Tatsuya Kitani & Silica Gel on What Comes After a Border-Crossing Musical ‘Hug’: Billboard Japan Monthly Feature Interview

Billboard JAPAN’s “MONTHLY FEATURE” series spotlights artists and works that have caught its attention.

This month’s focus is on Tatsuya Kitani and Silica Gel.

In July, the genre-spanning Japanese singer-songwriter invited the four-piece band at the forefront of Korea’s indie scene for a joint performance in Tokyo at Hugs Vol.

6 , the latest installment in a multi-artist concert series organized by Kitani.

During the show, the two artists from different countries stood on stage together to introduce themselves to each other’s fans.

The night was almost like a musical “hug,” befitting the event’s name.

In stark contrast to the rainy weather outside, the venue was filled with expectation and energy.

We had the chance to talk to them on the day of the show, before they performed their sets.

From left to right: Tatsuya Kitani, Kim Han-joo (vocals and keyboard), Choi Woong-hee (bass), Kim Geon-jay (drums) and Kim Chunchu (guitar and vocals) How did you two meet? Tatsuya Kitani: I’ve been a fan of Silica Gel for a long time, and when I visited Korea on my Asian tour (in May 2025), my team asked me, “Are there any Korean artists you’d like to meet?” They said we might be able to arrange a discussion, as a promotional event.

I told them I wanted to meet Silica Gel, and even though the discussion didn’t end up happening, they came to see my show, so that’s how we met for the first time.

Han-joo: Needless to say, I love Japanese anime and culture.

I first learned about Kitani through “Where Our Blue Is,” the opening theme to Jujutsu Kaisen ’s “Hidden Inventory / Premature Death” arc.

After he invited us to play at this show, I set out to learn a lot more about him, and I found out that he has really rich musical sensibilities.

That got me to explore even more, and I discovered just how talented he was.