an album more than a decade after publishing your first single same thing as iroha(sasaki), meltdown was such a good song, as well as hanayurikago and moon, but it did take him more than a decade to release his first debut album (pale and shiny shards), afaik he has worked with vtubers on the music so i guess the comeback to his channel last year was quite surprising actually kiichi/nantokaP, its confusing, he did go on a hiatus for 7 years, with a new track in 2021 named "incomplete, undecided, i feel like he isn't really actively trying to make a new ep/album, but seeing his livestreams, he still does produce songs with synthV and releases 1-2 songs every year. i think some of the old producers are like him in terms of song rollouts, releasing singles every now and then but barely any indication of an EP/album. but i really feel like he took a long hiatus to make a new style, its why the new songs does not have the same impact or feel as love love nightmare and virgo also francium... i think he won't release over a major label ever but i respect him for trying to comeback even though the style is different example for an indefinite hiatus, is whoo, a math rock band, parades, one of the popular songs from them that played on the concert, yeah thats made by them, i think they have not released ANYTHING since portrait(EP), miharu (single), in the shade (single) and has yet to release a new vocaloid album since W album i know most of the producers i mentioned are from niche-er genres, but i really feel like most producers would have 1 single that is so popular it overshadows the producers completely, and whenever they create the best work from them, said "song" does not chart on niconico one example is from kiichi, afaik he actually said himself that つまりゆく為のシークエンス (untranslatable sequence) was supposed to be his best work, and he was surprised that it didn't chart well. i think things like these quite literally drain vocaloid artists to improve upon their niche style since people don't usually listen to said genre

[@ubnubmaster]

Honestly I appreciate you mixing in some niche producers in there, thank you for the great comment. Unfortunately one hit wonders are in almost every industry, regardless if musicians go on to make much more interesting work later in their career. I think that's what makes cult following so fascinating though, it seems like every year a new musician starts to gain traction that went dominant years prior. Here's hoping some of these producers get that kind of justice

[@delilahdahlia247]

I always love watching these kinds of retrospectives. It is sad to see a producer try the same stuff over and over, and eventually just lose their passion. And, it's always interesting to see how a producer can flourish outside of Vocaloid. I had no clue Hachi was Kenshi Yonezu for the longest time, and yet I enjoyed "both" of their works, and I tend to be glad that he left to pursue other outlets instead of dying out due to lack of passion or interest. Or the cases of N-buna and Yurrycannon. I love their Vocaloid works, and once they rebranded, their style changed, but it still feels passionate and engaging.

[@RalseiSmokinAFatBlunt]

When i introduce new fans to Vocaloid i always direct them to your channel. So informative and straight to the point, and amazing in the retrospective aspect

[@niismo.]

I never introduced people to Vocaloid because I'm so sure they'd be super weirded out, but linking them ubnubmaster's channel might genuinely be the call!

[@ubnubmaster]

I'm honored thank you very much

[@creeperfun12]

i get so sad knowing im nearly 20 years late to vocaloid and that i missed so much of it. (I.E. Project Diva ending)

[@jlhn]

Tbh I'm a bit glad that nowadays YT is the main hub for vocaloid songs The thing with NND is that even at its peak it was too niche outside of Japan, so what happened was that a lot of people outside of this country merely watched unofficial re-uploads in YT so a lot of the true number of views was lost because of it Like Utsu-P case For Years I watched his uploads to NND get very little views, and then see how somebody got waaay more views for re-uploading his songs on YT Then when he started to upload his songs to YT it was when his videos started reaching 1 million views And I think a lot of Vocaloid songs nowadays wouldn't reach the same audience if they only stayed on NND like before

[@teal.4674]

Kind of agree and disagree, I’m glad people are starting to upload to multiple platforms instead of either KZbin or NND. Wholeheartedly agree KZbin allowed vocaloid to be open for a wider audience outside of Japan and other genres of videos!! I’d say NND is still a helpful platform for new producers!! And it’s useful for us to discover them too!!!

[@darkmatter7589]

The best way to find new producer for me is actually to follow cover artist no matter if vocal, piano or guitar, so when I hear a song I like from a cover artist I can just go to the description and go to the original channel and listen to the producer other songs

[@WeeabooPocky]

i like how complex this video is, personally, i'm not usually updated on the most heard songs of vocaloid as well, most of the time i'm listening to rock/metal vocaloid music, with producers like Utsu-p, Yuyoyuppe, Maretu, PandoristP, or Okame-p (which let me tell you he's really underated, if you have the chance please liste to him). and i'm still glad to see for my favourite producers to be creating more music. some of them, with formal bands, even had stated that they keep doing vocaloid music due to having more freedom or for leaving them to be more creative. still, is up to them to decide when the correct time is, because, some of them, didn't even had the chance to decide. and i will be there for them, still listening to their music till the end of my days.

[@konradzbikowski5069]

Really reminds me of what happened to Doriko somewhat recently. One of the old legends, got to the Hall of Myths with Romeo and Cinderella. After 2016 he REALLY slowed down, though he partnered with Hanatan, who used to make covers for his songs (they are really great honestly). Nowadays he releases maybe one song per year if we're lucky, but some of those (Raine Chan '89) are absolutely amazing. The part about music becoming predictable and boring really hit home with "Promise" for Proseca. Also, is it just me or the MV for Cat Food in Project Diva is one of the best in the series? It's an absolute shame that song got forgotten.

[@LocalTorchwoodIntern]

Late 2000s early 2010s was my introduction to Vocaloid and honestly, compared to back then vs now, I've heard so much variety but also that I do have the fall back safe popular songs I still enjoy like Senbonzakura. I got into vocaloid thanks to the peak of "dark tones" era and Circus Monster is still one of my favorite songs all these years. But honestly if I had picked Mitchie or Deco has my first producers than CircusP or even the producer for Black Cats of Halloween, I don't think I would still actively listen to vocaloid. Even Wowka is special to me cause he was there for a dark place in my life and I'm glad to say hes my main favorite producer. Babuchan is another great underrated producer I passed on because I was introduced to the song that wasn't my interest and came back for Babuland while realizing he did that one song bout Chronos eating his kids. While I do have other favorite bands outside of the vocaloid sphere, I don't think I could even leave it if I tried. And I do agree, 2016 was a big stepping point in the community that I remember fondly and honestly, it got me to be more in the know of how the scene worked than just haha voicebanks go brr. Also, I do agree, no artists have to retire unless its their choice or they lost the spark. Thank you for coming back and covering this time of Vocaloid.

[@bxh3993]

I discovered Vocaloid & became a fan in 2016! I think you perfectly put into words what made that year so special. Of course, it was already special to me as my first year being a Vocaloid fan, but there was so much more that made it special. Old producers released big new hits & new producers were springing up left and right. That was what attracted me to Vocaloid: the exciting feeling of exploring the Vocaloid landscape & discovering gems everywhere I looked. I listened obsessively to DECO*27, n-buna, Orangestar, Kemu, Kairiki Bear, Circus-P, Powapowa-P, Nayutalien, Pinocchio-P, Police Piccadilly, Hachi, Harufuri, Neru, Balloon, Kurage-P, EZFG, Nekobolo, Giga-P, Niki, Pedestrian, MARETU, Mikito-P, Misumi, Yunosuke, *Luna, and of course, Wowaka and Shizen no Teki-P. When I look back on these memories with these producers, I remember having so, so much fun. That was what made 2016 special to me: even though it was a miserable period of my life & I used Vocaloid to cope, I had so much fun exploring it. It felt like home when nothing else did.

[@mangomage33]

The section about deco is making me wish for a video about MILGRAM

[@thefrontfelloff]

Great video but I have some disagreements about some of the "new blood" that came in to popularity around 2016 still being active now as they were then. Producers like yunosuke, kairiki bear, and nayutalien still produce some music but nothing seems to be quite as electric as some of their first break out albums, and those are some of the more fortunate situations when compared to producers like Kinoshita and kurageP whose release schedule has slowed down quite considerably. I don't think this is a bad thing per se, internet popularity is a fickle mistress, and its fun to have producers and their unique styles define an era and allow things to shift over time. I think vocaloid is more prone to this generational move of producers in part due to how many producers tend to stick to a specific style; I love nayutalien but I feel like 4 albums was the right amount of space to exhaust their sound. For me it felt like that generation sort of ended when Cevio and SynthV really started to make their rounds and it feels now we've got a new group of people (r-906, masarada, namiguru and so on) that define the current trends. I want to stress that I don't think this is a bad thing at all, I'll often take new releases from older producers as a spark to go on a deep dive through their catalog and relive some of the memories of first listening to their music but even their new stuff doesn't feel "current" in the same way newer works by new producers feel.

[@ubnubmaster]

Wow this might be my favorite comment so far thanks for the great insight. I think you're absolutely right, I agree many individuals from 2016 have slowed down or have outright retired. I just want to emphasize that I when I said "I can’t help but notice that those same newcomers of 2016 are still actively at the top." I meant it as a statement that most of these producers have stayed in the scene far longer than their predecessors and are still making a large splash in this community. In the 2010's this was a rarity, today not so much. Take Bug for instance that cleared huge numbers only two years ago. Producers absolutely move in generations, but this is the first I've seen so many established producers maintain a presence. I'm happy to see them, but I'm wondering if we've become more dependent on prior generations because of our dependence on recommendations for so many videos now. I honestly think the generational shifts of vocaloid producers are being threatened by the homogenization that platforms like youtube seem to push for communities. It's easy to say " well I knew about r-906, masarada, namiguru, etc. so nothing has change or is going to with this community" but I don't the average vocaloid fan is having as easy of a time with this. For instance, I honestly I had no idea masarada even existed, despite the clear popularity, it just isn't a producer the algorithm is pushing to me unfortunately. I guess there's an argument that project sekai helps bring attention to artists, but the idea of a corporation deciding what music I should be paying attention to is unsettling. A few years ago these generational shifts felt much more cut and dry.

[@thefrontfelloff]

@@ubnubmaster Ah I understand better now with you mean with that additional bit of contextualization, thank you. I agree that right now vocaloid is facing a bit of a discoverability problem these days and I agree that youtube is part of that problem. It feels that within the ocean of youtube that outside of algorithm recommendations we're really back to producers spreading by largely word of mouth. Much of which has fallen in to unindexed watering holes like discord. There are some exceptions, I tend to find a lot of producers through "the vocaloid collection" especially through the newcomer section. I agree that there should be some more grass roots way of discovering new music, I certainly think there is room for it. It's quite nice to have more meta discussions about the community at large like this, it really feels there isn't enough discourse on this.

[@kirashinji]

Return of the King. Glad to see another ubnub banger

[@negiposi]

i still remember 2016 going home after school and turning on my vocaloid playlist w/ neru and kairiki bear... i miss it

[@sonicya]

This video needed to be made at some point. You did an amazing job on it! I absolutely agree that its so much harder to find the next new talent on this platform. I swear there will be vocaloid songs with 10s of millions of views and I just never hear about them. I can't begin to imagine how much harder it is for a smaller creative to get noticed. I think gatekeepers are very important, especially those behind the songs. The absolute top is something that ensures everyone works hard to do better. Nowadays, the scene is very muddled. It can be hard to know whats going on in the deep trenches of this platform. But maybe that will be a factor in what vocaloid evolves into. I guess time will tell.

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you very much, glad to see I'm not the only one who feels that way. What you said about gatekeepers is very eye opening to me and is absolutely true. Often gatekeepers can be a representation of progression and a symbol of that generation of artists. (take Nirvana representing gen x as an outside example for instance) I think it's a matter of finding a way to balance it where novice talent can still stand a chance and also put the heat on those artists to keep evolving as well

[@touji_01]

I always appreciate your videos and how passionate and knowledgeable you are about the community. As a somewhat new fan of about six years, it's always very interesting to learn about the culture of the period before I joined, and even the culture of the period I am currently but was largely unaware of. I yearn to be as knowledgeable as you are. Forgive the rant, but recently I've been feeling woefully ignorant about the scene, especially since nowadays there's so much to keep track up, so much new technology, different programs, AI software, all made worse by misinformation and social media going crazy as it always has. It's made me feel burned out and, as much as I hate to admit it, start losing interest in Vocaloid. But I realized I had to follow the same advice I gave to other fans during my time here: There's no right way to be a fan, enjoy what you want to enjoy. You're not obligated to follow every little thing, especially when there's too much for any single person to possible follow. While my passion for it may have waned, I do still love Vocaloid and I choose to be here. I am on the brink of entering an inactive state, but this downward phase is no more permanent than any other previous phases in my life, nor the ones that will come in the future.

[@ubnubmaster]

Beautifully put touji if you don't mind me saying. I'm sorry to hear about your lack of interest in vocaloid, it's a natural process for anyone. I'd encourage you to not let it be the end of your journey discovering music though. I noticed that vocaloid was a big launching pad for me to discover other forms of music, so keep exploring until you find something that really excites you it's out there.

[@touji_01]

@@ubnubmaster Thanks for the reply! This is definitely not the end of my journey! Rather, I consider it just a phase in what I hope to be years and years of more history to come.

[@ChunterInfo]

I feel NND's "rank" is more fair than KZbin's because KZbin users get spoon fed trends more than they search. My answer to the question the video asks is "right away, of course" because even when you're buying CDs and merchandise, the overhead to create that stuff is so big that this really doesn't make money. Vocaloid producers have other income sources, by necessity, even the famous ones. Nobody should do this thinking you can quit a day job. There is a line in My Master Has No Tail - "Nobody in their right mind goes into performing." It's a little bit like that.

[@MysteryMedia2001]

I love these videos. Makes me remember that I’m kinda removed from the scene, wish I could be deeper in it. Also wasn’t expecting this to be the video that tells me that project diva is just full dead at this point. I’m now incredibly sad

[@Ratzfourtyfour]

TIL how to say Gyari. That was my favorite segment BTW. His tracks are just stunning.

[@touji_01]

It would actually be pronounced gyah-ree.

[@nocteratea77]

​@touji_01 that's true but also be sure to render the "ri" with an alveolar tap (japanese r) instead of an alveolar approximate (english r)

[@kaneryu]

he's pronouncing it wrong

[@Ratzfourtyfour]

Thanks for the replies.

[@fadec85]

Great commentary, especially around the challenges new artists have in being discovered and the point about genres. I haven't been keeping up on new releases for a few years now, but it feels to me like the Vocaloid community ended up in kind of a weird place. It's almost like the ratio of producers to audience members is out of whack. On one hand, there's a lot of positives to having a very low barrier of entry for musicians, but overall Vocaloid is still relatively niche, so it's tough for newcomers to find an audience. Yet the community is large enough that the old hands easily dominate the centralized platforms. I never played around with Kiite much, and I haven't been back to Piapro since before their redesign, but I wonder if people have found those to be helpful. As with any type of content creation these days I think the key point is having the capacity to just keep putting out quality songs on a regular basis until, like you said, the producer is in the right place at the right time, or they end up building their own audience organically. But it takes a lot of perseverance and motivation to do that.

[@reiichichan01]

I SAW KIKUO O' LIGHT IN THE INTRO

[@SegaNintendoGamer]

Mid-way through the video and just being a reactionary response to the title. I find myself begging a pleading for artists to stay with Vocaloid/Vocal Synths as long as possible. One example is that Tsurii has recently put out a new Len/Teto duet, and I celebrated because it sorta felt like he was retiring and his Len is one of my favorites. Also with Ayase, getting into him from YOASOBI stuff and then later getting into his voca stuff because of Cinema (and Sekai in general). I’m begging and pleading for these artists to not “give up” these synths just for me. But I’ll still like their music I think, but I still want to hang on as long as possible. Side note: Welcome back ubnub! Quality essay as always, great to hear your stuff. Don’t retire your essays either!! 🥰

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you SegaNintendoGamer good to be back!

[@hooooops]

Learning to love the come and go is part of the fun- ANTR's ayashii and coralmines's Technicoral are both still top recommends, regardless of the current status of the producer.

[@ada2293]

This comment may get lost among all your other comments, but I’d like to ask, how did you start on deep diving into the history behind Vocaloid? It’s so intriguing how you’re able to dig up so much information, especially since I myself wouldn’t even know where to begin. How do you do it? Where do you find all this?

[@ubnubmaster]

So ada2293, when I was in college I was a massive nerd and said "you know what I'm just going to start watching every vocaran ranking video and see what I can learn" I started taking notes and making connections while watching those. For instance, my Luka video was heavily influenced by the large flux of Luka content I saw take over niconico around her release. I found that fascinating because Len & Rin never made that same kind of impact. 2. I read alot of interviews from producers talking about the past (translated and nontranslated). Vgperson has a ton of great interviews translated that helped with this video for instance. Also sometimes I collaborate with people who know more than me like with the project diva video. 3. I lived it. I joined the community in 2012 and was on niconico pretty quickly after that. Hence my stronger connection with japanese side than the american side of the community. 4. Finally, you guys also teach me a ton too, this is video will be no different. The first couple of days of release I make an effort to read every comment I see. But trust me there's people who know WAY more than I do, it's important to understand that, so you can continue to grow and learn.

[@ada2293]

@@ubnubmaster I see! That’s really interesting, thanks for taking the time to respond. There are a lot more levels of research behind this than i had originally thought, and it’s quite cool how you devote your time to this pursuit.

[@mozzapple]

Hearing you pronounce Inabakumori's name as "inabakurimori" hurt on a fundamental level. I'm sure this was a joke and you knew how to pronounce his name, but it was still painful 😭

[@ubnubmaster]

I always get people complaining about how I pronounce things. So I really went in when the opportunity presented itself haha

[@adamlopez2275]

Great video! As someone who entered the scene after 2016, I never realized how many of my favourite songs came out that year. I’ve also never been huge into the NND side of the community (I dipped my toes into the water there in like 2020-22, but getting blocked by paywalls, the difficulty finding pretty much anything, and no English really prevented me from exploring there), KZbin and Spotify have always been my main Vocaloid hubs. As for discovering new music, it’s just really hard and takes a lot of effort to do. For months now, yt recommendeds will always take me back the same handful of songs (a couple of Teto covers, and some covers of vocaloid songs by the yutaite Octavia) discoverability on Spotify is even worse ‘cause you have to know exactly what you’re looking for pretty much

[@aglefed]

I've always loved the Summer Shadows [Summer Air] remix, it never crossed my mind to find the original which turned out to be a foundational vocaloid song by one of the most interesting vocaloid producers of all time.

[@Gugunet26]

You couldn't have picked a better time to post this lmao

[@L16htW4rr10r]

What happened?

[@yabe-kfptentacultist]

​@@L16htW4rr10r Tanjiro Taidana was just exposed as a groomer. He's mainly UTAU adjacent but it's related either way.

[@choko_3939]

​@@yabe-kfptentacultistWHAT

[@lenaalt2387]

@@choko_3939 yeah he admitted to dating a minor from his discord server ☹️

[@sakiamira]

Darn it he just deleted his videos ;;;; man really wants to wipe everything

[@retrojupiterr]

got this notif while on utau 🎉

[@doop4wow540]

What song where you making?

[@Otterjiucebox]

MY FAVORITE BRO IS BACK!??!??!??! PLEASE DON’T STOP MAKING VOCALOID VIDEOS❤❤❤

[@ubnubmaster]

I'll try Otterjiucebox!!!!!

[@surroundgatari]

Hey, long time enjoyer of your videos, just a heads up: GYARI is pronounced kinda like "gjah-rih", the Y sound is a consonant!

[@CherryNah]

I went out forn Vocaloid community after 2012 and then came back a little at 2015-17 and now again at 2021... Your channel was part of that.

[@SHADOWREX11]

If alot of the Vocaloid artist I follow prove anything it is never retire. Because if you still have the passion and creativity you keep on going. Sure if you need time to come up with new song or just need a break, completely understandable. Or if you want to do something different. Like DJ Technika and yuyoyuppe are the same artist. So he does techno music and he does vocaloid rock and metal.

[@kevinnazareth9983]

the moment i saw outerscience i knew this video was gonna be great, cant wait for firstplace's contract to end in four years and kagepro to be revived!

[@ubnubmaster]

amen

[@VocaStats]

as someone who likes to rank and analyze the charts of the top vocaloid songs, it hits different knowing producers come and go and get replaced by newer songs and artists and how certain songs are seen as a switch from one vocaloid era to another (such as ghost rule in 2016 and for me, goodbye sengen in 2020)

[@derrickestrada929]

If Vocaloid/synthesized voices become more common in the west, which it prob will sooner or later, that will bring a whole new community to the scene.

[@Domissilly]

As a newer and younger vocaloid fan since 2 years ago i really enjoy learning the history and i thought this video was rlly good!! I think it is ultimately the producers choice to choose when they quit, although I love to see how a lot of them are still going on as well! ❤❤

[@houseofwolvess]

PERSONA 2 MUSIC IN THE BG SPOTTED

[@havocsTeacher]

ikr

[@FaySmash]

also monogatari, or not?

[@ubnubmaster]

@@FaySmash It is monogatari. Huge fan of the franchise.

[@kevinnazareth9983]

Yo he’s alive!!! Love the vid ❤

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you!

[@Guritchu-P]

as a producer myself, probably until I die or the world ends

[@polygawn]

20:05 I SCREAMED WHEN THIS PART OF THE VIDEO CAME UP. GYARI MY LOVE 😍😍😍😍😍

[@emilii_]

I KNOW A FEW OF THOSE PPL IN THE VOCALOID MEETUP CLIP OMGG😭😭 also I love your videos sm

[@wizmizz]

idk what it is about your videos but they make me so emotional

[@sanuku535]

11:45 hmm, inteesting observation. But I will say that's because vocaloid isn't dependant on music style or some instruments. It's a music software. A playground where you can play in any style or mix and match it but it still stays the same. Because Vocaloid is a sound engine with a voice. The nature of it allows the creator to use whatever style or instrument they want without being ridiculed or loosing it's group of fans already established. Or in minecraft terms. Vocaloid is the creative mod. Where everything is permitted. Not to say there is no unique style to vocaloid per se, since there is lack of real people singing so you don't need to write it for people so you can go nuts on production of music and singing. Wich I will say is it's unique trait. But in my mind, Vocaloid has always been a tool that was made for people like who are like conductors/ writres of classica music, who want to write music for a lot of intstruments and lyrics for them, but dont want to go througth so much to actually do it the traditional way. And here is a tool, that lets you do it, but becaus it's modern and electronic different kind of music emerges. And naturally since it started in japan their style became the core of it.

[@tilly.dot.tilly.]

OMG new ubnubmaster vid ?? yayyyyyy been waiting so patiently

[@polygawn]

13:32 I feel your pain.

[@Just_an_urn]

40 min!? Time to chill chill, grab some snacks and indulge. Thank you as always for the content!

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you for watching! Always appreciate it

[@HelpMeMiku]

On the topic of collabs, there’s a group of eng producers that have gotten together to form a group called flavour foley They still make songs individually, but the ones they’ve made together have been really good! My favourite would probably be weathergirl

[@biggodeucli1188]

THE RETURN OF UBNUB ?!?!?!?!?! bro welcome back !

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you!!!!

[@mjolnika]

I will always cry because of nulut-san's Fragile Amazing video i remember this time so vividly

[@mjolnika]

I used to be a fan translator and my team was translating all these 2016 songs

[@fungisrock8955]

I didn't realize how much of the vocaloid stuff I listened and listen to is from this era; I can't tell you how many times I've heard ghost rule😂 Anyway I'm glad you're back, man, your videos give me insight on something I really love that I wouldn't otherwise get.

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you great to be back

[@Lady_ETHNE]

Another amazing video! I also relate to having to rely on the producers I already know and not discovering new ones unless they break a million, making the Vocaloid scene in 2024 feel both too saturated and completely overwhelming at the same time. Also I’ve never heard of Gyari, I’ll have to check him out

[@takumidoutou4412]

17:41 Peak mentioned

[@averageorcaenjoyer977]

HE HAS RETURNED

[@prince_8bit]

return of the king

[@mimikyuo]

YOURE BACK?!

[@ubnubmaster]

Sure am!

[@Massuloid]

God. I'm so proud to be apart of this community. Its history is so vast and rich. Thank you for making this video 🙏🏾❤

[@pasteladream]

HE’S BACK! WAKE UP EVERYONE! THE BEST VOCALOID VIDEO ESSAYIST IS BACKKKKK

[@spaghettiking7312]

Just when we needed him most.

[@chalse31]

Youre back yay Great vid as always! Im curious about your take on project sekai and how it reintroduces producers

[@Katsudon-P]

YUUYU P IS BACK!!! He’s so underrated though, pls listen to him more fr

[@WaluigiInSmash]

I'm seriously ecstatic to see Vocaloid content like this, especially when you mention mikgaz- I mean the unspoken silent taboos of the vocaloid community. I can't exactly articulate my personal observations/ opinions of producers who stay within their box and that lack of cultivating communities, so all I can really say is I totally get it. Obviously a part that makes vocaloid special is that anonymity and not having to present yourself. But, when comparing to other music genre scenes where sometimes publicity is required, that marketability to make what you have accessible or applicable to your fans is utilized within the concept of vocaloid rather than the narrative of being the producer you like (if that makes sense idk lol). Say, compare it to something like Charli Xcx's BRAT or Porter Robinson's SMILE! :D where these artists are not only letting fans appreciate the art, but let them participate and be a part of it. It's the idea of inviting their fans to be a part of that world that is an element of community that can totally be done in Vocaloid but it doesn't seem to happen. Obviously there's a lot more nuisance to this topic but I'm so happy videos like this can start these sort of conversations ^^!

[@yk0ba563]

Great video, i love that u used Mushishi ost

[@ubnubmaster]

It's a favorite of mine!

[@spectrumbookstuff9800]

NEW UBNUBMASTER VIDEO YESSSSSSSSS

[@johanadormeo4170]

man this vid was amazing, I SHALL SUPPORT KIKUO BY GOING TO HIS CONCERT IN UK. also ANYONE, PLS LISTEN TO ANY OF 23.exe LESS POPULAR SONGS PLSSSSS

[@Vintagestep]

Something that I'm really grateful for, is that albeit of not being that popular, GYARI managed to stablish his brand enough to have some of his songs in rhythm games like Groove Coaster making him not as dependent on the numbers that his uploads made. 23:57 as a musician wannabe that song always feel inviting, the idea is so simple but he manages to keep you hooked, it's like going to a friend's place and see them studying and exploring an idea, but at the same time that song has a well thought narrative. Lmao I was planning to play planescape torment. Anyway, I'm glad we're past the Vocaloid chart, it was useful at first because it could give the spotlight to a number of producers in a scene that was new but also had a lot of creators, maybe there was a better way, but this validated the scene when it was emerging... On the other hand, I agree with you, it prevented a lot of new producers to take the spotlight, not even that, GYARI is a good example of many good producers that still work in the scene but don't try to gather a fanbase with the same strategy everyone follows, for whatever reason, maybe they're just contrarians, or maybe they didn't feel like trying to keep up with that kind of work since it influences a lot the way you work. doing monthly releases for example, or having to work on MV with higher and higher budgets. And tying with you final message of supporting your favorite artists, I don't see anyone talking about HikariSyuyo, barely any site on the internet that talks about Vocaloid has anything about him, and his latest albums have no mentions, it's true that he might not have evolved drastically as others, but every new release feels fresh... My bet is that he has a very loyal fanbase, he always makes a live stream in new year and 500 people shows up, so I guess that's how he manages to keep making music, that and working with other people as a hired musician in some undisclosed way... At the same time, how many like him are out there? how many are struggling while making something we'd love to listen to and can't just because the access to their works is not easy? I do wonder what can be done about the whole thing, before we had blogs of people that reviewed producers or listed releases, but imho that's out of question today, video content would easily fall in the charting category and that's a lot of work for a single person and I bet not many have the energy or time to make something like that just because.

[@ubnubmaster]

Hey fantastic comment, I'm going to check out HikariSyuyo honestly just because of the amount of passion you put into this

[@thedragongirl27]

40:57 LOOK MOM IM ON THE TV what a jumpscare lmao (aside from uploading the video i'm also that ene cosplayer lol)

[@itsmeyaboi9334]

Hiiiiiii you're finally back!

[@CuriousNeon]

Hey, you're finally back~!

[@ubnubmaster]

I am! Welcome!

[@kimoinito2967]

IVE MISSED YOU SO MUCH AAAGH

[@estebanibarra6767]

Return of the king

[@Dr34m3rdr34m]

Dang after I finished watching this a new deco song popped up it was released seven hours ago :0

[@K_3_V_R_A_L]

Great video!

[@niismo.]

omg this video will be so fire when I have time to watch it later wooow

[@igorgiuseppe1862]

41:09 this one from Mitchie M... is an LP/vinyl?

[@VocalSynthUtau]

welcome back :D

[@ubnubmaster]

Thank you!

[@BagusEleven]

UBNUB UPLOAD lez goooo !!!!

[@DynamicMat_WT800]

i just a Volcaloid fan , and i want to said Volcaloids are not will fallen and i like their songs , some i like the hear the Ultraman OP songs cover by Volcaloids

[@axolotelUA]

4:22 french flag

[@MikuDrone]

12:10 I GASPED 10 MINUTE CASINO SUPREMACY

[@ubnubmaster]

You've got good taste!

[@EvaFuji]

Boy am I glad for that 2016 rebellion

[@natn6641]

Good video

[@miyunyan]

Kairiki Bear mentioned. 10/10 video

[@dvp39]

I'm just trying to start out and now I'm looking at when I should retire?!

[@JeanMuta]

We're so back

[@ArtsyDoll.]

37:26 Marvin Valentin mentioned ! ! ! ! !

[@ubnubmaster]

Marvin deserves more love! That song was fire!

[@ArtsyDoll.]

@@ubnubmaster Actually, have you ever thought of making videos on producers or songs in other languages and countries other then Japan? It may be an interesting topic as Vocaloid has had a massive impact all across the world and it could bring more attention to other smaller producers like Marvin. Of course, that’s just what I think. You don’t have to make any videos about that if it’s not what interests you.

[@_Rhatsody]

i dont think any producer should ever feel pressured to retire. but they should also feel drive. if youre not hungry to innovate, experiment of collaborate then you are doomed to stagnate as a creative.

[@kuuransworkshop4243]

That's nice and all bit thr true question is: Where's the milk?

[@ubnubmaster]

The fridge

[@maxu0]

1:50 8/10 ragebait I was pretty triggered

[@konohamaru77]

talking about voca-p retire remind me to kz. he never make vocaloid song again. i miss him. no the weeknd remix wasnt good. i

[@fishcake_e]

i'm a simple person, i see anything related to vocaloid or project sekai, i click and watch.

[@liumander]

Can you talk about Wonderful Opportunity? They are the most amazing band for me

[@abduciuswoodlouse]

April 5th, 2019.

[@rasberrymilk4753]

Every time you make a video it makes me very upset, because i just feel so hopeless. I’m putting this here exclusively for my self before anyone says what is this girl on about. I love vocaloid so much that I cried about your project diva video. Reminiscing about vocaloid kills me fr, i plan to cry again.

[@rasberrymilk4753]

19:00 calling my ass out hello????

[@BaofuTheCanonicalPersonaHater]

PERSONA 2 BACKGROUND MUSIC