Hello and welcome to another edition of the Otaku Mind. Today my friends we are celebrating the birthday of another one of my favorite Vocaloids and a fan favorite Gumi Megpoid. Released in 2009, Gumi was a Vocaloid created by Internet Co. making it their second Vocaloid behind another Vocaloid which we’ll get into later. At first she struggled to gain popularity but as time went on people started to catch on to her. By 2010 Gumi had become the most popular Vocaloid not associated with Cryton even coming in second on the popularity polls on Niconico in 2015. So why is Gumi so popular you ask? Well in my opinion she’s the most well-rounded singer out of all the Vocaloids. Usually a Vocaloid has one or two particular genres of music they’re good at and producers will usually stick with that genre. Gumi, on the other hand has no limitations. Whether it’s rock, pop, jazz, R&B, classic, etc. she will take that song and work wonders with it. Because of this she’s quite flexible as a singer and comes across as more of a professional in the Vocaloid community. Another factor to her popularity is that she’s the prettiest out of all the Vocaloids. Yeah, many people consider her to be the prettiest out of all the Vocaloids. With her light green hair, green eyes, and sparkling smile it’s impossible not to find her attractive and today in honor of her birthday I’m here to give you my Top 11 Gumi Megpoid songs. Why top 11? Because even when I’m not in character I still like to go one step beyond. Let’s get started, these are the top 11 Gumi Megpoid songs.
#11. Romeo and Cinderella
I’m cheating with this one since the song was originally sung by Miku but to be honest I like Gumi’s version of the song more. She just sounds more realistic, clear and emotional than Miku. The song is about a schoolgirl who is madly in love with her “Romeo”. The parents disapprove of the boy so she keeps her relationship with him a secret. Throughout the song she compares her situation to the tale of Romeo and Juliet (and we all know how that tale ended) with her being Juliet and boy being Romeo. However, instead of her tale ending in tragedy she wants it to end happily like Cinderella. It’s a very emotional song as you can tell the girl really does like this boy and wants to be with him despite her parents thinking he’s wrong for her and maybe they’re right. We never learn anything about the boy throughout the song. Gumi never talks about him or describes his personality to us so we’re left with only 2 options. One, the boy is good and the parents are just misjudging him. Or two, Gumi has mistaken love for lust and is so blinded by it that she doesn’t see how horrible the boy is. Love is hard and many people mistake it with lust, winding up in situations they regret later on in their life. One thing I do know for sure is that every woman out there wants to feel like Cinderella at least once in their life and no one deserves to have a tragic love like Juliet.
#10. Oyasumi (jazz ver.)
Now here’s a sweet song to listen to as you go to bed. The song from what I can gather is Gumi singing somewhat of a lullaby to you as you fall asleep and it’s done in such a sweet way. Gumi’s voice just sounds so relaxing and comforting as you listen to it. You feel at peace with yourself and just know you can fall asleep without any worries in the world. Another great factor about this song is the piano. That piano along with Gumi’s voice is a show stealer for me. If you’re having trouble falling asleep play this song, close your eyes and just enjoy relaxing music as Gumi sings you to sleep.
#9. Checkmate
Our first rock song on the list and definitely not the last. This is one of Gumi’s more popular songs. The song is basically Gumi singing about playing chess against this boy but every time she plays against him she keeps losing. It’s one defeat after the other with her not knowing how to beat this guy but refusing to give up and keep trying. I do admire her determination and not giving up and I like how she sings the song in a calm manner instead of shouting at the top of her lungs. I guess the idea is to show she’s not letting these defeats get to her and that for each time she loses she learns from her mistakes and tries to formulate a new plan to beat him which is similar to life. There are situations in my life where I feel I’m in a chess game (in fact, chess can be related to a lot of things such as business and politics) and at times I win and other times I lose. But despite losing I never let it get me down. I simply learn from it and press on knowing that the next time I play I’m going to win.
#8. The Muzzle of Nemesis
It’s the return of the Story of Evil and if I’m not mistaken this is the final song in the series. This song focuses on Gumi and her sin, wrath. Taking place near the end of Kaito’s song we finally get a full view of his story as well as learn why Gumi is trying to kill him. We see that Gumi isn’t really the Reaper but instead a normal human being who lost someone she loved dearly because of Kaito’s corrupted actions. She was the one who set his house on fire and is now staring face to face with him with a revolver aimed at him. Despite everything he’s done Gumi gives him a chance to atone for his sins by asking him to give up all his money but instead he refuses and she kills him. From there the song dives deeper into Gumi and Kaito’s relationship by revealing that Gumi is actually Kaito’s illegitimate child and that his daughter (Miku) died a long time ago and Kaito driven mad by her death made a doll in her image and has convinced himself that the doll is his daughter. Everything pretty much comes together in this song. I do like the tone of this song. It sounds like a rock opera where our main character has finally come face to face with her enemy and now has the opportunity to end it all but despite knowing everything that he’s done and knowing that forgiveness is not an option she still tries to get him to atone for his sins only to see that he’s beyond saving. This series started on a dark note and ended on a dark note with justice finally being served at the end. Though not in a good way it seems fitting for this story.
#7. Kiritorisen
This song when translated means Cutoff Line and just like the title that’s exactly what Gumi is doing. In the song Gumi cuts off all the things and memories that bring her pain. Music, phone, friends, her crush, it’s even hinted that she cuts herself off from herself. Man, that’s deep. It’s an ironic song because from the upbeat tempo, happy sound, and Gumi’s energetic singing you swear this was a happy feel good song. But no, it’s a sad song about a girl wanting to get rid of all her pain which is impossible. Joy and pain are like sunshine and rain. You’re going to have good times and you’re going to have bad times. You can’t just have good times all the time. You need to go through bad times to learn how to pull yourself up from a runt, to see that you’re not alone in the world, and to know what pain feels like. Through the bad times you grow as a person and learn to appreciate the good times more.
#6. Childhood Blues
Here’s another popular song from Gumi and another song that wasn’t originally sung by her. This song was originally song by IA but somebody did a cover of the song with Gumi and it exploded to the point that rarely anybody listens to the original. The song is your typical girl likes boy who happens to be her childhood friend but she doesn’t have the courage to confess to him so she instead relies on the urban legend of going on top of a hill at sunset and making a wish to the stars for 51 days in order to make her wish come true. Everything about this song is great. The animated video is great. I like the animation. The music is great. The different layers of music are wonderful to listen to and the transition between them is done amazingly well. We got drums, guitar, violin, and piano. The music strangely reminds me of the 1st opening for FMA: Brotherhood. Gumi sounds amazing as she really takes you into the story of this song and captures the emotions of the girl in this song as if she was the girl herself. I love how she’s able to transition between high and low notes so flawlessly like a professional. Many people who hear this song and watch the video believe this should be turned into an anime and yeah I think it’d be a good anime if not a good animated film. I’d watched it and review in a second.
#5. Gears of Love
It was a close tie between this song and Childhood Blues. But I decided to put Gears of Love up higher because I like the chorus and sound of the song. In the song Gumi has broken up with her boyfriend who ironically lives next door to her. She cries and talks about how she wants to embrace him again and how she lies in order to appear fine and okay to him when really she’s hurting inside. Because of a mistake she made in the past their romantic relationship is damaged beyond repair and now she has to deal with it. Like I said before the chorus in this song is great as well as the sound. This song gives off that early 2000s hip-hop/R&B feel that you really don’t hear nowadays and you wish would make a return. A sad song yes but still a good song to listen to and one I hope you check out.
#4. Twilight Ticket
Here’s a song courtesy of the cool Ramune a big supporter of Gumi. In this song we focus on a businesswoman finding herself in the funk of everyday life. She’s forgotten her dreams and is now spinning around in circles or going through the motions of the life she’s put herself in. This all changes when she remembers the dreams she had as a child and decides to switch tracks and start pursuing her dreams. Even though she’s headed into the unknown she knows she’ll be okay. The song is just catchy. It’s one of the catchiest songs I’ve heard a Vocaloid sing. While Gumi’s voice is a little low here I think she still sounds good and it’s a song that really got me interested in Ramune’s work. Definitely check out his other songs when you get the chance.
#3. Super Love Feeling
Oster Project strikes once again with a happy feel good song. There’s really not a whole lot to say about this song. It’s pretty short. Barely 3 minutes but those 3 minutes are filled with so much emotion and energy that you can’t help but feel happy whenever you listen to it. Good job Oster Project.
#2. Tsukiakari
This song is so amazing. Not only is this song catchy but the beat is so badass and matches up perfectly with Gumi’s singing. I love the drums and guitar throughout this song. The song is basically about a person about to fight someone else and him getting himself ready for what he has to do. Removing his doubts and worries. Along with the message of the song I like the metaphors used throughout the song. Very deep and meaningful lyrics that pierce deep within the soul. The intensity of this song continues from beginning to end and it still remains to this day a personal favorite of mind and almost made the number 1 spot but there’s one more song out there I think shows off Gumi’s skills perfectly.
And the number 1 Gumi Megpoid song is. . .
#1. Mathematics Girl
This song is where Gumi gives us the whole package. We see her range from high to low notes and just how clear and realistic it can be. In the song Gumi compares the love a girl has for a boy to math calling love an unsolvable equation that nobody can solve. A few of the terms fly over my head mostly because I wasn’t really good at math plus let’s be honest the highest form of math a person will do on a regular basis is like what calculus? Anyway, the song is just fun to listen to. I love Gumi’s voice throughout the song and I love the instrumental. These two elements go perfectly together with each other and once again the song shows off Gumi’s range as a singer. Starting off on a low note and easily going up to a high note and vice-versa. While Tsukiakari is probably Gumi’s most badass song, Mathematics Girl shows what Gumi is truly capable of doing and was the song that really got me interested in her.
Well that’s my list I hope you enjoyed. If I left any song out let me know in the comments below. Happy birthday Gumi, thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
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