What better way to combine the love of the Japanese for cryptocurrencies and their obsession with young girls in puffy skirts than a jpop girl band singing about private key security and the risks of altcoin trading?
Meet Kasotsuka Shojo - Virtual Currency Girls!
Somehow managing to escape my radar for all things awesome, the Virtual Currency Girls first appeared in mid-January with their debut single The Moon, Cryptocurrencies and Me. The lyrics include gems like: "We are serious holders who are bringing it" and advice to "Be careful about your password! Don't use the same one!" and "Don’t underestimate the market!"
Here is it, if you want to sing along:
Band members wear wrestler-like furry masks with the logos of the coins each "represents"; the original BitCoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Neo (NEO), Mona (MONA), Cardano (ADA), NEM (XEM), and Ripple (XRP). Why isn't Steem there? Good question, I was wondering that too.
The eight member band of girls aged 15-22 was launched by Japanese entertainment company Cinderella Academy to "educate the public about the cryptocurrency world and the benefits of decentralised digital currencies such as Bitcoin". The Telegraph quoted Rara Narase, 18, the group's leader saying: "They (cryptocurrencies) are so convenient, you kind of have to wonder why we didn't have them before. We want everyone to learn more about them."
(Source: Twitter)
The Coincheck Incident
The tickets to concerts, as well as band merchandise are all sold in cryptocurrency, even though the band lost access to the account that pays its salary. The group's account was frozen as a part of a $530 million heist involving the digital currency NEM, but the girls still refused to be paid in fiat. "Our manager offered to pay us in yen, but we declined," Hinano Shirahama, who plays Bitcoin in the band, told Reuters.
It's important to note that the band doesn't encourage people to invest, but rather warns and educates about cryptocurrencies. Unlike certain social media networks that think that banning crypto-related ads is what's going to protect people from fraud.
As always, Japan just does it better.
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