My Hero Academia’s familiar surge of orchestral heroism is getting a louder, more cross-genre anniversary treatment. Composer Hayashi Yuki has teamed with German band Electric Callboy for “You Say Run -10th Anniversary Ver.-”, a new version of the signature track set to stream globally on major platforms from September 22.
The collaboration arrived at a particularly fitting point for the series. It marks 10 years since the anime debuted and belongs to the broader My Hero Academia The Animation 10th Anniversary project, which is scheduled to continue through 2026. The reworked song was first performed at the My Hero Academia in Concert event in London on September 20, ahead of its wider release.
A signature anime cue meets a deliberately different vocal style
“You Say Run” is closely associated with the emotional lift of My Hero Academia: a cue built to underscore breakthroughs, determination and the kind of impossible-looking effort that defines Izuku Midoriya’s path toward heroism. For the anniversary version, its original orchestral foundation is being combined with Electric Callboy’s sound, described as a mix of EDM, pop hooks and metalcore energy.
That matters because the project is not being framed as a straight rerecording. Hayashi wrote English lyrics for this edition, creating the connection that brought him together with Electric Callboy vocalists Kevin Ratajczak and Nico Sallach. The goal was to pair the established melody with performers capable of delivering both forceful shouted passages and melodic vocals, two qualities that suit a track tied so strongly to all-out action and inspirational release.
In simple terms, EDM—electronic dance music—generally centers electronic production and dance-oriented rhythmic momentum. Metalcore is a heavy-music style often associated with aggressive guitar-driven arrangements, intense vocals and sharp dynamic contrasts. Adding pop-minded vocal hooks to that mix gives Electric Callboy a broad, intentionally high-impact sound. Here, that approach is being applied to a piece fans primarily know through a sweeping anime-score arrangement.
Ratajczak called the opportunity to add the band’s vocals to “You Say Run” exciting, praising the tune as powerful and uplifting. Sallach similarly described the collaboration as both fun and an honor.
The combination makes sense on its own terms. My Hero Academia is a superhero story where triumph rarely arrives quietly: training arcs, rescue missions and confrontations with Quirk-wielding villains are designed around escalating stakes. A musical update that retains orchestral identity while introducing electronic and heavy-pop attack can preserve the recognizable core of “You Say Run” without simply reproducing what listeners already have.
Why “You Say Run” is a natural anniversary choice
A franchise anniversary can easily become a parade of logos and retrospective imagery. Reworking an identifiable piece of music is a more direct way of revisiting audience memory. Soundtracks are often inseparable from the scenes they support, particularly in long-running animation, and “You Say Run” has become one of the clearest musical signposts for the series’ sense of forward motion.
The selection also connects the anniversary to the franchise’s central idea. The world of My Hero Academia is one in which roughly 80% of people possess a superpowered ability known as a Quirk. Midoriya begins the story without one, then trains alongside his classmates at U.A. High School in the hope of becoming a professional hero. A song built around resolve and momentum naturally carries a different narrative weight in that context than it would as a standalone instrumental.
The updated release is therefore a musical celebration, but it is also an example of how a long-running property can refresh a familiar element for a global audience. Hayashi’s English lyrics and Electric Callboy’s involvement position the track as an international collaboration rather than a region-specific commemorative release. That is consistent with the song’s global streaming rollout and the band’s existing international audience.
Electric Callboy formed in Germany in 2010 and has developed its profile through genre-crossing songs including “Hypa Hypa” and “We Got the Moves,” as well as “Ratatata,” its collaboration with Babymetal. The group is also building momentum around its album Tanzneid. Its particular blend of accessible melodies and heavier elements makes it a distinctive choice for an anime arrangement historically known for its cinematic uplift.
For readers following recent music releases beyond anime, Joking Joystick has also covered Jhené Aiko’s chart-topping “Westside Whimsy” debut.
Artwork looks back to Season 1
The new song is accompanied by a fresh illustration from Bones Film. It depicts Midoriya, better known as Deku, delivering a “Smash,” while deliberately referencing the cover artwork of the anime’s original Season 1 soundtrack. It is a pointed visual callback: the anniversary version is a new arrangement, but its imagery ties it back to the early era of the adaptation.
That visual decision is useful context for what the project appears to be trying to accomplish. It is not presenting the revised track as a replacement for the original. Instead, the art and the arrangement both acknowledge the older version while giving it a new form. Hayashi described the result as a fusion of the original song’s energy and Electric Callboy’s vocals, and expressed hope that it would travel across borders and genres.
A milestone for a finished manga and completed anime run
The release lands after major endpoints for the wider franchise. Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia manga concluded in August 2024, having sold more than 100 million copies worldwide. The anime ultimately spans eight seasons, more than 170 episodes and four feature films; its eighth and final season arrived in fall 2025.
Those completed chapters change the role of an anniversary release. Rather than serving only as promotion for an ongoing anime season, “You Say Run -10th Anniversary Ver.-” can function as a celebration of a full decade of adaptation and of the audience connection built around it. Music is especially well suited to that job. A listener can recognize a theme in seconds, while a new vocalist or production approach can make the same melody feel newly charged.
There is no indication that the track is meant to alter the story’s existing soundtrack history or replace its original arrangement. What is known is more straightforward: Hayashi and Electric Callboy have made an anniversary version that merges orchestral material with the band’s vocal and genre-blending approach, and it is scheduled for a global release on September 22.
For fans, the practical takeaway is equally clear: this is a new standalone way to hear one of the anime’s best-known musical ideas, timed to the 10th-anniversary program. Further elements of that program are expected to be revealed through 2026, while this collaboration provides its first major musical statement: a Deku-sized “Smash” delivered with orchestra, electronic punch and a very different kind of shout-along chorus.
