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2007: The First Sound of the Future


Happy Birthday, Miku! Fr-from me, Jeremy! :)


Hatsune Miku cover.png

Hatsune Miku's first voicebank for the Vocaloid2 engine was released to the public on August 31, 2007, but unveiled on June 25, so the people had time to be hyped. She was the first release in Crypton's "Character Vocal Series", numbered "01", which is why she has the red "01" on her left shoulder.

Hatsune Miku's name, in Japanese, has the meaning of 'the first (hatsu) sound (ne) of the future (miku)'.

Pictured is her original box-art illustration (Vocaloid voicebanks are sold as disks that one inserts into their computer (like any other software)), illustrated by the artist KEI, who still loves and draws art for Vocaloid to this day.

From that interview with Shiba Tomonori and Hachiuoji-P, respectively:

"August 31st, 2007 was Hatsune Miku's release date, and Melt was December 7th. Those four months were a burst of creative energy akin to the Cambrian explosion. The opening of NicoNico Douga included, many conditions came together in the summer of 2007..."

"I think a big thing to note about this period is that there were no pros yet. All of them amateurs, and hardly anybody there who made a living off music, everyone was truly just doing whatever they wanted. It was a brand new form of expression, so the songs you could make and things you could do were all new–that made it fun for the people doing it as well."

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