Girls Band Cry — BrandWiki

Girls Band Cry

Girls Band Cry (ガールズバンドクライ), abbreviated as GaruKura (ガルクラ), is an original Japanese anime television series created and produced by Toei Animation. The series is part of a multimedia project that began in 2023 in collaboration with Agehasprings and Universal Music Japan, with music being the focus. It aired from April to June 2024. A mobile game developed by DONUTS GAMES Inc titled Girls Band Cry First Riff (ガールズバンドクライ First Riff) is in development, and an action-platformer Windows game titled Momoka (wo) Wasshoi (桃香（を）ワッショイ), inspired by the anime series, was released in September 2025.

Plot

Set in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture,[1] the series follows Nina Iseri, a high school dropout who moves to the city to prove she can live by herself and be successful. She then meets Momoka Kawaragi by chance, and the two realize their commonalities, including a shared love of music. Together with other girls from different walks of life, the girls form a band as an avenue to let their raw emotions out, while facing hardships with their internal struggles and being new to the music scene.

Characters

Nina Iseri (井芹仁菜)
[2]
The main protagonist of the series and the lead vocalist of Togenashi Togeari hailing from Kumamoto who left her hometown and her strained past life to start anew. She is not on good terms with her father and dropped out of high school due to being the subject of bullying. She initially moved to Tokyo with the aim of studying at a cram school and entering university, only to focus on Togenashi Togeari instead. She is a major fan of the band Diamond Dust and felt that their songs helped her during the difficult times in her life. In promotional material, she is seen with a Butterscotch Blonde G&L Asat Classic electric guitar, a guitar based on the design of the Fender Telecaster, which she plays as the band's rhythm guitarist in the finale.
Momoka Kawaragi (河原木桃香)
[2]
The lead guitarist and leader of Togenashi Togeari hailing from Asahikawa who was a former member of Diamond Dust before leaving due to creative differences, a decision she holds regret despite holding no ill will towards her former bandmates. She then performed as a solo artist and planned to quit before meeting Nina and being reinvigorated by her determination. She plays a Costa Azul Metallic Psychederhythm Psychomaster electric guitar, a Japanese-made Fender Jazzmaster clone.
Subaru Awa (安和すばる)
[2]
The drummer of Togenashi Togeari hailing from Kobe who attends acting school to follow in her grandmother's footsteps despite showing no interest for acting and desires to follow her own path through pursuing music. She plays a Charcoal Metallic Pearl Roadshow drum kit.
Tomo Ebizuka (海老塚智)
[2]
The keyboardist of Togenashi Togeari hailing from Sendai who ran away from home after experiencing parental neglect and has dreams of performing at the Budokan. Her tendency to give blunt feedback due to being gifted at playing the keyboard and expecting the same level of skill towards her bandmates also resulted in her and Rupa's former band breaking up prior to the anime. She plays a Nord Electro 6HP 73-key digital piano.
Rupa (ルパ)
[2]
The bassist of Togenashi Togeari who lost her parents and experiences discrimination due to her half-South Asian heritage. Like Tomo, she has dreams of performing at the Budokan. She plays an Ebony Gibson SG Standard bass.

Production

Background

In August 2019, upon joining Toei Animation, series producer Tadashi Hirayama was approached to produce a new original work focused on music. Hirayama enlisted the assistance of Kazuo Sakai and Jukki Hanada, staff he had worked with on Love Live! Sunshine!!, to brainstorm the initial ideas of the story.[14] Hirayama then approached Kenji Tamai of Agehasprings around the end of 2019 to compose the music for the project and scout and manage the talents to form the band.[15]

Hanada focused on writing an all-female band story for the project based on his love for Japanese rock music, having already written stories about idols.[16] Hirayama cited the projected economic loss from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the concurrent COVID-19 pandemic as inspirations to make the story grounded in reality, basing it around the hardships of being a musician.[14] The decision to set the story in Kawasaki was based on Hirayama and Hanada's observations of the city being overlooked compared to the neighboring cities of Tokyo and Yokohama, rent being cheaper, and fostering music activity, further grounding the story.[14][16]

Development and casting

In June 2021, Toei Animation, Agehasprings, and Universal Music Japan announced they would initiate a new project which would combine animation with real band activity. In the same year, Agehasprings, with the assistance from Toei Animation and Universal Music Japan, held an audition called "Girl’s Rock Audition" for the vocalist, guitarist, bassist, drummer, and keyboardist of the all-female band which would be the core of the project.[17] Tamai recounted how he aimed the band to debut first to foster their popularity before the anime began its airing. He also shared that although the auditions received several applications, there was difficulty in choosing candidates who had proficient skills in both music and voice acting, leading the process to take more than a year and half to find the necessary talent.[15]

An original anime television series produced by Toei Animation titled Girls Band Cry was announced on April 24, 2023, with a teaser visual revealed. The visual features a girl with a guitar, with a slogan "Throw in All the Anger, Joy, and Sadness." (怒りも喜びも哀しさも全部ぶちこめ.)[18] On May 29 of the same year, a key visual of the anime was revealed alongside the main cast and staff.[19]

Media

Music

The discography of Girls Band Cry includes two studio albums, one soundtrack album, two extended plays, and eleven singles performed by Togenashi Togeari.[20] Additionally, two digital singles were released by Diamond Dust,[21][22] later compiled as an extended play. All music is released under the Universal Music Japan label.

Singles

Extended plays

Albums

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Other

Singles

Extended plays

Albums

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Other

Anime

On December 20, 2023, the first PV for the anime was released with its premiere set for April 2024.[2][30][31] A second PV was later released on February 9, 2024, confirming its premiere date of April 6 of the same year.[32][33] It is directed by Kazuo Sakai, with Jukki Hanada handling the series composition alongside writing the screenplays, Tadashi Hirayama as series producer, Nari Teshima designing the characters, Mari Kondō and Jae Hoon Jung as CGI directors, and Kenji Tamai as music composer.[2] The series aired from April 6 to June 29, 2024, on Tokyo MX and other networks. The opening theme is "Zattō, Bokura no Machi" (雑踏、僕らの街),[34]

Episodes

Games

On August 31, 2024, after the anime's streaming marathon on their official YouTube channel, the cast of Girls Band Cry announced that a mobile game is in development,[45] with auditions for new cast members to be performing as a band being currently held.[39]

On September 13, 2025, the official Japanese social media accounts of Girls Band Cry announced that they will release a game titled Momoka (wo) Wasshoi (桃香（を）ワッショイ), where the player controls characters Nina Iseri and Subaru Awa as they carry a drunk Momoka Kawaragi across various obstacles to safely bring her home. Upon arrival, the player must time an action correctly to throw Momoka on the sofa.[46]

The game is inspired by the fifth episode of the anime series was released on September 29, 2025, for Windows via Steam during the Tokyo Game Show.[47]

On September 23, 2025, the official Japanese social media accounts of Girls Band Cry revealed more about the mobile game developed by DONUTS GAMES Inc with the name of Girls Band Cry First Riff (ガールズバンドクライ First Riff), having a teaser and official Twitter account.

Manga

A manga adaptation illustrated by Boiru Iseebi began serialization in Micro Magazine's Comic Ride web magazine and RaiComi website on January 30, 2026.[48]