What Are Call and Kecha? Japanese Concert Chants and the Arms-Out Salute, and How to Learn Them

At a concert, everyone around you suddenly shouts in unison, and you wonder where on earth they learned it. Here is what call and kecha mean, how they differ, how to learn them, and how to check whether you can use them at a particular show.

What Call and Kecha Mean

Call (コール) is the chant that fans shout all at once in time with a song. Shouting member names between songs or dropping in set responses (“Hai! Hai!” and the like): each song has a pattern shared among the fans.

Kecha (ケチャ) is the cheering gesture of reaching both arms toward your oshi during the chorus or a highlight. The name is said to come from the resemblance to kecak, the traditional dance of Bali. The moment when the arms of the whole audience stretch toward the stage is a sight only the genba (live event) can give you.

Related Terms

Call and kecha are both patterns that let “the audience become part of the show,” but they use different parts of the body. Call is voice and timing, while kecha is the direction and height of your arms. That the two are separate mechanisms is why, at shows where voices are not allowed, kecha can remain.

Uses your voice

Call

• Set shouts timed to the song
• Member names, "Hai! Hai!"

Uses your arms

Kecha

• Both arms toward your oshi
• Direction and height matter

Kecha can remain when voices are not allowed.

Examples

• “Should I study the calls for the signature songs before my first show?”
• “The kecha from the whole hall during that song’s last chorus was overwhelming.”
• “Calls are banned at this venue, so I’ll get my feelings across with my penlight.”
• “I was told that not fully extending your elbows keeps you from blocking the view of the person behind you.”
• “I can’t possibly memorize the kojo, so I just shout the name part with everything I’ve got.”
• Example social media post: “The calls in the venue today were so in sync. That was practically a choir.”

Common Misconceptions

• Calling is not an obligation. You don’t have to shout on every song; focusing on listening is perfectly fine
• Fan-made “call sheets” are not official rules. They are volunteer compilations. Official notices always take priority
• Knowing the pattern does not mean you can use it anywhere. Even for the same song, what’s allowed changes from one genba to the next

The Culture of Voice Varies by Genre

• Idol shows. The culture with the most developed system of patterns: MIX, kojo, name calls. Some people combine it with ota-gei and furi-copy
• K-pop. The official side publishes song-by-song chants, so the audience falls into sync on the assumption that everyone has learned them, which is a striking sight
• Bands and rock. More sing-alongs and clapping than set calls
• Stage plays and classical. No voices; showing your feelings with applause and curtain calls is the proper form

There are “circles that take part with chants” and “circles that show respect with silence,” and both are right ways to cheer.

Most voiceLeast voice

1. Idol showsMIX, kojo, name calls
2. K-popAnnounced song-by-song chants
3. Bands and rockSing-alongs and clapping
4. Stage and classicalApplause and curtain calls

How to Learn Calls

1. Study with live footage and call videos. Some fandoms have fan-made “call sheets”
2. At the venue, match those around you. Don’t force yourself to shout on a song you’ve never heard; observe first
3. Perfect isn’t the goal. Calls aren’t mandatory. Joining in as far as you enjoy it is enough

For your first sansen (attending a show), we recommend learning only the call for your favorite song. Even syncing up on one song completely changes your sense of taking part.

“Knowing the Pattern” and “Using It at That Genba” Are Different Things

Whether call and kecha are allowed differs from genba to genba. Shows that ban voices, circles with a quiet-listening culture, courtesy toward the neighbor whose view you might block: “knowing the pattern” and “being allowed to use it there” are separate questions. Check both the official notices and the atmosphere of that fandom sphere.

The Order for Checking Whether It’s Allowed

1. Read the show page and the ticket. Official notes have top priority on how voices are treated, and the rules can change by venue even on the same tour
2. Listen to the announcement before the show. The final call for the day is given here. If it differs from the written notice, the announcement overrides it
3. Watch the crowd for one song. When the notice is vague, the regulars’ behavior is the practical answer

1. 01Read the noticesShow page and ticket come first
2. 02Hear the announcementIt overrides the written notice
3. 03Watch one songThe regulars are the answer

Official notes have top priority, and the crowd fills any gap.

Even at shows where you can’t use your voice, your support doesn’t disappear. A penlight’s color and movement, clapping, an uchiwa (fan): answering with light and motion in place of voice is standard equipment at the modern genba.

Notes From The Oshi Lab: The Official Side Provides the Pattern for Participation

Call culture is the finished form of a design in which the audience’s participation is part of the show. The give and take between performers and audience gives fans a sense of ownership, of having “made the show together.” After a period in which whether voices were allowed kept shifting, the mainstream move has been to officially design participatory elements (clapping, penlights, chant sections). Having the official side provide the pattern for participation is a principle that applies to event design in general.

From a business perspective, the essence of call is the tiered design of how high the bar for participation is. People who shout with everything they have, people who join in quietly and people who only listen can share the same space because each person chooses their own degree of participation. When designing an audience-participation program, forcing everyone to take part drives beginners away. Prepare both an easy pattern anyone can join and a deeper one for those who want to master it: call culture is a showcase of exactly that.

Related Terms

Ota-gei / Penlight / Genba / Sansen