Have you ever belted out a song with friends, one you thought you knew by heart, only to die of embarrassment when you totally had the lyrics wrong?
Japanese design company Cotodama wants to save you from that awkwardness and make all your friends jealous. To that end, it created the Lyric Speaker; a dope piece of houseware that both looks stunning and plays hi-def audio, and it also plays the lyrics of whatever you’re listening to in a cool, moving display.
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Though the Lyric Speaker has been around for a few years, this year saw the launch of a new series called the Lyric Speaker Box, incorporating art and design from famed Japanese photographer and film director Mika Ninagawa.
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Cotodama was established in 2016, and the name translated in English means “words have a soul and the power to change people’s minds.” The lyric speaker is perfect for those of us who chronically forget the lyrics to our favorite songs, or for those who wanna throw down some karaoke at their next house party, artists and art admirers, audiophiles with an eye for design, and more.
The latest speaker, simply called “Tokyo,” celebrates the unique and colorful art and culture Japan’s capital. The box is compact and colorful, and it allows you to take the excitement of Tokyo nightlife anywhere you please.
The vibrant and graphic designs which wrap the speaker are pulled from Ninagawa’s archives. Known for her photography, films and spatial installations, this speaker is inspired by the phrase "music, city, night and lyrics."
Ready for a wide variety of tunes, the Tokyo lyric speaker can recite lyrics in English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), French, Spanish, German, Portuguese and more.
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Technologically, the speaker boasts chorus detection technology developed by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, while the output features two-way bass reflex speakers.
As the third model in the Cotodama lyric speaker lineup, the “Tokyo” speaker also features wi-fi enabling technology that automatically displays lyrics and graphics for the songs it plays.
The Tokyo speaker currently retails for $2,500, and can be found on the Cotodama website.
Photography by: Courtesy of Cotodama
