K.K. Slider



"I don't ask for much. A stool to sit on, a song to sing, and some folks gathered 'round to hear it."

- K.K. Slider


 * "DJ KK" redirects here. For the K.K. Slider song, see DJ K.K.

Totakeke, often referred to by his stage name K.K. Slider or K.K., is a dog who has appeared in all the games to date. His main role is to play and sing songs for the player. His alter ego, DJ KK, has also appeared in many of the games since his first appearance in, and routinely plays on a turntable instead of playing with a guitar. He makes a cameo appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and in. He was also one of the three Animal Crossing characters to be a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee, the others being Mr. Resetti and Tom Nook.

He is based on Animal Crossing sound designer Kazumi Totaka. K.K. is a caricature of Totaka himself, while his Japanese name Totakeke is taken from Totaka's nickname. It is derived from the Japanese tradition that last names be written first, i.e. Totaka Kazumi. This can be shortened to "Totaka K.", which sounds like "Totakeke." When introducing himself to the player in the original Animal Crossing, K.K. Slider states his true name literally is "Totakeke," suggesting "K.K. Slider" is a. This formal moniker has not been mentioned in any subsequent English releases.

There are 55 K.K. Slider songs in the original, 70 songs in , 75 in , 91 in , 95 in 's base game and a total of 107 as of the 2.0 update. A list of these songs can be found here.

Appearance
K.K. Slider is a white-furred dog with thick, black eyebrows complimenting his black, dot-like eyes and solid black nose. He appears to be a. Due to being a special character, K.K. Slider's appearance greatly deviates from dog villagers, as his head has a more defined muzzle with slightly smaller ears, and he also has defined paws on his hands and feet. Unlike other characters, K.K. does not wear any clothing, instead using his guitar in place of clothing. However, he is shown wearing glasses and a beanie (as well as a T-shirt sometimes) as DJ KK, perhaps to disguise his identity.

Personality
K.K. Slider is a laid-back musician, reflected by his relaxed state. He speaks in a mellow, calm tone, using words such as "man," "far out," and "groovy" in his speech often. Being passionate about his craft, money is no concern to him; he states that, although numerous "industry fat cats" try to capitalize on his music, he only desires for it to be free for everyone. Because of this, he gives away free recordings to anyone willing to listen to his songs. While K.K. Slider's songs are able to be purchased starting in, he states in that he donates his earnings to "the kids," as he prefers to make Bells through more typical means, such as fishing.

In, K.K. Slider's alter ego, DJ K.K., is introduced, displaying a new side to K.K. Slider's personality. Rather than being a laid-back musician, K.K. is displayed as outgoing and active, becoming a so-called "life of the party," visibly seen jumping and even dancing as club music is played.

In
In and, K.K. Slider starts the game up for the first player before they move in. Every Saturday night from 8 PM to 12 AM, he can be found sitting on a wooden stool outside the Train Station. If spoken to, he will introduce himself to the player, and ask if they want to hear any songs from him. The player can then request a specific song, give him their mood, or allow him to decide for them. Certain songs are secret and can only be obtained upon request. If the player requests a song that K.K. doesn't know, he will play a random, unobtainable song, and afterwards tell the player that the requested song was "not his bag."

While playing, the background will turn black to show only K.K. and the player, which will slowly spin around as the credits play. Periodically, various weather effects will also be shown, such as snow, falling leaves, and rain. When K.K. sings, he speaks in Animalese, using the phonemes "nah," "me," "oh," "now," and "queh." In some songs, he will howl, whistle, click, and hum, altogether to make the song. Once the song is completed, he gives the player a bootleg copy to take home and play in their stereo. This action opposes the industry practice of putting a price on music.

In, twelve new songs have been added to K.K.'s repertoire and are available only via e-Reader cards. Vocal performances that can be played in a stereo are also obtainable as gifts from villagers with high friendship or certain special characters.

In
In, K.K. Slider still sings and plays for listeners, performing at the same time (every Saturday from 8 PM to 12 AM) as he did in the previous games, but now he plays them at The Roost, on top of a stage located in the café's upper left corner. The player can request a specific song or let him play a random song. Whether the song was random or requested, he slips a free bootleg of the song into the player's pockets after the performance, as before. Compared to previous entries in the series, several new songs have been added (most of which were previously in e+). In the Golden Axe Trading Event, giving him a country guitar will allow the player to obtain his portrait. K.K. does not perform during multiplayer sessions, so if the gates are open, he will not appear until they are closed.

In
K.K. Slider has the same role as in, performing at The Roost starting at 8 PM to midnight, and some new songs have been added. He also now gives encores. The player can tell him exactly what song they want to hear, or let him pick. Another way to choose a song is to tell him a mood, and he will pick something out based on it. However, the player will not receive a bootleg copy of the encore. The multiplayer issue from is fixed; he appears during multiplayer from this game onward. Cranky villagers will sometimes mention that they think that Phineas is K.K.'s day job.

In
K.K. Slider once again makes an appearance, but this time in a new, separate building called Club LOL. On every day of the week besides Saturday, starting at 8 PM, he will perform remixed tunes and some of his tracks for the player to listen to, including several new songs, under the pseudonym DJ KK. When he performs as DJ KK, his appearance changes: he now wears glasses, a cap, and headphones.

As in previous games, on Saturday nights from 8 PM to midnight, he will play songs by requests, mood, or randomly, depending on what the player wants. Attending 20 of his acoustic performances in will have K.K. Slider give the player his picture. Starting in this game, K.K. Slider's songs can be bought from T.I.Y., T&T Emporium, or the catalog for 3,200 Bells each.

On the Saturday before a player's birthday (or on the actual day, if it falls on a Saturday), K.K. will perform a special song titled "K.K. Birthday." This is the only song that cannot be requested.

In
K.K. Slider returns in, initially appearing in a dream experienced by the player on their first night on the island. In the dream, K.K. gives a similar speech to the player at the beginning of the first game in the series about moving away and starting a new life. In a change from previous games, K.K. Slider is not seen again after this point until the conclusion of the game's storyline. The only way to acquire his music in the interim is to purchase them from the Nook Shopping Catalog, of which there is always one available song per day. His music can also be heard on the player's radio.

After the player invites their first campsite visitor to move to the island, Tom Nook will brief the player about "Project K": a plan to make the island so desirable that even a celebrity such as K.K. would want to visit. To make this happen, he instructs the player to improve the island's condition and to check in periodically with Isabelle. She will inform the player of their island's rating and read out feedback they have received from residents and visitors. If the island has a rating of at least 3 stars, K.K. Slider will leave positive feedback, exciting both Isabelle and Tom Nook and prompting the latter to contact K.K. Slider about performing a concert on the island. On the next non-event day, K.K. Slider will visit, and right after Isabelle's announcements, he will perform "Welcome Horizons" with the entire island in attendance.

The performance itself hearkens back to the original game, taking place in an empty void where various seasonal effects (cherry blossoms, rain, falling leaves, snow, and a meteor shower) occur in the background. Afterwards, K.K. will thank his audience, and the game's main story will be concluded as the player receives the Island Designer app.

Following this initial visit, K.K. Slider will visit every Saturday as usual. If an event is due to take place in the plaza on a Saturday, K.K. will instead visit on the following Sunday (prior to version 1.3.0 he would attend on the preceding Friday). If another event occurs on the following Sunday (for example, a Bug-Off on Saturday followed by a Fireworks Show on Sunday), K.K. will instead visit on the following Monday. He will spend the day practicing in the Resident Services plaza but will not accept requests until after 6 PM. K.K. accepts requests from 6 PM to midnight. Villagers may occasionally sit down to watch him practice or perform, and any villagers present during the performance will appear in the cutscene when it fades the background to black. As before, K.K. will appear to sing a special song for the player's birthday, but unlike previous games, he will appear on the player's actual birthday no matter what day of the week it is.

From 2.0 onward, it is possible to clap during K.K. Slider's concerts by pressing A, and the villagers watching the performance will clap in unison with the player. Holding a or a  during his concerts will allow a player to wave the stick, and the villagers will also wave their sticks or have their colors changed in sync.

In multiplayer, no villager will sit on the stools in the plaza. Any player can make a request, and that particular player must sit down for the concert to start. All players who were sitting down then will participate in the concert, with the credits rolling. Players who were unable to sit down in time can only hear K.K. Slider sing in the plaza and view participants moving along the rhythm.

, as well as, can be obtained from Nook Shopping after inviting them to Photopia via their respective amiibo. Additionally, an icon for DJ KK exists in the game in version 1.0.0 but remains unused; it was removed in version 1.1.0. The 2.0 update adds 12 new K.K. Slider songs, and DJ KK was re-added.

When the player scans his amiibo card and tries to invite him, he will say (in 2.0 update this has been removed):

'' K.K. Slider here. And you are... Player ? What's buzzin', Player ? A campsite ? I can dig it. But the road is calling me, and I've got to answer. Don't mean to bring you down. I'll catch you again sometime.''

In, K.K. Slider will appear as DJ KK upon the player designing the Apparel shop (which is unlocked by designing 30 total homes). Upon the first activation of the event, "ending" sequences occurs with the player dancing alongside Lottie, Niko, Wardell, and various villagers, alongside a recap of the various houses they designed. During the event, villagers that the players designed houses for will wear special t-shirts and bandanas, while villagers who have not had houses designed for them will simply wear their default clothing. Additionally, during the event, the apparel shop will sell parts of the outfits the villagers wear to the event. During the event, DJ KK will play the same house remixes of his songs as he did in, alongside remixes of the songs introduced in. After the initial event, DJ KK will host music festivals at random intervals starting at 6 PM.

In
K.K. Slider appears in as one of the player's clients.

In
In, K.K. Slider appears as part of the base game. To make him appear, the player needs to craft K.K. Slider's Chair, which becomes available 45 days after player starts a new game (though this 45-day wait in of itself was only available for a limited time) and costs Leaf Tickets 250 and put it in the campsite or cabin.

K.K. Slider's Prize Guitar is a special furniture item that was available as a Mailbox gift from November 15 to December 15, 2018. Like his chair, the item summons K.K., but this time he stands while playing and wears a party hat.

DJ KK.'s Beat Booth is a special furniture that was available from April 27 to June 26, 2019. This furniture is obtainable by crafting and costs Leaf Tickets 350. K.K. appears again now as his alter ego DJ KK. Unlike previous games, he wears a black shirt with "K.K." written on it. While using the booth, K.K. will cycle between remixes of the game's main theme, the Campsite theme, and the OK Motors theme.

From April 30 to May 11, 2019, DJ KK appeared as the host of the Garden event "Idle Beats with DJ KK."

In
K.K. Slider has a minor role in. He performs "K.K. Bossa" at the Fireworks Festival at the request of Margie. The song was given written lyrics for the film.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee
K.K. Slider (referred to as Totakeke), along with Tom Nook and Mr. Resetti, appears as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Trivia

 * K.K. is the first character to interact with the player in the, giving a monologue in the original and  directly after exiting the title screen for the first time. This moment is alluded to in , during which K.K. first appears to the player in a dream after their first day on the island.
 * K.K.'s birthday, August 23rd, comes from the real-life birthday of Kazumi Totaka.
 * In the first popularity poll for held on the Japanese website, K.K. Slider is ranked 1st with 474 votes.
 * In the second character popularity poll for held by Nintendo in Japan, K.K. Slider ranked 1st with 3,112 votes.
 * In early installments, K.K.'s arms are too short in-game for his right paw to actually reach the strings of his guitar. In, his model's arms are long enough to reach the guitar strings, but they still do not; his posture does not allow for it, as his arm reaches over the end of the guitar. corrects the issue by adjusting his playing posture, so his arm reaches over the middle of his guitar instead.
 * One of K.K.'s quotes from - "Those industry fat cats try to put a price on my music, but it wants to be free." - gained notoriety on various news websites, as it was believed to promote illegal file sharing. In response, Nintendo of America's vice president of corporate affairs at the time, Perrin Kaplan, stated that K.K.'s quote does not reflect the views of the company, only that he is "a free spirit who cannot be bought and sold for any amount of money."
 * In, two stickers can be seen on the back of K.K.'s guitar that feature drawings of Brewster and Dr. Shrunk, likely referencing The Roost and Club LOL, the venues K.K. performed at in previous games. These stickers can only be seen when listening to K.K. live as the camera rotates around him; however, they can be seen more clearly on the textures for K.K.'s guitar.