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RIOT MUSIC's Saki Ashizawa & Iori Matsunaga

Kris Aw

Welcome to my note! 

With the announcement of " TUBEOUT! FES -2021 SUMMER- " and the confirmed appearances of RIOT MUSIC's Saki Ashizawa (@saki_ashizawa) & Iori Matsunaga (@iori_m_RIOT). Some of you might be wondering who they are and what makes them stand out above the other performers?

Well, this is where I come in to introduce them to you all. I hope that by the end, you will be interested to get tickets to watch two of my favorite Virtual Singers (V-singers for short) perform live on stage.

RIOT MUSIC

As For your knowledge, RIOT MUSIC (@RIOTMUSIC_info), is affiliated with Brave Group and currently has a total of five talents under its care. They mainly focus on producing and assisting various content for the five talents on platforms such as TikTok and Youtube, like cover song releases and live singing streams.

As such, Saki and Iori have an abundance of cover songs on their individual YouTube channels. 

With a total of 105 (!!) songs sang by both Saki and Iori, you might be scratching your head thinking which songs should a new fan, such as yourself, listen to first? Fret not, as this article will serve as a guide by providing some of my own recommendations and at the same time illustrates what I love about each of them as a singer.

Now, let us start with the senpai of the two, Saki Ashizawa!

芦澤サキ / SAKI ASHIZAWA

Saki may look a little intimidating and she likes to maintain a cool image. However, she has an adorable personality away from the stage and has a deep love for her cats.

Part of what makes Saki such a unique individual is her love for singing. She has a cool, charismatic voice which has the ability to captivate her listeners with the range of emotions she portrays in her singing 「命に嫌われている。」(Hated by Life Itself).

Hated by Life Itself contains various lyrics about the struggles one might go through during their lifetime and Saki was able to capture these emotions perfectly in her cover of the song. On top of that, Hated by Life Itself is a difficult song to sing due to However, Saki was able to sing it just right and the cover remains the most viewed MV on her channel.

Aside from emotional pop songs like Hated by Life Itself, Saki has the penchant to sing songs from the rock genre. An example would be "One-Third Naïve Feelings" from the rock band Siam Shade. 

As well as the song, Samurai Heart (Some Like it Hot !!) from SPYAIR.

While both songs are rock, as well as Ani-songs (Anime Songs) from famous franchises, Saki is able to present her unique take of the two songs.

Speaking of the rock genre, Saki herself is a huge fan of the Rock band UVERworld and as such, has a few covers of their songs. The one that sticks with me the most would be「激動」(Gekidou).

What's unique about this song cover is how Saki's backing vocals were used and how she approached the faster parts of the song. It was an interesting cover that showcases the versatility of her singing.

Last but not least, I would like to share Saki's cover of 「決意の朝に」(Ketsui no Asa Ni)

Ketsui no Asa Ni was the song Saki chose to commemorate her first year as a V-singer. The MV for this song contains the various thumbnails of the covers she did right up to the premiere of the song. The MV itself is proof of the hard work that Saki has put into her singing throughout her first year.

On top of that, the lyrics of Ketsui no Asa Ni talk about how an individual can carry on with their journey with the support of their friends, the MV emphasizes that point by showing the backs of Saki's peers along with their backup vocals for the song, showing their camaraderie. 

Saki has covered numerous songs since her debut, 72 at the time of writing this, but these five songs are the ones that I will recommend to others if I was asked. Do check out the rest of her covers as there may be another song that resonates with you!

While Saki has covered some amazing songs, what about originals, you ask? Of course, there are originals!

Both original songs highlight the versatility of Saki's singing. Bloom lonely is a faster-paced song that gets the listener's blood pumping, while Feeling is a surprising dance-pop song that makes you vibe along with Saki's amazing voice and dance moves.

A unique thing about both of her originals is that she has a form of narration in the middle of both songs which reflects her personality and charm as an individual. Personally, I am hoping we get to watch her perform Feeling at Tubeout!

With that, I hope you get a clearer picture of Saki Ashizawa as a singer and individual. There are more I would like to share but what is the fun of spoiling everything? Do check out her channel and Twitter page to find out more about her!

松永依織 / Iori Matsunaga

Let's move on to RIOT MUSIC's own resident onee-san, Iori Matsunaga! Iori (nicknamed Iorin by many) has a cheerful and bright personality. Surprisingly, she also loves alcohol due to her previous experience working as a bartender. Similar to Saki, she has an absolutely adorable pet that she adores and cares for!

Moving onto her singing, Iori has a delightful voice that lifts the mood and rejuvenates her listeners. A prime example of this would be her cover of the song "Mela!"

Mela! is a song with an upbeat melody that brightens a listener's day. Iori's version mixes her raspier and cheerful voice and turns it into a great cover that never fails to cheer me up whenever I am feeling down. The MV itself contains beautiful visuals that showcase Iori doing what she loves which is singing while playing her guitar at the main chorus. I really recommend you guys check it out!

Aside from recent pop songs such as Mela!, Iori also covered a few famous Ani-songs that some of you might be familiar with. Let's start with this one, shall we?

Her debut cover song「そばかす」(Sobakasu).

Iori's Sobakasu gave us a glimpse of the type of singer she is, combined with a colorful MV that worked wonderfully in tune with her alluring singing. This singing style, that Iori showcases in Sobakusu, could be further illustrated in another song, her cover of 「ゴールデンタイムラバー」 (Golden Time Lover).

These 3 covers showcase Iori's main strength: Versatility. She has shown time and time again that she is more than capable of covering a wide selection of songs with varying difficulties. 

This next cover that I would like to share is a song that has stuck with me for the longest time due to the difficulty of the song and Iori's desire to sing it. The cover「航海の唄」(About a Voyage) by さユり(Sayuri).

Fun fact: Iori is a huge fan of the animation series "My Hero Academia" as well as the singer Sayuri, which made the song "About a Voyage" the perfect song for her to cover. The varying tunes combined with the raspy voice of Iori turned this song into something that is uniquely Iori!

Lastly, let me recommend my personal favorite Iori cover「シュガーソングとビターステップ」(Sugar Song & Bitter Step).

Similar to Saki, Iori chose a special song to cover to commemorate an anniversary. In her case, Sugar Song & Bitter Step was chosen for her sixth month anniversary. Why, you ask? That's because the song itself was written and composed by Tomoya Tabuchi, one of her favorite bassists from Unison Square Garden. While watching the MV, you can also see some memories of Iori's first 6 months as a V-singer and the growth she has undergone during that time. All that is something that has etched itself into my memory as well.

Furthermore, the lyrics tell a story about moving forward without looking back but never forgetting the steps you have taken to get to where you are, befitting Iori's personality and her journey to where she is today.

As such, this is my favorite cover song from Iori because of how she conveyed her emotions about continuously moving forward as a singer, with the final scene of the MV showing her moving forward with a smile on her face.

Just like Saki, Iori has covered quite a few songs since her debut, but once again these five songs are the ones that I will recommend to others if I was ever asked. Please check out her other covers as well!

Well, I have talked a lot about cover songs, so why don't we move on to Iori's original songs! 

Both of Iori's originals are an extension of her personality, Cocktail Lights shows her mature, alcohol-loving side, while 「大衆性ロマン」(Taishusei Roman) shows her youthful and rebellious side, that wants to break through the chains of rules.

These two songs are very different and perfectly demonstrate the various charms a lady like Iori has. Personally, I hope she performs Cocktail Lights at Tubeout!

Once again, I hope that I have given a clearer picture of the type of singer and personality that Iori Matsunaga is. There are tons more I would like to share but, again, there is no fun in sharing too much here! Do check out her channel and Twitter page to learn more about her!

What to expect from Tubeout?

Now that you have a better grasp of the type of singers Saki and Iori are, you might be wondering, "Have the two of them sung together before?"

Well...they have!

The following videos are songs that Saki and Iori have collaborated on before. The songs also include the other talents of RIOT MUSIC, namely Cocoa Domyoji (@cocoa_domyoji), Yuka Nagase (@yuka_n_RIOT), and Suzuna Nagihara (@suzuna_n_RIOT).

Happiness and Butter-fly were the first songs where the 5 of them performed as a group during their first-ever live concert, Re:VOLT. Do check out the MVs to get a glimpse of their combined singing.

Last but not least, the group also recently released an original song called "One for Everything". A truly wonderful music piece that was thoughtfully crafted to showcase what RIOT MUSIC is truly capable of.

With that, I hope that my article helped to paint a better picture of what Saki and Iori might bring to their TUBEOUT performance. Maybe there will be duets, maybe only solo songs by each of them, I have no idea. What I do know however is that no matter what they will perform, it will be amazing and I genuinely can’t wait to see it!

As of August 16, the schedule for "TUBEOUT! FES -2021 SUMMER-" has been released. RIOT MUSIC is slated to perform on the Nature Stage at 17:20 (JST).

Before ending the note, if you have enjoyed listening to "Feeling", "Taishusei Roman", and "One for Everything", these songs belong to an upcoming album by RIOT MUSIC.

"RIOT OF EMOTIONS", RIOT MUSIC's first album will be released on September 29. It's currently available for pre-order and it contains special goods depending on where you order from. 

The following tweet contains the links for the album and the type of special goods each store offers.

If you would like to get the album, do get it before the album release date! Most of the stores offer global shipping, so do check it out!

Thank you for reading my note. I hope that I have helped in your understanding and appreciation of the RIOT MUSIC girls, even in the slightest bit.

Just like you readers, I can't wait for the 29th and I'm sure TUBEOUT will definitely be a blast!

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