The excitement was fever-pitch when it was announced at last year’s Cosplay Matsuri that this incredible Japanese singer, cosplayer, actress, and idol would be performing at the very first JAM Concert at Cosplay Carnival 2025. Indeed, Akase Akari was wildly popular with Filipino cosplayers and anime fans as she is best known for singing “Koi no Yukue,” the ending theme of “My Dress Up Darling,” where she cosplayed Marin Kitagawa in the music video.
It was no surprise then that Filipinos flocked to Cosplay Carnival 2025 in droves just to see their idol live, both at a Q&A stage segment at Hall 1 and then at the JAM Concert at Hall 2. Catching a glimpse of her on stage filled fans with delight, and watching her perform live was truly a thrilling and memorable experience.
To let her fans get to know more about her, members of the media were invited to an interview with this charismatic artist, who, through an interpreter, gave engaging replies to a variety of questions.
arkadymac.com’s correspondent Marivic got to ask Akase Akari some questions we have prepared beforehand. We asked her who she acknowledged as the person who got her into cosplaying and then into performing. She replied that she didn’t really have a particular person who pushed her into cosplaying or into performing, but said she has liked anime since she was young. “I really like anime, and that’s the reason why I’ve been doing songs and other activities related to anime,” she admits candidly.
For our second question, we were very curious so we asked her what her initial reaction was when she was informed that her debut song will be the ending theme of “My Dress Up Darling.” She was animated when she tells us that when she was doing the song, she was initially told it was a tie-up but was not told which project it was. “I didn’t know that it was for Dress Up Darling, so I found it later. I was very excited. And then after that, I had to read through the manga again because I liked it so much,” she replies.
For our final question, we asked her if she can share her fondest memory when she was performing live. She recounted her debut song and performance. “It was my first experience to actually sing live. So at first, I was, of course, very nervous, and I was thinking to myself, how should I perform? What should I say so that the audience would give feedback? But when I was doing the live, everyone was having fun. It was different from la video stream. When you’re doing live, you can see the audience’s feedback directly. So that was really great to see. So I thought it was really nice to have a live performance.”
She also got to take questions from various media outlets. She was asked what was the most memorable part of
performing the theme song for “My Dress Up Darling”? She said, “First of all, the anime highlights cosplay
as its main theme. I, myself, like anime, so that’s one of the great things about it. And, I was also asked to make a music video for the song. So, since I had my own highlights of what I wanted to specifically highlight for that music video, I asked the team if I could make my own wig and makeup, and of course, we talked with the team, and with their support, we were able to do a music video that we think were originally from ourselves. So
I am very happy, as I was also told that the music video and the song was good, and I received
such good feedback. So I am very thankful for that, and that’s the most memorable part of
making the ending theme for My Dress Up Darling.”
When asked if she could cosplay any anime character and perform a song as them, who would it be and why, she replied, “Since I was small, I really like the show Suzumiya Haruhi. So I think I want to make—or sing God knows and make a music video out of it as well.”
She was asked that as it was her first time visiting the Philippines, what was her most exciting experience while she was here. She said, “When I was in elementary school, I had a friend who was Filipino. So
whenever I went to that friend’s house, they would always give me Filipino food. So now, after a
lot of years since my elementary school life, I’m excited to eat Filipino food again.”
Asked if she was given a chance for an anime role in a seiyuu audition, what type of characters would she like to star in, she says, “I don’t have a specific character in mind, but I do love tsundere characters. So, if I can do a, voice acting for a character, maybe for someone, for a tsundere character, I’d like to do a tsundere character.”
She was asked which anime character has been her favorite so far and why, and if there were any other characters shed you wish to cosplay soon. She said, “Until now, I’ve done a lot of cosplays, but my favorite is Nino Nakano, from Gotoubun No Hanayome. English title, of that is Quintessential Quintuplets. And actually, since I’ve done a lot of cosplays. I’d say I love all of them. But for Nino Nakano… it’s a character that I love most, and actually, even my own room is filled… The walls are filled with their posters. So I’d say that is my number one. And as for who would I like to cosplay from now on? The first character that I actually liked was Erza Scarlet from Fairy Tail. So I want to do a cosplay of that as well.”
She was then asked how she decides on which characters to bring to life? She replies, “For me, I like doing cosplay of anime, or titles that I really love. So, for choosing who to cosplay, I cosplay whoever I like- even if it’s a male or female character. Regardless of that, if I like the character I could cosplay them.”
She was asked what she thought was the most challenging part of cosplaying and how does she overcome it. She answers, “Cosplay is something that a lot of people would look at or see. So, for different people, they would have different interpretations of a character. So the most difficult part for me of cosplay is, doing that interpretation and translating it into 3D, like actual. So it would be, for example, different interpretations for the wigs, for the costume, and the makeup. And of course, different cosplayers would have their own highlights or what they want to pinpoint or to do a highlight of the cosplay itself. So for example, doing a different type of cloth, or, for example, the wig or colored contacts, it would depend on one’s interpretation of the character. And I think that’s uh, the most difficult for me, especially in thinking if my interpretation would also match other people’s interpretation of the character.”
The evening of March 23, Akase Akari got onto the JAM Concert stage to the loud cheers of her ardent fans as she appeared in the iconic Marin kitagawa seifuku. Her performance was as endearing as it was delightful, and she was devoted in engaging the crowd from start to finish. It was nothing short of epic and memorable, and all wished for more of her in the future.
For our complete coverage of Cosplay Carnival 2025, click here. Our thanks to Cosplay.ph for giving us the opportunity to have a very fascinating interview with Akase Akari in behalf of her many Filipino fans as well as providing us with her official photos.
arkadymac.com has been a media partner for Cosplay Carnival for all its seven years. Many thanks to our Correspondent Marivic for conducting the interview for us.
And thank you for dropping by. Do visit us again for more features here at arkadymac.com.
#cosplay #cosplayph #cosplaycarnival2025 #SpringSerenade #SeasonsOfCosplay #JAMConcertAtCarnival #cosplayer #arkadymac
About The Author
