Mona Gonzales, with 23 million SNS followers, Joins Radio Shonan's Long-Running Music Program Celebrating its 30th Anniversary!

A groundbreaking new segment is set to debut on "Shonan MUSIC TOWN Z," a long-running music program on Radio Shonan (FM83.1MHz), an FM radio station in Kanagawa Prefecture celebrating its 30th anniversary. This listener-participation segment will solicit singing audio from listeners nationwide via SNS, with professional voice trainers, also recruited nationwide, providing scores and advice. The scoring will not only include professional vocal evaluation but also incorporate a unique perspective on Japanese pronunciation and expressiveness, marking a new endeavor to convey the richness of Japanese songs and language both domestically and internationally. At the end of the segment, Mona Gonzales (over 23 million total SNS followers), known as the world's biggest J-POP TikTok star, will make a spot appearance to share tips for increasing SNS followers.

This segment represents a new chemical reaction of "radio x SNS x Japanese culture dissemination" in Japan's era of 100 million people transmitting information via SNS. It will deliver a new music experience from Shonan to both domestic and international audiences, serving as a hub for boosting Japanese music content and supporting its export worldwide.

■ Program Overview: Shonan MUSIC TOWN Z (Radio Shonan FM83.1MHz)

Radio Shonan's proud long-running music program, which has continued for 20 years since 2006. This program, which has served as a hub for transmitting Shonan's core music scene since its inception with the first main personality, 'Hatto,' the 'Shonan Musician,' is now led by the second main personality, Mr. Voice (Yuichi Furukawa). Honoka Shinsaka took over as the third main personality, and the program has widely introduced artists associated with Shonan and next-generation musicians.

This year, celebrating its 30th anniversary and the program's 20th anniversary, marks a new chapter!

■ New Segment Overview: "National Open Call for Professional Scoring! Excuse Me, I Tried Singing"

In an era where anyone can share their singing with the world through SNS, SNS users have often been perceived as drifting away from traditional media like radio. This segment is designed as a "cross-media listener participation corner" to engage this demographic. By publicly soliciting singing audio from across the country and having professional voice trainers, also recruited through open calls, evaluate and support them, this segment aims to expand the singing-related market and serve as a new dissemination model to deliver the charm of Japanese songs and language to the world, powerfully supporting the international enhancement and export of Japanese music content.

【Segment Mechanism】

● Public solicitation of singing audio nationwide via SNS (TikTok/Instagram/X, etc.)

● Instructors for scoring are also publicly recruited via SNS. Vocal training professionals conduct evaluations and provide advice.

● Scoring results and singing advice will be broadcast on the radio and simultaneously archived on the program's website as a "Library of Singing and Voice Knowledge," becoming an educational asset accessible to everyone.

● At the end of the segment, mega-influencer Mona Gonzales will make a spot appearance to share tips for global dissemination.

■ New Scoring Perspective: Voice Training × Japanese Expression × Global Dissemination

The biggest feature of this segment is the introduction of scoring from the perspective of "Japanese pronunciation and expressiveness," in addition to professional vocal evaluation. It goes beyond general singing evaluations such as pitch, rhythm, and vocal quality, meticulously evaluating the resonance of Japanese vowels, intonation, phrasing, and emotional expression unique to the Japanese language.

This initiative holds two significant meanings. First, it provides an opportunity for Japanese native singers to rediscover the beauty of their own language and refine their expressive skills. Second, it creates a platform for overseas Japanese language learners and Japanese culture fans to enjoy learning Japanese pronunciation and expression through music.

Recently, driven by the global boom in J-POP, anime songs, and city pop, the demand for singing in Japanese has rapidly increased both domestically and internationally. This segment positions scoring as a bridge between "entertainment," "Japanese language education," and "global dissemination," aiming to become a new platform that maximizes the soft power of Japanese music content.

■ Spot Appearance: Who is Mona Gonzales?

A singer-songwriter and influencer from the Philippines. Fascinated by Japanese city pop, anime songs, and J-POP since childhood, she has gained global support by continuously posting Japanese cover videos primarily on TikTok and other SNS platforms. She participated in the Culture Bridge Partnership announced in February 2026 (related press release [2]). With the support of several Japanese companies, she continues to prove the vision embodied by this segment through her own activities as a role model for delivering Japanese songs to the world.

Mona Gonzales's Spot Appearance Content in the Segment

● Tips for going viral on SNS
The secret to gaining 23 million followers worldwide
● J-POP singing advice
Directly taught by the world's top J-POP TikToker
● "Challenge in Japanese!"
Mona Gonzales explaining in Japanese to encourage overseas Japanese fans and learners.

Hearing tips for SNS virality directly from an influencer with 23 million followers worldwide is an overwhelming value in itself. Her presence is a living testament to how Japanese music can move the hearts of people across languages and borders, and it will be the biggest catalyst supporting the international spread of this segment.

SNS Follower Count Breakdown	Total SNS Followers: Over 23 million TikTok Followers 　19 million (0 following/330 million likes) Ranked 8th worldwide in TikTok's most liked videos of 2022 　https://www.tiktok.com/@mngnzls Facebook Followers 3.2 million (0 following) 　https://www.facebook.com/mngnzls Instagram Followers 1.21 million (0 following) 　https://www.instagram.com/mngnzlsx/
TikTok Positioning	World's number one J-POP cover TikToker (according to our research)
Representative Content	Cover video of "Gurenge," the theme song of the anime "Demon Slayer," viewed over 50 million times
Collaboration with Japan	In January 2025, LP "Love, Mona" was released by Sony Music Philippines. Voice training and recording direction were handled by voice trainer Yuichi Furukawa. KeyK of Oltana Channel (YouTube followers 2.74 million) participated as a mix engineer.

■ A New Form of Radio: The Trinity of Radio × SNS × Archive

This segment is not merely a "corner within a radio program." It adopts a "trinity model" of public solicitation, collection, and dissemination via SNS, broadcasting on radio, and archiving on the website.

● SNS for public solicitation and dissemination: Attracts younger generations, SNS users, and overseas Japanese culture fans beyond existing radio listeners.

● Radio broadcasting: Adds depth to content with the warmth and expertise unique to FM radio.

● Website archive: Serves as a permanent "Library of Singing and Voice Knowledge." Supports international access, becoming a globally open asset for learning Japanese and Japanese music.

■ Stakeholder Comments

●Honoka Shinsaka (Program Main Personality):
"As Radio Shonan celebrates its 30th anniversary and our program its 20th, this segment is a project that all involved are deeply committed to. Everyone! See you on FM83.1MHz!"

●Yuichi Furukawa 'Mr.Voice' (New Corner Navigator):
"Towards 'responsible and active judging' by talented professional voice trainers in Japan, karaoke fans, please sing, sing, sing, sing, sing!"

●Mona Gonzales (New Corner Spot Appearance):
"I’m really happy and honored to be part of Shonan Music Town Z, especially with Radio Shonan celebrating its 30th anniversary. I hope to inspire many people to sing and enjoy J-POP!"