Arts9 min
Tatsuro Yamashita and Mariya Takeuchi, the city pop couple
Sugar Babe, RIDE ON TIME, Variety, Plastic Love: the story of the couple who defined the Japanese city pop sound and of its global rebirth through YouTube.
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JournalJapan Japan
Japan
Japan
The Kotoba Interactive journal.
Editorial features on the cultures, history and languages of Asia. Filter by culture, by topic, or search for what inspires you.
6 articles
Culture7 min
Anisong: When Anime Music Conquered the World
From Astro Boy theme songs to Animelo Summer Live concerts, the story of anisong, Japanese anime music turned global industry and a musical genre in its own right.
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Culture11 min
Vocaloid and Hatsune Miku: Japan's Synthetic Pop Revolution
The history of Vocaloid software, Hatsune Miku's rise as a virtual pop star, the creative community behind the phenomenon, and the cultural revolution of Japanese synthetic music.
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Arts13 min
Visual kei and beatmania: two Japanese music scenes
On one side a look that founded a school and its pioneering bands, on the other the rhythm game cabinets that produced their own repertoire. Two scenes, one country.
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