K.K. Slider

He is based on Nintendo video game voice actor and composer Kazumi Totaka – his Japanese nickname "Totakeke" being a contraction of "Totaka K." – and has been said to be an animal caricature of Totaka. Slider has also appeared outside of Animal Crossing several times, such as a costume for the player's Mii fighter in the crossover fighting games Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and Super Smash Bros.

• Name — K.K. Slider • Franchise — Animal Crossing • First Major — Dōbutsu no Mori (2001) • Voice — Kazumi Totaka Shun Oguri (Dōbutsu no Mori) • Species — Dog

K.K. Slider was created for the 2001 video game Doubutsu no Mori for the Nintendo 64, later released on the GameCube as Animal Crossing. K.K. Slider is based on the composer Kazumi Totaka. His music was composed by various members of the compositional staff across the series; some songs were composed because some members were skilled in a specific genre, while others were composed so they could challenge themselves.

K.K. Slider was first introduced in the franchise's debut title Doubutsu no Mori for the Nintendo 64, later released on GameCube as Animal Crossing. His role within the game is as a guitarist who performs songs for the player and townsfolk only at a certain time and day each week and, once finished, gives the player a virtual copy of the song that can be played on a radio in their home. This role remains virtually the same throughout every main series Animal Crossing title with minor changes, up until Animal Crossing: New Leaf, in which he also takes the role of a DJ under the pseudonym DJ KK. He also appears in Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, Amiibo Festival, Pocket Camp, and New Horizons. In New Horizons, he appears after the player's island has a three-star rating. Four new K.K. songs were added in New Horizons, with 12 additional songs being added in the game's 2.0 update. In the Happy Home Paradise DLC, DJ KK will appear on the main archipelago once the player has constructed thirty homes and designed all five facilities. A concert related to his appearance in the DLC was held in October 2022. K.K. Slider has also received a costume that can be worn by Mii Fighters in the crossover fighting games Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, as well as his own amiibo. He appears in the 2006 film Dōbutsu no Mori. In October 2019, K.K. Slider – in the form of a hologram – opened for a Splatoon concert that took place during Nintendo Live in Tokyo, Japan.