Who hasn’t had the experience of hearing music somewhere and suddenly being overcome with feelings of nostalgia, or getting an emotional lift, and stopping in your tracks to listen? Music has the amazing power to arouse sentiments of all kinds in us, whether a melody heard casually on the street, a tune by a favorite artist, the theme from a familiar film, or music from a much-loved anime or video game.

Pokémon too has created a treasure trove of music through the years, and for some time we have wanted to enhance the Pokémon experience through music. The result was the launch of our “Pokémon Music Spotlight” project*. 

To make Pokémon music available to as many fans as possible, mainly through YouTube, under this project we partnered with Crypton Future Media, Inc. and their virtual singer Hatsune Miku, who has been a well-known feature of the music scene since 2007. Hatsune Miku shares two important traits with Pokémon: she evolved out of software, and her sound is produced electronically. So in Hatsune Miku we were sure we had the perfect partner for Pokémon. 

Next, we considered what to develop out of the collaboration between Pokémon and Hatsune Miku, working together with a specially selected pool of formidably talented artists. This led to the launch of “Pokémon feat. Hatsune Miku Project VOLTAGE 18 Types/Songs,” a collection of works sung by Hatsune Miku accompanied by sample background music and sound effects from the Pokémon Video Game Series.

A core feature of the project is use of the number 18, which is the total number of Pokémon types (GRASS, FIRE, WATER, etc.). To express the phenomenal diversity achievable by partnering Pokémon with Hatsune Miku and the chosen creative artists, the first priority was to create 18 different character designs and illustrations, followed by 18 songs and music videos.

The first release was a series of designs portraying Hatsune Miku as Trainer of the 18 different Pokémon types, plus illustrations of 18 Buddy Pokémon. To make Hatsune Miku look just how fans would expect from a Pokémon Trainer, the project team called on the expert skills of illustrators who had previous experience depicting Pokémon Trainers.

After the 18 designs and illustrations, we next began releasing 18 songs and music videos newly created by artists brought on board for their musical prowess. The music makers all had first-hand experience with Pokémon whether through our video games, Trading Card Game, or anime. So impressed was the project leader by their creative passion and love for Pokémon, he gushed that their finished works far surpassed the expectations and imagination of the project team. “The fun everyone showed in creating made play out of what should have been labor. Throughout, uppermost in our mind was how to derive maximum synergy through the integration of Pokémon, a truly authentic Hatsune Miku, and the input of the participating creative artists.”

To ensure that the unique talents of the creative members would yield optimum results, the project team pored over their song lyrics at great length, listened over and over to their music demos, and meticulously reviewed their music videos until everything was of the high quality that fans of both Pokémon and Hatsune Miku would expect and appreciate. The team members also played the proposed games and checked the fit of their soundtracks, and at times they offered suggestions on which Pokémon would be a perfect match with which music. In this way, the project team functioned as overall producer of the collaboration between Pokémon, Hatsune Miku and the participating artists.

Ultimately, the 18 designs, illustrations, songs and music videos created under this project represent the cumulative contributions of the community of dedicated Hatsune Miku fans, the boundless genius and energy of the participating artists, and everyone’s love of Pokémon. All the new works will be available through YouTube and X for the enjoyment of fans of Pokémon or Hatsune Miku – or both – and new fans sure to be newly engaged and enchanted.

＊You can check out how “Pokémon Music Spotlight” evolved here:
“Let the music play: There’s more to game music than games”

“Pokémon feat. Hatsune Miku Project VOLTAGE 18 Types/Songs”
Official website (in Japanese): https://www.project-voltage.jp
Official X account (in Japanese): @PokeMikuVOLTAGE


© 2023 Pokémon. © 1995-2023 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
© Crypton Future Media, Inc.