author

 
Menu
Search
 
August 15, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Twitter

@mbmelodies

Patrick St. Michel
Patrick St. Michel is a Tokyo-based writer with a focus on Japanese music. He runs the blog Make Believe Melodies, which has focused on Japanese independent music since 2009. Besides The Japan Times, he also contributes to MTV 81 and The Atlantic.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Nov 28, 2018
Second Harvest Japan: Helping those in need can make you feel like part of the community
Ahead of a fundraiser for the Tokyo-based food bank, CEO Charles McJilton explains why a 'food safety net' is a must for Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Nov 24, 2018
Kaparu's victory in 2018 mascot awards gives Saitama a reason to shine
The Yuru-kyara (Promotional Mascot) Grand Prix in Japan has become one of the internet’s most anticipated events of the year. The 2018 edition lived up to expectations, and even featured a little voting drama. In the end, the city of Shiki’s Kaparu captured the crown.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 17, 2018
Mariya Takeuchi: The pop genius behind 2018's surprise online smash hit from Japan
On the 40th anniversary of singer-songwriter Mariya Takeuchi's debut, The Japan Times sits down with the musician responsible for such classics as 'Sutekina Holiday,' 'September' and the track that has taken the internet by storm, 'Plastic Love.'
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Nov 17, 2018
Chocolate or cheese? With Fujiya's new Look chocolate, you don't have to choose
On Nov. 13, sweets maker Fujiya released two new flavors of its venerable Look brand of chocolate: a smoked almond and a cheddar and Camembert cheese variety.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Nov 15, 2018
Don't worry too much over BTS
Throngs of fans packed Tokyo Dome on Tuesday and Wednesday to watch K-pop group BTS perform songs from across its five-year career. The crowd cheered, bought merchandise and the two days offered the seven-member group some respite from a week of scandal.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 15, 2018
The queen of kawaii: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu reflects on her reign
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's trip to the Museum of Death in Hollywood proved to be a 2018 highlight for the 25-year-old J-pop star.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Nov 10, 2018
Carbo-load: Convenience store breads pile on the sweetness
Japan's big three convenience stores — Lawson, FamilyMart and Seven-Eleven — have plenty of rich (and caloric!) bread-based desserts to satisfy any sweet tooth.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Nov 10, 2018
Illustrators use social media to highlight the minutiae of everyday life in Japan
Garbage collectors perform a service that is essential to the functioning of society, and yet their contributions are often overlooked. Whatever a person’s social standing, however, it doesn’t mean their observations on life aren’t worth examining.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Nov 3, 2018
Shibuya's Halloween havoc may tarnish future festivities
Less than a decade ago, finding any sort of Halloween celebration in Tokyo would have been tough. Then, suddenly, October revelry was everywhere you looked in the capital. And in 2018, the spookiest event of the year has evolved once again in Japan: It’s now being held up as an example of hedonism...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Nov 3, 2018
This fall's family restaurant desserts are more than they ap-pear
Japan's always-reliable family restaurants are serving up solid pear-flavored desserts this season.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Oct 27, 2018
Some YouTubers in Japan have taken going for a drive to the next level
Ever wanted to escape the stress of life in the big city, spend some time in the countryside and just … cook up a Philly cheesesteak and play video games?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 27, 2018
Will 'hōjicha' be the next Japanese tea to take the world by storm?
Danielle Geva and Francois Mathieu are trying to spread hojicha (roasted green tea) to North America. Together, they founded Hojicha Co. in May 2018, the first company to specialize in selling premium hu014djicha on the continent, and they are betting it will be the next big Japanese drink abroad.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Oct 27, 2018
Convenience store 2018 Halloween roundup: From blatantly bland to spectacularly spooky
Halloween is on the horizon and Japanese convenience stores are embracing the spookiest day of the year. But which chain is doing it best in 2018?
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Oct 21, 2018
Non-Japanese YouTubers tackle the art of vlogging in the vernacular
Meet the foreign creators using the local language to build a Japanese fan base.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Oct 20, 2018
Rock, luxury and retro pastries abound at Michalak Omotesando
French pastry chef Christophe Michalak is the latest sweetmaker to bring his brand of sweets to one of Tokyo's trendier neighborhoods. His Michalak Omotesando store, which opened for business on Oct. 5, is the first overseas opening for his patisserie.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / Wide Angle
Oct 18, 2018
Twitter speaks: That joke isn't funny anymore
An Aug. 16 episode of Tokyo MX's variety show "Hirukyun!" found comedian Ken Horiuchi (better known as Horiken) joining the hosts in the studio. Over the course of his stay, he launched the other TV talent and stage hands into a wall of cardboard boxes, before throwing some at people too (including staff...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KONBINI WATCH
Oct 13, 2018
Kabaya Foods' sweet potato candy: Intriguing in both looks and flavor
Snack-maker Kabaya Foods Corporation has put out a sweet potato gummy that aims to capture the nostalgic taste of said root veggie, fried up.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Oct 13, 2018
Kizuna AI's NHK appearance sparks debate on social media
Do virtual YouTubers dream of online controversy? Maybe not but they sure are good at courting it.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 10, 2018
Haru Nemuri's rapping and roaring speaks to the zeitgeist of 2018
Haruna Kimishima knew her music had found an audience overseas when her Twitter DMs began to fill up with English.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Oct 6, 2018
Social media lambaste 2020 Olympic volunteer program
Organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics have started accepting applications from those hoping to volunteer at the games a little less from two years from now. As you might suspect, Japan’s online community had plenty to say about the issue from the second it went live.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’
Azabudai Hills, Tokyo’s green new downtown ‘village’

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER