A day after J-pop fans gathered at the Tom Moffatt Waikiki Shell in Honolulu for a one-night-only concert, Asobi Expo Hawaii 2026, artists and Asobi System executives gathered backstage to discuss the event and the company’s global aspirations.
As Japanese pop music continues to move further into the American market, Japanese entertainment companies and brands are looking for ways to connect artists with old and potential fans in a previously untapped market. Bringing the Asobi Expo, an event aimed at gathering and showcasing artists from the Asobi System family, to the United States is one way some brands are introducing talent in the United States. Other events like it, such as the Japan Culture and Entertainment Industry Promotion Association’s Matsuri event held last year in Los Angeles, are considered non-brand specific.
“I thought it was really important to bring that up [the event] “Overseas, to really spread Japanese culture,” says Asobi System CEO and founder Yusuke Nakagawa. Hollywood Reporter. The entertainment company, which he founded in 2007, showcases and popularizes Japan’s popular Harajuku culture, which is essentially a collection of eclectic and diverse subcultures.
Harajuku culture is on display in abundance, right down to the diverse array of artists Nakagawa selected for the Honolulu edition of Asobi Gallery. There’s a high-powered Atarashii Gakko ready! And the adorable and lovable Kawaii Labs girl group Fruits Zipper and veteran Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. The event’s audience saw a fair share of supporters for each show, a mix of locals and die-hard fans who flew in from Japan.
Nakagawa says he felt Hawaii was the ideal location to expand Asobi Gallery to the United States. “I thought it was a really good place, where Japanese people and locals would be happy to come. [would] “We have a lot of support,” he says.
“It was our first time in Hawaii,” says Suzuka of Atarashi Gaku. The four-member girl group is no stranger to performing in the US, having previously performed at Coachella and headlining their own North American tour.
“The audience was really enjoying it [the] Different artists, so I thought maybe this is a Hawaiian vibe, where you can be more relaxed. “I thought that was really good,” the singer continues. She says they put together a setlist they knew the audience would enjoy.
“Even the Japanese who traveled here seemed to have more energy or shouted in a higher pitch or [had] “More body movement,” she continues. “We actually felt excited watching the audience.” As a team, I was really grateful that we were all able to travel together with Kyari Pamyu Pamyu and Froats Zipper, but also [with] Asobi System Staff.
Fruits Zipper, which hails from Asobi System’s sub-label, Kawaii Labs, is admittedly a little newer to the US market, but the girl group — which operates on a system where each member is assigned a color — had a large fan following at the Honolulu concert.
“It’s always nice to see that there are fans outside of Japan because we never get to meet that person,” explains Noel, who is yellow in the group. The 22-year-old is the group’s main English speaker, having been born in Germany and raised in Japan.
The word “kawaii” means cute or adorable in Japanese, which is exactly the feeling conveyed by the sound and visual beauty of Fruits Zipper. The brand, like its parent company, aims to bring Harajuku culture to the global stage. Kawaii Labs, led by Misa Kimura, oversees several girl groups, including Cutie Street, which went global after promotions for music shows in Korea.
“One of the main things Kawaii Labs strives to do is bring Japanese idol culture to the world, so when we do anything overseas like in the US and other places, we don’t try to customize it to fit that region,” Kimura explains. The 35-year-old works as project lead and producer for Fruits Zipper and Cutie Street, alongside Candy Tune and Sweet Steady.
“In the case of the United States, they think [this kind of group] “It’s a breath of fresh air,” says the producer. “It’s very different from what they’re used to.”
Kimura was once in the Japanese pop music scene, where she was previously the leader of the band Musubizm. The producer’s experience as an executive and former idol makes her uniquely qualified in conveying how Japanese pop music has grown globally. “I’m so happy to see Japanese culture actually spreading to different countries, even in places I didn’t think it existed,” she says. “I’m very happy about that [be able] See it in person.”
Asobi System and Asobi Expo plan to continue their global growth, Nakagawa says. “Watching the audience’s reaction touched me. It was really very emotional and made me realize that I really wanted this.” [bring this to] Los Angeles, Miami, London, and Paris,” the CEO explains.
“Music is completely different when you experience it [in person]And not just on the social media side [or] “Listen to her,” he continues. “It’s a challenge to be presented [the show] time and again to find the right artists who will be able to connect with the audience, but this is something we want to think about and challenge ourselves to achieve.
