It’s been too long since my last newsletter! Due to a shoulder injury and neck hernia, I had to put my newsletters and Patreon posts on pause for a little while. While I am still not able to restart my Patreon yet, I can restart my newsletters slowly. Thank you for your patience!
JAPANESE FASHION
Last month, the edgy and romantic Japanese pop fashion brand Pameo Pose celebrated their ten-year anniversary and launched their first runway show! Director and designer Peli started her career as a stylist and DJ nearly 20 years ago, and has been a part of Tokyo’s subcultural scene since then. She has been inspired by the iconic movie “Party Monster” and the New York City club kid scene of the 1990’s. So her first ever runway show was an homage to that scene, as well as a love letter to all her friends and muses from the Tokyo underground club scene since the early 2000’s. I really like how Peli always closely integrated music and culture in her designs. I met her many times when I lived in Tokyo, and enjoyed her DJ sets, which mixed techno and punk rock music with Japanese music from the 1980’s, among other genres. Her sets were always recognizable by their originality and playfulness. The Pameo Pose runway show’s name, “My Way,” reflects Peli’s attitude perfectly. For the runway theme song, Peli chose the Nina Hagen cover of the Frank Sinatra’s hit “My Way.” Started as an online store, Pameo Pose now has a flagship shop in Harajuku, so if you are looking for unique and eccentric Tokyo fashion, you should check it out on your next trip.
You can see Pameo Pose’s Instagram here and Peli’s Instagram here. Photo by Pameo Pose
MUSIC ／ 音楽
J-Pop band YOASOBI, whose name means “going out at night (and having a good time)” in Japanese, quickly gained popularity after their debut in November 2019. However, they recently broke a record on the Japanese Billboard chart with their latest song “Idol,” which is the main song from the megahit anime Oshi no Ko (推しの子): It has been number one for 14 consecutive weeks last July—an all-time record. “Idol” has also been played more than 300 million times on their YouTube channel in only four months, breaking another record.
Formed as a duo with Ayase and Ikura, YAOSOBI started as an interesting creative project. They originally wrote songs based on selected short stories posted on Monogatary.com, a website where users can upload stories and illustrations.
You can watch the music video for “Idol” here and an interview in Japanese with Ayase and Ikura here. You can listen to them on Spotify here.
FASHION ／ ファッション
I may be a little biased—but in my opinion, Tokyo offers the most beautiful and coolest retail stores in the world. The Tiffany store in Ginza is one of them. Designed by Japan’s most popular architect, Kuma Kengo, its facade was redecorated this summer with stunning cherry blossom artwork by English artist Damien Hirst. You can see the makeover video here.
As I mentioned in a past newsletter, I am not particularly a fan of collaborations between fashion clothing and manga or anime. However, I find the latest Levi’s x Princess Mononoke collaboration is well curated. Their promotional video is definitely fun to watch! It recreates Miyazaki’s world and ambiance, blended perfectly with a fashionable touch. You should check it here if you haven’t already:
COMEDY ／ お笑い
A few months ago, a Japanese comedian made the news and had a comeback after a long slump, thanks to an unexpected success in…England. Yasumura, aka Tonikaku Akarui Yasumura (とにかく明るい安村 – “Anyway really joyful Yasumura”), gained brief popularity in 2015 in Japan with a silly joke that involved him making various poses where he looked naked—but he was just wearing nude underwear. He ended the gag by announcing “anshin shitekudasai, haitemasuyo! (安心してください、穿いてますよ！)”, which means “do not worry, I am wearing (underwear)!” It is not a sophisticated joke, but it was very popular with children. For a while, everybody liked to repeat that phrase because it sticks in the head. Yasumura gradually disappeared from the spotlight and the next “one-hit wonder” comedian took his place. However, out of the blue, in May he appeared on the long running English entertainment show “Britain’s Got Talent.” He presented his gag while speaking English and made the audience burst into laughter, plus he got a standing ovation! What is funny is that he never experienced such an enthusiastic response from a Japanese crowd in his entire career, even in his primetime.
It is always interesting to see the different responses to humor in various countries and cultures. I personally never have found his jokes very funny, but I think it’s cool to see him get such a warm response. You can see his performance in England here.
ABE’S DEATH—MORE CONTROVERSY
It has been over a year since the shocking assassination of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo (安倍晋三) on July 8, 2022. Since then, many unsolved controversial issues have been stirred up in Japan. Investigators found deep ties between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Unification Church, a religious sect engaged in fraudulent activities. If you are interested about the cult’s activities or the alleged motives of the accused assassin Yamagami Tetsuya (山上徹也), check out this post I wrote last year.
Yamagami Tetsuya is what we call a “nisei” (二世) in Japanese, which means “second generation.” In this context, it means that he is a child of a sect’s followers and implies that he is a victim, since he did not choose to join. Many nisei have shared their suffering and struggles with the media, and have drawn much compassion from the public—including for Yamagami, who has received both condemnation for his crime as well as calls for mercy. In fact, he received many letters of support, gifts, and even money while in prison. An online petition was also circulated to request a lenient punishment.
Last year, some nisei advocated for the dissolution of the Unification Church sect, which the government had declined to do at first. However, under growing pressure from the public, the ministry of education has started investigating if there is cause for dissolution and has imposed a civil fine on the Unification Church due to them failing to answer all of their inquiries. It is possible the order for dissolution may come in the next month, although the Unification Church will likely try to appeal it in the Supreme Court meaning things are far from over. The Japanese Parliament did also enact a law that prohibits malicious solicitation by religious groups. However, critics have pointed out that the law has many faults. Religious group members can still sell protective items at very high prices. Yamagami’s trial is set for 2024 at the earliest.
