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July 06, 2025
 

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MUSIC

Mixue, a Chinese bubble tea chain, has become the world’s largest food and beverage chain, with tens of thousands of stores all over Asia. The company is just one example of the increasing reach and popularity of Chinese cultural exports across the globe.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 23, 2025
How China’s soft power is rewriting Asian culture
Chinese cultural exports are becoming increasingly popular across the world and especially Asia. Do they promote cross-border understanding or are they tools for propaganda?
Austrian singer Johannes Pietsch, known as JJ, celebrates with the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest trophy after winning the grand final at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel, Switzerland, on Sunday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
May 18, 2025
On a high: Austria's JJ wins Eurovision 2025
After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel on 357 and Estonia on 356.
A Sony PlayStation 5 controller
BUSINESS / Companies
May 14, 2025
Sony profit forecast flattens under ¥100 billion tariff burden
New Sony Chief Executive Officer Hiroki Totoki’s first task is to navigate the entertainment group though a new era of a tariff-wielding United States.
Boy band Epex is set to play an event at a 1,000-capacity hall in Fuzhou, Fujian province.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Apr 30, 2025
China’s first K-pop concert in years signals efforts to mend ties
In the middle of a trade war, China extends a cultural olive branch to its Korean neighbors.
Singer Aki Yashiro in Tokyo in 2012
JAPAN
Apr 18, 2025
Nude photos of deceased singer Aki Yashiro spark row in Japan
A record company is facing a backlash after announcing it would release a CD by the enka legend, who died in 2023, that will include nude photographs of her taken privately.
Noriko Shakti has been living in Goa, India, since 2020 and specializes in the tabla, a traditional hand drum from the Indian subcontinent.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Apr 12, 2025
Noriko Shakti: ‘Music reflects my journey and learnings’
The India-based DJ and producer talks about bridging Indian and Japanese traditions in electronic music and advocating for women’s representation in the industry.
Rintaro Sekizuka runs a record store in both London and Tokyo’s Katsushika Ward.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 8, 2025
Tokyo’s vinyl experts say overseas buyers are ‘sustaining the scene’
A weak yen makes rare vinyls a steal for tourists, and locals say it's all part of a circular musical exchange.
Spotify signage on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Jan. 2
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2025
Universal and Spotify ink multiyear deal
A joint statement said the two firms "will collaborate closely to advance the next era of streaming innovation."
Composer Toru Fuyuki died of aspiration pneumonia at a hospital in Tokyo on Thursday. He was 89.
CULTURE / Music
Dec 31, 2024
Toru Fuyuki, composer of 'Ultraseven' theme song, dies at 89
The "Father of Ultra Music" is known for his contributions to the special effects series, including the theme for "Return of Ultraman."
Toshiyuki Nishida performs at a rock concert held in Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, in September 2011. Nishida appeared in many events and dramas filmed in Fukushima to help the prefecture recover in the aftermath of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Nov 18, 2024
In his home prefecture of Fukushima, actor Toshiyuki Nishida lives on
Friends and others who knew him paid tribute to the late actor, who was well known for his folksy charm.
Yoko Ono gestures as she unveils the "John Lennon: The New York City Years" exhibit at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Annex in New York in May 2009.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 16, 2024
Yoko Ono is rightful owner of John Lennon's stolen watch, says Swiss court
The Patek Philippe watch was a birthday gift to the former Beatle from Japanese artist Ono in 1980, just two months before his assassination in New York.
A picture of the writer with his sibling and grandparents sits alongside double “Best of” CDs by British rock group the Beatles. Music by the band continues to conjure memories for the writer of staying at his grandparents’ home.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 7, 2024
Hearing a song from the past and expressing nostalgia in Japanese
You're in a cafe and suddenly a song from the past starts to play. How do you tell your Japanese friends that you're in the "time slip"?
Quincy Jones attends a reception in his honor at the Residence de France in Los Angeles on April 25, 2017.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 4, 2024
Quincy Jones, renaissance man of American music, dies at 91
Jones died at his home in Los Angeles, surrounded by his family, according to a statement from his publicist.
A woman is silhouetted at The Pink Floyd Exhibition: Their Mortal Remains at the V&A Museum in London in 2017.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 2, 2024
Sony buys Pink Floyd music rights for $400 million, FT reports
The deal includes the band's name and portrait rights of its members.
Members of the K-pop group NewJeans are embroiled in a dispute with their corporate backers over their creative relationship with an executive producer.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 28, 2024
NewJeans’ ultimatum casts K-pop’s displays of labor in a new light
A YouTube live broadcast from the girl group raises age-old questions about labor practices in the Korean pop industry.
Maestro Seiji Ozawa (center) lays flowers at the cenotaph for atomic bomb victims at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in October 2005.
JAPAN / History / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Sep 9, 2024
Maestro Seiji Ozawa’s prayer for peace lives on in Hiroshima
His musical roots — and passion — can be traced back to the city where the first atomic bomb was detonated.
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Jul 14, 2024
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Great pianists aren't made overnight, it takes years of practice. It can all be undone in a matter of days, however, due to a medical condition called dystonia.
Water is sprayed over the stage at a Taylor Swift concert in Rio de Janeiro in November 2023.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jun 19, 2024
On a warming planet, outdoor concerts need a new safety playbook
Climate change is ushering in more extreme weather worldwide, and with it, greater risks for outdoor events.
Colin Croy's Japanese is still a work in progress, but he hasn't had much trouble communicating with local customers in Sapporo due to the mutual language of musical performance.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Jun 10, 2024
Colin Croy: 'After I built my first pedal, I just kept making more and more'
A St. Louis transplant in Sapporo serves the Hokkaido capital's music scene with equipment repairs, upgrades and customizations.
Nemo representing Switzerland appears on stage after winning the Grand Final of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, on Saturday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
May 12, 2024
Switzerland's Nemo wins Eurovision Song Contest
Twenty-four-year-old Nemo's "The Code" won the highest score from nations' juries, and enough of the popular votes to get 591 points.
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

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

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning
Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

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