• #22 Misako Aoki X Maon Kurosaki - Interview: What is the Appeal of Lolita Fashion?

  I first met Maon Kurosaki when she appeared as a guest on my radio program.

  Japan｜ Thailand ｜ Tokyo｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.04.01

• #21 Berryz Kobo’s Final Concert – Looking Back on the Idols that have been Uniting the World for the Past Four and a Half Years

  On the 3rd of March 2015, Berryz Kobo performed their last Budokan concert impending an indefinite hiatus from all group activities. It occurred to me that this was the first time I’ve actually witnessed the moment of something coming to an end.

  Japan｜ Thailand ｜ Tokyo｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.03.18

• #20 A Shanghai Street Store and the University Students Striving for "Kawaii" Relations in China – The Japanese People in China Bringing the Two Countries Together

  Since I first began my cultural diplomacy activities in 2008, I’ve traveled around to over 140 cities across 25 different countries. One of the countries I’ve frequented most is China

  Japan｜ China｜ Beijing｜ Shanghai｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Fashion｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.03.04

• #19 Just how Otaku-ized has the World Become? My Talk with Radio Announcer and Natural Born Otaku, Hisanori Yoshida

  2009 and 2010 were two years that brought me encounters with many dear friends.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Manga｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.02.18

• #18 What it Means to Shoulder the Tradition that is Morning Musume。- Extended Interview with New Morning Musume｡’15 Leader, Mizuki Fukumura

  In summer 2010, I encountered Morning Musume。in Paris. That winter, Eri Kamei, Junjun and Linlin’s graduation concert was held at Yokohama Arena, thus signaling the final performance by the remaining members of the legendary platinum generation. As I’ve written and spoken about on numerous occasions, after witnessing these two spectacles, I spent a year in 2011 chasing after Ai Takahashi and Morning Musume｡.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.02.04

• #17 “I Want to Live in Moscow!” Eir Aoi Experiences Russia’s Love for Japan Firsthand at J-FEST

  Towards the end of November 2014, I made my sixth visit to Moscow. Again, it was to take part in Moscow’s biggest Japanese culture event, “J-FEST” – an event which I’ve been participating in since I was involved in its planning and launch in 2009.

  Japan｜ Other Areas｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Anime｜ Cosplay｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.01.21

• #16 Finding Joy in the World of Paintings: From Modern Art to Art Galleries - My Latest Interview with Ayaka Wada

  “Sakurai-san, I can finally appreciate contemporary art!” This is what Ayaka Wada, the leader of idol group, ANGERME, suddenly reported to me one day.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Talent/Idol｜ Art｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2015.01.07

• #15　From Idol to Rock Band – Reina Tanaka and The Meaning of "Hometown"

  asianbeat, the website that publishes these articles, is run by the Fukuoka prefectural government. Fukuoka is an important gateway connecting Japan to the world, and in particular, the neighboring countries in Asia.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Art｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.12.17

• #14 Japan Pop Culture Carnival 2014 – Idols, Anison, Rock…The Meaning Behind a Genre-Free Concert

  Seven years have passed by since I started spending the better part of a year going around to various Japanese pop culture events overseas.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Art｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.12.03

• #13 In Memory of Genpei Akasegawa. My Life Pre and Post Genpei Akasegawa

  The other day, Genpei Akasegawa passed away. Mr. Akasegawa impacted my life in a big way. So I’m not exaggerating when I talk about my life “pre and post” Genpei Akasegawa.
  

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Art｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.11.19

• #12 “The Greatest Day of My Life” – Voices of the Fans That Gathered from all Around the World to see Morning Musume。’14 Live in New York

  A lot of people from all over the world read my previous article on Morning Musume。’14’s New York concert and interview with the members, and it reminded me just how globally popular Morning Musume。are.

  Japan｜ Other Areas｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.11.05

• #11 Interview with Morning Musume。'14 After Their Concert Success in New York – How New York Changed Us and Our Plans From Here on

  On October 5th, Morning Musume。'14 held a concert at the Best Buy Theater on Broadway, New York – their first fee-charging solo concert ($42/ticket) since their performance at Paris in July 2010. The theater was packed with some 2000 fans, not only from America, but also Canada, Latin America, and Europe, who converged on New York for this particular day.

  Japan｜ Other Areas｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.10.22

• #10 Sumire Uesaka and Yun*chi Talking About the Anime and Anison that they Love so Much

  I first met Sumire Uesaka in 2010. Back then, it was Uesaka who took interest in my cultural diplomacy activities more than any other, and together, we’ve had countless conversations about Japan and the world, even travelled to Qatar and Moscow for cultural diplomacy.

  Japan｜ Tokyo｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Anime｜ Talent/Idol｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.10.08

• #9 “I just can’t live without Urbangarde”: S/mileage’s Kanon Fukuda Goes One-on-One with her Idol, Yoko Hamasaki

  One of the current idol groups, whose concerts you can go and see and really enjoy without a single negative thing to say, is S/mileage. I highly recommend them to anyone who has yet to see them perform. They gave their first Budokan performance on July 15th 2014, but what surprised me about this concert most, was the sheer number of young female fans in attendance.

  Japan｜ Tokyo｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.09.24

• #8 Otaku Girls Turn Out in Force for Comic World Taiwan!

  In August 2014, I visited Taiwan to take part in their largest female-oriented dōjinshi market event, “Comic World Taiwan” (CWT). My travels have taken me to otaku events all over the world, but the sheer excitement and enthusiasm from the otaku that gathered at CWT was really something else.
  

  Japan｜ Taiwan｜ Taipei｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Manga｜ Anime｜ Cosplay｜ Game & e-Sports｜ Event Reports｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.09.10

• #7 “I Wanted to Stay in Sao Paulo!” Japanese Idol Dives Headfirst into Anime Event, Even Gets her First Taste of Samba!

  In July 2014, I took part in South America’s largest otaku event, “Anime Friends.” The interesting thing about this event is that it one runs over two consecutive weekends. It just goes to show how much the local Japan fans love this event.
  

  Japan｜ Other Areas｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.08.27

• #6 Fans Scream for An Cafe. Building Bridges at South America’s Biggest Otaku Event, “Anime Friends”

  Once my guest spot at South America’s largest otaku event, “Anime Friends,” was confirmed, I posted the announcement that I would be going to Brazil on Twitter and straight away received a lot of replies from my followers in Brazil.

  Japan｜ Other Areas｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.08.13

• #5 Idols and the UNESCO Constitution – Berryz Kobo and ℃-ute the First Japanese Idols to Visit UNESCO

  The idol groups, Berryz Kobo and ℃-ute became Japan’s first idol groups to make an official visit to UNESCO.

  Japan｜ France｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Event Reports｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.07.25

• #4 Morning Musume。'14 Teen Member Haruna Iikubo Shares her Love of Showa Period Manga with the World

  There are now two to three generations of people in Japan and around the world who have grown up reading and watching Japanese manga and anime. You see a lot of parents with children in tow at anime events overseas and it’s not that uncommon to see parent/child cosplayers, even.

  Japan｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Manga｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.07.16

• #3 Alice Nine’s China Tour Success! The Report on their Concert Frenzy

  Live tours are integral not only to Japan’s music industry, but to the Japanese entertainment industry as a whole, and summer of 2014 began with such a tour. Alice Nine is a band that’s loved throughout Japan and possibly even more than that by more people around the world. This is the report on China-leg of their Asia Tour.

  Japan｜ China｜ Beijing｜ Shanghai｜ INTERVIEW / SERIALS｜ Talent/Idol｜ J-POP｜ Pop Culture Observations｜

  2014.07.02