Hiroko, original member of the viral “senior citizen VTuber project” Metabaachan, recently issued an official apology for misrepresenting her own age. But don’t worry, this is not the dream-crushing “we’ve all been living a lie” kind of announcement. As reported by Otaku Soken, the VTuber granny was actually manipulating her age by only half a year – at the time of her debut, she was introduced as a “real 85-year-old lady,” but in reality, she was 84, waiting for her 85th birthday.
In the video announcement, Hiroko states that the reason for not going with her real age on debut was because her management at OTAGROUP wanted it to be a nice, rounded number (hence deciding on 85). As her VTuber persona, Hiroko would celebrate her birthday on the day of her debut, adding one additional year to the age of her character. However, the virtual talent states that due to this, it has become difficult to keep track of her real age, which is why it was decided to age her character down by half a year. Currently, Hiroko is 87 and preparing to celebrate her actual 88th birthday in around half a year – which is an important milestone in Japanese culture known as “beiju.”
The Metabaachan project is home to seven VTubers, all of them being real senior citizens over 75 years of age. Their YouTube channel currently counts over 70,000 subscribers, and Hiroko herself has gone viral on numerous occasions, appeared in Japanese newspapers and TV, and even had the opportunity to co-star on a radio show with Hololive’s Hoshimachi Suisei. While she didn’t think she would continue long as a VTuber, she managed to keep going for three whole years, and according to her recent video, “Metabaachan will keep going wild as always.”
On a related note, OTAGROUP has been making steady efforts to expand its scope of activity, and has recently started an online counseling service which allows you to rent your own virtual grandmother. The company’s goal is to achieve profitability as a business, but also expand their means of promoting the wellbeing of the elderly and their integration into society.
