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July 16, 2024
 

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FESTIVALS

Koenji-based dance troupe Tengu-ren performs at an Awa odori event in Tokyo's Kagurazaka neighborhood a month before the Koenji Awa Odori.
CULTURE / Longform
Aug 26, 2023
The party returns to Koenji
While the COVID-19 pandemic put a temporary pause to one of Tokyo’s biggest festivals, its dancers never stopped practicing their steps.
Crowds packed the Mountain Stage at Summer Sonic for Yoasobi’s set on Saturday and went wild when the J-pop duo played the opening notes of “Idol.”
CULTURE / Music
Aug 25, 2023
Summer Sonic closes out the season with one hot party
Asian artists NewJeans, Gen Hoshino, Awich and Babymetal drew impressive crowds at the summer festival despite the overbearing heat.
Creativeman President Naoki Shimizu says Summer Sonic has been featuring an increasing number of Asian acts in recent years, a change that reflects the growing number of Asian visitors attending the music festival. This year’s standouts include K-pop group NewJeans, whose Summer Sonic performance will be its first Japan show ever.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 18, 2023
NewJeans, Blur and Kendrick Lamar head to Summer Sonic
While Summer Sonic’s reputation as an international showcase holds strong, the event has become an important launchpad for homegrown performers.
Tomohiko Sato (center) wrote a book titled "Yamakei Shinsho Tokyo Bon Odori Tengoku Odoru Meguru Tanoshimu" ("Tokyo Bon Dance Heaven").
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Aug 12, 2023
Tomohiko Sato: 'The only rule is to dance the way the locals do'
Tomohiko Sato may be Japan’s only “Bon-bassador,” and his love for the Bon dance makes him a true representative for this summer tradition.
Riders dressed as samurai participate in an annual Soma Nomaoi festival in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, on July 30. Two horses died from heatstroke in the event.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2023
Scores of horses suffer sunstroke at samurai festival
Organizers may move the annual event — featuring over 400 participants dressed as samurai on horseback — to a cooler time of year.
Chihiro Okada (right), a representative of Animal Rights Center, during a news conference at the Okinawa Prefectural Government building on July 10
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Aug 7, 2023
Confrontations deepen over duck-catching event in Okinawa
Animal rights groups say the event constitutes animal abuse.
This year’s Fuji Rock Festival, which took place last weekend and featured The Strokes, Foo Fighters and Lizzo as headliners, brought a cumulative total of 114,000 attendees to the mountains of Niigata Prefecture.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 4, 2023
Fuji Rock’s diversity is back — and it feels great
Millennial rock, Gen Z rap and a Sinead O’Connor tribute fill a stellar weekend of music.
The Sumida River Fireworks Festival returned on Saturday for the first time in four years.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2023
Major Tokyo fireworks festival resumes after COVID hiatus
One of Tokyo's most famous fireworks festivals returned for the first time in four years, following the lifting of coronavirus restrictions.
Photo: Mount Fuji is shot from above so that you can see the trails leading to its summit.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 26, 2023
A tale of two Fujis: Bullet climbs, crowds and Lizzo
With the borders fully open, Mount Fuji is all booked up and Fuji Rock is back in full force. Drew Damron and Patrick St. Michel join us on the podcast to discuss Japan’s two favorite Fujis.
At this year’s Fuji Rock Festival, big-name acts The Strokes, Foo Fighters and Lizzo will serve as headliners at the main Green Stage.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 25, 2023
Rap acts stand out in Fuji Rock’s diverse lineup
Kanagawa rap crew Bad Hop’s final hurrah and Lizzo’s Sunday night swagger are set to deliver some of the most memorable moments of the three-day music extravaganza.
On July 17, Jiyugaoka in western Tokyo held its summer Bon Odori Festival for the first time in four years. While the pandemic spelled the end of the road for some longstanding local events, others weathered the storm.
CULTURE / Longform
Jul 24, 2023
Fate of the fete: Japan’s matsuri fight to survive
While COVID-19 was the final nail in the coffin for many of the country's smaller festivals, others have clung on and are making a determined comeback this year.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2023
Kyoto offers $2,770 premium seats for famous Gion Festival
The 84 seats, mainly for foreign tourists, will be set up at an intersection in the heart of the city.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 29, 2023
Animated Polish-Japanese story wins top prize at Asia short film fest
Izumi Yoshida takes the George Lucas Award for her short based on the so-called Siberian Children who were rescued by the Japanese Red Cross Society following the Russian Revolution.
Japan Times
People / 20 QUESTIONS
Jun 23, 2023
Alexis Sato: ‘We want to make music a reason for people to travel to Japan’
Some chance meetings led Alexis Sato to some of the best summers of his life. Now he wants to provide that summer vibe to everyone.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 9, 2023
Summer music festivals aim to bring the good times back
The return of summer festivals means live music is back, with events featuring overseas acts alongside K-pop and pool parties.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 5, 2023
The farewell tour: Amid rising costs, a Canadian doctor ends his Japanese music festival
Once dubbed the 'patron saint of Japanese indie,' Canadian Steven Tanaka is ready to settle down for some 'me' time.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Photo essay
May 28, 2023
Does the pure joy seen at this year's Sanja Matsuri hint at a summer of celebration?
After scaled-down celebrations became the norm during the COVID-19 pandemic, one of Tokyo's biggest festivals returns in full form.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 22, 2023
A new music festival shakes up Kyoto's staid atmosphere
Kyotophonie, a sister event to photography festival Kyotographie, succeeds in its uniqueness and use of storied spaces, but it’s not clear who the event is actually for.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 16, 2023
Danjiri float topples, injuring 11 in Osaka Prefecture
Nearly a dozen people were injured Sunday morning after a large, four-wheeled, wooden shrine-shaped Danjiri festival float overturned in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Apr 10, 2023
Already at risk, performing arts in northern Okinawa dealt blow by pandemic
The local culture of the Yanbaru region is rich in variety, ranging from dance and theater to staff fighting and drum dancing, but relies on being handed down from generation to generation.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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