Tekko, the Pittsburgh area anime convention once known as Tekkoshocon, is celebrating its 15th annual outing with Tekko 2017 this April 6th-9th, 2017.

The four day event’s headliners include: the musical group MAGIC OF LIFE, probably best known outside of Japan for the outro songs for Yowamushi Pedal and Joker Game; actor, director, and voice actor Ian Sinclair of DragonBall Z and One Piece; voice actors Brina Palencia, Jad Saxton, and Cherami Leigh; fashion guests Kimura U (also a model and voice actress), Haenuli, and Royal Princess Alice; the comedian Karl “Uncle Yo” Custer; local musician Nancy Kepner; and, “Study of Anime” founder Charles Dunbar.

New to this year’s Tekko is a Mecha Scale Model Competition, as well as expanded 18+ programming, added to the Tekko mainstays:  the game room, the vendor’s room, artists’ alley, fashion shows, cosplay contests, and dance parties.

The Harry Potter Alliance and the Pittsburgh Nerd Fighters will be running a book drive at Tekko 2017, and they are accepting “donations of new and gently used books, comic books, graphic novels, and manga,” which “can be dropped off at the Info Desk Booth, Tekko Merchandise Table, and Convention Operations.”

Tekko 2016 was an amazing event (you can find the NerdSpan review through this hyperlink), with an expanded game room and tons of cosplay, not to mention a 30% increase in registrations–8000 attendees from 27 states.  Tekko’s press release for the upcoming event states that, “Over the four-day period, the economic impact to the greater Pittsburgh area was 4.7 million dollars, based on information from Visit Pittsburgh.”

Although you can buy your registration at the door, attendee pre-registration is still open for Tekko until March 31st at $50 for the four day event; vendor registration is also still open as of this writing.  Panel submissions and artists’ alley applications are closed.

Original press release:

The Pittsburgh Japanese Culture Society Celebrates 15 Years of Tekko!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 15, 2017:

PITTSBURGH, PA. – Tekko, the region’s premier anime, gaming, fashion, music and Japanese Pop Culture convention, now in its fifteenth year, will be returning to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh, Pa., April 6 – 9, 2017.

This year’s featured international musical guests will be MAGIC OF LiFE, a melodic rock band from Japan known for the credit songs from the popular anime Yowamushi Pedal and Joker Game. Tekko 2017 will be the first and only US appearance this year for MAGIC OF LiFE.

Special guests this year include Ian Sinclair, an actor, director, and voice actor that has been working in the anime and video game industry for over a decade. Ian’s more popular roles include: Whis from DragonBall Z, and Brook from One Piece.

Other Voice actors include Brina Palencia, Jad Saxton, and Cherami Leigh. Also, fashion guests this year include Kimura U, an international fashion designer, model, and voice actress, Haenuli, and Royal Princess Alice. Comedian Karl “Uncle Yo” Custer, local musician Nancy Kepner and “Study of Anime” website founder Charles Dunbar will also be in attendance.

New this year will be a Scale Model Competition where fans can build models that depict Mecha robots from various anime series. Also, significantly expanded 18+ anime programming.

Mainstay components of Tekko include vendors, artists’ alley, panels, fashion shows, cosplay contests, dance party with 4 DJ’s, gaming, Tekko Gakkou (School Series) and much, much more.

Last year Tekko obtained another record attendance, with a 30% increase in total registrations, entertaining nearly 8,000 guests from 27 states! Over the four-day period, the economic impact to the greater Pittsburgh area was 4.7 million dollars, based on information from Visit Pittsburgh.

Tekko’s 15th anniversary promises to provide anime fans with even more of the best industry-related guests, shows, vendors, artists and expanded programming, in an interactive, engaging and friendly environment.

Tekko, presented by the non-profit Pittsburgh Japanese Culture Society, continues to establish a social framework through which regional anime fans can interact with each other.
Detailed and updated information can be found @: www.teamtekko.us

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