Kiryu Coco to Graduate From Hololive
On June 9, virtual idol agency, Hololive Production, announced that prolific VTuber Kiryu Coco will graduate and leave the group effective July 1, 2021. The news was sudden as the announcement came out of the blue via an announcement on the COVER Corporation website (the parent company that owns Hololive) and on the official subreddit.
The news has fans on social media expressing mixed emotions, some of happiness and support while others feel shocked and sad.
Smash Hit
Kiryu Coco debuted in 2019 and became very popular very quickly as she gained a million subscribers in a little under two months, and, at one point, was the highest Superchat earner in the entire world. Her title was eventually usurped by fellow Hololive member, Rushia.
Fans were drawn to Kiryu’s fiercely outspoken and bold personality, often swearing on-stream much to the amusement of her English-speaking fans. In fact, her ability to speak fluent English and brazen attitude were a major appeal for her Western audience and brought in tons of views.
However, that attitude of hers has gotten her into some hot water, particularly with her Chinese fans when she and fellow Hololive member, Akai Haato, called Taiwan a country.
Departure
No reason has been given as to why Kiryu Coco decided to leave Hololive, with the announcement simply stating that “after much deliberation between both parties, we [Hololive] have decided to honor her wishes.” Hololive goes on to say that fans can check for more information later on regarding her upcoming schedule and other news.
I stay positive 🐉
わたしには明るい未来が待っている！🥰
桐生会は不滅なり！— 桐生ココ🐉7/1卒業ライブ！@ホロライブ4期生 (@kiryucoco) June 9, 2021
Hololive is also allowing for fan mail and presents to continue coming in, but they must arrive before July 14 and exclusive content will be available until midnight of September 30 before it’s gone.
Fan Reaction
The fan reaction on social media has been a mixture of love and support as well as sadness, as mentioned earlier. A commenter in the subreddit wrote on just how weird it will be to have Hololive with Kiryu and another commenter says that “she was basically the only connection from EN to JP for me and without her, there really isn’t anything to keep me watching…”
– Kiryu Coco will be graduating from hololive
– Will be holding a "graduation live" on July 1st, 20:00 JST
– Membership contents will last 3 months after graduation. (Please remember to cancel payment or it will continue to charge you.) pic.twitter.com/o697dXFZ8D— Jeshy 🧲🦌⚡ (@JeshyQt) June 9, 2021
Commenters on the subreddit are venting their feelings. On Twitter, users are thanking Kiryu for all of the funny moments and wishing her the best in future endeavors.
The Graduation Event
As mentioned, the graduation will take place on July 1 at 8 pm JST. For American fans, this means the graduation event will be held at 4 am PST and 7 am EST. So, if fans are going to watch the event as it happens, they’re going to have to wake up pretty early or just wait for the VOD.
Coco-senpai will be graduating from Hololive on July 1st.
She is one of the hardest-working people I've ever met, and our entire group would have never gotten this far without her and her spirit.
Support her until the end, and beyond that, into whatever bright future follows. https://t.co/yWXSTy8B1T— Mori Calliope💀holoEN (@moricalliope) June 9, 2021
The official Hololive Reddit account said the stream will be an opportunity for Kiryu to give her thanks, feature talk segments, host invited guests, and look back at some of her favorite moments.
The final live stream will also have a concert where Kiryu “will perform songs that hold a special meaning for her.”
Are you feeling sentimental about Kiryu’s departure? We wish her well and a bright future. Feel free to discuss on our Discord server!
