IN CONVERSATION WITH ADO
interview by JANA LETONJA
Ado, one of Japan’s biggest and most intriguing international stars, is known for her powerhouse vocals, larger-than-life performances, and for keeping her identity a complete mystery. She’s sold out arenas around the world, racked up hundreds of millions of streams, and collaborated with major artists like Imagine Dragons and LE SSERAFIM. Next up, she’s embarking on one of the largest world tours ever by a Japanese artist this year.
You’ve become one of Japan’s biggest global stars while keeping your identity hidden. What does anonymity mean to you as an artist, and how has it shaped your creative freedom?
Anonymity for me is a way to express my identity as Ado. And as I use the 2D visual, and the illustration for my performances, I use my silhouette to express myself. That anonymity allows me the freedom to express myself on a stage in a way that nobody else can. I think it also allows audience to feel my messages and inner emotions more directly and for our souls to connect. Nowadays, the internet is a place for people to connect anonymously so I think people are getting used to that as well, and even though people are posting things anonymously, you still get a sense of who they are, and you can communicate. I started this career by posting songs on socials, so I am very grateful that I am an artist with a career in this era.
Many fans connect deeply with your anime-style avatar. How did you develop that visual identity, and what does she represent?
Nowadays, there are a lot of virtual singers who use 3D computer graphics. But that's not what I'm doing here. It's not like I differentiate myself between my real self and my 2D avatar. I feel like the illustration of myself is just as real as the real me. The two-dimensional me perhaps could be my ideal self so sort of like a caricature in a way. They might not look exactly like you, but you see yourself in that drawing. I let my illustrator and image director, Orihara, come up with the ideal image of me and I sort of follow that illustration. I see that as my ideal self.
Your breakout track ‘Usseewa’ became a cultural phenomenon. Looking back, what do you think resonated so strongly with listeners?
If I try to see the situation objectively, the song came out during Covid and Japan was under stress. Especially for people from my generation, a lot of school events and trips got cancelled. Very precious teenage time was taken away. I was about 17 or 18 at the time. I feel like this impacted my generation very heavily. There were also the people who are older than me working in Japanese society under the stress of Covid, so I think a lot of anger and sadness came about at the time.
Because we all had to stay home, people spent more time online, and they heard ‘Usseewa’, meaning Shut Up in Japanese. That reflected everyone's anger with an impactful punch line that you don't hear a lot in Japanese society. Japanese learn to keep their emotions inside and they read the room, so it's not a society where people can freely say shut up to other people. I think this song became like an outlet for stress which is why I think impacted society so heavily. Anger is absolutely a necessary element of human emotions.
You’ve collaborated with international stars like Imagine Dragons and LE SSERAFIM. How do you approach musical collaborations, especially across cultures and genres?
Both Imagine Dragons and LE SSERAFIM are very striking, and their songs are quite different from my usual style. The chemistry of my voice joining their songs made the finished product sound different from the original songs. These collaborations were very inspiring and exciting for me.
You’ve just kicked off your Hibana World Tour, the largest global tour by a Japanese artist. What’s been the most surreal moment so far?
There's quite a bit of difference between the cultures. I felt that when I was touring Asia as well, but especially in European cultures, like the impression I get from people, even the people walking around in a city and their routine, seems to be a little different from the Japanese routine in a good sense. An example of this would be the laundry in the hotel in Paris. I had my laundry done and wanted to see if it's done. I tried calling them with my not-so-perfect English but wasn't quite sure what was happening. I waited around for about 30 min, but nothing happened, so I went to the door and looked out, and I saw what looks like a present box. I opened it to find my laundry. So, it was as if my laundry came as a surprise present which is a little different from anything I've experienced in Japan. I hope that in the future, I can get more used to the time sequence that the locals are living in and hope to set my pace to that in the future. There were even little ribbons on the box, so that made it even extra special. Of course, that was nice but not what I was expecting.
You’re selling out arenas around the world, from Tokyo to Los Angeles. How does it feel to see such passionate fanbases in countries that speak entirely different languages?
I feel their passion for the Japanese music and culture, and I can feel their love for it when I'm standing on stage. They sing with their entire being, and they shout, cheer and clap very loudly, so I can sense their inner emotions being thrown at me while I'm standing on stage. Depending on the countries or regions, I can feel the difference in terms of what kind of songs they like and how they react to them. So, every single show is inspiring to me.
You’ve inspired so many young artists, especially girls, around the world. Who were your own inspirations growing up?
Well, the vocaloid culture is so vast, so it's really difficult to pinpoint one. But I used to listen to a lot of rock band sound and the lyrics tended to focus on loneliness and the pain that comes from it, so I think those words really spoke to me at the time.
After Hibana wraps and Shinzou hits theaters, what’s next for Ado in 2025?
After the world tour, I have a dome tour scheduled in November in Tokyo and Osaka. But I'm really still trying to figure out how I'll present myself on those stages and how I'll be singing. It's been 5 years since my debut, and I'm no longer that teenage self that sang ‘Usseewa’. I'm now an adult, not a dreamy girl of the past. Through this world tour, I'm still trying to figure out what the new chapter of my life will look like.
