jo0ji Wrote "I-BULL" as His Own Answer to Bleach's Courage
jo0ji, a singer-songwriter from Tottori Prefecture whose stage name is pronounced "George," wrote "I-BULL" specifically for the anime's final stretch. According to Japanese music outlet CDJournal, he says Bleach taught him courage in many forms: standing up to something, believing in someone, protecting people. The song is his attempt to lay out what courage means to him personally, and it carries one central message: this is no time to sit around smoldering, so burn hotter. CDJournal describes the result as a track that runs at full throttle from the first note to the last.
The title appears to carry some wordplay, too. "I-BULL" is pronounced "iburu," which matches the Japanese verb for "to smolder," the exact image the song's message pushes against.
The September 2 CD Pairs jo0ji With a Saxophone Veteran
The digital single's cover features newly drawn artwork of Ichigo Kurosaki, and the physical CD arriving September 2, 2026 uses the same art. The disc packs two B-sides: "YOROSHIKU!!!", which CDJournal calls a new approach for jo0ji, and "zokkou," a speed-driven number featuring saxophonist Kazutoki Umezu. Umezu played support saxophone in RC Succession, the Japanese rock band fronted by Kiyoshiro Imawano, and jo0ji cites that band as a major influence on his own music. The CD rounds out with the anime version of "I-BULL" and an instrumental.
Where the Anime Stands After More Than 360 Episodes
Tite Kubo's sword-fighting action manga ran in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump and has more than 130 million copies in circulation, staying widely popular around the world even after its conclusion. The TV anime kicked off in October 2004 and has since grown to more than 360 episodes, plus four theatrical films.
The adaptation of the manga's final arc, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, began airing on TV Tokyo and its affiliates in October 2022, produced at Studio Pierrot. The Calamity is the fourth and final cour of that adaptation, which makes "I-BULL" the song that will carry the series' closing episodes. The CDJournal report frames the July 24 digital drop as timed to the broadcast, landing one day before the premiere.
Looking Ahead
The Calamity premieres Saturday, July 25, 2026 at 11:00 p.m. JST on TV Tokyo and its affiliates. Internationally, the series streams as a Hulu exclusive in the United States, with Disney+ carrying it across select other territories, per Variety. A final trailer with English subtitles arrived earlier in July, per Anime News Network.
"I-BULL" is available on streaming services now, with the CD single following on September 2. For readers who want to revisit the source material before the finale, Viz Media publishes the complete Bleach manga in English.