Japan’s largest idol event IRC takes fandom onchain with Soneium

Sony’s blockchain Soneium has hooked up with one of the key companies in Japan’s dynamic Idol fashion, music and cultural sector.

The collaboration will see the blockchain integrated into IRC APP, which is the official app for Idol Runway Collection. This is the country’s largest festival with around 12,000 people attending the 2025 event, which featured over 100 idols.

The 2026 edition, which is held in March, will feature groups such as Nogizaka46, =Love, Fruits Zipper, Cutie Street and Takane No Nadeshiko.

As for IRC APP, it doesn’t require any blockchain knowledge, operating like a web2 app with social login support for the likes of Line, Google and Apple.

User connect their X account, which allows them to access the AI SNS Trends analytic system, which makes their fandom contributions verifiable onchain. This means every account gets an IRC Score, which is automatically claimed to users’ onchain wallet.

This score determines a user’s membership rank, from regular to bronze, silver and gold, each of which offers enhanced benefits such as early ticket access, priority entry, and premium venue invites. 

Membership rank also increases the number of voting tickets granted, enabling fans to exercise greater influence through the app’s onchain Fan Vote functions.

This was validated during its beta launch in January, where the campaign brought over 60,000 users onchain and demonstrated that a mainstream audience can seamlessly engage with onchain voting through an accessible, UX-first design. 

You can find out more at the IRC APP website.

Source: https://www.blockchaingamer.biz/news/40983/japan-largest-idol-event-fandom-onchain-soneium/