NEWSWORTHY
Japanese violinist wins second prize in prestigious Brahms contest in Austria
Maine Nishiyama of Japan won second prize in the violin category of the annual International Johannes Brahms Competition held Friday in Poertschach, Austria. Nishiyama, 18, is currently studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. She said after the competition that it is ...
Sony backs maker of instrument that RZA and Grimes can't live without
Sony Corp.'s venture capital arm is backing Roli, the maker of digital musical instruments like the Seaboard that have attracted stars including Wu-Tang Clan rapper RZA and Canadian artist Grimes. CEO Roland Lamb described the funding from the Sony Innovation Fund as a "significant investment ...
Japanese singer Hideki Saijo, known for cover song of 'Y.M.C.A.,' dies at 63
Hideki Saijo, a singer popular in Asia and best known for his cover song of the megahit "Y.M.C.A.," died of acute heart failure Wednesday, his office said. He was 63. The television celebrity took the Japanese music industry by storm in the 1970s and 1980s, ...
Malaysia police investigate rapper over Lunar New Year dog video
A rapper is under police investigation in Muslim-majority Malaysia for allegedly insulting Islam with a Lunar New Year video that features dancers wearing dog masks and performing suggestive moves, reports said Monday. The video features controversial rapper Wee Meng Chee, known by his stage name ...
South Korea court jails ex-culture minister over artist blacklist
A South Korean appeals court Tuesday jailed former culture minister Cho Yoon-Sun for two years for her role in drawing up a blacklist of 10,000 artists seen as critical of ousted president Park Geun-hye's government. Cho had initially been acquitted in July and given only ...
Leader of Russian rock band Mumiy Troll starts beating the drum on cultural exchanges with Japan
Russian rock musician Ilya Lagutenko says his country and Japan should start work as soon as possible to set up cultural exchanges. In a recent interview in Tokyo, the 49-year-old leader of popular rock band Mumiy Troll said the two countries, while facing a decades-long ...
J-pop diva Namie Amuro plans to exit showbiz next September after 25-year career
Popular singer Namie Amuro, who has a strong fan base in Asia, said Wednesday she will quit show business next September. "I, Namie Amuro, would like to take this opportunity to inform all of my fans of my decision to retire as of Sept. 16, ...
Japanese folk singer Matsuyama serenades irritated passengers on delayed flight
Japanese folk singer Chiharu Matsuyama sang his hit song on a plane that remained grounded over an hour past its departure time at a Hokkaido airport Sunday, in a bid to ease passengers' irritation, according to All Nippon Airways Co. Matsuyama, a Hokkaido native, came ...
Ticket scalping needs to be stamped out, but doing so won't be easy.
Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' is first to sell 30 million in U.S.
Michael Jackson's album "Thriller" is still breaking barriers more than 30 years after its release and six years after the pop superstar's death, becoming the first album in history to cross the 30 million mark in U.S. sales, record industry officials said on Wednesday. "Thriller," ...
