It started with questions raised over Ado’s performance at the K-pop event “INKIGAYO in TOKYO,” held September 22-23 at Belluna Dome, where she closed the show singing “Odoru Ponpokorin” (a classic kids’ anime theme song) — and over the fact that binoculars were banned only during her set, plus her no-show at the finale. That incident sparked a broader debate on 5ch over whether Ado is actually a skilled singer at all. Supporters insisted her pitch and rhythm are flawless, while skeptics countered that she’s “just screaming” and “riding the strength of her songs” — with many arguing that personal taste and technical skill should be judged separately.
October 6, 2026, 3:53 PM
Is Ado’s singing really that amazing, or is it overrated? An online debate is raging right now.
It all started with controversy at a K-pop event. When Ado closed out the September 23 show at “INKIGAYO in TOKYO,” held September 22-23 at Belluna Dome, by singing “Odoru Ponpokorin,” complaints poured in that the song choice “didn’t fit the event’s concept.” On top of that, fans voiced frustration that binoculars were banned only during Ado’s segment, and that she skipped the finale — a staple of K-pop events.
Can Ado actually write her own lyrics and compose music?
11AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:50
Re: #4
I'm pretty sure a couple of self-written tracks made it onto one of her albums
5AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:48
Put her on NHK's amateur singing contest (Nodo Jiman) and you'd find out real quick
6AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:48
What about Harami-chan's piano playing?
9AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:50
All I get is screaming and noise. Her voice also sounds older than her age — kind of like Miyuki Nakajima (a veteran singer) — not really my type
12AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:50
I think she's genuinely good. I'm a fan of "Lulu" especially. Are the people criticizing her just pitch-obsessed, like May J. fans?
14AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:51
Since she never shows her face, she could easily use pitch correction or vocal overdubs even in live shows
22AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:53
Re: #14
Even if she showed her face, you could still do pitch correction and overdubbing, you know
15AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:52
She's loud and personally not my taste, but her individuality is undeniable
18AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:52
If she turned out to be a drop-dead gorgeous girl, people would do a complete 180
19AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:52
There are plenty of Ado impersonators who are more skilled than her, but "Usseewa" is just huge. She owes a lot to whoever wrote that song
20AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:53
There are tons of singers out there — why is she hyped up this much?
21AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:53
I actually prefer it when the "Evangelion lady" (a voice actress) covers Ado's songs on the variety show Monitoring
23AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:53
First, show your face and sing. Otherwise I can't help but suspect vocal processing
24AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:53
The USJ (Universal Studios Japan) Halloween song she did also packs quite a punch — it'll probably stick around for years
27AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:55
I don't dislike her voice, but it's not amazing either. That said, I think the songs are trash 😗
28AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:55
It's not about being good or bad — whoever sells wins. Plenty of artists are like that. It's all down to taste anyway, and being popular beats being skilled but unknown, at least for now lol
30AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:55
I think she's good, but listening to her is kind of exhausting — like it drains your stamina… I don't think I could listen to her nonstop
39AnonymousOct 7, 2026 14:59
Go sing "Odoru Ponpokorin" for your fans then lol
46AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:03
Re: #39
It's a jab at K-pop — basically saying "you're all just dancing tanuki" (a play on the song's title)
51AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:05
She's performing live overseas — of course that's impressive. Among active Japanese artists right now, Ado's about the only one who's made it abroad
56AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:07
Re: #51
YOASOBI had held the #1 spot overseas for a long time, but it looks like Ado just took the top spot recently
59AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:08
Isn't that just an anime theme song?
71AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:12
Re: #59
My favorite show as a kid was Tokimeki Tonight, and that theme song never made it onto any commercial anime song compilations
63AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:09
Just liking her is enough, isn't it? Things get weird once people start assuming "I like her, so she must be skilled too" and comparing from there
68AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:11
Re: #63
True that. It's not like this is a singing competition or a karaoke scoring machine — for regular listeners, liking it or not is really all that matters
76AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:13
If you're asking whether she's good or bad, she's good. Pitch, rhythm, vocal technique, emotional expression — none of it falls short. After that, it's just personal taste. I get that some people don't like her, but don't call her bad. There are tons of singers out there who are genuinely bad and still perform proudly on music shows. Take Masahiko Kondo — he was so bad it made you want to die listening to him, yet he was still popular and even won the Japan Record Award. That's where Japan's music industry started going off the rails
106AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:31
Re: #76
Lumping idols and singers together like they're the same thing is laughable
86AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:20
Does being good automatically mean you sell records? Does it mean you can captivate people? Vocal skill and charisma have nothing to do with each other
94AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:24
Re: #86
It's not about being good or bad, it's about whether you put real feeling into the song. I think singers who captivate people are the ones who pour emotion into their singing, period. So songs based on real personal experience tend to hit especially hard, I'd say
91AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:22
Personally I prefer clear, crystalline voices, so just being loud doesn't really do it for me
96AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:25
Re: #91
Sounds like you'd be into Uru
104AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:30
Articles criticizing Ado keep popping up one after another. Guess a lot of people had something to say
108AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:32
Re: #104
The inevitable fate of a manufactured, fake trend
109AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:32
Re: #104
I laughed at how she caused backlash for writing her autograph huge, right in the middle of some wall(?) where everyone's supposed to sign
115AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:35
Generally speaking, Dreams Come True's Miwa Yoshida is treated as a skilled singer, but getting through one whole Dreams Come True album leaves you feeling kind of sick to your stomach, or just worn out. Same goes for MISIA
123AnonymousOct 7, 2026 15:37
Re: #115
Does "gets tiring after a whole album" really count as a measure of skill? Even with art or manga, sometimes stuff is so technically impressive that looking at a ton of it in a row is exhausting too
Background and Key Points of the Debate
Ado debuted without revealing her face and built her fame on the hit “Usseewa” and success on overseas charts. This particular debate was sparked by her appearance at the K-pop event “INKIGAYO in TOKYO,” held September 22-23 at Belluna Dome. News that she closed the show singing “Odoru Ponpokorin,” along with fan complaints over the binocular ban and her absence from the finale, snowballed into a deeper argument over whether she’s actually a skilled singer at all. The thread split over whether technical merit (pitch, vocal technique) should be judged separately from personal taste (voice type, song preference), with plenty of middle-ground takes like “she’s skilled but tiring to listen to” or “she’s popular because of the songs, not her voice.” Because she performs without showing her face, suspicions about pitch correction keep resurfacing — but it’s worth noting this remains pure speculation, not something confirmed by Ado or her management.
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