Phony (song)

is a 2021 song written by Japanese music producer Tsumiki (ツミキ), utilizing the CeVIO voicebank KAFU (CeVIO). The song has inspired many cover versions.

Lyrics and composition
"Phony" combines pop, drum and bass, and techno genres. The song features the repeated lyric "phony" and onomatopoeic hooks. Higakiyuuka from KAI-YOU described it as having a catchy melody, a musical structure that is "surprising in a good way", and literary lyrics.

Tsumiki said that compared to previous Vocaloid voicebanks, KAFU can transmit an overwhelming large amount of information and show more "flesh-and-blood". These characteristics are reflected in this song, with Tsumiki stating that the production is fresh and exciting, and the vocal style is completely different from traditional songs.

Music video
A music video for "Phony" was released on June 5, 2021, and is a hand-drawn animation with lyrics subtitles. The illustrations were created by Japanese illustrator Uedatsubasa, and the film was edited and produced by Tsumiki.

Chart performance
This song placed at number 13 on the Heartseekers Songs chart released by Billboard Japan on December 15, 2021, and peaked at number 10 on the Heatseekers Songs chart in the fifth week.

In the YouTube Top User Generated Songs chart released by Billboard Japan on January 12, 2022, it entered the top 20 and ranked third, later rose to second place in the 24th week, and eventually surpassed "Kamippoi na" and won first place in the 31st week.

The song ranked second on the Top User Generated Songs chart for the first half of 2022, and won the second place on Billboard Japan Niconico Vocaloid Songs Top 20 chart on December 21, 2022.

Wagakki Band version
Wagakki Band covered "Phony" and released their music video on YouTube on 1 June 2022.