Girl Meets Rock!

Japanese manga series

Coming-of-age^[1]
Musical^[2]
Slice of life^[2]

Manga
Written by	Kuwahali
Illustrated by	Tetsuo Ideuchi
Published by	Shueisha
Imprint	Jump Comics+
Magazine	Shōnen Jump+
Demographic	Shōnen
Original run	January 14, 2024 – present
Volumes	2
Anime and manga portal

Girl Meets Rock! (Japanese: ふつうの軽音部, Hepburn: Futsū no Keion-bu, lit. "Ordinary Light Music Club") is a Japanese manga series written by Kuwahali and illustrated by Tetsuo Ideuchi. It has been serialized on Shueisha's digital platform Shōnen Jump+ since January 2024.

Plot summary

New high school student Chihiro Hatono buys her first electric guitar and joins the light music club. There, she and bassist Rin Koyama form the band La Cittadella. Not very good, they quickly break up, as do other club bands. After having heard Hatono sing, Rin sets out scheming to form the perfect band with Hatono on vocals. They quickly recruit drummer Momo Uchida, whose own band broke up after their bassist was dumped by fellow club member Koki Takami, a skilled guitarist and singer who is popular with girls. In order to play a concert in July, Hatono's band temporary recruits third year Tamaki Nitta as a support guitarist. Hatono's lackluster performance there spurs her to practice playing and singing in Nagai Park every day of summer vacation. When the second semester begins, Hatono's band recruits guitarist Ayame Fuji, who was about to quit the club after also being dumped by Takami.

Characters

Chihiro Hatono (鳩野ちひろ, Hatono Chihiro): A 15-year-old first year high school student who is a self-described introvert. After her parents divorced, she moved from Kawasaki to Osaka Prefecture for her first year of middle school. Despite being a complete beginner on guitar, she borrows money from her mother to buy a Fender Telecaster. She has dreamed of being the guitarist and vocalist in a rock band since she was a child, but has suppressed the latter ever since her voice was made fun of in middle school.
Rin Koyama (幸山厘, Kōyama Rin): A tall first year student with short hair. She is a bassist who asks Hatono, whom she calls "Hato-chan", to form a band, La Cittadella. After secretly watching her sing, Rin becomes obsessed with Hatono's vocals, to the point of worshiping her as her "god". She pulls numerous schemes in order to form a new band with the perfect members and Hatono as frontwoman.
Momo Uchida (内田桃, Uchida Momo): An outgoing first year student with two braids in her hair. She is a drummer who befriends Hatono, whom she calls "Hattocchi", on their first day of high school. She initially forms a trio named Sound Sleep, but they disband in June when a member quits the club after being dumped by Koki Takami. After hearing Hatono sing at a karaoke session arranged by Rin, Momo joins their band.
Ayame Fuji (藤井彩目, Fuji Ayame): A guitarist with a wolf cut who is a former elementary school classmate of Momo. Ayame was the guitarist in the band Protocol until leaving it after being dumped in August by its vocalist Koki Takami.
Koki Takami (鷹見項希, Takami Koki): A skilled guitarist and singer who is popular with girls. He is the guitarist and vocalist of the band Protocol. Days after breaking up with the bassist of Sound Sleep, Takami begins dating his bandmate Ayame Fuji. He breaks up with her a couple months later.

Publication

Written by Kuwahali and illustrated by Tetsuo Ideuchi, Girl Meets Rock! started on Shueisha's digital platform Shōnen Jump+ on January 14, 2024.^[3] Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes, with the first one released on April 4, 2024.^[1] As of June 4, 2024, two volumes have been released.

The series is published digitally in English on Manga Plus.^[4]

Volumes

No.	Japanese release date	Japanese ISBN
1	April 4, 2024^[5]	978-4-08-884019-2
2	June 4, 2024^[6]	978-4-08-884082-6

Reception

The manga has been nominated for the 2024 Next Manga Award in the web category.^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b 邦ロックを愛するギター初心者女子が軽音部に入部して奮闘「ふつうの軽音部」1巻. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. April 4, 2024. Archived from the original on June 1, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
^ ^a ^b Chanmei (April 30, 2024). 『あくまでクジャクの話です。』『ういちの島』『ふつうの軽音部』……漫画ライター・ちゃんめい厳選！　4月のおすすめ新刊漫画. Real Sound [ja] (in Japanese). Blueprint Co., Ltd. Archived from the original on May 11, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
^ 銀杏、ナンバガ……邦ロックを愛する陰キャ女子の青春描く新連載がジャンプラで. Comic Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. January 14, 2024. Archived from the original on June 1, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
^ Manga Plus [@mangaplus_o] (January 13, 2024). "【NEW SERIES!】(For English Series) A high-octane drama of unfiltered youth and musical ambition! Girl meets Rock! Chap 001~004" (Tweet) (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 4, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024 – via Twitter.
^ 【4月4日付】本日発売の単行本リスト. Comic Natalie. Natasha, Inc. April 4, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
^ 【6月4日付】本日発売の単行本リスト. Comic Natalie. Natasha, Inc. June 4, 2024. Archived from the original on June 3, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
^ 『次にくるマンガ大賞2024』ノミネート100作品決定『カグラバチ』『ホタルの嫁入り』『ルリドラゴン』など. Oricon News (in Japanese). June 21, 2024. Archived from the original on June 22, 2024. Retrieved July 4, 2024.