Soon it will be Memorial Day, and for those of us in the San Francisco Bay Area, that means FanimeCon.

Our musical guest this year is Survive Said the Prophet, who thankfully, have their visa this time. Last year we were denied a MusicFest due to another guest's visa issues, and ironically, a couple of months back SStP faced those same issues too. SStP will make their first US appearance this year at FanimeCon and will follow up with a nationwide tour in July. They'll be playing in Berkeley so if you enjoy seeing them this upcoming Memorial Day weekend, you'll have a second chance to do it again.

For anime fans, you may have heard of them thanks to Vinland Saga's OP songs "Mukanjyo" and "Paradox." They also performed "Papersky," the opening of Tokyo 24th Ward, and "Ne:One," the theme song for Code Geass' third movie, and "Found & Lost" and "Red," both from Banana Fish.

Returning this year is Hirokatsu Kihara, this time for the 35th Annivesary of Kiki's Delivery Service. If you enjoyed him at last year's My Neighbor Totoro panel where he shared quite a bit of original cells and promo pieces, you can't miss this one either. For any of his showcase panels where he shows off art, none of it can be seen online due to agreements with Studio Ghibli. This means that if you want to see it, you'd better attend!

Casey Mongillo and Kira Buckland, both popular voice talents for various video games and movies, will be attending Fanime. Casey voiced Shinji Ikari in the latest version of Neon Genesis Evangelion, the protagonist in Shin Megaten V, Chilchuck in Delicious in Dungeon, Mustang in Nikke, and Emporio in Jojo: Stone Ocean. Kira Buckland has quite a number of roles including Jolyne Cujoh from Jojo: Stone Ocean, 2B in NieR: Automata, Shinobu in Genshin Impact, and Mitsuri in Demon Slayer.

Both will be signing autographs on Saturday and Sunday so if you've got something you want to have graced with their signatures, now's the time.

Maguma and VampyBitMe return to FanimeCon as cosplay guests. Both are veterans of many, many years and have worked alongside a multitude of companies like Capcom, Bandai, DC, SNK, and many more. Combined, they've got decades of experience. Both started off as fans and through dedication and persistence joined the ranks of the industry.

Mark 'MarkMan' Julio is currently Director of Global Business Development for Evolution Championship Series (Evo). If you haven't seen him in his professional duties, you've definitely seen him as a commentator for a variety of fighting games, especially during Evo. Previously, he spent many years at Mad Catz and Razer where he developed many popular joysticks.

Gilles is a long-time proponent of Fanime and is a bonafide scholar when it comes to Japan and Japanese culture. He's worked with the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, the Smithsonian in Washington DC, libraries, and more. He counts over three decades of experience when it comes to Japan, and will be on hand to impart some of that knowledge to attendees.

Voice actor and singer Yuu Hayashi makes his Western debut at FanimeCon 2024. His biggest roles are Mikey from Tokyo Revengers, Michizo from Bungo Stray Dogs, and Takuma from Jujutsu Kaisen. He is part of Lantis' SCREEN mode alongside guitarist and producer Masamoto.

Belladonna is this year's featured Japanese-inspired fashion brand. They focus primarily on lolita fashion of the sweet and kawaii type. First formed in 2013, founders Michelle and Rachel have cemented themselves as an outstanding fashion brand that has been featured through all corners of the United States.

FanimeCon 2024 takes place on May 24-27 this year.  If you're still on the fence, you've still got some time to decide, and if you're like me, you already know a bunch of people coming from all across the United States.  I'll see you there, particularly for Survive Said the Prophet and Hirokatsu Kihara.