Draft:Kasotsuka Shojo

Kasotsuka Shojo (Virtual Currency Girls ([仮想通貨少女]) was an all-girl J-Pop band that became a one-hit wonder for singing about crypto-currencies during Japan’s crypto boom in 2018. The name translated as “Virtual Currency Girls”.

The band's launch was covered in major newspapers, magazines and media websites across the globe, as well as by broadcasters. In the West, these included The Verge, the Financial Times , the BBC , Barron's  and Forbes. The Week described them as “the world’s first cryptocurrency-themed pop group". The American cyberpunk writer Bruce Sterling noted their arrival for Wired. Japan Today called the band's fame "an incredible gimmick". They were described as a sign of the hype around blockchain and also as a symbol of its future.

Kasotsuka Shojo became a poster child for what was happening in Japan, and in cryptocurrencies more generally. In a film documentary, the Wall Street Journal said creating a band for crypto marketing purposes "epitomize[d] Japan’s crypto craze". The country was a "true crypto paradise ... in part thanks to supportive government regulations".

History
Kasotsuka Shojo was launched by the Cinderella Academy, a Japanese talent agency. The company said it chose each member from the “zodiac constellation” of idol groups it already managed. Two members were from the agency's Hoshiza Hyakkei (星座百景グレート, "100 Constellations") band. Kasotsuka Shojo made their debut stage in Tokyo on January 12, 2018.

Each group member adopted the guise of a specific cryptocurrency. The band members said their aim was to educate people about the crypto-world in song and dance. The eight band members and their cryptocurrencies were:
 * 1) 18-year-old Rara Naruse (Bitcoin Cash)
 * 2) 16-year-old Hinano Shirahama (Bitcoin)
 * 3) Age-unreleased Ami Amo (Ethereum)
 * 4) 22-year-old Suzuka Minami (NEO)
 * 5) Age-unreleased Momo Aisu (Mona Coin)
 * 6) 17-year-old Kanako Matsuzawa, a member of Hoshiza Hyakkei (Cardano)
 * 7) 17-year-old Koharu Kamikawa, also sang with Hoshiza Hyakkei (NEM)
 * 8) 15-year-old Hinata Kozuki (Ripple)

CNET gave different versions of some band member names with links to their Twitter feeds.

Rara, the group's leader, said, "We want everyone to learn more about them [cryptocurrencies]." The band's merchandise had to be bought with a cryptocurrency, as did their concert tickets. Each singer's salary was paid in cryptocurrency. At the time, there was a cryptocurrency "frenzy" in Japan because Bitcoin was accepted as legal tender and a third of the global trade was in yen.

Each singer wore a frilly mini-skirt and French maid apron with knee-high socks and a Mexican lucha libre professional-wrestling mask. Such outfits are popular costumes in Japan’s anime and cosplay circles. A cryptocurrency was shown as a symbol on the mask each singer wore. The idea was to form a globally recognisable "uniform", Rara said.

An article about "crazy" cryptocurrency stories included the group and said it had its “ups and downs” because Bitcoin (Hinano) "went to war" with Bitcoin Cash (Rara) for control of the band.

The band reappeared in 2001 with a second single about another crypto craze, non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The official website showed just seven band members (no Bitcoin girl) and changes to the line-up: Rara Naruse (Bitcoin Cash), Karen Ito (Ethereum), Yuna Himekawa (NEO), Nika Miizoiri (Mona), Kanako Matsuzawa (Cardano), Haruka Kamikawa (NEM), and Hinata Katsuki (Ripple).

NEM hack setback
A few weeks after the band launched there was a theft of US$530 million in NEM from Coincheck and the crypto exchange had to be suspended. In a news story for The Daily Beast, the journalist and Tokyo Vice author Jake Adelstein reported that the girls said that the freezing of their accounts at Coincheck would delay their salaries. Koharu had stern words for the hacker. “It's absolutely bad. I want to say to the hacker, ‘You jerk, you stupid jerk.’ Give everyone back their NEM!”

Even so, the band performed on February 16 at a concert with Coincheck owners in the audience in Tokyo.

Two months later, the BBC’s File on 4 reported that the girls were still waiting to get their cash. Peter White interviewed Rara and Hinano, saying they were still at school.

Wall Street Journal documentary
In October 2018, the Wall Street Journal made a video documentary in Japan about creating its own cryptocurrency, called WSJCoin: Yes, We Created Our Own Cryptocurrency. The video was given a premiere screening in Hong Kong and followed by a discussion panel of industry experts. It was promoted in a WSJ Wealth Adviser briefing. The reporter Steven Russolillo described Kasotsuka Shojo as epitomizing Japan’s crypto craze, although he said, "The mania has fizzled [out]." The documentary includes clips of Kasotsuka Shojo playing and interviews with them. Russolillo said that the band was created by someone (who is not named) for marketing purposes because crypto was such a big business. The band members were interviewed and Suzuka said, "We all used to be in a different band. One day we were suddenly told: 'You are now the Virtual Currency Girls.' We were given masks and these maid costumes. That's how our new band started." The reporter asks for advice on creating a new crypto and Suzuka says, "Why don't you wear a mask like this as well." The WSJCoin was created in Japan by the co-founder of a local startup called Soramitsu.

A month later, the paper followed up on the documentary and again featured Kasotsuka Shojo. The release of the WSJCoin was blocked because it would create a conflict of interest for journalists on the Wall Street Journal.

Tracks
The first single was “The Moon, Cryptocurrencies and Me” in January 2018. Kasotsuka Shojo sang in Japanese. The lyrics are about the benefits and dangers of cryptocurrencies. Examples include: "Paper [money] is over. It’s the digital age… Also are you thinking about taxes [on your earnings]… You put better some away. If you forget, the tax office will come for you someday!" They include warnings like "It's hell if you buy at a high price!", "Don't forget about two-step verification", and "Never use the same password twice."

Barron’s, the American finance magazine, described the track as “an electro-pop reflection of digital money and the dangers of the crypto world, punctuated by a chorus of eight teenage girls shouting the cryptos they represent”. The business news website Quartz said it was a "lecture on online security and watching out for fraudulent crypto businesses".

For the second single, “NFT The World”, released as a video on July 30, 2021, there were Japanese and English versions. NFTs of Ukiyo-e artworks were sold also.

Photographs of the Virtual Currency Girls are sold by Reuters and Getty Images which lists the band's photographs as Japanese symbols for money.