is a Japanese

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

series written and illustrated by

Yama Wayama is the pseudonym of a Japanese manga artist. Born and raised in Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa, Wayama made her debut as a manga artist in 2015 while a student in the manga program at Tokyo Polytechnic University. After unsuccessful attempts to l ...

. The series follows a yakuza lieutenant who seeks instruction in karaoke from the head of a high school choir. It was originally published as a ( self-published manga) in 2019 before being published as a book by Kadokawa Future Publishing in 2020. A

one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'' (2 ...

(single chapter) sequel, was published in the November 2020 issue of the manga magazine ''

Comic Beam is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Enterbrain on a monthly basis since November 1995. In 2006, it had a circulation of 25,000. Popular manga serialized in ''Comic Beam'' include Kaoru Mori's '' Emma'' about the love story between ...

''. A live-action film adaptation is set to premiere in 2024.

Synopsis

Satomi Oka, the third-year head of a high school choir, is in preparations for his final performance before graduating. After seeing him perform, yakuza lieutenant Kyouji Narita asks Satomi to coach him in singing in advance of an annual karaoke competition held by his boss.

Development and release

Series creator

originally approached the manga magazine '' Morning'' to write a manga series about the yakuza, though the editors of the magazine declined her pitch. Having previously authored ( self-published manga), Wayama elected to instead publish the story in this format. She originally conceived of the story as one where a yakuza becomes a school teacher, but decided to instead make a story about a "

bromance A bromance is a very close and non-sexual relationship between two or more men. It is an exceptionally tight, affectional, homosocial male bonding relationship exceeding that of usual friendship, and is distinguished from normal friendship by ...

" between two characters with a significant age difference, ultimately settlling on the final concept of the story. The was originally sold at the 129th edition of the convention on August 25, 2019. It sold out at the event and was re-released several times via mail order, but nevertheless sold out frequently and became difficult to obtain. Kadokawa Future Publishing acquired the series to publish as a

collected edition The complete works of an artist, writer, musician, group, etc., is a collection of all of their cultural works. For example, ''Complete Works of Shakespeare'' is an edition containing all the plays and poems of William Shakespeare. A ''Complete W ...

, which was released on September 12, 2020. The collected edition contains a newly illustrated chapter depicting Kyouji's past, as well as general additions and corrections to the art and dialogue. An English-language translation of the Kadokawa edition was published by Yen Press on May 24, 2022. A

sequel, ''Let's Go to the Family Restaurant'', was published in the December 2020 issue of Kadokawa's manga magazine ''

'' on November 12, 2020. The one-shot depicts Satomi as a freshman in college. The bonus chapter from the Kadokawa edition was re-published in the May 2021 issue of ''Comic Beam'', published on April 12, 2021.

Adaptations

A live reading of ''Let's Go Karaoke!'' was performed at

Tokorozawa Sakura Town Tokorozawa Sakura Town is a pop cultural attraction complex in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan which opened in the fall of 2020. It is a joint project of the Kadokawa Corporation and the city of Tokorozawa. The development has five main components; ...

in Tokorozawa, Saitama on December 19, 2021. The performance starred Taichi Ichikawa as Satomi,

Takuya Eguchi is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He is affiliated with 81 Produce. He has voiced in a number of lead roles in anime shows, including Kazuya Kujo in ''Gosick'', Yoshiharu Sagara in ''The Ambition of Oda Nobuna'', Kon Hokaze in ''Ixion Sag ...

as Kyouji, and Kenta Miyake as Kyouji's boss. A ''Let's Go Karaoke''-themed pop-up cafe was hosted at the EJ Anime Theater in Shinjuku, Tokyo from December 4 to 26, 2021, to promote the live reading. A live-action film adaptation, directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita and written by , is set to premiere in January 2024. It had been scheduled to be released in 2023 but was delayed. The film will star Jun Saitō as Satomi and

Go Ayano is a Japanese actor. Career Ayano was featured in several roles beginning in 2003. In 2009, he appeared in Takashi Miike's ''Crows Zero 2''. His role in the film was described by Mark Schilling of ''The Japan Times'' as "a tall, pale-faced, deli ...

as Kyouji.

Reception

500,000 copies of ''Let's Go Karaoke!'' are in print as of October 2022. The series was nominated for the 14th Manga Taishō in 2021, placing third; the 2021 edition of ', placing fourth; and in the women's edition of the 2021 '' Kono Manga ga Sugoi!'', placing fifth.

References

External links

* {{Comic Beam 2019 manga Comedy anime and manga Comics set in Tokyo Doujinshi Enterbrain manga Manga adapted into films Self-published books Seinen manga Yakuza in anime and manga Yen Press titles Japanese comedy films