Virtual Bishojo Nemu

Virtual Bishojo Nemu (Japanese: バーチャル美少女ねむ), also written as Virtual Bishoujo Nem, is an independent Japanese VTuber who debuted in September 2017. She calls herself a "metaverse culture evangelist" and is best known for her books and research on VTuber and metaverse culture, as well as her streams.

Profile

Item	Detail
Debut	September 11, 2017
Agency	Independent
Self-described titles	VTuber, author, metaverse culture evangelist
Name origin	The NEM cryptocurrency
Hair color	Black
Language	Japanese
YouTube channel	Nemu Channel (Metaverse World Travelogue)

Career

Her official profile states that she debuted in September 2017 and that she is the "world's oldest independent VTuber," a claim she bases on her own research. Wikidata gives September 11, 2017 as the start of her activities. Her YouTube channel was created the following day, and its full name is Nemu Channel (Metaverse World Travelogue). From the start she has worked without an agency.

She has described her early work as part of what she calls the Humanity Bishoujo Project. Under this project she appeared as a guest on terrestrial television, published a novel that reached first place in its category on Amazon's rankings, and co-hosted a "babiniku" broadcast with an Ota City Council member. She also took part in a public debate held in English. She has said these activities helped bring the idea of "babiniku," meaning taking on a virtual bishōjo avatar, to a wide audience in Japan.

In December 2023 she was named "Most Brilliant VTuber of the Year" (first place) at the MoguLive VTuber Awards 2023. In August 2024 she released VTuber Studies, a co-authored academic book about VTubers, through Iwanami Shoten.

Activities

Streaming style

Her official profile describes her streaming, writing and research as aimed at "becoming the self you want to be in the virtual world." Her channel covers travel through social VR and metaverse spaces, as its subtitle suggests. She has also described herself as a virtual economic commentator, cryptocurrency investor, blogger, novelist and singer. She publishes articles in Japanese and English on platforms such as note and Medium. One of these covers a dialogue with Takurō, a kigurumi mask artist from the production unit Hyokkame, about what being a bishōjo means.

She also runs survey research on how people use virtual spaces. Working with the Swiss VTuber anthropologist Mila, she ran surveys on how COVID-19 sped up virtual communication and on social VR lifestyles. Later they ran a survey on harassment in virtual reality, with the Japanese NPO Virtual Rights as an official supporter.

Music and works

Metaverse Evolution Theory: a guidebook to the metaverse (Japanese edition from Gijutsu-Hyohron, Korean edition from ITDAM BOOKS)
Virtual Bishoujo Singularity: a novel (VTuber Bunko)
VTuber Studies: a co-authored academic book about VTubers (Japanese edition from Iwanami Shoten, Chinese edition from Owl Publishing, 2024)
A crowdfunded song project intended to spread the idea of "babiniku" through music, with a beta version of a second channel theme song

Characteristics

Her character has black hair, and her name comes from the NEM cryptocurrency. This reflects her long-standing interest in crypto assets and the virtual economy. Her work combines entertainment with commentary and research. Writing, academic publishing and survey projects take up a large part of her activity alongside her streams. She often writes about the cultural side of avatars and the idea of changing one's identity in virtual worlds. Because her work addresses both Japanese and international audiences, several of her books and articles have been published in English, Korean and Chinese as well as Japanese.