Happy New Year!

asianbeat was first established in September 2005. That means that we are now moving into our 15th year! We've reached this milestone thanks to all the support of our readers and everyone involved in the website! Thank you all so much! Fukuoka hosted so many big events in 2019! We produced special articles on a wide range of events, including projects that promote musical exchange such as the "FUKUOKA ASIAN PICKS" and the "Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2019!" The huge celebration of pop culture proved to be a massive success! And we collaborated with the "Fukuoka Asia Collection (FACo)" once again! This year was the 10th "asianbeat FACo Kawaii Ambassador Contest!" We have also tried to create articles that tie in with other projects and media in order to deliver fresh new content. "The Fukuoka Dialect: 'Brief' Lesson featuring Meika Hime & Mikoto" (which made use of the speech synthesizer application Voiceroid) and "Tell Me! Pirikarakochan! Fukuoka's Umakamon (Tasty Foods) (a short anime collaboration that introduces local delicacies) both went down well with readers. We have just started sharing information on new topics. Our team has written special features on e-sports events (such as the "EVO Japan 2019" fighting game tournament, which took place in Fukuoka), introduced unique accommodations facilities in the prefecture, and reported on special Christmas light displays!

We will work hard to deliver even more information and news to our readers in the year ahead! Thank you again!