Every year, France celebrates the Japanese culture with Japan Expo, a 4-days convention. For the past 3 years, U&Pia have attended the event, always seducing a wider part of the audience.

With energetic performances, well thought outfits and stable voices, the self-produced group now have a steady fandom in France. And their Japanese fans don’t hesitate to come all the way to Paris to enjoy their many stages.

U&Pia answered our questions in a joint interview with CKJPOPNEWS and Nautiljon ahead of their free concert in Paris, on July 7th.

Can you introduce yourselves?

U&Pia, Hello, we are U&pia.
Aran : Hello, I am Aran from U&pia. (in japanese) My name is Aran. (in french)
Len : My name is Len.
Taiga : I am Taiga.
Mahiro : I am Mahiro.
Sen : I am Sen.
Kai : My name is Kai. (en français)
Haru : I am Haru from U&pia.
Jaesun : I am Jaesun from U&pia

What does your name group U&Pia means?

Aran : U&Pia comes from U (‘you’ in english) ‘to’ (“and” in japanese), and Pia. If you put it all together, it becomes Utopia.

How do you translate this energy on stage?

Do you think we are energetic? You think we’re energetic, but actually, we’re always like this. We train daily to show this level of energy (*channel their inner energy by breathing deeply*)

On June 29th, you released “Matsuri”. Can you talk about it ? Was there a reason for you to release it right before Japan Expo?

Taiga : Thank you.Aran : That’s right. That’s the reason. We became active outside of Japan back in 2023. And up to this day, we never really presented the japanese culture. In 2025, we wanted to do so because our previous performances made us realize how liked it was in France.

Among all your songs, which one embodies the best your energy as a group?

All : ‘Billy Billy Young’. Aran : This means we are young and fast. Billy Billy is an onomatopoeia that expresses the idea.

One of your songs is entitled “Ami proche” (Close friend in french). Is it a coincidence or does it reflect a special interest in France?

Ren : I wrote Ami Proche after coming to France. It also means “Best Friend” in Japan. The purpose was to not forget about coming to France and meeting the french audience.

Can you explain what your mascot Piapaka is about ?

Aran : (shows the mascot on the staff’s T-shirt). Our mascot, Piapaka, is a collab with Japan Expo’s mascot (Chibi-Dino)

Has it been designed for Japan Expo only ?

Aran : It is not forget Japan Expo only, we plan on developing it.

You already performed at many editions of Japan Expo. What do you like about it that makes you come back ?

Aran : We actually work harder every year to be invited again by Japan Expo. Sen : (*Laughs and nodds.*)

We saw you took photos with other guests. Do you also enjoy Japan Expo as visitors?

Arana : I think so. We Also enjoy visiting the convention.

Just like for previous Japan Expo editions, you performed “We Are” (One Piece opening). Are you a One Piece fan or does this music hold a special meaning for you?

Aran : Japan Expo is very focused on anime. We have thought about what we could present regarding animes. So we all agreed on “We are”. We are very proud of this performance. We also wanted to sjow a good performance as U&Pia. Sen created the choreography.

You are having a free concert in Paris on July, 7th. Have you prepared a different setlist from the Japan Expo one ? And why did you make this concert free ?

Aran : Yes, there will be way more. It will be our first concert in Paris outside of Japan Expo. Here, people pay to access the festival. Then, they can access the concerts for free. So we wanted to hold a free concert so that more and more people can get to know us. We want to share our music with a wider audience.

Do you have a message for your french fans?

Kai et Sen : *Imitate how french fans cheer*
Aran : We receive a lot of energy from the french fans. 3, or even up to 5 times more compared with our japanese fans. We can feel it very strongly from the stage. What’s surprising is it’s not just during the concert but also on the long run. They keep sending and replying to messages on SNS. We can feel that their passion is very deep. We want to give them this love and this energy back, and will work hard to do so.

We’d like to thank Japan Expo for inviting us, and U&Pia for answering our questions.
Photos credits : Lucile Theffo Defaudais, Celine Choquet