Emperor Hirohito's surrender announcement reached Japanese radio listeners on 15 August 1945. The recorded broadcast, known as the Gyokuon-hōsō, announced Japan's acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration and its decision to end the war.
Hirohito recorded the speech on 14 August at the Imperial Palace. It was broadcast shortly after noon on 15 August, Japan Standard Time. Because the Emperor had rarely, if ever, been heard directly by the public, the broadcast was an extraordinary national event.
The speech used formal classical Japanese and did not plainly use the everyday word for surrender, so many listeners found it difficult to understand immediately. The formal surrender ceremony came later, on 2 September 1945, aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. This distinction explains why V-J Day can refer to either 15 August or 2 September, depending on the country and historical context.