Tokyo, Japan · kawaii metal · metal · j-pop

BABYMETAL

2 upcoming festivals

J-pop choreography welded to genuine power-metal chops — a premise that should not work and completely does, now with arena-scale production and a decade of converted skeptics.

BABYMETAL formed in Tokyo in 2010 as an offshoot of the idol group Sakura Gakuin, pairing idol-pop vocals and tightly drilled choreography with backing music drawn from thrash, power metal and metalcore. Suzuka Nakamoto, performing as Su-metal, has fronted the group throughout; the live band, long known as the Kami Band, plays the material at full metal volume.

The combination drew heavy attention outside Japan from the mid-2010s onward, helped by videos such as "Gimme Chocolate!!", and the group went on to tour internationally and share stages with established metal acts. The songs mix Japanese-language pop melody with double-kick drumming, breakdowns and shifts in tempo, and the shows are built around synchronised dance routines performed alongside the band.

kawaii metalmetalj-pop