Mori Calliope

A virtual YouTuber crafted by hololive, the energetic English-language pop-rapper Mori Calliope stepped onto the platform in 2020. By the release of her debut solo album UnAlive in early 2022 she had already accumulated two million subscribers. Later that same year Sinderella followed and climbed into the Top 20 of Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums chart; the next release, Jigoku 6, appeared in 2023 and peaked at number six.

Hololive Production introduced Mori Calliope in September 2020 as part of its inaugural English-speaking VTuber cohort alongside Ninomae Ina'nis, Takanashi Kiara, Watson Amelia, and Gawr Gura, collectively branded Myth (or holoMyth). The five talents had secured their roles through auditions held earlier that year, events prompted by the proven appeal of hololive’s Japanese-language virtual projects. The performer voicing Mori Calliope had already spent several years delivering music to modest crowds and learned of the casting call through acquaintances. After winning the role, preparation commenced in June 2020, with her YouTube and Twitter channels launching the following month. Her inaugural broadcast, the original rap “RIP♥” (also titled “Excuse My Rudeness, But Could You Please RIP?”), aired on September 12, 2020; within thirty days her subscriber count reached half a million. Additional tracks such as “Cursed Night” and the Tsunomaki Watame collaboration “Douten Hitsuji” surfaced before year’s end, accompanied by the EP Dead Beats.

Subscriber numbers crossed one million in early 2021, and a second EP, Your Mori, arrived in April. That May, Mori teamed with Rikka of Holostars Generation One on the track “spiral tones.” While her audience continued to grow, she joined the rest of Myth for the group’s first original song, “Myth or Treat,” released on Halloween. A lo-fi reworking of the earlier EP, Your Mori (Lo-fi Edition), emerged in partnership with dj-Jo. Myth’s second collective release, “Journey Like a Thousand Years,” premiered in January 2022, shortly before Mori Calliope attained two million subscribers and unveiled UnAlive in March.

April 2022 saw the introduction of the character’s male alter ego, Calvin Mori, who subsequently issued several tracks including “C-MAN.” Mori Calliope marked her Universal Music Group debut with the July 2022 EP Shinigami Note. The Myth ensemble performed at Anime Festival Asia in September, and Mori Calliope’s second full-length project, Sinderella, landed in December 2022 at number 11 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart. Jigoku 6 followed as an EP in 2023. Among the subgroup formations that emerged from Myth were TakaMori (Mori and Takanashi Kiara), Bone Bros. (Mori and Gawr Gura), and MoRikka (Mori and Rikka).