The music program for "MASUNAGA1905 ANNUAL EXHIBITION 2026 | Shunsuke Imai 'the same thing'" has been announced. The exhibition is held by Avex Creator Agency together with Masunaga, a Fukui-based eyewear company founded in 1905, and runs from Thursday, October 29 to Saturday, November 21, 2026, at WALL_alternative in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo.
The exhibition is divided into two periods, each offering a different experience. During the first period, the "SHOWCASE PERIOD" from Thursday, October 29 to Saturday, October 31, Shunsuke Imai's works are displayed together with all past MASUNAGA MOC frames and the latest third installment, making its Japan debut. Over the same three days, live performances and DJ sets curated by Tribe, a sub-label of Hydeout Productions founded by Nujabes, will also take place. Nujabes won fans around the world with a Japanese sensibility and musicality, and still has a strong following today.
Masunaga has kept refining technique and aesthetics rooted in Japanese craftsmanship and sharing them with the world, while Nujabes delivered distinctly Japanese musical expression to the world. Against the background of this shared attitude of sending original creativity from Japan to the world, the three days bring together art, eyewear and music.
Four acts are scheduled to appear: HIRAKU YAMAMOTO, A.Valley, w.a.u and reina. Each with a different musical style, they will perform live sets and DJ sets over the three days, creating a new musical experience in a space where art and eyewear coexist.
LIVE PERFORMANCE / DJ
Thursday, October 29
- 7:00 PM: HIRAKU YAMAMOTO
Friday, October 30
- 7:00 PM: A.Valley
Saturday, October 31
- 7:00 PM: w.a.u DJ set
- 7:30 PM: reina
Venue: WALL_alternative (1F, 4-2-4 Nishi-Azabu, Minato City, Tokyo)
Admission: Free, no reservation required
Performer Profiles
HIRAKU YAMAMOTO
A sound artist.
Solo live sets, which bring to mind genres such as ambient, post-classical and minimal, combine classical sound with contemporary methods, applying effects and loops to live instruments such as violin, guitar and piano. The performances take place in Japan and abroad. Not only the sounds of instruments but also natural sounds and even the noise from factories are used as musical material.
As a rare violinist who can express beyond classical music, the artist has taken part in the live shows and works of more than 100 artists in total.
HIRAKU YAMAMOTO has performed live at parties for PRADA, Cartier, Burberry, MASERATI, McLaren, Rolls Royce, Aston Martin, RIMOWA, Louis Vuitton and others, and is active in a wide range of settings, from underground clubs to luxury brand boutiques.
As a composer, besides original works, the artist provides music for commercials and video works, and often collaborates with art forms other than music, such as contemporary dance stages and music for facilities and spaces.
As a member of the instrumental band NABOWA, formed in 2004, HIRAKU YAMAMOTO has released seven full albums. Appearances at many large festivals such as FUJI ROCK, Asagiri JAM and ARABAKI ROCK FEST., along with performances with artists of various genres, have built a long career, and drawing on that experience, the artist also works as an event producer and a sound and recording engineer.
HIRAKU YAMAMOTO spends each day creating and researching at the private studio "THE GATE" in Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto.
In 2025, the sound and visual book "Hear and There," co-created with photographer 中島光行, was released. With Shiga Prefecture as its theme, field recordings were made beside the photographer as photographs were taken, and songs were composed based on those sounds, and photographs were then selected to match the finished songs, with this exchange repeated to produce the work. The art book, which offers a new reading experience through an analog record and a photo book, has drawn attention.
A.Valley
A former member of the Tokyo-based rap group "The Hilt," A.Valley is a dynamic rapper and hip-hop artist known for genreless sound and meticulous lyricism. The varied discography includes representative works such as "Sirius B" and "Skytree Sessions," and seamlessly blends the aesthetics of classic hip-hop with a fresh, contemporary approach to rap.
From underground beatmakers to 小瀬村晶 (Noriko Kose), and including participation in "In This Life" (Polo San Pablo, feat. 巨勢典子), a project with roots in the context and sampling culture of the label founded by Nujabes, the artist has constantly offered culturally rich and highly diverse perspectives to the contemporary alternative hip-hop scene.
w.a.u DJ set
w.a.u is a Tokyo-based creative collective and label.
Its members also work as producers, singers and DJs, and the label itself can transform into a band or a DJ crew.
As a producer team, it provides songs for and serves as the backing band of artists such as iri, さらさ, VivaOla and Wez Atlas, while each member also pursues their own artistic career, and the collective has released many ambitious songs. Its creativity has made an impression on listeners of the same generation not only through numerous production works and releases as a label, but also through events at venues such as EBISU BATICA, Nakameguro Solfa and Shibuya Contact, and has drawn attention. Starting with reina, w.a.u has gradually attracted keen interest from various media outlets and enthusiasts, and its name is being mentioned from many quarters as an important label of the next-generation scene.
reina
An R&B singer from the creative label w.a.u.
Through experience as a dancer, reina has been influenced since childhood by a variety of black music, mainly 90s hip-hop and R&B such as ATCQ, Mobb Deep and the Soulquarians.
With a relaxed yet distinctively full voice and the high potential to rap at times, reina is a rare authentic R&B singer in Japan.
The first album "You Were Wrong," released in February 2023, reached the upper ranks of charts in various countries, drawing an unusually strong response for an artist who had been active for less than a year.
The EP "A Million More," released last year, also earned high praise, and the first solo live show, held in May at WALL&WALL in Omotesando, sold out, steadily establishing reina's presence.
reina creates songs that embrace every context of black music while giving them a contemporary R&B interpretation, and is an artist drawing attention right now.
Exhibition Details
MASUNAGA1905 ANNUAL EXHIBITION 2026 | Shunsuke Imai "the same thing"
- Dates: Thursday, October 29 to Saturday, November 21, 2026 (closed on Sundays)
- SHOWCASE PERIOD (October 29 to October 31): Shunsuke Imai solo exhibition "the same thing," special exhibition of past MASUNAGA MOC frames and the latest third installment, music program, Vision Lounge
- EXHIBITION PERIOD (November 2 to November 21): Shunsuke Imai solo exhibition "the same thing" (part of the MASUNAGA frame display continues)
- Hours: 6:00 PM to midnight
- Venue: WALL_alternative (1F, 4-2-4 Nishi-Azabu, Minato City, Tokyo)
- Admission: Free, no reservation required
- Website: https://avex.jp/wall/exhibition/910
