(Photography by James Chen)
≪This Live Music Photo Gallery serves as a preview of our coverage of Anime Expo 2026≫
J-POP SOUND CAPSULE returned to Anime Expo 2026 to deliver a spectacle of anime and live music which closed out the first day of the convention in an absolutely unforgettable way. Just as Anime Expo itself has grown to encompass more of the area surrounding the Los Angeles Convention Center, J-POP SOUND CAPSULE has also grown to take over the Crypto.com Arena. And so on July 2nd, 2026, the first day of Anime Expo 2026 closed out with a bang as a diverse and spectacular lineup of Japanese artists took the stage to perform and delight fans from around the world.
Yoko Takahashi
Headliner Yoko Takahashi is perhaps most well known to anime fans for her iconic performance of the opening theme song to the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion, “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis.”
Yoko Takahashi also shared with the audience that Los Angeles was a special place for her, as she had spent some time in the city early on in her career. She shared an anecdote that when visiting a collaborator’s home back then, she needed to use the bathroom, and upon entering the bathroom felt that its size was larger than her apartment in Japan - “this is America!” she thought to herself - and the audience laughed with her at this memory.
Yoko Takahashi was joined on stage by Yoko Kanno on keytar to perform the iconic “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis” together in its original style. Seeing the two legendary Yoko’s perform this song together was undoubtedly a highlight of the night for many fans, and it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that it was a highlight of Anime Expo 2026 as a whole.
SPYAIR
Preceding the headlining act was SPYAIR, a rock band whose works have been featured in anime series such as “BLEACH”, “Gintama”, “Haikyuu!!”, and more.
SPYAIR’s set included hit theme songs such as “Samurai Heart (Some Like It Hot!!)” featured in “Gintama”, “Last Moment” featured in “BLEACH”, and “Orange” from “Haikyuu!!”.
The high-energy set wrapped up with a performance of “Kill the Noise”, featured as the opening theme for the anime adaptation of “Sentenced to Be a Hero”.
Roselia
Prior to SPYAIR’s performance, Roselia took the stage to perform a set of popular hits from their discography, including “Black Shout”, “R”, and “FIRE BIRD”.
Roselia is one of the most popular bands within Bushiroad’s multimedia franchise, “BanG Dream!”, which includes anime, mobile games, and live concerts.
Roselia are known for their distinct gothic J-Rock style, precise musicianship, and dramatic presentation, and they exist both as a fictional group in the anime/mobile game and as a real-life performing rock band composed of the characters’ actual voice actresses.
ALI
The second artist to take the stage was ALI, a band whose music is an energetic genre-defying blend of funk, jazz, hip-hop, Latin music, and rock.
ALI’s music has been featured in anime series including “BEASTARS”, “Jujutsu Kaisen”, “Golden Kamuy”, and more.
The band’s members are as diverse as their musical influences, while hailing from Japan, most members come from multicultural heritage, and together their performances simply make you want to get up and dance (and sing!).
Yoko Kanno
Yoko Kanno took to the stage first to kick off J-POP SOUND CAPSULE 2026, and did so in a spectacular fashion with a performance of the opening theme song to the anime series Cowboy Bebop, “Tank!”.
Yoko Kanno is a legendary composer and musician who has contributed to the soundtracks of many anime series, and as a massive Cowboy Bebop fan, it was an absolute thrill to experience her live piano version of “Tank!”.
Yoko Takahashi also joined Yoko Kanno on stage for a special collaboration performance dubbed “Yoko x Yoko”.
