According to producer Key “Kobametal” Kobayashi, BABYMETAL’s name is a play on the words heavy metal—as, in Japanese, the word baby rhymes with heavy.
∙ Originally formed in 2010 as a fusion of the heavy metal and Japanese idol genres, BABYMETAL has twice won Metal Hammer magazine’s Heavy Metal World Cup.
∙ In 2016, they performed at London’s Wembley Arena, becoming the first Japanese artist to headline the venue.
∙ Their album Metal Resistance debuted at No. 15 on the UK charts, making them the highest-charting Japanese band in British history.
∙ Metal Galaxy was the first recording by an Asian artist ever to hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart.
∙ To celebrate their tenth anniversary in 2021, BABYMETAL released a greatest hits compilation and scheduled ten shows at Tokyo’s famed Budokan arena.