Rising J-pop sensation NOMELON NOLEMON is heading to the U.S. for its first overseas performance during Anime Expo 2025 in Los Angeles, California. While the convention takes place at the Los Angeles Convention Center, the performance will be held at the nearby Peacock Theater.
The dynamic music unit NOMELON NOLEMON, featuring creator tsumiki and the talented singer-songwriter MIKIMARIA, will be performing during the Gundam Rising: Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX Special Event panel, scheduled for Thursday, July 3, 2025. The music duo will take the stage as special guests, performing their hit insert song “Midnight Reflection” from the Gundam anime series. In addition, the panel will showcase a live concert video featuring theme song artist Kenshi Yonezu, along with a special video message from ending theme song artist Hoshimachi Suisei.
Just ahead of their performance in LA, on July 2, NOMELON NOLEMON dropped their newest EP, “HALO.” Since they came together, they have dropped two albums: POP in 2022 and Rule in 2023. Their standout track, “SAYONARA MAYBE” from the second album, has captured widespread attention on TikTok, making it their most popular single to date. Then, in 2024, the duo celebrated a significant milestone with their first anime collaboration, performing the ending theme “Suikou Setten” for Rurouni Kenshin.
The Beat caught up with the musical duo NOMELON NOLEMON ahead of their live performance at Anime Expo to discuss their first live event overseas, the origin of the band name, and what it’s like composing for anime.
OLLIE KAPLAN: I’m going to start with the basics. How would you describe the sound of your music to someone who’s never heard of NOMELON NOLEMON?
TSUMIKI: When writing music, I want to do something packed with Japanese culture. So, if I were to describe my music to someone, I’d be happy if they said, “Wow, you’re making Japanese-like music.” Whenever I compose, I try to pack as much Japanese culture into something as I can. So, whenever someone says, “Hey, this is NOMELON NOLEMON,” I want them to feel a very Japanese vibe or culture, which would be the response I’m looking for.
KAPLAN: What artists and movements have influenced your sound and visual style?
MIKIMARIA: That’s difficult. I listen to a lot of J-POP. I don’t see myself as a J-POP artist, but I listen to many different genres of J-POP, which influences my singing. I change the way I sing depending on the song. I change the color of my voice.
J-POP is a massive inspiration to me. Within the larger J-POP landscape, there are many different styles and subgenres, so I can’t really pick one specific one. Collectively, the J-POP genre and the pop genre have affected my own style. I adjust my singing vocals and voice depending on precisely what nuance I’m trying to convey.
KAPLAN: Your new Halo EP is coming out. Can you walk us through your songwriting process on a project like this? Who typically starts the ideas, and how do you build the song?
TSUMIKI: When we make a song, we usually discuss it together. We discuss what kind of song we want, or what kind of people we want to reach—that’s what we discussed when we made this song. I’ll make a demo out of that, which I’ll give to Miki Maria. She’ll try singing it, and she’ll give me feedback. We’ll play a little game of tennis there, going back and forth with the feedback cycle. That’s the process of composing a song.
KAPLAN: You wrote “Midnight Reflection” and other songs for the upcoming Mobile Suit Gundam anime and will be playing that song during the Anime Expo’s Gundam Rising in Los Angeles panel. Can you tell me more about your experience creating music for the anime, specifically, and how contributing to a major anime franchise shapes your creative process compared to your standalone music?
TSUMIKI: We decided on the theme because the two of us talked about it, then we tied it together and settled on the title and chorus. What’s changed from usual is that the script for Gundam inspires the theme. The process doesn’t change much, but the theme’s origin and starting point differ. As I mentioned a little earlier, I think when we begin our process, we will discuss the thematic elements we want to touch upon in our music. We decide on the theme first, then the title, and then on a good hook for the chorus or a different phrase that works well. In the case of Gundam, instead of discussing different thematic elements or playing tennis in that first stage, a lot of that comes from the source, the anime screenplay. The rest of the process is not that much different. It is just the original part that is different when composing for an anime.
KAPLAN: What kind of atmosphere do you hope to bring to the stage when you perform? Afterward, what kind of feeling do you want the attendees to leave with?
MIKIMARIA: Well, it’s our first time performing as NOMELON NOLEMON overseas, so my first goal is to let people know about NOMELON NOLEMON. I hope people will listen to it, watch the live performance, and realize what kind of artist NOMELON NOLEMON is. That’s all I want; I’d be happy.
KAPLAN: Do you think the Anime Expo will be an essential bridge that connects you to new audiences?
TSUMIKI: I’m very proud to be involved in a work that has been loved for a long time, such as Gundam. I’ve previously collaborated with the anime Urusei Yatsura and Rurouni Kenshin. It would be a great milestone if we could continue to be part of these almost representative projects of Japan.
KAPLAN: That’s a good fit for the band’s mission. What might our readers be surprised to learn about you?
MIKIMARIA: I can tell you a little bit about the origin of the name, where NOMELON NOLEMON came from. My partner Tsumiki is really into Japanese phrases, which have the same phonetic sound whether you read them from left to right or vice versa, and NOMELON NOLEMON is read the same way. He loved the idea that the band’s name would do that, which is why our unit is called NOMELON NOLEMON now.
Aside from that, the interesting part is that Tsumiki doesn’t eat melons—like he can’t. So that might be a little piece of trivia that your listeners would love to hear. I don’t know how this happened, but apparently, one of us oversees the lemon, and the other oversees the melon. So, I took the lemons, and he took the melon, despite Tsumiki being unable to eat them.
KAPLAN: Finally, do you have any messages for Anime Expo attendees?
MIKIMARIA: Again, this is our first international performance, so if audiences could just know a little bit more about NOMELON NOLEMON as they leave the auditorium, I think that would bring me a lot of joy.
KAPLAN: Thank you so much. I would keep asking, but we’re at our time.
