The realism here is off the charts.

“Virtual Insanity” by Jamiroquai was one of the biggest hits of the ’90s, earning a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group and the music video winning four out of ten award nominations, including Video of the Year at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards.

▼ In case you need a refresher, here’s the music video, which is still as impressive as it was when it released almost thirty years ago.

Interestingly, the track was actually inspired by a visit to Sapporo in Japan, when frontman and co-writer Jay Kay descended from the snowy landscape into an underground mall that was bustling with noise and colour, which he described as a “whole underground city”.

That Japanese inspiration can be found in the song’s lyrics:

“For these useless, twisting of our new technology
Oh, now there is no sound, for we all live underground.”

So it seems fitting that Jamiroquai is reconnecting with Japan again after all these years, only this time, it’s for a new reason — to create a figure modelled on Jay Kay.

The new figure has been produced by Bandai Namco as part of its S.H.Figuarts range of super articulated figures, with Jay Kay himself overseeing the production of the two different faces included with the model.

▼ The facial features look so real it’s hard to believe this is a photo of the figure and not the man himself.

The figure measure 15 centimetres (5.9 inches) in height, and includes not just the outfit, a miniature version of the one seen in the music video, but several additional extras, listed below:

・Replacement expression part (“YEAH” face)
・Replacement wrist parts (left 3 types, right 4 types)
・1-seater sofa x 2 (paper craft)
・3-seater sofa x 1 (paper craft)

▼ The “YEAH” face

▼ Bandai isn’t joking when it says the model is super articulated — check out the flexibility in the poses it can achieve!

▼ The sofas are a nice touch, as they perfectly resemble the ones in the music video.

▼ With so much attention to detail, you can go all out and replicate the music video yourself, just as Bandai did for the promotional clip below:

 

The figure is priced at 9,900 yen (US$69.67), which is surprisingly reasonable for an item so detailed. Reservations for the product began on 16 June on the Premium Bandai shopping site, with delivery scheduled for November.

According to Bandai, there’s a chance they’ll be selling these internationally as well, so keep an eye out for it in your neck of the woods! It’s only being made available in limited quantities, though, so be sure to act quick if you see it.

Source, images: @Press
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