YOASOBI at The GRAMMY Museum: Where Storytelling and Music Meet

There are plenty of Japanese artists making waves around the world, but few do it quite like YOASOBI. What started with a simple idea—turning stories into songs—has grown into a global phenomenon. Now, Ayase and ikura are performing for audiences across the world, collaborating with artists from different cultures, and introducing J-pop to fans who may not even speak Japanese.

 So, what’s behind that connection?

 At their recent GRAMMY Museum appearance, the duo gave fans a closer look at how they create music, how they’ve adjusted to their growing international audience, and why their original idea still means so much to them.

 The conversation came shortly after YOASOBI’s North American tour, Never Ending Stories, as well as their appearance as the first-ever Overwatch halftime show performers. For ikura, both experiences were exciting—and a little nerve-racking.

 When asked about performing at BlizzCon compared with the Overwatch World Series, she talked about the energy of the crowd. The halftime show was a huge honor, she said, and while she and Ayase were nervous at first, that feeling quickly disappeared once they stepped in front of the audience.

 And American fans definitely gave them plenty of energy back.

 Whether they were dancing, clapping, smiling, or singing along, fans made their excitement impossible to miss. For YOASOBI, that kind of response has become one of the most exciting parts of performing in the U.S.

 Between the Never Ending Stories tour, their Overwatch collaboration, and the halftime performance, it was a pretty big chapter for the duo.

 What’s even more impressive is that YOASOBI does all of this primarily in Japanese.

 You don’t have to understand every word of a song to feel something from it, and Ayase has seen that firsthand. Hearing American fans sing along to Japanese lyrics is a reminder of how easily music can cross language barriers.

 Ayase also pointed out that the Japanese language itself works well with music. The rhythm and flow of Japanese words can become part of the music, meaning listeners can connect with the beat, melody, and emotion even if they don’t understand the lyrics.

 And sometimes, that curiosity leads somewhere else. A listener might hear a song first, fall in love with it, and then look up the lyrics later. Suddenly, there’s an entirely new meaning to discover.

 That idea of discovery is also at the center of how YOASOBI makes music.

 Ayase takes stories and turns them into songs, while ikura brings those songs to life. She’s not simply singing the lyrics—she often steps into the role of the characters and helps tell their stories through her voice.

 Ayase described the process as involving three different stories: the story written by the original author, the new story YOASOBI creates through the song, and finally, the story each listener takes away from it.

It’s a pretty fitting way to describe YOASOBI’s music, and an easy way to remind yourself of these stories as you listen to their music.