STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION, fronted by musician RON, is best known for crafting iconic anime theme songs and soundtracks for series such as “Food Wars!”, “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime”, “Beyond the Boundary”, “Ninja Kamui”, and more.

While anime brought his music to a global audience, we believe RON’s work truly transcends the genre—a major components that we aim to explore this time. With an international background shaped by living in Germany, the US, and briefly the UK, he composed his first song at the age of 10 while living in Frankfurt.

We’re honored to have the opportunity to interview STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION once again, and in this exclusive interview, we’re diving even deeper than before! We’ll explore RON’s musical beginnings, global vision, and his perspective on the Japanese music scene, including the rise of independent Desktop Music (DTM) artists. We’ll also touch on how AI could affect the future of the music industry.

So today we’re at your studio, “Verygoo”. Could you tell us a bit about how this studio production and management company operates and how you fit into the picture?

In terms of my usual work, I typically get requests from Bandai Namco Music Live to create songs. Most of the time, I start the process at my home studio and later bring it here. For example, today I had a recording session with the singer MindaRyn, where I worked as her director. We also do mixing and mastering here occasionally.

Do you prefer working at home opposed to in the studio?

To be honest, yes! I don’t come in here very often, because my director tends to take care of the vocal recording and similar tasks surrounding that, so today is a rare occasion.

Oh, then we’re quite lucky! Considering that you create music under different names, how does the artist “STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION” fit into your career, compared to the composer “RON”?

Most of my work as STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION is tied to anime, which makes these songs easier to create, since the setting and direction are already established. In contrast, with original songs, I have complete creative freedom—but that freedom often leads to decision paralysis. Still, it gives me a space to express myself in ways RON cannot.

When I work as RON, I follow the existing concept and direction of the project, often stepping into a director’s role when collaborating with singers like MindaRyn or Maeshima Mayu. These two personas—STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION and RON—have distinct responsibilities and live on different planes, but the key difference is that STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION allows me to directly connect with fans as an artist, whereas RON focuses on composition behind the scenes.

That’s a great answer!

[Everybody laughs]

With your third album “STEREO DIVE 03” released, can you give us a brief introduction to it?

As STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION recently hit its 10-year anniversary, this album is encapsulates the history of my career under this name.

Going forward, I’m hoping to do more collaborations. I’ve been in talks with artists like James Landino, NANO, Hyper Potions, and Yosh from Survive Said The Prophet.

With “STEREO DIVE 03” marking a decade of your work, how do you feel your sound has evolved since your debut? And what have you noticed about your growth as a musician?

Over the past 10 years, I’ve written numerous songs—not only for STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION, but also while producing tracks for other artists. As I’ve gained more experience as a musician, I’ve found that my ability to translate the musical ideas in my head into tangible output has become much more refined. I also feel that my creative toolbox has expanded significantly.

STEREO DIVE 03

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION

iTunes

OTOTOY

Are there any highlights from the album you’d like to share?

In terms of arrangement, performance, and other technical aspects, I believe there have been clear advancements and improvements. However, when it comes to the core of my melody-making, I feel that something fundamental has remained unchanged since the early days.

As for the two newly recorded tracks [“#03” and “TITAN“], I think they ultimately took on a distinctly Japanese, emotionally resonant character in their melodies.

We know there’s a little tribute to your first single “Daisy” in the track “#03”, can you tell us a little bit more about the idea behind it, and its importance?

Since this marks our 10th anniversary, I wanted to add a special touch to make it truly memorable. By placing the intro phrase from Daisy at the very end, I hoped to convey both a sense of respect for our beginnings and a message of ongoing connection as we move forward.

Daisy（TVアニメ『境界の彼方』EDテーマ）- STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION - [Official Video]

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Speaking of “Daisy”, it has an organic sound which is quite different from the electronic style we’re now familiar with these days. Given the contrast between these two sounds, how have you approached expressing both sides as STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION?

When I’m doing a tie-up, it’s of course influenced by the anime, but generally, I enjoy mixing genres in my songs. Take Chronos as an example [the opening theme song for “Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma”], it’s a rock song, but it also has a touch of digital essence.

When I create songs, I like to blend multiple genres into one piece to keep it lively and interesting.

You’ve mentioned in the past that you’re influenced by industrial artists like Korn, Deftones, and Nine Inch Nails. In what ways have they influenced your sound?

I like to listen to various genres, and if you listen to my work under RON, I think you’ll get it, since you will find many genres scattered around. Such as, pop, rock, metal, hip-hop, ambient, lots of them! I can compose almost any genre!

With your international background, having lived in Germany, the US, and briefly in the UK, do you think this gave you an edge when you first started your professional career in Japan?

I definitely think so. I love the atmosphere in Europe—just walking around, the streets and buildings made of bricks. At the same time, the nature is incredible, and the smell of America really stimulates your mind. All of this influences the work I do.

When I’m in Germany, the environmental sounds you experience there are completely different from Japan. The atmosphere is completely different as well.

When I was about 10 years old, I lived in Frankfurt and started making songs, so—

Wait, at 10 years old?

That’s right! And that was probably where it all started. When I came back to Japan, around high school, that’s when I really started taking music creation seriously.

So what inspired you to make music at such young age?

I’ve always enjoyed playing piano, and when I just happen to see an empty sheet of music, it made me want to fill it in—even before I’d ever composed a song. I just thought, “Maybe I can do it?”.

Digital keyboards have this “demo” button that plays pre-programmed tracks, right? I started improvising along with them and soon I thought, “Why not create my own songs?”. I experimented with the different genres provided by the demo—samba, rock, classical—and also played around with the drum sounds.

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION concert at Shibuya WWW in 2020.

That explains why you’re so versatile with genres! It also reminds us that you’re essentially a one-man band, similar to those in the “Desktop Music” (DTM) scene, like the doujin and niconico scenes. What is your impression of DTM?

It’s amazing what you can create these days with just a computer—any sound is essentially possible! Because of this, the gap between professionals and hobbyists has gradually narrowed.

That said, with DTM, even if the instruments sound real, they often lack the human touch and the nuances of a live performance. For example, the natural variations in tone or the imperfections in a violin’s high notes. But that’s just my personal opinion!

With demo tracks, we assume you start out using virtual instruments. Do you usually end up getting real people to perform those parts later?

Yes, I do. In my view, no matter how refined DTM becomes, there’s a limit to it. It simply can’t match the authenticity of a live performance recording.

That makes complete sense. Now that AI is all the rage, do you think that its influence will change this? Since it can make things sound a lot more life-like and close the gap even further?

Yeah, that could indeed be the case.

Would you mind sharing your view on the future technology, as you have a great grasp of the music industry?

With advancing technology, programming sound has become much easier. Tuning orchestral strings, for example, used to take a lot of time and effort. It’s not just adding MIDI notes, but writing expression chords, and adjusting countless of parameters—that is a pain.

With the introduction of AI, it takes cares of these tedious and mundane tasks. I would just need to write the actual melody, and it would take care of the rest [to make it life-like sounding].

Even today, for anime movie soundtracks, composers often focus on writing the melody, while their junior assistants take notes on how it should be played and handle the recording. In the future, AI might replace these assistants, making their roles unnecessary.

It will definitely make it harder for newcomers to enter the industry. Those assistant roles are crucial for learning and gaining hands-on experience after all. Do you think overall that this will end up being a good or a bad thing?

Both. On one hand, some jobs might be lost, but on the other, new ones could emerge. It all depends on how we choose to utilize this technology.

That’s true… If we look back to when you entered the industry, why do you think your music was so well-received, especially after winning an audition that got you signed by Sony?

Around 20 years ago, when I first started, there probably weren’t as many highly skilled DTM musicians as there are today. But of course, I’ve continued making DTM music ever since [honing my skills even further].

When creating music for anime, you’ve mentioned that you make sure to respect the established setting. On another note, how much do you consider the listener’s demographics, such as age or location, in your process?

From time to time. If it’s for an English-speaking country, and there are a lot of listeners, people might suggest using English or adding English lyrics. But when it comes to the sound itself, it doesn’t really affect it. All the elements come together in the end, and as long as it creates something interesting, I think that’s what really matters.

We’ve completely agree! Just to bring up an example, with an anime as globally big as Tensura (That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime), what was the case there?

For PEACEKEEPER [which was featured as the opening theme song], we increased the usage of English lyrics. It’s difficult to balance this however, since overseas people might actually want to listen to a more Japanese-oriented sound, so I’m quite conflicted to be honest.

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 3 - Opening 1 | PEACEKEEPER

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Yeah, that’s quite a dilemma, considering you want to make it easier for people to get introduced to Japanese music, while also catering to those who are already big fans of it. Does your approach differ between “RON as a composer” and “STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION”?

I don’t always have a clear picture of the end listener. It’s only when I meet them directly that I really understand. With that in mind, I recently performed overseas, and seeing the incredible response from the audience truly made me happy.

I’m happy to hear about the positive overseas reception, and in conjunction with this, how was your experience playing overseas? After all, in 2023, you visited quite a few places like Chile, America, Germany, Poland, and Bangkok.

What was interesting was that, even though I performed in different countries, the anime fans all had the same exact expressions. Everyone were really energetic and had great smiles.

Oh, that’s great to hear!

Yeah, in Bangkok, as soon as I started playing Chronos, people from afar started running towards the stage and…

[RON mimics fans, hands over mouth, pointing forward with a surprised face]

“Ah it’s Chronos” [laughs]!

I thought that was pretty cute of them. They went from “Oh, it’s a live show?” to “Holy crap, it’s my favorite song!”. It really felt like that was the case.

[Big laughter] I guess people really get hyped up when they hear their favorite anime song.

That’s right. While there are a lot of people who love anime and its theme songs. It’s when I perform that I get to connect with fans directly. For example when I played abroad, people came up to me and said, “Oh, you’re the one who sang that song!”.

Chronos（TVアニメ『食戟のソーマ神ノ皿』OP主題歌）- STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION - [Official Video]

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That ties back to how STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION is about connecting with fans. Before the song “Daisy”, we didn’t know your music, as RON worked behind the scenes. It was with STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION that we discovered your work.

Yes indeed, most of the people who create the music go unnoticed. The singers, however, stand out. For artists who sing, even though their music is composed by many different people, you usually don’t know who those creators are.

Yes, and that’s really a shame, and we started paying more attention to it ever since! Continuing on the topic of playing overseas, you recently performed at Poland’s “Hikari Festival” and created their theme song, “HIKARI”. What was your first impression when you got the request?

“Whatever your request is, I’ll make it. As long as it’s for the event and it will make you happy, I’ll do it!”, that was my impression. “Just leave it to me!”.

Oh wow, that’s impressive. And you also made sure to engage the fans, like when you asked them to submit their own recordings so you could incorporate them to the song?

Yes, and the result came out really well—it was exactly as I had imagined. The reception when I played it live was superb. I’d consider it a huge success!

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION at Hikari Festival 2024.

For “HIKARI”, you also made a YouTube video that showed behind-the-scenes footage, which isn’t something you usually do.

I thought it seemed interesting, and since Tensura was ongoing at the time, I thought, “I’ll give it a try”. I wanted to make a video, so I went ahead and did it.

Would you consider doing more of these types of videos?

I know what you mean, I should really be doing more of them, right?

We actually love watching these types of videos [laughs], but that’s just us!

Right, I should really make more of them! But my schedule is usually packed. However, if it’s a video that doesn’t take too much time, I might be able to fit it in… I’ll consider it and do my best!

We look forward to it! On the other hand, we’ve talked a lot about how you’re embracing your overseas fans—which we love to see—but for your fans in Japan, you haven’t performed much recently. Why is that?

That’s right! There’s no real reason behind it, but now that you mention it… When I’m performing, I really enjoy it, but usually when I’m in Japan, there’s always work on my mind. But like I said, when I’m actually performing, it’s a lot of fun!

When I play overseas, my setup is much simpler [a DJ-like setup]. If I were to perform in Japan, it’s a full band setup, so I’d have to think about who would be a good fit. With all these factors, it creates a mental hurdle.

Let’s say those factors and money would be a non-issue, what would you consider as your ideal live show?

On top of having a band setup, I’d love to invite voice actresses and singers that are associated with my work, making it almost like a festival of sort.

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION concert at Shibuya WWW in 2020.

We would love to attend that! So regarding your sound, what would you say has the most influence on you right now?

It might be movies, based on the emotions and feelings they evoke. From the visuals, it might make me think, “Ah, that’s something I’d like to create”.

That’s interesting, we haven’t heard an answer like this before. There’s nothing specific then?

Nothing in particular, no. However, there’s a band that has a song I found interesting, by the band called “CVLTE” [pronounced as “CULT”]. That might have had some influence on me recently.

The song is called “smileY:)”, it’s not even two minutes long—really short—but I really like it. While I’m not planning to create something like it, it inspired me to want to make interesting music. It really has a mysterious vibe to it.

Wow, I didn’t expect CVLTE to be mentioned, but they’re indeed an interesting and talented band! Their drummer HAL was also in the band MAKE MY DAY, which we’re big fans of.

About your vast discography, has there been any work or collaboration where you were exceptionally proud of having contributed to?

It has to be everything, no? I used to watch lots of anime in the past, like Akira, but as an adult, I’ve had less time to do so. That’s why, when I hear that a song I created for an anime turned out well, or when the anime itself does well, it all makes me equally happy. In that sense, creating songs for anime is something I’m really glad to be doing.

As for what made feel grateful for having been a part of, is when I’m able see the finished footage, where the visuals and sound come together really well. As of recently, the sound and visuals of the anime Ninja Kamui [which I created the soundtrack for] really impressed me, I was like, “Wow, that’s amazing!”.

Yeah, that show did a really great job combining the audio and visuals. You also recently worked on the opening theme song “KATAWARA” for “Sengoku Youko 2nd Season”. Can you tell us about the thought process when creating this song, and the elements you incorporated?

I started from when the director of the anime told me: “Make me an interesting song”.

[Everybody laughs]

For this song, he also wanted me to create various parts, and include a Japanese style to it. As a result, the sound ended up being electronic, but the essence of it is very traditional Japanese. At the same time, the vocals are very anime-esque. I think it turned out quite interesting.

We think so too! Was it a challenge to combine the digital sound with the organic sound found in traditional Japanese instruments?

For the organic sound, I essentially gave it a digital atmosphere. For example, the shamisen [“Japanese guitar”], it is played in its traditional way, but overlaps and eventually merges with the electronic beats, in order to blend itself in. Similarly, with the shoumyou [“chant”] vocals, I’ve incorporated stutter effects and pitch modulation.

Oh, interesting, so you’re basically presenting the traditional elements with a digital approach?

Yeah, that’s right.

KATAWARA（TVアニメ『戦国妖狐千魔混沌編』オープニング主題歌）STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION [Animation Music Video]

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Considering how musically flexible you are, have you ever though about producing an artist?

I actually produced for [former Fo’xTails vocalist] Sakuma Takao, who is also a voice actor. I created all of his songs while he was active as a solo artist. Although, it would be nice to produce an artist from the ground up, all the way from the audition.

What kind of sound would you have in mind for this imaginary artist?

That would be… I’d research music that seems likely to go viral and work hard to make it suit the artist. For me, if it’s music that you really want to create, you could just make it yourself at home without bringing any business aspect into it. However, when it comes to marketing something, I’d like to create songs that everyone wants to listen to and find interesting. From there, I might sneak in a little bit of my own style within that.

Do you feel like that would suppress your own creativity?

Not at all! I see myself more as a craftsman, making music for fun, so I don’t feel like I’m holding myself back.

That’s a lovely perspective. Do you have any short-term goal on the horizon?

STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION has a lot of anime tie-up songs, but outside of those, I’ve been thinking about what kind of songs I want to create right now, and that’s something I want to pursue.

If I really want to collaborate with for example NANO, I’ll should just take the initiative and shoot something away and say, “Let’s create something!”. I just want to focus on expressing myself like that. However, I don’t want it to be one-sided. It has to be something both parties are passionate about, or I might end up imposing a selfish act.

Haven’t you felt the spark or joy of working as a group in the past though? When you were in the bands “OLDCODEX” and “(K)NoW_NAME”.

Although I’ve been in the band OLDCODEX, it was frankly quite casual. I was asked by vocalist Ta_2 if I wanted to play the guitar and write songs, I just said “Why not?”. In that sense, it didn’t spark that kind of passion.

As for (K)NoW_NAME, it’s not really band, but rather a group of people that Toho Animation Records put together.

: OLDCODEX: RON, Ta_2, YORKE

Ah, got it! Do you feel like starting something yourself then?

To be honest, after working in the industry for 20 years, you realize it’s quite difficult to find time to nurture any hobby due to limited time. But when I do have free time, even just thinking about doing something simple like watering plants feels like a pain. So when I’m not working, I watch movies, and then the next day, it’s back to working hard again!

However, even with all these things in mind… at the end of the day, it would indeed be nice to play in a band where you can really enjoy your time with people you’re comfortable with and who are as passionate as you.

I was also the pianist in ROSARYHILL back in the day, a piano-rock band. It would have been great if the band had continued, but the bassist moved, the drummer too, and so on… At that time, ROSARYHILL was something I actually did as a hobby.

We’re glad to at least hear that the flame is still burning!

Yeah, it would be great to make music with people you get along with and enjoy being around.

Lastly, please leave a message to your fans overseas!

For anyone who’s taken an interest in STEREO DIVE FOUNDATION, regardless of who you are, if you’d like to learn more, feel free to reach out on social media! And if we ever meet at a live performance, let’s have a blast together!

We truly appreciate RON for generously taking the time to speak with us, especially during such a rare occasion when he’s in the studio. We hope you enjoyed this as much as we enjoyed putting it together, and that it gave you a better sense of RON’s journey and wide global impact.