Gachiakuta Creator Kei Urana and Artist Hideyoshi Andou Leave X After Post-Awards Harassment

Gachiakuta creator Kei Urana has deleted her X account following a wave of online harassment, just days after the Gachiakuta anime won three awards at the 2026 Crunchyroll Anime Awards. Graffiti artist and series collaborator Hideyoshi Andou deactivated his own account shortly after defending Urana publicly.

The Video That Sparked the Backlash

On May 21, Urana shared a fan-made parody video on Instagram. The clip showed a Japanese creator performing a dance sequence from the series while wearing leeks attached to his head to imitate the dreadlock-like hairstyle of the character Jabber. Urana stated she found the video humorous and shared it for entertainment.

Western fans quickly accused Urana of racism, arguing that the leek-based imitation of Jabber's hairstyle was culturally insensitive. The backlash intensified rapidly across X and other platforms, with some users sending hateful messages directly to the mangaka.

Urana's Apology and Departure

Urana responded through an Instagram story, explaining her intent. "This is a quote from a dance video that recreates the scene by using hair to resemble a leek. I apologize if it caused offense," she wrote, clarifying that she shared the content without any intention to mock a culture. She also confirmed she would delete the original post.

Despite the apology, the harassment continued. After blocking multiple users who sent hateful comments, Urana deactivated her X account entirely, stating that the platform chaos was affecting her creative process. She remains active on Instagram, where she regularly posts artwork and interacts with fans through live sessions.

Urana is recognized as one of the few manga artists who actively engages with her audience on social media, making the departure particularly notable for the Gachiakuta community.

Andou Steps In - Then Steps Out

Hideyoshi Andou, the real-world graffiti artist whose work inspires much of Gachiakuta's visual identity, publicly defended Urana on X. He condemned what he described as "toxic behavior" from the fandom and criticized the "dramatic outrage" surrounding the video. On May 24, Andou deactivated his own X account as well.

A Studio Bones animator the studio behind the Gachiakuta anime adaptation also weighed in publicly, criticizing platforms like X and TikTok as breeding grounds for "immature and destructive users." The animator's statement underscored growing frustration within the anime industry over the toll social media harassment takes on creators.

A Bitter Aftermath to Awards Night

The timing of the controversy is striking. Gachiakuta had just secured three wins at the 2026 Crunchyroll Anime Awards, a milestone that should have been a celebration for the creative team. Instead, the series' creator and one of its key artistic influences were driven off a major platform within days of the ceremony.

The incident adds to a growing pattern of Japanese creators withdrawing from Western social media platforms after facing coordinated backlash. Urana's continued presence on Instagram suggests she has no plans to stop engaging with fans entirely, but the loss of two prominent voices from X marks a clear consequence of unchecked online hostility toward the people behind the art.