A Japanese rapper who refused to accept failure finally claimed the record for the longest rap marathon on his third attempt.
After almost two years of work and battling to overcome two failed attempts, PONEY celebrated with his fans, unveiling his certificate at a special event – Haten BEATBOXBATTLE 3.0, held in Shibuya, Tokyo.
And Guinness World Records was there to join in the fun and find out all about his epic journey to becoming a record breaker.
PONEY said with relief in his voice: “The certificate arrived at my doorstep a week ago, but I didn’t open it until today. Because I wanted to show this at an event hosted by people who helped out with my record attempt.”
The birth of MC PONEY
Before we get to PONEY’s record attempt, let’s look at how he became a rapper in the first place.
Born and raised in Yamanashi (about two hours drive from Tokyo), PONEY’s first real-life experience with rapping came when he was 17 and one of his favourite artists came to his hometown.
The energy exerted by the artist on stage was like a lightning strike for him. On top of that, performances by local artists were a catalyst for the whole experience.
I realized there were people in my town doing these kinds of things. And I was thinking, I wanted to do the same. I even thought I could do better than them, not knowing better. But that got me into writing lyrics, and I’m still at it now.
After experiencing the process of artistic creation, PONEY was hooked. And when he recorded some rap music for the first time in 2004, his mind was set on making a career out of it.
It was also in his teens that he was bestowed the MC name PONEY (initially PONY, but later changed).
One day, he was watching TV while talking to a friend on the phone. Out of nowhere, a small horse ran across the TV screen and the young PONEY said, “Hey, that’s a pony.” His friend found it hilarious and christened him with the nickname.
Record attempt at the spur of the moment
With two albums and many EPs and singles under his belt, PONEY now has a strong presence in the Japanese hip-hop scene. He’s also won a B-BOY PARK MC battle, which is equivalent to becoming a national champion. But PONEY’s idea for a record-breaking attempt came out of nowhere.
“It was 11 September 2021. I was searching for a rap marathon record, and it was 33 hours and 33 minutes [set by George Watsky a.k.a Watsky (USA)]. I thought I could better that, so I gave it a try”, he said.
But he didn’t realize that he had to first apply for the record and go through the rules and guidelines.
He just got some recording gear ready and did it without knowing that rest breaks are permitted to ensure the safety of participants.
“The concept of taking a break never came to my mind. I didn’t know that the official guideline allowed me to take some breaks, including going to the toilet,” he admitted.
PONEY actually continued rapping while he was going to the toilet – all while live-streaming his attempt to fans.
In the end, PONEY’s spur-of-the-moment record attempt didn’t go well. Although he surpassed the record that stood then, his recording equipment failed him and he couldn’t even apply for the record.
Some months later, PONEY went for his second attempt. But this time, someone else had broken the record while he was in the process of applying and attempting the record himself, meaning he didn’t rap for long enough.
Mounting pressure
PONEY ended up rapping for more than 60 hours in total in the space of a few months, but to no avail. He decided to try it one more time, but this time he extended his goal to 48 hours.
But he felt the pressure of setting himself such a huge task.
“The attempt was due to take place in April 2023, but at the end of January, I still hadn’t applied for the record. I could’ve done it sooner, but the pressure was so huge I didn’t even want to think about it. Even opening the laptop was tough.”
For his third attempt, PONEY asked the organizer of the Haten (battle event) to livestream it. He says that without them, the attempt would have been impossible.
“They looked after everything, from recording to timekeeping and everything. Thanks to them, I was able to focus solely on rapping.”
The attempt began a little after noon on 22 April and was broadcast live on YouTube.
Despite rapping coming very naturally to PONEY, the lack of sleep got to him during his marathon.
“I was already ready for bed in the 16th hour. I wanted to stop because I’d rather fall asleep.”
While he could have taken a break, he didn’t want to stop until he reached the then-record of 39 hours 37 minutes set by Daniel Alcon (UK).
Because I wanted the world to think: that guy’s not human.
As he was battling against fatigue, he found an unlikely source of energy from the people leaving negative comments on his live broadcast.
“At first, I was responding to the comments [through rap] to stop hurting me, but around the 30-hour mark, I realized it was because of that person who kept posting negative remarks that I stayed awake. So I communicated that with a rap. Then the person commented that he or she regretted the previous comments and started cheering me on. That was a ‘nice panic’ experience.”
After the attempt
With the help of his support crew, PONEY has finally broken the Guinness World Records title with an official time of 48 hr 1 min 10 sec, although it still hasn’t sunk in for him.
He said: “It’s strange I don’t yet feel I achieved something. It’s not like I am suddenly superior to others because of this. Having said that, I’m happy to see people who supported me, including my wife, happy.
“Now there’s a pressure of being chased by others trying to break the record. I don’t mind if the record stays where it is until I die! But I bet it’s hard to give it a go now that it’s nine hours more than the previous record.
If anybody actually goes over my record, I’d respect that person totally.
Following his incredible achivement, PONEY has some wise words to share with other record hopefuls.
He said: “My theory is that if you think you can do it, then you can do it. Be mindful that it takes some time to get there. It happened to me on a lot of occasions, including my world record. So if you think you can, then do whatever you can to clinch it.”
