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Cover Corp Announces hololive English Virtual YouTuber Group
posted on by Kim Morrissy
Cover Corp announced the launch of its hololive English Virtual YouTuber group on Wednesday, which will deliver English-language interactions with fans on platforms such as YouTube and Twitter. Five new talents launched their Twitter accounts on Wednesday, and they will begin streaming activities on September 12-13.
The concept behind the hololive English group is "myth," as the members "hail from worlds of legend." The group's official English YouTube account released a promotional video highlighting the new talent.
The names of the debuting talent are Ninomae Ina'nis, Takanashi Kiara, Watson Amelia, Mori Calliope, and Gawr Gura.
Ninomae Ina'nis was designed by Kino no Tabi - the Beautiful World and Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online illustrator Kouhaku Kuroboshi. "One day, she picked up a strange book and then started to gain the power of controlling tentacles. To her, tentacles are just a part in her ordinary life; it has never been a big deal for her. However, her girly mind does want to get them dressed up and stay pretty.
"After gaining power, she started hearing Ancient Whispers and Revelations. Hence, she began her VTuber activities to deliver random sanity checks on humanity, as an ordinary girl."
Takanashi Kiara was designed by Steins;Gate and Black Rock Shooter illustrator huke. "She is an idol whose dream is to become a fast food shop owner. She is a phoenix, NOT a chicken or turkey. (Very important)
"She works extremely hard since she will be reborn from ashes anyway."
Watson Amelia was designed by Nabi. "She heard strange rumors surrounding Hololive online: talking foxes, magical squirrels, superhuman dogs, and more. Soon after beginning her investigation on Hololive, and just out of interest, she decided to become an idol herself! She loves to pass her time training her reflexes with FPS games, and challenging herself with puzzle games.
"It's elementary, right?"
Mori Calliope was designed by Yukisame. She is "the Grim Reaper's first apprentice. Because the world's medical system advanced so dramatically, she became a VTuber to collect souls. It seems that the lost souls vaporized by the wholesome relationships of VTubers flow through her as well. In the end, she's a gentle-hearted girl whose sweet voice contradicts the morbid things she tends to say, as well as her hardcore vocals."
Gawr Gura was designed by Amashiro Natsuki. She is "a descendant of the Lost City of Atlantis, who swam to Earth while saying, 'It's so boring down there LOLOLOL!' She bought her clothes (and her shark hat) in the human world and she really loves them. In her spare time, she enjoys talking to marine life."
In other Cover-related news, the company released a statement on Tuesday regarding the measures it is taking against harassment of the talents. The company intends to pursue legal action against anonymous posters who make threatening actions and/or breaches of privacy. It has also opened a contact form for users to report abusive behavior they have witnessed.
The statement also notes that "the dangers posed by harassment are not exclusive to Japan; these issues exist worldwide. As such, we will also be taking measures against threats to our talents coming from overseas."
A number of Virtual YouTubers have recently announced hiatuses or retirements in the wake of harassment, including independent VTuber Kusunoki Sio and hololive's Mano Aloe. Virtual YouTuber agency NIJISANJI also detailed its measures against harassment earlier this month.
Cover Corp was founded in 2016, and the first generation of hololive performers debuted in 2018. Around 50 Virtual YouTubers currently belong to hololive; according to the agency's English website, it has around 4.4 million fans on YouTube and 4 million on bilibili. The talents perform using intricate 2D and 3D avatars provided by the company.
Most of hololive's streaming content is in Japanese. In April, the company began recruiting VTubers from English-speaking countries.
Sources: Cover Corp official website (Link 2), press release
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