Asking the People of Akihabara: Part 5 - Akiba's Mako-san

The project involves interviewing people who are active in or work in Akihabara, and sharing their heart-warming love for Akihabara.
Another aim is to have those interviewed introduce their friends to help keep the Akihabara community going.

For this fifth installment, we spoke with "Akiba no Mako-san," an energetic artist who has several offices in Akihabara.

↓Click here for the second part of our interview with the people of Akihabara.

https://akihabara-bc.jp/akihabara-no-hito-castoff/

Who is Akiba's Mako?! [Summary]

Representative of the secret society Mako Pro. Still patrolling Akihabara every day.
Some of you may have even heard of the name, but its true nature is shrouded in mystery.
Musician? Pro wrestling fan? Gambler?
This is the first time we've featured him at Akihabara Base Camp, so it's unknown how the article will turn out.

Well, I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of stories will come out this time.

Akihabara Izakaya Tono (Shingari)

Today we interviewed Mako at Izakaya Tono-san, one of her favorite restaurants.
The retro-style exterior gives off a Showa-era vibe and is very appealing.
The Killer Machine and Metal Hunter are placed there quietly, and it seems like the owner is a Dragon Quest fan.

As soon as you enter the store, you'll know that the owner is a horse and Dragon Quest fanatic.
The interior design, reminiscent of an old Japanese house, creates a relaxing atmosphere, and I felt that it was an exceptionally comfortable space among the many shops on Showa-dori.

Where is the real Akihabara?

Q
I would like to ask you a number of questions today.
People have different definitions of Akihabara and places they often visit, right?

A
Actually, I used to live in Asakusabashi 5-chome, and I guess the building had Akihabara in it.
If you're wondering where Akihabara is, it extends up to Taito Ward.
The original address of the company was "Akihabara, Taito Ward," and the location where MOGRA is located is purely Akihabara.
We were thinking of renting an office there too, but it's in Taito Ward.

Q
Not in Chiyoda Ward

A
That's right.
There are a few issues if I don't work at a company in Chiyoda Ward...
I really want to go to Akihabara in Taito Ward, but there are places I can't go to.

Establishing a company in Akihabara

Q
Mako started her activities in Akihabara...

A
About 15 years? No, I'm exaggerating, it's about 13 years.

For the Akihabara generation, it was around Dragon Quest 3, so I lined up to buy it.
It must have been about 30 years ago, when I was in elementary school.
Later, when Windows 95 was released, I stayed up all night and enjoyed myself alongside an older man I knew, a time I'll never forget.
I remember there was a countdown.

So you first went independent in Shinjuku.
Shinjuku because I like Ryo Saeba from City Hunter. That's a simplistic idea.
When I started a company in Kabukicho, I was told that they couldn't lend money to companies in Kabukicho...
So we moved to Nishi-Shinjuku and tried various other things, but things just didn't work out.
In the meantime, I ended up in Akihabara, and with my otaku tendencies in mind, I decided to do it in Akihabara.
That was about 15 years ago. Yes, 15 years ago.

If you were to say the center, I think it would be the electronics district or the computer district.
It was really around the time when maid cafes, not con cafes, were becoming popular.

Q
By the way, what kind of work are you doing now?

A
I used to work at a company called IKD International (※1), and even back then I had a background in video production.
My main job is to create videos.
I'm not one to be too aggressive and do anything and everything, but when it comes to video, I only do it if a company asks me to.
Are there a lot of commercials about entrepreneurship?
Other tasks include creating videos of products for presentations, etc.
I don't talk about it much, but sometimes YouTubers send me edits.

※ 1
IKD International
This company ran collaboration cafes for the "Kuso Miso Technique" that was a huge hit on Nico Nico.

About future activities

Q
Do you have any other hobbies or activities?

A
I'm basically a musician

Q
Come to think of it, you did some live performances too.

A
That's right.
He says he has long hair because he's a musician.
Music production is also included in my business activities, so I'm doing Music Long Hair with a noble cause.
I get told off a lot by business owners, like, "You need to cut your hair already," but I think, "Well, that can't be helped if you're a musician."
That's how I do it (laughs).

Q
What is your main genre?

A
It's heavy metal.
No matter how pop the song, he plays a heavy guitar solo that makes you think, "You guys can't possibly play this!"
Starting next year, I'm thinking about getting back into the band I used to be in.

Other than music...
I've recently started dabbling in Unreal Engine.
For example, rather than just taking on a variety of jobs for 50,000 or 100,000 yen, I'm the type of person who would rather take on jobs in the millions by combining Unreal Engine with live-action or by flying drones...
As a small job, I also shoot videos for Sato-san's (※2) place... well, I do it for free...

I also want to open a restaurant.
Defeat the lord (lol)

※ 2
Mr Sato
The representative of Cast Off Co., Ltd., who also appeared in the 4th installment of our Ask the People of Akihabara series.

Respect is for professional wrestlers

I think I made quite a bit of money.
However, there are times when I wonder if just because I've earned money is enough.

Q
Do you want to try something new?

A
I think I made a lot of money, but I always felt that it wasn't just about the money...
I love professional wrestling, and when I think back to when we were younger and we would go on group dates or do something we loved and go "Woohoo!"...
I think wrestlers train and train and train hard at the dojo, and it's really cool to see them in the ring.
Being able to put all your effort into something when you're young...I respect all wrestlers.

Q
Do you respect them?

A
I respect all of them, but especially Kojima Satoshi.
We have a connection, so I want to cherish it.
I was in a band called Super Rising, and when I released a new song and told them I'd filmed a video wearing their merchandise, they immediately retweeted it...
I have 20 followers. Thank you so much!

That's why my dream is to write an entrance theme for a wrestler.
I get requests to write for wrestlers from indie organizations, but I also get requests to write for New Japan (laughs).

After asking people in Akihabara

This interview lasted over two hours!
Because of the location of the interview, we had quite a bit to drink and it took this long.
This was the first time I spoke with Mako from Akihabara.
He's also a musician and looks quite strong, but when I spoke to him I found him to be surprisingly... well, I'm sorry to say surprisingly, but he's actually a very thoughtful person.
He was also passionate about his own activities.
Recently, he seems to be interested in the future of semiconductors.