Benjiro "Benji" Nobunaga (2024)

TW: Alcoholism, abuse, childhood abuse, death, loss of a family member, sexual innuendo, mention of a bodily fluid

“When people called me freak, I closed my eyes and laughed, because they are blinded to happiness.” ― Hideto Matsumoto

See Also

Westros Dragon CharactersThe Gun - Wikisource, the free online libraryView topic - [❝☁.] ＳＴＯＲＭＣＬＡＮ [↪ＯＰＥＮ ❞]Opening Intro/Amy, Cosmo, and Sally's Normal Lives

Level of Fame

• Level 5 (Saints of Fame: those who acheive near royalty status, usually controversial figures, with a fanbase who nearly worships them, often sacrificing their self identity to the "fame monster").
• Benji is famous for acting, politics, music, being an influencer, and for being the producer of his own music label: Psyber Records.

Projects/Series

Singles (all had music videos):

• Check Your Six (May 2, 2015)
• Blow ’n Smoke (July 3, 2015)
• Traitor Daze (August 2015)

• Swallow It (Eat Your Words) (January 17, 2016)
• Disgust (March 28, 2016)

• Pretty Boy (September 17, 2019)
• Jack Noff (December 13, 2019)
• Spread It (January 8, 2020)

• Psyber Sex (June 22, 2022)
• Oval Orifice (October 22, 2022)
• LGBe f*ckin' T (January 19, 2023)

Albums/Mini-Albums:

• Traitor Daze (Released October 13, 2017)
• Disgust (September 20, 2018)
• Pretty Boy (January 20, 2021)
• Psyber Sex (January 23, 2023)

Cameos/Acting:

Jurassic World (2015)

• During a dino-themed concert on Jurassic World's Main Street stage, international rockstar BENJI (Benjiro Nobunaga) mistakes a real dinosaur for an animatronic. Confidently approaching the creature while performing, he is unexpectedly swallowed whole. The crowd, initially entertained, panics as the shocking reality unfolds. The incident turns the concert into a chaotic spectacle, blurring the line between entertainment and the unpredictability of Jurassic Park.

Psych ("Psych Rocks: Reunion Special" - 2016)

• In the Psych episode titled "Psych Rocks," Shawn and Gus encounter rockstar BENJI, who seeks their help in solving mysterious fan letters. The investigation leads the duo to go undercover at one of BENJI's concerts, uncovering a surprising twist involving his old tour manager. Grateful for Shawn and Gus's assistance, BENJI invites them to join him on stage for a special thank-you performance, resulting in a hilarious on-stage collaboration. The episode seamlessly blends "Psych's" crime-solving charm with the rockstar flair of BENJI, delivering a memorable and entertaining cameo.

The Muppets Meet Swampy (2020)

• In "The Muppets Meet Swampy," international rockstar BENJI (Benjiro Nobunaga) arrives in Cedargrove during the Muppets' visit. BENJI, seeking inspiration, collaborates with the Muppets to create a Swampy-themed rock anthem that captures the essence of the town's mysterious creature. As they embark on a musical adventure, BENJI becomes an honorary Muppet, contributing his rockstar flair to the chaos. In a climactic concert finale, BENJI debuts the anthem, transforming Cedargrove into a stage for a spectacular show that unites the entire town, skeptics and believers alike, in celebration of the magic surrounding Swampy.

Family Guy ("Love's Punchline" - 2021)

• In "Love's Punchline," Peter's jealousy over Lois and BENJI's college connection leads him to challenge BENJI in absurd competitions. Despite Peter's comical losses, Lois intervenes, encouraging him to be himself. Realizing his mistake, Peter opts for a quirky musical number, dressing up like BENJI and performing a knock-off version of "Pretty Boy" to express his feelings. Stewie, inspired by BENJI's rockstar lifestyle, launches a Rockstar Toddler Fashion Line, becoming an unexpected hit. The episode concludes with Stewie and Brian celebrating their success at The Drunken Clam.

Publicity Stunts

• Photographed urinating on a cop car in late 2014, circulated the internet in 2020. BENJI himself retweeted the photo with the caption "ACAB". He ended up purchasing the rights to that photo for an undisclosed amount, and made it the cover of his album, Pretty Boy.

Professional Background

1989 – 2009: EARLY LIFE AND DIRTY BUSH

Benjiro Nobunaga was born on May 5, 1989 in Cedargrove Hospital -- twin brother to Himari. He first began playing guitar at the age of fourteen, when his grandmother bought him his first electric guitar for his birthday: a Fernandes. He found a few of his father's KISS records and they left a huge impression on him in his early childhood. During his freshmen year of high school, he co-founded his very first band, DIRTY BUSH, and they continued activities until 2005.

After his grandmother's death in 2009, it is rumored that BENJI fell into deep depression and dropped music altogether.

2009 – APRIL 2014: SABERBACK

In mid 2009, BENJI briefly entered Cedargrove University. He dropped out to focus more seriously on his music, and quickly co-founded a new band, SABERBACK, with friends. With a final line-up, the band enjoyed minor success in the local indie scene – with outrageous makeup, hair and costumes, and lyrics that explored sexuality and self-expression.

BENJI operated as the band’s primary songwriter and composer, with occasional input from the band's co-founder. He composed songs like, “Spread It“, “Jack Noff“, and “Pretty Boy”, and altogether, the band completed four albums. They were lined up to sign with an indie record label for a recording contract in the spring of 2014, until the band dissolved with the co-founder's departure.

2014-: SOLO CAREER AND PSYBER

After the disbandment of SABERBACK, BENJI immediately moved forward with solo activities. His other bandmates stayed on his solo project for live performances, but in addition to doing all the vocals and songwriting, BENJI played all the guitar, bass, and some of the percussion for each of his upcoming album’s completed songs.

His lyrics focus mainly on political and social issues, ranging from serious to comical in nature, and seem to explore themes of sexuality, individuality and conformity. In his first single, “Check Your Six” – in which the title is derived from the military term, referring to checking for an enemy in your six ‘o clock position – he discusses checking for vulnerabilities in your society-prepped façade with the same thorough scrutiny as a military pilot. On stage performances of this song tend to be wild and exciting (unpredictable, even) and (along with its upbeat tempo) greatly contrast the song’s conservative undertones. BENJI has said this was intentional, to illustrate the grating narrative surrounding people who operate outside of the norm. This song was an unexpected, roaring success - reaching Billboard's #1 spot and holding it for several weeks.

BENJI would go on to release several other albums and singles, all soaring into popularity. HIs fanbase grew quickly, and before long he was performing in ( and selling out) large venues and appearing on national television. He even held success internationally, selling out stadiums in several countries. Over time he also appeared in several movies and spin offs, such as The Muppets Meet Swampy.

Wanting to pay it forward, BENJI opened up his own record label (Psyber Records) in 2022 and signed several indie bands on. He took a small break from his own music to help build his label and support his artists. It wasn't until 2023 that he released his most recent single, LGBe f*ckin' T.

How Benji Feels About His Fame

Benji feels torn about his fame. He knew it wouldn't fix the things that were broken in his life, but he didn't expect it to be so draining. He does sincerely love his fans and wants to give back to them, but there's also so much pressure to be perfect, to put out new content like a machine, and he's frequently overwhelmed. He doesn't sleep as much as he should and he's a regular work-a-holic.

Supernatural Status

• Kitsune
• Was born supernatural rather than turned.
• Benji was born in Cedargrove and has a soft spot for it because of his own memories of his grandmother and his family. He doesn't particularly like that Lost Cove exists or that supernaturals are not allowed to use their powers out in broad daylight, and he definitely drops hints of that in his interviews, as well as in public appearances within Lost Cove.
• No known associations with Subplots or local Legends.

Abilities

Shapeshifting: Benji can transform his appearance at will. This includes but is not limited to minimal changes like hair color, eye color, and age. These changes are mostly temporary and illusionary, and he cannot change his actual physical body for more than a few hours at a time.

Kitsune Physiology: Possess the traits, attributes and abilities of, transform into, and be a kitsune.

KItsunebi/Foxfire: The ability to summon hot, blue flames from nothing. This ability varies in intensity depending on intent. It’s commonly used during his performances for dramatic flare and, really, to light cigarettes because…. Let’s face it, that’s a flex.

Decelerated Aging: Benji ages slower than normal (when compared to mortals) and will have a long lifespan, near immortal.

Age Empowerment: The ability to become more powerful and gain an increase in strength as one gets older. As Benji ages, he will gain more powers and more strength.

Life Force Absorption: The power to absorb life-force/energy and utilize it in some way. For Benji, this looks like using that life energy to either sustain himself or to increase his attack power.

Illusion Manipulation: The power to manipulate illusions. In this case, he can create powerful and hyper-realistic illusions at will.

Possession: The power to inhabit the bodies of other beings/entities. He can inhabit or take over the body of other beings, whether sentient or not, by stealing their motor functions and senses. Benji does not have to leave his own body for this to take place. He can generally be ejected by making him lose focus.

Tail Manifestation/Prehensile Tail: Benji has or is able to manifest up to two tails. These tails can also protect from rear attacks or long range attacks and may also be used to attack in general. When surprised or drunk, Benji’s fox ears and tail may show.

Zoolingualism: The ability to speak with animals.

Charm: Like most kitsune, Benji has a natural allure. This is particularly helpful when he’s trying to weasel his way out of doing something or convince someone to do something they don’t want to do.

Seduction/Enhanced Sex Appeal: The ability have an extremely attractive sex appeal. He has almost a magnetic sex appeal that attracts people with no effort at all. He radiates an aura of attractiveness, naturally inducing titillating pleasure and carnal desire while subtly lifting inhibitions. This does not override sexual orientation, though. If a person is not attracted to men, they may just find themselves thinking he’s objectively beautiful.

Heightened Senses: Benji’s sense of smell, sight, and hearing are more acute than a humans, but his ears and tail being cloaked will reduce the scope of his senses.

Cloaking: This ability to hide his ears and tail. This ability is finicky. If Benji drinks too much, he’ll likely accidentally show them.

Hoshi no Tama: The source of his powers. A small, pearlescent ball that he keeps on a pendant at all times, usually worn under his clothes for safekeeping. If stolen, it can be used for wishing granting purposes (though only he himself can grant it). He is powerless without his hoshi no tama and therefore guards it carefully.

Weaknesses

Hoshi no Tama: If someone else gets ahold of his hoshi no tama they can use him for his power. In addition, he is powerless without it.

Illusion Limits: Benji’s ears and tails are a dead giveaway that a fox is behind the illusions he creates. If a person startles him while he’s casting an illusion or pretending to be someone else, he may give himself away. In addition, his illusions are just that: illusions. They have no mass, do not cast shadows and are temporary at best. He can only maintain an illusion for a few hours at best and will require a good amount of rest to recover.

Heightened Senses: Because his senses are heightened they are also easily overwhelmed.

Supernatural Form(s)

In his kitsune form, he’s little more than a smallish red fox to the untrained eye. Look closely enough, though, and you’ll notice two tails - and heterochromic eyes. One brown, one golden. Red pelt, black stockings and white underbelly, chin and cheeks. In this form he may either walk on all fours or walk on two feet, like a person.

Tools/Weapons

Hoshi no Tama, previously mentioned.

Background

History

For Benji Nobunaga, the innocence of childhood lasted as long as his father's sobriety, which collapsed just as he entered the first grade. His father's gentle embraces faded just like the bruises on his arms; yet the pain lingers just like the tears in his mother's eyes. He and his twin brother, Himari, made a solemn promise never to end up like their father once he finally left their family on the eve of their birthday in 1998.

In their father's absence, Benji's grandmother stepped in. She became a beacon of love and support, offering her love even as she aged. Even when his mother scolded him for listening to his father's old records, his grandmother bought him his first guitar (a Les Paul) from Uncle Ollie's. He learned to channel his feelings through his guitar, and began spending hours practicing, even falling asleep at his dusk, slumped over it.

After his grandmother's passing in 2009, Benji fell into a deep and dark depression. During this time, he and his mother got into an argument over his wanting to pursue music. Eventually, he agreed to pursue his backup career choice of cosmetology. And despite being enrolled in classes, he only completed the first semester. In the quiet of the night, he got into his beat up van and drove out to California to find his dad, who he had learned was also a musician. Two weeks alone with him was enough to help him understand why his mother had been so cross with him. Soon enough, he turned right back around and went home.

Benji went back to beauty school, passed his examination, and obtained his license. He began working in the local salon, Curl Up and Dye. He moved in with some old bandmates and his best friend, Alex. All the while, though he could not bring himself to give up music. He at least would play on his own during his free time, and would volunteer to help with hair and makeup for indie performances. During one such performance, a friend from beauty school pulled him on stage to perform. At first he refused, but after a lot of pushing, he finally relented, playing his old band's song "Pretty Boy."

It was during this performance that he was approached by a recruiter for Universal Music Group. After some discussion and plenty of back and forth (and multiple nights keeping Himari and Alex up as he batted the idea around), he finally agreed to sign on with them. With the release of his single Check Your Six, he was propelled into stardom. And the rest, you could say, is history. Multiple albums, releases, movies, interviews, tours and TV shows -- and his fanbase just kept growing.

Before long, he was creating his own record label (Psyber Records) and signing his own artists. He'd succeeded in every way he'd ever wanted to, and yet he still felt empty. With a house full of friends, concert venues packed full of fans, and still he finds himself wondering what his purpose is, what else beyond this waits for him within this lifetime. He buries himself in his work, hoping to find the answer or else work so hard that he'll never wonder again.

Motivations and Goals

To continue to grow his label and sign more artists to it, find something that makes him happier than he is currently, to foster the next greatest music sensation, to contribute to something greater than himself.

Relationships with other Characters

None currently.

Living Situation

Home

A large, modern mansion complete with a pool, pool house, guest house, several bedrooms, two kitchens, a large living area, entertainment area, theatre, recording studio, and children's play room (for his nephew).

Never Leaves Home Without

His necklace/Hoshi no Tama.

Travel

By car, mostly. He rarely drives himself anywhere, though, and is instead escorted by a driver. This is mostly for security purposes.

Roommates

Three spots are taken (Haji, Alex, Himari), two spots remain (one for his guitarist and one for his drummer). None of these characters are in play yet.

Plotting

Played by

Kai

Desired Ships/Plots

Bandmates!!! Rivals!!!! Friends!!! Current or past lovers!!! All plots!!! Someone's hair he destroyed when he was in beauty school!

Where to Encounter Benji

Psyber Records HQ, Uncle Ollies, Upper or Downtown Cedargrove

No-Go's for RP

Anything is fine.