Author: Ellis Nguyen
Image Creds: ippo.tsk
Since the early 2010s, the vocal synthesizer community has been dominated by the Japanese-speaking audience. Having pioneered style with the introduction of Vocaloid software, vocal synth has become synonymous with many different genres of Japanese music. The voices of Hatsune Miku, Megurine Luka, and GUMI helped cement Vocaloid and vocal synth as hallmarks of Japanese culture. Yet, as popular as it was, the vocal synth community felt distinctly Japanese, even as the English-speaking community grew.
This began to change with the advent of the 2020s. Many different factors contributed to this change, but the largest was that of vocal synth software. The relatively simple tones of the Japanese language made it considerably easier to record syllables for a voicebank (a collection of samples that vocal synth software uses for a voice). This led to vocal synth software developing much faster in Japanese than in English. Eventually, English vocal synth software caught up with the release of Synthesizer V in 2020. Additionally, the development of AI led to software utilizing it to increase the human- like quality of some of their voices, helping considerably with the vocal clarity of English voicebanks.
The development of English voicebanks and the growth of the Western community resulted in a rise of new vocal synth music from 2023 onwards. These new songs transformed the style of vocal synth by introducing more Western instrumentation, providing a breath of fresh air to the scene. In 2024, this all culminated in the DAEMON/DOLL album project, a compilation of Kasane Teto songs from some of the most popular names in the English scene. The project brought greater attention to these artists, skyrocketing the popularity of many of them.
One of these artists is Jamie Paige, who has since become an influential voice in the Western scene. While she was popular prior to the project, DAEMON/DOLL boosted her song “Machine Love” to being the second most popular song on the tracklist, with over 26 million streams as of December 2025. She bounced off this attention, releasing “Constant Companions” and launching the musical group Flavor Foley with fellow producers Vane Lily and ricediety shortly after. Eventually, Flavor Foley and CircusP were commissioned to collaborate on a song to be featured in Vocaloid’s popular rhythm game Project SEKAI: COLORFUL STAGE. Their song “ELECTRIC WEEKEND ZONE” is now one of the few songs from Western producers existing in the game. Together, these milestones are an indicator of the success that English-speaking producers have within the vocal synth community.
In addition to this, the DAEMON/DOLL project has also helped highlight the unique creativity of the English-speaking community. In the case of Jamie Paige, her music is unique and eye-catching, even when compared to other Western producers. Her songs often blend the energy of Western electronic pop with clever, intimate lyricism and a strong melodic focus. Her music always feels calm and less busy compared to Japanese vocal synth producers, while still being fulfilling. On top of that, her tuning of voice synthesizers feels smooth and human while also retaining the robotic timbre typical of vocal synths. These factors exemplify how her songs represent the freshness and Western styles of the English-speaking community.
However, while Jamie Paige’s music is unique, I feel that the artist who best represents the creativity of the scene is ippo.tsk, who was also featured on DAEMON/DOLL. Uniquely, ippo.tsk combines the unique vocals of vocal synths with indie rock instrumentation while integrating elements of Midwest emo and early 2010s Vocaloid rock. He uses chimey and dirty guitars that move between a calm and quick pace while a soft synth glides and hops over the whole track, sometimes blending with the vocals. His use of vocal synth creates movement as it layers over itself and builds up tension, as if it needed to go somewhere. The processed and sometimes robotic feeling of the vocals juxtaposes the introspective and emotional content of the lyrics, creating a detached feeling that amplifies its themes. Combined, ippo.tsk’s music represents a creative merging of styles and genres while also incorporating the unique ambiance of vocal synths to amplify its instrumentals and lyrics.
As time goes on, the community can only grow larger. Artists like ippo.tsk and Jamie Paige help push the boundaries of vocal synth music and help evolve the scene while also fighting for recognition from the broader community. As the scene develops, it’s exciting to see where it’ll go, and with the creativity of the community, the future looks bright.
Ellis Nguyen | Music and Arts Reporter