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November 22, 2024
 

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Robert Michael Poole

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Robert Michael Poole
Robert Michael Poole is a specialist on the Japanese music and entertainment scene and has been contributing to The Japan Times since 2008. He has also written for Newsweek, CNN, The Associated Press and The Wall Street Journal.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 22, 2009
Tattoo you — Mika's call to arms
"I believe in my voice as a singer," declares Mika Nakashima, alluding to the three words tattooed in English around her right wrist. " 'Trust your voice,' in a broad sense, means we should accept everything and believe in many things. I learned this in New York and developed myself in many ways that...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2009
Duffy savors fruits of success
"Half of my quarter of a century belongs to music, so I never belonged to anything else," says Welsh songstress Duffy. "I feel very able and ready!"
CULTURE / Music
Mar 27, 2009
Duffy savors fruits of success
"Half of my quarter of a century belongs to music, so I never belonged to anything else," says Welsh songstress Duffy. "I feel very able and ready!"
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 20, 2009
No constrictions on BoA's ambitions
"It has always been my dream to debut in America!" BoA announces gleefully. "Every Asian artist has that dream of Hollywood or the Billboard chart, and this is the perfect time to go to America."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 13, 2009
Morning Musume not ready to graduate yet
Most artists dream of longevity, but few are afforded significant time in the limelight. The paradox of all-girl group Morning Musume, 12 years since they began, is the enforced time-limit its members face in order for the group to remain forever young.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 27, 2009
Angela Aki turns to the keys for answers
"I search for answers a lot in life when I feel like I don't know which way to go or what's right or wrong," says singer-songwriter Angela Aki. "So I turn to the piano and search for the answers through songs, and I figured in the end that the searching process has all the answers you are truly looking...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 13, 2009
Towa Tei wallows in optimism for art's sake
"In Tokyo, there is too much information," says famed Japanese producer and DJ Towa Tei. "Even if you don't want to listen to music, you are raped into listening to something you don't like at the convenience store. So I try to go somewhere quiet and listen whenever I want to!"
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 6, 2009
Coma-Chi "Red Naked"
Even the most optimistic critic could be excused for approaching with trepidation the major-label debut for one of only a handful of domestic female rappers. But fears that 24-year-old Coma-Chi is about to deliver a pale imitation of a genre exhausted in the early 2000s by the likes of Missy Elliott...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 21, 2008
J-pop starlet Yuna Ito gets her groove back
"I got my heart broken for the first time," laments Yuna Ito, "at the unbelievable age of 24!"
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 20, 2008
You and whose Ami?
When singer and actress Ami Suzuki appears in the TBS drama "Love Letter" this month, she'll finally realize the end of a remarkable comeback.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Nov 13, 2008
Understanding Ueto, Japan's reluctant star
"I never wished to become an actress or a star who performs on TV," explains Aya Ueto, the prominent model and actress. "I took this role because my management gave it to me."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 31, 2008
Now in their 50s, Def Leppard are still ferocious
Legendary English rock band Def Leppard brought the circus back to town last week. Paired up with fellow hair-metal survivors Whitesnake, the group began a four-date Japan tour with two nights at the prestigious Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo on Oct. 23 and 24.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 12, 2008
She, herself and AI
With her sights set on achieving her long-held ambition of winning a Grammy award, Los Angeles-born and Tokyo-based vocalist AI is adamant that dreams only come true with hard graft.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 22, 2008
Seasoned J-pop duo ELT keep it positive
"When I'm walking beside her, people tell me I'm a lucky guy," sang John Lennon on the 1964 Beatles track "Every Little Thing." Sitting comfortably next to iconic lead singer Kaori Mochida of the band of the same name, guitarist Ichiro Ito has had 12 years to get used to such a feeling. However, he admits...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 10, 2008
Asian stars united by earthquake disaster
'When it has to happen, it will happen," declares a bullish Judy Ongg, a Taiwan-born actress, singer and novelist based in Japan. "When you think it has to be done, you have to do it yourself."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 10, 2008
Island chanteuse Hajime finds tranquillity on Saturn
It wouldn't be the obvious place to look. And yet singer Hajime Chitose was seeking a new peace of mind when, 1.3 billion km away, she found what she was looking for.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 16, 2008
R&B queen Double adds jewel to crown
Staying at the top of the game after 10 years is no mean feat in Japan's fickle music business. As one of the first artists to bring American-style R&B to these shores, Double's achievements are doubly impressive. And now she's celebrating her first decade with an album of collaborations with Japanese...
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2008
Bahashishi "Kaleidoscope"
"Putting the heart of the world into music" is the theme of Osaka-based quintet Bahashishi, who graduate to a major label with this, their second album. Taking their name from the Swahili for "heart," the band, led by effervescent vocalist Yurari, have a clear J-pop-with-a-conscience mission, which...
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
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