AI flyer art at anime concert leads to Evangelion singer Yoko Takahashi’s exit – interest

The Ikebukuro Anime Philharmonic, an orchestra dedicated to performing anime music, announced on Wednesday that legendary anime singer Yoko Takahashi will no longer be a guest performer in the orchestra’s July 10 performance due to the orchestra’s use of generative AI for promotional art. The announcement noted that the orchestra had received negative comments regarding generative AI for art for its flyers and website, and that this had led to Takahashi withdrawing from the performance.

Below is the first version of the flyer:

The new version of the flyer (see below) was published on the orchestra’s website on Thursday:

Until Thursday, the original version of the flyers was still available in shops in the Tokyo district of Akihabara and could be distributed free of charge.

The orchestra apologized for the matter and said it had not sufficiently taken into account the issues and criticisms surrounding generative AI. The performance will still take place as planned.

Yo Matsushita, a musician who serves as the orchestra’s director, posted again on Friday to provide further explanation and to personally apologize to the other musicians, Takahashi, the sponsors, and the other members of the executive committee. He acknowledged that as a musician working in the arts, he was unaware of the problems artists face due to generative AI and was not informed about them.

Takahashi is perhaps best known for performing the theme song “Cruel Angel’s Thesis” and a rendition of the theme song “Fly to the Moon” at the end of the Neon Genesis Evangelion TV anime series and “Soul’s Refrain”, the theme song of Evangelion: Death and RebirthTakahashi has also composed theme songs for CROSS ANGE Rondo of Angel and Dragon, Pumpkin scissors, Shakugan no Shana, Oh, my goddess, This ugly yet beautiful worldAnd Age of Aquarius – The Movie.

Sources: Ikebukuro Anime Philharmonic website and Twitter account, Yoko Takahashi‘s X/Twitter account via 0takomu