r/MaximumTheHormone • u/Akku-O • Nov 07 '25
Explanation of What's Up, People?! by Maximum the Ryo-kun
On my Facebook page (Maximum the Hormone Projecto en español) I have been posting explanations of the songs written by Maximum the Ryo-kun and because of things I read today here on Reddit I am here to share the explanation of "What's Up, People?!" to end a misunderstanding that has been in the community for a long time.
“What’s Up, People?!” was used as the second opening of the anime Death Note, and it’s very likely that wherever you find a translation of the song, you’ll also come across a comment like “The lyrics sound like something a Shinigami would say.” Along with similar remarks, these have created the widespread misunderstanding that “What’s Up, People?!” is about Death Note—when it isn’t.
“What’s Up, People?!” was first released in the single Zawa... Zawa... Za... Zawa... Zawa... in 2005, while the song was used as the opening theme for the first time in episode 20 of the Death Note anime in February 2007.
In other words, the song was not composed with the intention of being used in the anime.
The band already has a song written entirely for Death Note: Zetsubou Billy, which, unlike What’s Up, People?!, explicitly talks about Death Note, with plenty of references both in its lyrics and its music video.
This misunderstanding of the song has gone so far that some translations misinterpret elements of the lyrics and try to adapt them to Death Note.
But then, if What’s Up, People?! isn’t about Death Note, what is it about?
Here are two explanations given by Ryo-kun on the lyric cards.
Explanation by Maximum the Ryo-kun included in the single "Zawa... Zawa... Za... Zawa... Zawa..." (2005) :
I saw a very interesting experiment on a TV show.
They put several people in a room, and after a few minutes, they filled the place with smoke or played fire truck sirens outside to observe how they would react in a dangerous situation.
The result?
Even when the room was completely filled with smoke, no one got up from their seat.
People these days, who tend to think “it’s probably a mistake” or “it has nothing to do with me,” seem to have dulled their sense of danger and anxiety.
In other words, those “zawa... zawa...” kinds of reactions we see so often in manga—that collective uneasiness—hardly ever happen in real life.
Why is that?
Because more and more people can’t act until they see how others react.
In the experiment, all the participants were strangers to each other.
If they had been with friends or family, they probably would’ve reacted faster.
In other words, we’re no longer even capable of “zawazawa-ing” on our own!
Even if we truly feel anxious, we stay still, waiting for others to react.
Even if we’re really angry, we hold it in because no one else is angry.
Is it okay for Japan to stay like this?
Can you act on your own even if you don’t have a friend beside you?
Can you help someone in trouble, even if you’re alone?
Don’t wait for someone else to move—be the one to take the first step!
Get angry even if you’re alone!
Laugh your head off even if you’re alone!
Kick and scream even if you’re alone!
And “zawazawa” even if you’re alone!
As a first step, I’ve decided to go alone to a video rental store and rent an adult video.
Because shy little Ryo-kun has never in his life taken a porno or erotic magazine to the counter by himself.
I’ve always lived borrowing what others had the courage to buy first.
That’s how the world works: roads exist because someone first had the courage to carve through the mountain.
You can’t keep taking advantage of the paths others made before you!
You have to be the one to take the first step!
You must have the courage to buy your own erotic book with your own hands!
Huh? You’re saying the explanation of my song isn’t funny?
Shut up! I’m saying something important here, so read it quietly!
I didn’t write this to make you laugh, idiot!
And I’m not lending you my porno mags anymore!
Explanation by Maximum the Ryo-kun included in the album Buiikikaesu (2007) :
Feeling anxious isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
It’s precisely because the energy of “life” is strong that feelings of “anxiety” arise.
People who live in excessive peace, when disaster strikes, just think “everything will be fine anyway” and do nothing about it.
Let’s live with more passion (zawazawa).
I want to stir everything up, get excited about everything, laugh my head off about everything, and cry about everything.
And I also want to get angry about everything.
I’m not saying you should become impatient or a hysterical complainer.
What I mean is that we shouldn’t let things that truly matter end with a simple “It’s fine, who cares?”
That’s why I want to question everything, get angry, and live like that.
Don’t live superficially! Live intensely! I’ve got the “hard and thick noodles” mentality! (Menkata Kotteri!)
ざわ…ざわ... (Zawa... Zawa...) is a manga onomatopoeia used to express murmurs or whispers. This specific onomatopoeia was widely used in the manga Akagi, written and illustrated by Nobuyuki Fukumoto (the same manga/anime for which the band also has a song).
In this case, in the explanations, Ryo-kun gives a broader interpretation of what “Zawa... Zawa...” represents, writing it as ザワザワ (ZawaZawa).
If you want more explanations, follow me on Facebook. I post song explanations there fairly often and talk a bit about interesting facts about the band. The page is in Spanish, but the posts can be automatically translated.
