31 January 2023
18 days until the concert.
I just finished Test Run Part 1. Ran through Songs 1 - 3 and the MC bits (yes, I've planned these out)
Checked flow and timing. Worked out cues. Tweaked as needed.
A couple of stumbles here and there. Those will be tightened up.
Need to put additional bits to the stream overlay.
And add a couple of extra lines to the MC bits.
And go over choreography.
Yes, there is some. Nothing full blown.
Just...some.
More later.
Back in October, when I "revamped" things, I essentially started from scratch.
Yes, I had attached the Thing to my anime livestream show. But no one knew I was doing anison covers as "me."
Before I'd shut down the Red Comet YouTube channel, I had acquired about 20 subscribers.
Under my own channel, I currently had 49 subscribers but those were for ANIME SHIYOU!!, not the covers.
In an effort to drum up subscribers to the covers, I decided to issue a challenge: get to 100+ channel subscribers
The reward: a livestream concert.
That was back in mid-October.
Two days into January, I decided to make it a Challenge For The Month: get 100+ subscribers by 11:59pm PST on February 2 and I'd put on the concert.
Sometime on the 15th of January, I then decided to drop the challenge and just announce the concert.
February 18th. 8pm PST.
As of January 30th at 6:50pm PST, we have amassed 63 subscribers.
If we don't count the 49 already in place for the anime 'stream, that means 14 have subscribed for the covers.
Not quite 100.
But is the subscriber count really important?
That's what I've been pondering since issuing the Challenge For The Month.
There's that concern that my videos are just "screaming into the void."
On the other hand, many of them have garnered more than 10 views. Some, even 20 or more.
One cover has broken 65+ views.
Again, not world-shaking numbers by any means. At least compared to some covers out there.
Then again, should I really be comparing myself to others?
In that way lies madness, it is said.
But shouldn't the video views translate somehow into added subscribers?
Pondering turned up one possibility: longevity.
After all, posting as "me" only began in October, just three months ago. I'd lost the momentum of the previous four months with the revamp so it should be expected.
Time.
Just need to give it time.
As the saying goes: slow and steady wins the race.
And as long as I'm entertaining someone with these covers, it's worth putting them out there.
It's the 30th of January as I'm writing this.
Roughly two weeks until my 1st livestream concert, slated for February 18th.
I've got headphones on and I'm listening to the songs from my setlist.
Equal parts excited and slightly nervous.
No--take it back. More excited than nervous.
Of course I want the evening to go smoothly and within any hiccups. So there's the nervous part there.
But I'm excited about singing for my potential audience and "bringing back good memories." Once I'm onstage, the nervousness immediately vanishes so it's all about having fun. And, I gotta tell ya, there's nothing more fun than singing fun songs for fun people.
If I had to get technical, this isn't my first livestream concert.
Back in June '21, on my anime livestream chat show ANIME SHIYOU!! I performed a short concert to celebrate my birthday. I think I did two or three songs. Maybe four?
But this upcoming one will be three times the number of songs.
Two weeks until, and there's still stuff to do. I have the gear I need...I think. I may need on more piece, not fully certain yet. Rehearsals are moving along. There will be a test stream coming up.
Honestly, I hadn't planned on a concert that fast.
I blame it on the Peanut Gallery, aka "the People in my Cranium." I feel like they're really the ones who helped get me here.
I'll talk about them next time.
As I mentioned before, I began this journey last April.
But the actual covers didn't start appearing until the first week of June--
At this point, sharp-eyed followers will likely say: 「ちょっと待って！」("Wait a minute!")
"According to the date on YouTube, your first cover was posted on October 7, 2022! How in the Wide Wide World of Sports can you say it was last June?!?"
Now gather 'round, Children. Uncle Abner's gonna tell y'all a story....
When I originally envisioned this Thing I'm doing, I had decided I'd use a stage name.
In tribute to the types of anime songs I'd planned to cover--older songs from the '80s and '90s--I went with the moniker "The Red Comet," an outright reference to Char Aznable from Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels.
Short of dressing up as Char in cosplay complete with iconic helmet and performing as such, I went with a subtler outfit: a red suit jacket.
That, in turn, conjured up images of a lounge singer-type persona and I hit upon the character of Lorne from Angel and then Vic Fontaine from Deep Space Nine.
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| Lorne |
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| Vic Fontaine |
But then I occurred to me: why go with a fictional character as a model when I could style myself after the real folks.
Like John Barrowman.
Or better yet, since I was singing anime songs: Sasaki Isao.
Sasaki Isao. Who sang the classic theme song "Uchuu Senkan Yamato," among others.
And so when June rolled around and I posted my first cover, "Runner" from Macross, on YouTube, it was under the stage name "The Red Comet."
Up went The Red Comet YouTube channel.
Up when the Twitter account.
I even started calling my followers "Cometeers."
I would post 10 cover songs over the span of five months as The Red Comet."
Then, at the end of September, I decided to drop the stage name.
I decided I had to be me. Not "me playing as someone else."
Me.
Abner.
So over a busy weekend in early October, I redid my logos, recut the cover song videos with the new titles, took down the Red Comet channel and Twitter, and reuploaded all 10 songs to my own personal YouTube channel, alongside my anime livestream show, ANIME SHIYOU!!
By mid-October, we were back in business and dropping more cover songs.
Of course, I took a hit.
Up until the switchover, some of the covers were getting good play. My cover of "Uchuu Senkan Yamato" had, at that point, amassed more than 100 views.
Okay, probably small change compared to elsewhere in the YouTubes, but it was still 100+ views and I was rather proud of that.
With the switch, all the number vanished and I was back to 0.
Nil.
Goose egg.
I was basically starting from scratch.
In hindsight, I should've started posting as me right off the bat. Created an anison cover singer channel and posted there instead of going with a stage name.
Oh well.
You live and learn, as they say.
This is the Thing I'm doing.
Singing anime song covers.
"My name is Abner, and I'm an anison cover singer."
* * *
It began last April, courtesy of Sakura-Con 2022.
I had gone with the intention of enjoying a fun day at the con. I'd check out merch in the Dealers' Room, catch an interesting panel or two or three, and watch some anime episodes the the viewing rooms.
And then I got a look at the programming booklet and this caught my eye:
I'm not one to say "no" to karaoke. Certainly not to any chance to sing, being the ham that I am. And I happened to know a couple of anime songs. So I thought "Sure! Why not?"
So I went.
And ended up spending the entire day in the karaoke lounge. From 10am to 9pm when I finally left the convention. Half hour for lunch. Half hour for dinner. Otherwise, I was either singing up on stage or cheering on the other folks who sang while I waited for my turn in the rotation.
And that was when I had a revelation: this is what I'm supposed to be doing.
I'm supposed to be singing anime songs.
Not just singing them.
Singing them for others. Singing to an audience. An audience of like-minded anime enthusiasts.
Entertaining them with anime songs.
This was further brought home to me when, at one point, after I'd just finished singing "Uchuu Senkan Yamato," I was stepping off the stage and heading back to my seat when a woman came up to me, smile on her face, and said, "That was awesome. Totally nostalgic. Thank you for bringing back good memories."
And that's what I'm here to do.
Bring back good memories.
...is it me you're looking for?
Lionel Richie jokes aside...
* * *
This is a chronicle of my journey as an anison cover singer.
Yes, there's a vlog already in place (and which I hope to add to and continue doing) but this felt like a place where I could talk about more in-depth things than could be done in the vlog.
So I went with this format, a place where I could chart my trek as well as muse and ponder about the all the details involved in this Thing I've undertaken.
So sit back and enjoy the trip.
Here we go...