Before we get into today’s article, I’d first like to take a moment to spotlight the featured song for the next two weeks, and share an important message. A parody of FLAVOR FOLEY’s most recent release “streetcat”, “larpcat” by Mizukatelyn isn’t the usual kind of song I’d pick for a feature, but behind the veneer of what might seem like a simple, unassuming meme post is one of the most genuine expressions of self and the pursuit of artistry I’ve seen in a while. The lyrical replacements over the original are certainly humorous, but they no less resonated with me on a deeply personal level.
I could wax poetic about the topic further, but I had the opportunity to speak with creator Mizukatelyn personally and ask her about the parody. Mizukatelyn has been in the community for a long time and began uploading vocal synth covers early last year, with a handful becoming well-known online. What she had to say puts it better than I could – I think they’re words that everyone deserves to hear.
“I used to think that I only liked the idea of making art; the start, the easy part, imagining myself being similar to my idols and such… I thought that because it hurt so much to struggle and fail and learn, and that I’d run away to League of Legends or Instagram Reels, that I’m no artist; that I’m just desperately larping as one because I wanted to be like my idols; the REAL artists who made the stuff I love so much.
Now though, I learned with the help of my friends and with a lot of blood, sweat, and time, that it’s not that I didn’t enjoy making art, it’s just that I was so wrapped up in my expectations and desires that I made myself hate it. I subconsciously expected myself to be able to compose a ‘good song,’ or make ‘actually decent tuning,’ or even ‘write lyrics that are smart and catchy.’ And when I failed to meet these expectations I’d feel so hurt and I’d run away to relax, and then I’d blame my running away not on my high expectations but on my ‘nature as a person’ or ‘not being disciplined enough.’
I was only able to make larpcat because my friends kept telling me, over and over again, that I was being too hard on myself, and to take things day by day and let myself learn and enjoy. They also forced me to ask for help with lyrics, editing, mixing etc instead of forcing myself to do it all because ‘a good producer does it all’ which isn’t even true.
I credit this project’s completion fully to everyone who helped me out, and to any aspiring artists reading this, remember that as long as that spark to create exists in your body, you are already an artist. Find what you truly love, not just what you ‘think you should love’ (I quit game dev, writing, pro swimming, etc.), and let yourself enjoy the process, because torturing yourself while doing it will only do more harm than good.
You will be surprised with the beautiful things you can make by simply having fun and putting in effort with all your heart :)” – Mizukatelyn
Thanks once more to Mizukatelyn for allowing us to feature her music, for giving us her time, and for sharing her words. Hopefully they could resonate with you as much as they did with me!
I’d also like to take a moment to highlight our featured artist for this week, blueysart! They were incredibly kind and, beyond that, are an incredible artist! She has similarly been a fan of vocal synths for a while, and also had a few words to share about themself, her work, and the cycle of inspiration when asked for comment.
“I’m a euroasian student who currently lives in Italy. I’ve been drawing for most of my life; I’ve been posting art since 2018, but only recently started doing more community centered art, like vocal synths (2026)! I enjoy vocal synths Gumi, Flower, and BIG AL the most. My interests are also JJK, JJBA, music overall, and Zenless Zone Zero. I’ve been doing game art since 2023-2024, but as of now, I’ve started to prefer uploading art to social media platforms. I’ve been a fan of VOCALOID nearly over a decade or so, but recently I’ve developed a more profound interest in it. Mostly because of community artists, producers, and the popularity and resurgence of VOCALOID. I post my art in hopes of giving more light to VOCALOID, and to share my love for the fandom through fanart, projects, and more!” – blueysart
A massive thanks to blueysart for giving us their time, words, and allowing us to feature her wonderful art! Please show them support at the links below, they’re well deserving of it!
Mizukatelyn and blueysart both remind me of the earnest passion I came to love about the vocal synth scene so much, and everything I want to give back to it. Without further delay, let’s get into the article proper! Our new author once again wrote most of this one, so due credit goes to them!
Authors: Kareem (trollpatsay7) & StarrySauce
Editor: StarrySauce
Hello Project0401, this is going to be a shorter article to review what merch has been coming out near the end of August and the beginning of September this year.
First, if you read the last article, then you’ll know that Youtooz was working on a Kasane Teto plush. On August 21st, 2026, the one and only Youtooz Plush of Kasane Teto was released! This beautiful doll represents the Chimera in her UTAU days at 9 inches (or 23 centimeters) and looks stunning. The plush by itself is $30, or you can pay $40 for the plush plus an exclusive pin.
Of course, if one of these dolls isn’t enough for you, then Youtooz has a special offer to build your own Teto army, if you ever want to raid your local bakery or flaunt your superiority. The offer includes either 10 of these plushies for $240, or a whopping 25 for $525. These dolls are on pre-order right now and will be sent out for delivery around January 2027. If you’re interested in these dolls, which, let’s be honest, you are, the link is below:
Another breaking merch story from this week that’s still developing is a new figure from popular manufacturer and distributor GoodSmile, most well-known for their Nendoroid series. Since last year, we’ve had a constant wave of Kasane Teto related releases from them, and on August 27th, 2026, we were told of another pending addition to that catalogue. GoodSmile announced that a new figure of Kasane Teto’s Synth V design would be released as a part of their POP-UP PARADE figure series, with more details to come at a later date.
A preview of the figure is all we have at the moment, but as always, you can expect us to report on more details when they are made available. We’re expecting to hear about a pre-order window within the coming weeks.
Maybe you want something even more eye-catching; you could say… mesmerizing. Creco has partnered with 32ki once again to release plush keychains based on the designs of Memerizer Miku and Teto. Each of these keychains is around ￥2,200 ($14).
As of writing, you’ll have plenty of time to pick these up, as pre-orders started July 23, 2026, and end September 14th, 2026, which gives you time to gather the money to buy the Chimera herself. If you’re worried about living outside of Japan, this company is partnered with Buyee, so international shipping via proxy is available.
Lastly, MonochroMenace, a popular producer known for songs such as REGRET ROCK and MINIMUM RAGE, released an MV for WHODUNIT on July 24th, the song originally premiering on the Kasane Interlink album earlier this year. The music video was created using sets within Minecraft, with stunning key art designs by AshStash and skins made by dbrighthd. Since the video’s upload, every skin from the video has been released, and for free no less! Not only that, in celebration of the video reaching 500k, MonochroMenace released the resource pack and the map (made by TheNameMonze) she used within the video so you can make your own murder mystery game or have some chaotic fun with your friends.
Link to map and resource pack!
Hope you enjoyed this week’s article, and I’ll see you in the next one.
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