Support Artists Chasing Their Dreams! Audience-Participation Live Grand Prix 'OTONOVA2027' Now Accepting Participants

※This press release is jointly issued by Benefit-One, Inc. and Sonarway, Inc. Duplicates may be distributed; please understand in advance.

Benefit-One, Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Kazuyuki Hanyu) will launch the audience-participation live grand prix 'OTONOVA2027' in September 2026, in collaboration with Sonarway, Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Tomoharu Takamatsu), which will support operations and video production. Applications for participating artists will open on Wednesday, July 15.

Benefit-One provides 'Benefit Station,' a membership-based discount service offering over 1.4 million services at preferential rates to approximately 21,600 organizations and about 13.5 million members (as of April 2026; total includes welfare, CRM, and personal memberships). Since the 2021 fiscal year, the company has participated as a team owner in the professional dance league 'D.LEAGUE,' expanding its entertainment content such as stage performances and live concerts, which are highly popular among members.

'OTONOVA2027' invites participants to upload performance videos to 'Mudia (Myudia),' an audience-participation event media platform, competing for the grand prize based on audience voting points. The previous edition attracted around 3,000 artist applications, with participation numbers increasing annually. Additionally, Mudia's membership has grown to 120% compared to last year, and voting participants have exceeded 130% year-on-year, indicating strong momentum. Winners will receive prize money and music video production rights. Furthermore, among those who reach the grand final, various awards will be presented, offering music activity support from music producers, music production companies, and corporations.

Through hosting this event, Benefit-One aims to contribute to the revitalization of the music industry by providing more artists with opportunities to shine. Simultaneously, by expanding entertainment content that appeals to a wide range of age groups among its members, the company seeks to further increase service utilization and enhance member satisfaction.

Overview of the Audience-Participation Live Grand Prix 'OTONOVA2027' Organizer: Benefit-One, Inc.

Schedule: September 1, 2026 – February 23, 2027 (tentative)

Venue: <Preliminary and Semi-Finals>

Audience-participation media 'Mudia' (online)

and live houses serving as preliminary venues

<Grand Prix Final>

Zepp Shinjuku (TOKYO) and 'Mudia' (online)

Official URLs: [Online Category] https://artist.mudia.tv/lp/otonova2027_online

[Live House Category] https://artist.mudia.tv/lp/otonova2027_live

Content: An audience-participation live grand prix supporting artists' music activities. Among participants who advance through the preliminary and semi-finals to the Grand Prix Final, the 'Grand Prix' winner will be awarded prize money and music video production rights. Additionally, recipients of the 'Sound Producer Award,' 'Music Production Award,' and 'Corporate Collaboration Award' will be selected—artists who receive support for their music activities from leading music producers, music production companies, and corporations.

※The Music Production Award and Corporate Collaboration Award may have no recipients if no suitable candidates are found.

【Schedule】

- August 1, 2026 – November 15, 2026: Recruitment for Online Category participants

[Online Category] https://artist.mudia.tv/lp/otonova2027_online

- July 16, 2026 – October 31, 2026: Recruitment for Live House Category participants

[Live House Category] https://artist.mudia.tv/lp/otonova2027_live

- September 2026 – January 2027: Preliminary and Semi-Finals

※Live venue preliminaries: Scheduled from September to November in the Kanto and Kansai regions

- February 23, 2027: Grand Prix Final at Zepp Shinjuku (TOKYO)

※Event format and schedule are subject to change.

【Event Flow】

① Applicants must register the official 'OTONOVA' LINE account, follow the official 'OTONOVA' X (formerly Twitter) or Instagram account, and post their performance video with the hashtag '#OTONOVA2027' to undergo SNS screening.

② After passing the SNS screening, applicants upload their performance video to 'Mudia.' Participants who receive the highest number of voting points from audience gifts※ during the video's public period advance to the next stage.

③ The Grand Prix Final will be held live at Zepp Shinjuku. On the day of the event, audience voting will determine the winner—the participant with the highest voting points becomes the Grand Prix champion. Additionally, recipients of the 'Sound Producer Award,' 'Music Production Award,' and 'Corporate Collaboration Award' will be announced.

(※) Gifts are available in three types: free gifts, paid gifts, and special gifts exclusively for live event attendees.

【Free Gifts】 - Can be earned through logging into 'Mudia,' participating in campaigns, or posting 'Reports' (reviews) on various events.

【Paid Gifts】

- Can be obtained by purchasing Gold, the in-app currency of 'Mudia' (hereinafter 'G'; 100G = 110 JPY).

(Paid gifts can be exchanged for 100G, 300G, 500G, 1,000G, 3,000G, and 10,000G)

【Special Gift for Live Attendees】

- Attendees at the final round venue can receive gifts equivalent to 15,000G.

Fees: Participants: Free

Audience: Video viewing is free. ※Voting requires gifts.

Prizes: Grand Prix: 1,000,000 JPY prize money + music video production rights

Sound Producer Award

<Music Producers>

Kentaro Matsukuma, Tohru Hidaka (THE STARBEMS)

※Below are past participating companies (OTONOVA2023, 2024, 2025, 2026).

Numerous companies are expected to participate in 2027.

Music Production Award

<Participating Companies>

Asobisystem Co., Ltd. Avex Music Creative Inc.

A-Nexus

Ohta Production Inc.

Cube Inc.

Three Hundred Entertainment Inc. (Ken-On Group)

Tower Records Co., Ltd.

Nagara Production Inc.

Victor Entertainment Inc.

B ZONE Inc.

For Life Music Entertainment Inc.

Pony Canyon Inc.

Yamaha Music Entertainment Holdings Inc.