J-Pop singer Chara is really anything but. Originally the pioneer of high-pitched vocal gymnastics, the now 45-year-old songstress was a revelation when she debuted with her ultra-girly delivery, and within a year copycats acts were everywhere. She inspired a generation of imitators from Yuki all the way to Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, but after just a few albums left pop behind and found her own voice, tackling soul, R&B and rock, reinventing her sound by listening and learning from everything around her. At this year’s Fuji Rock Festival, her latest unexpected unit came with the simple moniker Chara x Yusuke Kobayashi x KenKen, where ARTINFO sat down with the trio.