Bringing VTubing Into the Future: An Interview with Serina Maiko & Abi Kadabura of V4Mirai

(Left: Abi Kadabura, Right: Serina Maiko)

V4Mirai is a Virtual YouTuber agency who is also the first English-language project from Japanese company, Brave Group. Bringing together members & talent from around the world, V4Mirai strive to spark something new within the world of VTubing by creating their own future, or "mirai". They recently attended Anime Los Angeles as guests of honor, and they held a special live concert on one of the evenings. We were lucky enough to sit down with first generation "Crystalis" members Abi Kadabura and Serina Maiko. We discussed their start in VTubing, the recent live concert, V4Mirai's plans for the future, and lots more! Whether you're already a fan of theirs, of if you're hearing about them for the first time, you'll want to read on and check out her social media via the links at the end!

A-to-J: Thank you for joining us today! Can you give us a brief introduction about yourselves?
Serina: Of course! Thank you for having me, I’m from V4Mirai’s first generation Crystalis. My name’s Serina Maiko, and I’m the Dancing Princess because I dance a lot and I act like a princess!
[Laughs] I have a very music-focused creation style, and I really want to do more music going into 2024. I’m really excited to bring R&B and jazz, and I guess the more subtle music genres into VTubing. I think it could be a really cool crossover to see. Especially because when I debuted, I debuted with an original R&B song, and I did not expect it to do as well as it did. It really motivated me and encouraged me to do more R&B because I’ve always been trying to adapt to what’s more popular like J-Rock, anime-style music. I’m excited!
A-to-J: Awesome! Thank you, and then, Abi?
Abi: Hi hi! I’m Abi Kadabura. I’m also from Gen 1 Crystalis. I am the stand-up comedy idol of V4. I’m excited to be here! I had a great time at the concert, and I’m so excited to talk to you guys!

A-to-J: Thank you so much! Perhaps we can start with you guys telling us what got you into VTubing.
Serina: For me, I’ve always been interested in idol culture. Growing up I’ve always wanted to be a singer, and then when I got into middle school/high school, I got really into K-Pop and so I wanted to be in a dance group. And then I got really into streaming, and VTubing was kinda like all of that plus a whole new magical world I could create. So I was really excited to become a VTuber. I kinda just stumbled across it. There wasn’t really any big moment where I was like: “This is it!” It was more like I had a bunch of different dreams that I wanted to do, and then VTubing gave me the option to do all of them. Because I was like: “Oh. I don’t wanna have to choose between doing music, or just streaming, or going into voice acting, or just focusing on dance.” I could just do everything as a VTuber. Of course I would also like to be an IRL idol, but with VTubing I feel like I could reach more people which is my main goal: To share my music, and my performing creativity, with as many people as possible. Of course, there’s also the added character building and worldbuilding. Just making a world where people can escape to is a really important part of it for me, and I think having animation and all the flashy colors, character development, and creation is a really big part of that.
Abi: For me, I’ve been kind of idol-trained since a very young age. I probably started my first ballet and acting classes when I was three. I’m from Brazil where there’s very little arts. I wanted to find a place where that was the case. I’m a big gamer as well. It’s been like the anime and gaming community has given a home. I love that, I also love performing, and I also have really bad stage fright. I’m pretty talkative, but I am a huge, huge introvert. I’ve always tried to find communities that would take me in. I love making people feel accepted, and feeling accepted as well. Like in school, I would find the people in the corners, and I would assemble us all together so no one would be alone. That’s kinda what VTubing feels like to me. I get to do everything that I love in a space that I’m much more comfortable in. It helps me a lot and I also get to not only find a home for myself, but also make a home for others. I'm also really interested into bring comedy and stand up to the VTubing space. I think there is a lot of potential in comedy that is not reached, and comedy in the anime culture is so, so special and so hilarious, and the VTubing is so hilarious. I love trailblazing like back home there’s no arts, and I kinda created a space for artists and performers and comedians. I kinda want to keep doing this here as well, like see what people love; whether it’s comedy like I love, or whatever they love that they feel like there isn’t room for, and help them push the walls and keep expanding within this amazing unique community.

A-to-J: Well, on that note, since you guys are really big performers and you love spreading your joy to everyone, how was it doing your concert at the convention?
Serina: It was so much fun! I know I mentioned before that I wanted to be in a dance group. I love group activities so, so much. I did also think about being a soloist one day, but for me I think I’ll always choose group stuff over solo activities any day. I don’t know... It made my heart swell getting to be onstage and dance and interact with the girls. That feeling of unity. Doing a concert together, you really connect with each other in a way that you’ve never really experienced before. I really, really enjoyed it. I loved every second of it. I was really happy, especially when you see the penlights, which was really, really exciting, on the monitor. It was a really good time. I’m really happy. I grinded a lot both vocally and choreography-wise. I was practicing the choreography up until the day of the concert just over and over and over again. It like haunts me now. I can’t listen to the music without dancing to it.
A-to-J: That’s awesome.
Abi: For me, it was so, so, so special. I’ve been working a lot on believing in myself and just seeing how many people were there and excited for all of us. It was so, so nice. I have a lot of stage fright. I’ve been idol-trained since I was three, but it’s very hard for me to actually perform live, so I have all of this... honestly, technique that I can’t show the world. It was so nice because it was the first time that I felt really enthusiastic. I was telling our CEO: “From now on, the world is my oyster,” because I feel like after accomplishing that, I have the support of V4 and all the girls and I feel like: “Wow! I love where I’m at. I love my community. I love these girls. I can actually enjoy this and do this.” It was a pivotal moment. It was like my change, like it’s my protagonist arc. I’ve now crossed over that bridge and it’s exciting. The world is different.

A-to-J: That really great to hear! So, V4Mirai is a group focused on the future. What does that mean exactly to you? What do you think the future looks like?
Abi: I love that question.
Serina: To me, the future is more diversity, not just in creators, but also the type of content that we do. As it is right now, VTubing is getting very, very popular, and a lot of what you’d more commonly see in VTubing would be J-Rock or anime music or J-Pop, stuff like that. I know I mentioned it before, but something that’s really important to me is not only introducing new genres, or like fusing new genres into that, but also being here as a Black corporate VTuber and standing out for them; representing that community in a space that I haven’t seen a lot of others. There are a lot of other Black VTubers, especially in the independent scene, but when I look at corporate VTubers, there’s definitely a much smaller percentage than there is of other types of VTubers. For me V4Mirai is about pushing boundaries, trying new things, showing that you can grow even if you’re not the same as everyone else, showing that you don’t need to do what’s like “VTuber meta." Regardless of how fast or slow that you grow, you should stick by it because I see VTubing as only ever getting bigger and bigger, and more popular. And the more popular it gets the more people are gonna want to do new things and take more risks. I think it’s entirely worth it.
Abi: I love, love, love this question. V4Mirai is a Japanese company so we have great roots in the tradition of VTubing and management that is an expert in so many aspects; all of it. Something that we admire and we study. Our goal coming here to the US and abroad is really to just keep pushing boundaries, and I think supporting each other in our dreams. I think it’s very easy to distance yourself from creators who are doing different things because you don’t necessarily want to be associated with pushing boundaries; like it’s hard. I think that us all supporting each other and reaching our dreams toghether is super important to me. When Serina wants to bring her new music and anything she wants to talk about, being there for her is super important to me because that’s what the organization is about: supporting each other in our dreams and pushing boundaries.
Also, personally, I really do wanna bring comedy to this space, and I am really cherishing that. I am from Brazil, and I have a good Brazilian following, and VTubing is even newer there so kind of just helping spread that around and bring more joy to different people is super important to me. E-sports and gaming has been getting huger in favela [Brazilian working-class neighborhoods], as in Brazil, and it’s been a great way for people to escape their current circumstances, and find hope in a place where a lot of things can seem hopeless. The education in those places can be weaker and it can feel like the world is not your oyster, but it should. There are so many talented, amazing people. So I think that continuing to spread the culture, push boundaries with my genmates, push boundaries in comedy, but also push boundaries for my Brazilian followers I think, is super important to me. Bring VTubing to new people, bring VTubing to new spaces, and bring new opportunities through VTubing to everyone who desires them.

A-to-J: As Gen 1, did you feel nervous about becoming senpai and being good role models for your kouhai when Gen 2 was announced?
[Abi laughs]
Serina: Yeah. I feel like, especially with how soon everything happened, I was like: “I was just born! Now I’m a senpai? I don’t know how to mentor people. I don’t know anything. I’m still figuring out half of this stuff myself. I can barely get Vtube Studio running half the time.” [Everyone laughs] I was very nervous especially coming into this as someone who has a very, very different perspective on VTubing, and a very different goal and expectation for my personal content. It does feel like there are some times where I can’t be as helpful to them as they might either expect or need me to be just because of how different I am, but regardless, senpai, kouhai, whatever, we all get along really well. I think that’s the most important thing; just being able to work together. Especially because I know our goal right now is that we really wanna try to combat gen division as much as possible. That’s why we have the sub-units for the concerts, which are kind of mixed up between Gen 1 and Gen 2. I kinda just see us all as just a six-member group right now. I try not to worry too much about my senpai duties, and it has nothing to do with me not knowing what my senpai duties are... I swear.
[Serina laughs and then Abi laughs]
Abi: Yeah, It’s different because we’re the youngest so it’s interesting. We want to be respectful as well, so we’ve been trailing it very mindfully. That is the outcome of our organization. Part of pushing the boundaries is us having just one big group that is supporting each other, rather than just sub-units. Mainly considering Serina and I are a two-person generation. So as much as we can all feel like a big family, it gives us all a greater sense of home, so it’s been scary. Also, again my content is very particular. I am very focused on comedy, and I have huge bilingual Brazilian content, so I could teach them that. But we’re all just supporting each other, and I think the emotional support is a huge chunk of it. Just having someone to talk to at any hour of the day to be like: “Oh, I’m dealing with this or I’m excited about this,” and knowing someone is there, it’s less of a responsibility, more of a delight that we have more people to share that with now.

A-to-J: This question is for Serina: I know you’re more comfortable on stage than you are in a castle. What did you have to do to escape your princess duties in order to be able to perform for everyone?
Serina: Y’all, a lot of people died! [Everyone laughs] So basically, what happened... There was a demon army that attacked my village. It was very sad so I got sent to V4 Academy to cope with it, but also to really get to express myself. You know, I grew up the youngest of four. I’ve always been kind of like sheltered, and like it gets kind of stuffy. I didn’t really have anybody to perform for. Things kind of just fell into place for me which makes me really happy. I’m really, really grateful to V4 for all the opportunities they give me and I’m very excited because they’re always learning new things about me. [Laughs] They’ll always be like: “I didn’t know you dance. I didn’t know you do that. I didn’t know you do this,” and I’m just like: “Yeah. I have a lot of things I’ve never really got to show anybody before,” so it’s a really big opportunity for me.

A-to-J: This question is for Abi. I noticed that you have an incredible buff model. I’m very impressed with your hard work! Can I ask what your workout routine is like to be able to maintain that physique?
Abi: [Pants] Okay. I’m gonna be honest with you. I’ve just been a dancer and a gymnast since I was a very young kid. This is such a horrible answer. The way I grew up, I developed a lot of muscle. I used to be bullied for my abs in like middle school. At this point, all I do is kind of maintain it. Cringe Honesty: You’ve gotta overload yourself. If you don’t go ‘til failure, your muscles won’t grow. Eat well. Rest well. Creatine. That’s not steroids. A lot of it is dancing. Dancing surprisingly keeps you very strong. In ballet training, arms are out for hours. I would take like nine hours of ballet. Those big boys are there. Yeah. No steroids. Natty.

A-to-J: Awesome! Thank you. In honor of the new year, what are some of your goals and resolutions for 2024?
[Error 404: Serina Not Found]
Abi: Thank you for your questions! They’re really great questions!
[Serina reconnects]
Serina: I really, really, really wanna do more music. My goal is to do something musical at least monthly, but I don’t wanna like oversell and underdeliver so if it doesn’t happen, that’s on me. I really want to do significantly more music. I wanna do both high effort, low effort, just anything even if it’s just a one take Live2D karaoke thing. [Laughs] I really just want to show off my voice more. This one’s a little bit more difficulty accessibility-wise, but I want to do more dancing stuff. 3D is scary, but I really want to be able to do more dance stuff. I wanna do more dance covers. I gotta figure out a way to do that in a way that’s a little more efficient. For me, it’s mostly more performing stuff. The biggest thing for me... I guess not to get like emotional, but I really want to talk about being Black more, like being a Black creator. I feel, when I first debuted, I was very intimidated talking about it. I was kind of under the impression that there would be people who consume my content and just convince themselves that I’m just tan, or I’m just gyaru, because that’s the only way that they would accept it. As I get more confident in myself and my content and my creations, I feel more accepted with the girls and the community that I do have. I feel like I don’t really need to worry about it as much. I was scared that I was like: “Oh, if I talk about being Black, my numbers’ll go down because people don’t want to consume that, or they don’t want to think about it. It ruins things for them,” and I’m like: “Honestly, if me being Black ruins VTubing or anime for them, then I don’t need that community.” I wanna be more open about it. I want other Black creators to feel being open about it as well.

A-to-J: Yeah, that’s a really great point. Abi, how about you?
Abi: Oh my god. Goals for 2024? I was just so excited by Serina talking I forgot the question. For 2024, my goal is to get to do a standup comedy special as a VTuber. I am hard at work on it. There’s a lot that goes into doing it. To do a good stand-up set, you basically have to run it a million times, and run it with different audiences. How you do that when the tech doesn’t allow you to see your audience, and stand up involves crowd work so heavily, so that is something we’ve been working on, ever since debut really, trying to figure out how to optimally do it in a way that the essence of VTubing is still there, as well as the essence of stand-up comedy. Because it’s very close to streaming. They are very tightly knit, but the matter of seeing people's reactions and calling them out with lags and all of that is a fine art to tune. Perfecting that in the next year is super important to me. I really do love comedy, and I really desire to do that. I will also be doing more comedic covers in the next few months. I think it’s a nice way to merge my idol ambitions and my comedy ambitions. I will keep trying to do at least once a month “A Poorly Portuguese Stream.” I have subtitles on my stream and I really try to switch up. I’m from Brazil. I just moved here and a lot of the Brazilian followers have been super supportive of me and really trying to help me out. I wanna make sure that I don’t go like: “Oh my gosh! Thank you for helping me grow. Goodbye!” I want them to feel appreciated every step of the way, whether it’s helping them learn English so they can consume more different content, whether it’s just helping other VTubers from Brazil reach worldwide demographics, or just doing my best to do more Portuguese streams and just bringing their culture abroad. I wanna make sure I’m grateful for how kind they have been to me. Also, you know, Brazil-mention. Whether it annoys people or not, I would love for my culture to be more meta in the online space. It is. We all know about it, but there are still many cool things that I still wanna share. Those are my main goals, but also for us, it’s so important that the V4 girls help each other out, so another goal is just to make time to also help my fellow creators, not prioritize myself so much and my goals that I can’t be there for them.

A-to-J: We are just about out of time, but would you guys like to give a short little goodbye to your fans?
Serina: Abi, you should go first. I’ve gone first every question so far.  
Abi: You know I love it when you go first. You’re doing this to me on purpose! [Laughs] Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll do it. I’m so grateful to all of you whether you came, whether you’re watching the concert later on, you’re just reading this interview, you just comment a sticker in chat every two months, I love all of you guys. I really appreciate your support. I hope I bring you joy and please, please check out all of the girls. Every one is so unique and special. Serina is my best friend for life, but so are all the other ones. I love every single girl, and they’re so unique so please, if you enjoy our content, check us all out and share us with your friends. Help grow the V4 family.
A-to-J: And Serina?
Serina: For me, I just want to say thank you so, so much. Not just to my community but also the V4 staff, all the V4 girls. Like Abi said, we’re besties but I also really, really like the second gen girls as well. They’re all so, so sweet and they’re so different in their own ways. I love getting to like squeal with them if that makes any sense, and do late night karaoke, and hang out with them, and share our interests. I just want to say thank you so much to the community for making me feel so comfortable and accepted. I know how much I gush about the company all the time, and how much I love being in V4. The management’s also so, so, so accommodating, and they’re always so welcoming and it makes me really happy. Because I know that not a lot of Black people working, especially in corporate jobs, can say that they feel genuinely like they’re equal with everybody and that they feel genuinely really comfortable. It’s little things like when we’re getting art done , and one of the managers will call out: “I think Serina’s looking a little light. Can we take her a couple shades darker?” They just do so many little things to make me feel genuinely seen and cared about and it makes me really happy. I know this is supposed to be a thank you to the community so yes, thank you to the community as well. Because they also make me feel so comfortable being myself and feel so accepted being myself, and I hope that we can tap into that and we can really expand the community, not just in VTubing, but just in streamer culture in general. I really wanna reach out to like the IRL viewers especially the people that like watching other Black streamers. I really wanna tap into that community so if you’ll have me, I’m on my way.
Abi: They will have you.
A-to-J: Awesome! Thank you guys so much for the interview!

We'd like to thank Abi Kadabura, Serina Maiko, and V4Mirai for the interview and we strongly encourage everyone to check them out via the links below. As always, keep an eye out for more from V4Mirai in the future! Also, special thanks to Anime Los Angeles for this opportunity!

For More Information:
V4Mirai Site: https://v4mirai.com/
Abi Kadabura Twitter: https://twitter.com/AbiKadabura
Abi Kadabura YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AbiKadabura
Serina Maiko Twitter: https://twitter.com/SerinaMaiko
Serina Maiko YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SerinaMaiko

The above interview was conducted by Megan Smith. Transcription by Jeffery Kelly. Photography by Ivan Aburto.