We Will Deeply Miss PRISM Project

PRISM Project, once a VTuber startup which is then acquired by Sony Music Entertainment Japan, is counting its days. All 18 active talents under the project are set to become independent VTubers by Monday, April 1st.

Allow me to take time to write a short tribute to PRISM Project. Words cannot express how thankful I am for the trust their management gave to VTuber NewsDrop online and in-person.

Even before NewsDrop was established, I have been in touch with Shogun, the agency's producer who took over operations after it got incorporated into SMEJ's virtual talent umbrella in May 2022.

For each critical update that they had, they are prepared and ready with their own press releases (complete with embargo dates, an important part in media relations).

Little has been said about the first interactions we had with PRISM talents, but we have written about them through feature stories and interviews:

• Shiki Miyoshino's record label milestone with hanahaki syndrome.
• Spotlight interviews with Sara Nagare and Araka Luto.
• Event reports from Philippines' Cosplay Mania and Australia's SMASH last year.
• Even the one time Sara and mental wellness advocate Rita Kamishiro collaborated with Japanese voice actress Shu Uchida.
• On top of these, we also featured their music: Be the Light, and Rita's Hours of the Day.

They made their presence felt in Japan as well, joining other Sony Music Virtual brands VERSEn and VEE at the winter Comiket 102 last year (Aoi Tokimori, Yura Rikudou, and Iku Hoshifuri).

It is with the utmost regret and sadness that PRISM Project will no longer function as an agency.

News about PRISM Project's closure is a huge loss in the VTubing space: The way I see it, this was Sony Music Virtual's major window to the English VTubing space (sans its mother ship's other active VTuber investments).

If there's one thing I also noticed, the relationship between its founder Captain and the talents is also evident with the positive interactions they have online. It's as if the talents still reach out to its founder after it is transferred.

While there's been graduations within PRISM post-Sony (such as Lana Shikami, Yuki Kitashiro and soon Kou Tsubame), I can opine that PRISM has been generally peaceful. I rarely hear online drama from them.

Even when the office struggles to adapt to the fast-changing times of this scene, they made their efforts to adapt. Their onboarding of independent talents Nana Asteria and Mako Sameshima, as well as ex-agency indie Emma Oumiya are welcomed.

In fact, it was Emma herself who said: "I am heartbroken by the announcement. Therefore, i will always thank PRISM for giving me an opportunity to experience life in corpo again and giving me a wonderful family."

Just like us, Nana is counting away the days left for PRISM, and it felt like she doesn't want to let go. Heck, even OffKai Expo extended their warm wishes to the agency, a move I haven't seen anywhere else.

Topping these off, the founder shared in detail how he cherishes the project he led:

These alone speak volumes to me. It's over, chat: Nobody's moving on from this. I ain't moving on from this.

The moment I got the embargoed info from Shogun, the fact was still sinking in. The news came at such a critical time in the scene, where agencies are questioned for their management practices.

A lot of agencies have ended talent operations this quarter alone, but I cannot properly express how sad I am that PRISM is closing. Maybe I'll just cry and try to move on, the same way all 18 talents would do by the end of the month.

However, their impact is not lost - and it will be memorable forever, just like the recent Host Club and Maid Cafe collabs. Maybe the real PRISM Project was the friends - and fans - everyone of us made along the way.

I personally may have not frequented their streams myself, but just as we've welcomed Shogun and his press releases to us, everyone at PRISM is always welcome to share their latest news with open arms.

Just like this agency surprising us with its last salvo of model reveals, we also have two MusicDrop stories left to be released this weekend. Please look forward to those pieces written by my music-leaning colleague Teddy.

For the last time, thank you very much, PRISM Project. You will be dearly missed. PRISM LOVE.