The Midwest anime community recently received a massive dose of nostalgia this past week as after 11 years, Sephi Hakubi will finally return to the Reed Conference Center in Midwest City (Oklahoma City Metro), Oklahoma for the 2021 Anime Oklahoma convention. Announced on Anime Oklahoma’s Facebook page on September 11, Sephi will make is decade-long return to The Big Friendly on the weekend of October 1st to headline their rave and club nights. Although Anime Oklahoma first had their show in 2019, Sephi shared significant history with the Oklahoma fans and that city’s previous anime convention Izumicon since their first show in 2007. Sephi had started his career in the anime industry in 2006, working to make a name for himself at Kawaii Kon in Hawaii as a talent; he would eventually follow the Kawaii Kon staff to their sister convention Izumicon at the Biltmore Hotel where he gained notoriety and a beloved push cosplaying Reno from Final Fantasy VII. He would return to Izumicon the following year at the Reed Conference Center to compete in the Cosplay Theater main event and go on to win “Best Skit” as Itachi Uchiha in an Akatsuki-DX parody. Finally, he would return for 2 more years recording vlogs until 2010 when he would not be seen in Oklahoma again since then; furthermore, Izumicon would ultimately shut their doors in 2018, creating a void in OKC’s anime community until AnimeOK in 2019. Although Sephi has made an incredible impact in Oklahoma during his first 4 years at Izumicon as a fan and cosplayer, he has never been featured as a guest nor DJ’d at Izumicon nor any event in Oklahoma. Anime Oklahoma 2021 will serve as Sephi Hakubi’s official DJ guest debut as he will be headlining the rave as well as perform at other nightlife events during the weekend.
Sephi will be joined by an incredible cast of guests such as voice actresses Cynthia Cranz, Tiffany Vollmer, and native Oklahoman Stephanie Nadolny, cosplayers Kekkuda, Alecta Arcana, Honor Lychee, and another Izumicon legend, Mrs. Fae. Anime Oklahoma will take place at the Sheraton Midwest City Hotel and Reed Conference Center in Midwest City, Oklahoma from October 1st to October 3rd, 2021. Standard, Premium, and Hotel Party VIP passes can be purchased on their website: https://www.animeoklahoma.com/
