Japanese fans angry after two models filmed themselves dancing and recorded part of a Bruno Mars concert, upsetting the singer and causing him to throw a towel at them. Fans in Japan of Grammy-award winning superstar Bruno Mars are none too pleased with an incident at the recent leg of the “Bruno Mars 24K MAGIC WORLD TOUR 2018” performances that occurred at the Saitama Super Arena. Several women, at least five believed to be fashion models Moueka Nozaki, Nanaka, Satoumi, Mao Miyashita, and Maria Tani, have been seen in several self-recorded videos dancing along to an ongoing part of the performance, which is also recorded in the video. At the…

Although you’re most likely to see Japanese instruments such as the shamisen at a festival or traditional performance, their potential for adding a whole new dimension to modern day tunes shouldn’t be underestimated. Every so often, a clip involving a talented player taking on a well loved track with their traditional instrument will go viral, bringing the beauty and versatility of these instruments to the fore. For example, this trio giving a fresh take on Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson gave a whole new generation a reason to dust off the old koto. A Shamisen Final Fantasy Battle Theme Cover In this latest viral hit, a skilled player of the…

If you look outside the realm of “common” instruments, you might just find yourself floored by what seems like out-of-this world sounds, as can be observed with Yukiko Koshimoto “spacedrum” and a curious drum inspired by a inspired by a Japanese musical garden ornament. If anything defines a departure from the common instrument, it might just be Sami Elu’s Chopstick Piano. The Tokyo-based musician and performer’s 29-string homemade instrument uses disposable chopsticks to create music that’ll put you in a trance. The Chopstick Piano uses disposable chopsticks, or waribashi, to hit piano strings as Sami uses his other hand to individually pluck away with a pick while his feet are…

This video from Great Big Story on YouTube introduces Gyosen Asakura, a monk and chief priest of a Buddhist temple. Initially he rejected the expectation that he would carry on the family tradition of heading the temple and pursued his interest in music, becoming a DJ and lighting technician. As he progressed, he realized that his passion for music wasn’t as at odds with the Buddhist religion as he originally thought. If you think you can’t make it to Fukui to bear witness to one of his trancey sets, you can dance your way to enlightenment while browsing Gyosen Asakura’s YouTube channel. Because of dwindling numbers of worshippers at temples…

You may have seen WORLD ORDER’s signature salary-man suits and robotic dance before when the video for their song ‘Have a Nice Day’ became a viral hit. The band is the brainchild of ex-mixed martial artist Genki Sudo. The members’ suits and perfectly in sync choreography is intended to play on the popular image that non-Japanese people have of the Japanese business man as very serious. Their videos show them dancing in highly populated public areas, while passersby react with laughter, stares or by taking photos on their phones. シアトルに来ています。スタバの一号店前でニルバーナになりきりました。Smells Like Teen Spirit! pic.twitter.com/OnnYHkiYrW — 須藤元気 #sudo genki (@genki_sudo) 28 February 2018 Their music, which has a very Pet Shop…

Is it your dream to star in a Japanese anime but thought you would never get the chance due to your language? An amazing opportunity has arisen for English speaking anime lovers with a sturdy set of pipes. A new animation called Carol & Tuesday which is set to air April 2019 is holding worldwide auditions for singers. A promotional video for the anime is below. The supervising director of the show is Shinichiro Watanabe, famous for Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo. He also directed two shorts for the Animatrix. They are looking for female singers to sing the dubbed version for the two main characters, Carol and Tuesday. The…

Geishas and maikos (apprentice geishas) in the hanamachi entertainment quarters of Gion and Pontocho gathered on January 7 to participate in a yearly ceremony to kick off the beginning of business after the New Year’s holiday season. One of the largest gatherings occurred in Yasaka Hall in the compound of Gion Kobu Kaburenjo Hall in Higashiyama Ward. More than 110 geishas and maikos assembled in the hall, decked out in formal black kimonos and wearing kanzashi hair ornaments with rice-stalk motifs as well as dogs to celebrate the Year of the Dog. Source: (C) Sankei Shimbun Co., Ltd. Source: (C) Sankei Shimbun Co., Ltd. The geishas and maikos assembled in…

Not many people have the time or money to travel all around, to sample all the food and see all the festivals Japan has to offer. So what if you could do it all in one day, under one roof? grape Japan The Furusato Matsuri is currently running at Tokyo Dome and this year is its 10th anniversary. The best food, and festival performances from Hokkaido to Okinawa have been selected to attend the event. grape Japan The rows of food stalls allow you to hop from prefecture to prefecture, snapping up the local delicacies that take your fancy. Dishes range from the classic (think Hokkaido crab) to the more…

You may have heard of famous idol groups from Japan such as AKB48 and Morning Musume, but aside from these standard cute J-pop girls, there’s a whole wealth of idol units out there representing all manner of surprising themes… Virtual Currency Girls (Virtual Currency) Are you confused about all this talk of bitcoin and crypto-currencies? Perhaps Virtual Currency Girls can help! (If you can understand Japanese) Source: PR Times Kaso Tsuka Shojo (Virtual Currency Girls) are an 8 member idol group with the aim of educating the public about various virtual currencies. The stage personas are inspired by different currencies, one member is called BCH, standing for Bitcoin Cash and…

There are a few good night clubs in Kyoto, such as World Peace Love which we saw in our coverage of the Pontocho area last month. However, one club stands out as a space open to all genres of music and a place where music, fashion and art come together in Kyoto, and that’s LAB.TRIBE. Situated near the Sanjo station and the Kyoto City Hall, a bit at a distance from the lively scene in Pontocho and Kamiyamachi, the building where LAB.TRIBE is housed on the basement level doesn’t give away too much. Grape Japan And yet, once you go down the steps and join the party, you’ll soon understand…

With the approach of the 2020 Olympic Games and an uptick in foreign tourism, Japan has started a campaign to make traveling in the country a more “foreigner-friendly” experience, even going as far as to change longstanding signage in the country. But when actually traveling in Japan, it’s inevitable that one will need to rely on verbal communication to reach their goal, regardless of how well-versed they are in the native tongue. What might surprise those that haven’t spent a lot of time in Japan, however, is that a good deal of understanding can be achieved by simply speaking English…in Japanese. The video, titled Tokyo Bon 2020 (Makudonarudo), is a…

The legendary purveyors of Tokyo trends, Shibuya 109 have made so-hot-right-now South Korean boy band BTS the faces of their Christmas campaign, which is succinctly named ‘BTS 109 Xmas’. The pop-up store is located on the 8th floor of the intimidating tower of fashion and will run until Christmas Day (that’s 25th in Japan). 109’s other branches in Fukuoka, Abeno and Kagoshima will also get a limited run of the pop-up shop. 🔥BTS 109 XMAS情報🔥 みんな知ってた?🙈SHIBUYA109では館内BGMがBTSの曲でジャックされてるんだよ✨更に12月6日発売される「Crystal Snow」のショートバージョンの曲も流れてるとか🙊✨BGMの順番をチェックして、流れてたら聴いてみてね💞 ここから⏬https://t.co/Ki1MuEYgTv#BTS_109 pic.twitter.com/tBoU6rJLcK — SHIBUYA109 (@SHIBUYA109NET) 1 December 2017 Exclusive BTS merchandise can be bought including stickers, magnets, key chains and notebooks. If you’ve ever wanted rest your face on all seven members’ faces…

Karaoke is still one of Japan’s favorite leisure activities, so it comes as no surprise that karaoke system companies are always looking for ways to make it more exciting. For example, earlier this year, we saw a “nude karaoke” feature from JoySound whereby good singing is rewarded with images of nude women. Karaoke establishments have also kept up with the times, with comfortable rooms, menu items, food ordering systems, specially decorated theme-based rooms and extra features galore. A recent trend is karaoke establishments that also combine other activities. For example, Kansai-based karaoke retailer Jumbo Karaoke Hiroba introduced bouldering karaoke two years ago at the chain’s location in Kawaharacho, Kyoto. Now,…

As Halloween becomes more and more accepted in Japan, the Halloween party scene is getting more interesting and new options are breaking out. We’re not just talking about the chaotic free-for-all that you’ll encounter in Shibuya, although some of the costumes are very inventive. We’re not even talking about the Roppongi scene with Halloween parties in the clubs. The latest and craziest Halloween party scene is in Kabukicho. What better place to paint the town red than Japan’s most famous red light and entertainment district! Six night clubs got together this year to create a Halloween mega-party like no other, Kabukicho Halloween Music Circuit! It all happened from the late…

When you think of Japanese instruments, you may be familiar mostly with the koto, shakuhachi, and shamisen, as well as how they can be used to give popular music a beautiful and traditional Japanese twist. Thanks to Twitter user @wyrm06, many even in Japan are now discovering an otherworldly rippling instrument that they had never heard of before called the Hamon Slit Drum. With 70,000 tweets, many are surprised to find out that the pings and echoes of the Hamon Slit Drum actually come from a Japanese instrument. 日本にもヤバい金属楽器はある！という事で「波紋音」です。あまりにも豊かな倍音成分がヤバくて無限。Rav drumと同じ金属製のスリットドラムですが作品ごとにランダムな切れ込みになっており、完全に自分だけの楽器になります。この個体はオーナーが中に鎖を仕込んでいてビビり音が出ます。 pic.twitter.com/0gW0R3gvsz — サカン@世界の打楽器 (@wyrm06) 2017年9月17日 Of course, the Hamon is very similar to the Russian RAV Drum (seen below), along…