2012-03-03, 06:20
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Japanese Pop Music: Engrish Need Not Apply Here
Admittedly inspired by my own post, Japanese Singers Fluent in English, about mixed singers in Japan like Aoyama Thelma and May J. on the Multingual Seiyu/Voice Actor appreciation thread in the General Anime Forum...
May J. - Japanese R&B/pop singer and television host born in Yokohama, Japan to a Japanese father and an Iranian mother. May J. / Be mine 〜君が好きだよ〜 May J. / 「あの日があるから feat. RYO the SKYWALKER」PV BENI aka Arashiro Beni - Japanese R&B/pop singer born in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan to a Japanese (Okinawan) mother and an American father of mixed European and Native American descent; raised in California, USA and Yokosuka, Japan, site of a well-known U.S. naval base. BENI - Kiss Kiss Kiss live BENI - ギミギミ live BIG RON - Japanese rap/hip-hop artist. I have read conflicting accounts about his background, such that he is an unknown rapper from Germany or a Caucasian gaijin rapping in Japanese. But I recall reading someone writing somewhere, which sounds fairly credible to me, that BIG RON is one-quarter Japanese and grew up on U.S. military bases. JAMOSA (JA + MOSA = JAPAN + FORMOSA) - Japanese R&B/pop singer/songwriter born in Fukuoka, Japan to a Japanese father and an Austronesian Taiwanese (Taiwanese Aborigine) mother. BIG RON / Stay With Me feat. JAMOSA JAY'ED - Japanese R&B/pop singer born in New Zealand to a Japanese father and a Polynesian mother of Samoan or Samoan/Tongan extraction (not as one might expect, indigenous Maori, which is also Polynesian). JAMOSA / あなたの胸にもどれるなら feat.JAY'ED Music Video JAMOSA + JAY'ED = Austronesian Power in Japan. EMI MARIA - Japanese R&B/pop singer born in Papua New Guinea to a Japanese mother and a Papuan New Guinean father. EMI MARIA ／ Mr.ALIEN （Full ver.） JAY'ED feat EMI MARIA - LUV IS JAY'ED + EMI MARIA = Oceanic Power in Japan. Alice - Japanese R&B/pop singer/songwriter born in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan to a Japanese mother and a Guamanian father. Since Guam is a U.S. territory and Guamanians are U.S. citizens, that makes Alice half American. And since the declining Guamanian Chamorro (Chamoru) language belongs to the widespread Malayo-Polynesian subfamily of the great Austronesian language family, Alice adds even more Austronesian Power in Japan. (I doubt, however, Alice speaks Chamorro; English, on the other hand...). Alice " I wanna... feat. CO-KEY(from MC2) " Alice 「リズム」 PV Sophia - Japanese model and singer for the the three-member Japanese music group Safarii, consisting of AK, Oki, and Sophia. Sophia is half Japanese and half Ethiopian. Safarii「この恋にさよなら」：動画 Safarii / 最後の恋 Lisa Halim - Japanese pop singer/songwriter born in Japan to a Japanese mother and an Indonesian father from Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Say good bye／Lisa Halim 切ないくらい、愛してた。／Lisa Halim feat.JAY'ED Lisa Halim + JAY'ED = Even more Austronesian (or more specifically here, Malayo-Polynesian) Power in Japan. Crystal Kay - Japanese R&B/pop singer born Crystal Kay Williams in Yokohama, Japan to a third-generation Zainichi Korean mother and an African American father. Crystal Kay - 恋におちたら cristal [sic] kay - kiss Tsuchiya Anna - Japanese singer, lyricist, actress, and semi-retired model born to a Japanese mother and an American father of either - take your pick - 1) Polish-Irish heritage or 2) Russian heritage. 土屋アンナ [Tsuchiya Anna] / Change your life 土屋アンナ [Tsuchiya Anna] / Believe in Love AI - Japanese American R&B/pop singer born Ai Carina Uemura in Los Angeles, California, USA and raised in both Japan and America. She is three-fourths Japanese and one-fourth Italian. Amuro Namie - Japanese R&B/dance/pop singer born in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. She is three-fourths Okinawan and - like Ai - one-fourth Italian. Killing three birds with one stone... 安室奈美恵 [Amuro Namie] feat.AI & 土屋アンナ [Tsuchiya Anna] - Wonder Woman (MTV VIDEO MUSIC AID JAPAN) Jero - Japanese enka singer born Jerome Charles White Jr. in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, USA. He is three-fourths African American and one-fourth Japanese. His late maternal grandmother hailed from Yokohama, Japan. ジェロ [Jero]「海雪」ダンスバージョン ジェロ [Jero] - 演歌歌手 LISA - Japanese R&B/pop singer/songwriter/producer born Elizabeth Sakura Narita in Tokyo, Japan to a Japanese father and a Colombian mother (of mixed European, African, and/or Amerindian ancestries? - typical for Colombia and most of Latin America). LISA / falling for you．．．feat. VERBAL(m-flo) m-flo loves LISA / TRIPOD BABY Monday Michiru - Japanese/Italian American jazz/nu jazz//R&B/soul/dance/pop/whatever else singer born Monday Michiru Mariano in Tokyo, Japan to Manchurian-born ethnic Japanese jazz pianist, arranger, composer, and bandleader Toshiko Akiyoshi and Italian American jazz saxophonist Charlie Mariano. Monday Michiru (Monday満ちる) - Sands Of Time Monday Michiru - Heal Lisa Ono - Japanese Brazilian bossa nova singer and musician born in 1962 in São Paulo, Brazil to ethnic Japanese parents. At the age of ten she moved with her family to Japan and since then has alternated living in Japan and Brazil (which explains why her Portuguese remains sharp after all these years). Lisa Ono - Garota de Ipanema (The Girl from Ipanema) Lisa Ono 小野リサ My Cherie Amour <bossa nova version of the Stevie Wonder song> LISA ONO / CARNAVAL Yo Hitoto - Japanese pop singer born in Tokyo, Japan to a Japanese mother and a Han Chinese Taiwanese father, raised in Taipei, Taiwan and Tokyo. MIYAVI - Japanese rock / visual kei guitarist born Ishihara Takamasa in Nishikujo, Japan to a Japanese mother and a second-generation Zainichi Korean father. (I am getting tired of finding YouTube links for these artists...) And many, many more. Most of the part-Japanese. non-ethnic Japanese, and Nikkeijin singers in Japan I listed above know English. (The ones who grew up in English-speaking lands should know it.) I have heard many part Japanese and non-ethnic Japanese music artists in Japan readily and easily converse in English (May J., BENI, JAY'ED, VERBAL, Leo Imai, Crystal Kay, MIYAVI, JYONGRI, etc.), so you will not get the typical Engrish in their Japanese language songs. P.S.I knew I forgot someone... Bilingual (Japanese and English) singer/songwriter Olivia Lufkin, aka OLIVIA, was born in Okinawa, Japan to an Okinawan mother and a Norwegian American father. Her two younger siblings are Jeffrey Lufkin, who is a musician she collaborates regularly with and Caroline Lufkin, who is an independent musician. Lufkin began her solo career after being in the Japanese girl group D&D. She gained mainstream success in 2006 after creating songs for the fictional band Trapnest under the alias of Olivia Inspi' Reira (Trapnest), and the songs were used for the popular anime adaptation of Nana. Olivia Lufkin - A Little Pain
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Last edited by Siegel Clyne; 2012-03-21 at 19:57. |
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2012-03-03, 08:35
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Link #2282 | |
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temporary safeguard
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Germany
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Quote:
 Spoiler for hnnng:
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2012-03-03, 08:46
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Link #2283 | |
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NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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Quote:
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Last edited by SaintessHeart; 2012-03-03 at 08:56. |
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2012-03-03, 15:11
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Link #2284 | |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
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Man... i'd love to see her visit some southeast asian country and use her talent to sing rendition of Frank Sinatra's "My Way". I'd clap & cheer at the sound of thunderous 'BANG!' of approval 
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2012-03-03, 17:32
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Link #2285 | |
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廉頗
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Age: 34
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 It's all well and good when you're looking at an anime girl with massive eyes and all these exaggerated features, it's just weird in real life. Couple that with the fact that The Beatles had magnificent vocal harmonies... it's just a very strange video. 
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2012-03-03, 17:51
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Link #2286 | |
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NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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Just listen to Mizuki Nana's Dangan Shoujo*. That is how tough it is for a female to sing a masculine-1980-ish song; the transposition is already a headache. I would use this artiste as a benchmark for foreigner-Japanese (and vice-versa) for pitching and tonality, although her genre is ancient. She's a legend (I believe our significantly older forum members from SEA might know about her......a.k.a TRL) P.S * - Kingrecords copyrighted the song and the whole thing is off youtube.
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2012-03-05, 06:48
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Link #2288 | ||
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
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The Japanese Diaspora, Part 1
Let us samba away from Lisa Ono's singing performance of "Carnaval" in my Japanese Pop Music: Engrish Need Not Apply...
And explore the exploits of the Nikkei or Nikkeijin - Japanese immigrants and their descendants - in music and other fields of entertainment and celebrityhood (plus maybe something else) outside of Japan. Regarding my preceding post cited above and my other post it links to, the terms "Nikkei" and "Nikkeijin" covers Lisa Ono, AI and Hikaru Utada, as well JAY'ED and EMI MARIA, because they were all born in foreign countries and spent part of their childhood and teenage years there. In general, the Nikkeijin in North America, South America, and Australia (but not Nikkeijin in the UK) have used a fairly unique system of categorizing individuals by generation: 1) Issei (First Generation) are Japanese immigrants: 2) Nisei (Second Generation) are the children of Japanese immigrants; 3) Sansei (Third Generation) are the children of Nisei and the grandchildren of Issei; 3) Yonsei (Fourth Generation) are the children of Sansei; 4) Gosei (Fifth Generation) are the children of Yonsei; and so on.... Unlike the case often for other Asian (e.g., Chinese, Filipino) immigrants in the United States, who tended to be men during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, unmarried Japanese (and also Korean) male immigrants were very successful in obtaining wives from their homeland via picture brides. Those early Japanese immigrants in the United States - and also in Brazil - generally had low intermarriage rates. There existed, however, regional differences. "A census taken by the Japanese consulate in New York in 1931 found that of the relatively small proportion of married Japanese men, about one third had married non-Japanese wives, and the percentage of Japanese women intermarrying with non-Japanese men was just as high. The significant difference between the Japanese in Britain and in the US is the fact that in America, the bulk of Japanese American outmarriages were by women. In Britain, it appears that more Japanese men had non-Japanese wives than Japanese women with non-Japanese husbands." In contrast to America and Brazil, the intermarriage rate of Japanese immigrants in pre-World War II Great Britain - where the ethnic Japanese population was relatively small - was high. Like virtually all states in the South and a number of other states in America, California once had racist anti-miscegnation laws which barred marriages between Whites and non-"Whites", including Blacks, Native Americans, and Asians, i.e., "Mongolians" (Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, etc.), "Malays" (Filipinos, Malays, etc.), and "Hindus" (Indians/South Asians). California anti-miscegnation laws could not prevent Whites and Non-"Whites" from going out of state to get married and returning to California, nor could they stop White/non-"White" couples and their offspring and descendants from outside California moving to California. Interestingly, although it also had anti-miscegnation laws, North Carolina did allow marriages between Caucasians and Asians, presumably because it had many descendants of the famous Siamese Twins, Eng and Chang Bunker - who were either 7/8ths Chinese and 1/8th Thai or 3/4ths Chinese and 1/4th Thai and born in Siam (now Thailand) during the early 1800s - and who had married a couple of Caucasian sisters, Sally Ann and Adelaide Yates, in North Carolina in 1843 and fathered 21 children with them, 14 of whom lived to adulthood. The conjoined twins Eng and Chang Bunker fathered 21 children and now have 1,800 descendants - and every July many of them come together in Mt. Airy, NC., where the twins settled after escaping certain death in Siam. Likewise, California did allow marriages between Whites and Hispanics or "Spanish" (mainly Mexicans), presumably as California once belonged to Mexico and many Whites who had moved to California from other parts of the U.S. had earlier intermarried with local Mexicans, just as Whites who moved to Indian Territory, later the state of Oklahoma, from other parts of the U.S, had intermarried with local Native Americans. (One incentive driving the relatively high rate of intermarriage rates between Whites and Mexicans in California and Whites and Native Americans in Oklahoma during earlier times was for Whites to gain ownership of land in California and Oklahoma, respectively.) California's anti-miscegnation laws were struck down as unconstitutional by the California State Supreme Court in 1948. As the generations went along, however, intermarriage rates skyrocketed for Nikkeijin in the New World, from Canada in the north to Brazil in the south. Also, intermarriage with non-Japanese became common in the Japanese American community in the 1960s. Intermarriage among Japanese Americans was at approximately 50% by the 1970s, and at 70% in the 1990s. It begs the question: How much higher is the intermarriage rate now, in the second decade of the 21th century, for Japanese Americans? While members of the sansei [third generation Japanese American] and yonsei [fourth generation Japanese American] generation may visit Japan, they tend to see this activity only as tourism. Japanese cultural structure is generally not present among the yonsei generation. According to a 2006 study of yonsei women in Hawai'i, this generation of Japanese-Americans tends to assert their ethnicity in such "symbolic" ways as the celebration of holidays and ceremonies associated with Japan, eating ethnic foods, and the use of Japanese middle-names. The study noted that the yonsei generation considered its ethnicity to be less important than did previous generations of Japanese-Americans. Cheryl Lynn Sullivan, an ethnic research who specializes in the Japanese-American community of California, wrote, "It is common in the Japanese American community not to consider yonsei Japanese American -- they are 'just plain Americans.' This is especially true of children who are the offspring of Japanese American-Euro-American marriages." Others celebrate their ancestry in cultural exchanges based around youth and sports events, e.g. Yonsei Basketball Association . According to a 2011 columnist in The Rafu Shimpo of Los Angeles, "Younger Japanese Americans are more culturally American than Japanese" and "other than some vestigial cultural affiliations, a Yonsei or Gosei is simply another American." For the intermarriage rates of Japanese Brazilians, let a Japanese Brazilian poster, The Hypocrite, on the Anthrocivitas forums answer that for you: Quote:
But Japanese Canadians probably take the prize for the highest intermarriage rates among the major Nikkei groups in the Americas: 95% ... and rising. According to Statistics Canada: Quote:
Post-World War II emigration out of Japan - like those generally out of Western Europe - is very low. And those few Japanese who choose to emigrate from Japan to the Americas nowadays, unlike Japanese immigrants during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, appear to have much higher intermarriage rates. High intermarriage rates among ethnic Japanese living outside of Japan, along with other factors such as a lack of replenishing pool of new Japanese immigrants and the historic tendency of ethnic Japanese to advance, prosper and assimilate in new lands, may help explain why no major ethnic Japanese communities one can think of - unlike for a number of other ethnic groups - have survived intact hundreds of years outside of their ancestral homeland. Substantial ethnic Japanese communities once thrived in Siam (now Thailand), The Philippines, what are now present-day Cambodia and Vietnam, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia during the 16th and 17th centuries. They ceased existing long ago after the 1640s, "when the Tokugawa shogunate imposed maritime restrictions which forbade Japanese from leaving the country, and from returning if they were already abroad. This policy would not be lifted for over two hundred years." "Some of these Southeast Asian Nihonmachi [Japan Towns] survived through the end of the 17th century. Japan's foreign trade was now handled exclusively by Chinese, Dutch, and Southeast Asian ships, but Japanese living abroad continued to play important commercial roles, and in some cases to exert considerable influence upon the economies of a number of ports. Still, by the end of the 17th century, the lack of influx of new Japanese immigrants led these communities to either disappear through assimilation into the peoples of their new homes, or to die out entirely." The Japanese American, the Japanese Canadian, and the Japanese Mexican communities in North America are a little over one hundred and thirty or forty or so years old. The ethnic Japanese communities in South America - Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay, etc. - are somewhat younger, perhaps a little over one hundred years old (starting point is 1907 with the Gentlemen's Agreement, which severely restricted immigration to the U.S. from Japan and diverted it toward the south, way south, to South America). While the future may look bleak for the continuing existence of present-day ethnic Japanese communities outside of Japan past the 21st century, particularly in places like Canada, a number of descendants of the Japanese diaspora, both those will full and partial Japanese ancestry, have asserted their Japanese heritage, if only symbolically. P.S. The official data and figures from the 2010 United States Census for the U.S. populations of various Asian groups categorized by national origin can be found here: Race Reporting for the Asian Population by Selected Categories: 2010 - 2010 Census Summary File 1. Using these official data and figures from the 2010 U.S. Census to calculate percentages of those of full and mixed ancestries, of all the Asian ethnic groups those of Japanese national origin by far have the highest percentage of individuals of mixed ancestry: 41.5 percent. One can anticipate the figure of people of mixed Japanese descent living in the U.S. going over 50 percent in the 2020 U.S. Census. The 41.5% figure is considerably up from the 30.7% figure found for those of mixed Japanese ancestry living in the U.S. using official data and figures from the 2000 U.S. Census. The total number of individuals of full Japanese ancestry living in the U.S. ACTUALLY FELL from 796,700 recorded in the 2000 U.S. Census figure to 763,325 recorded in the 2010 U.S. Census. Very low immigration rates from Japan, very high intermarriage rates of people of Japanese descent, low birth rates of people of Japanese descent, and deaths of the mostly elderly population of full Japanese descent presumably help explain the shrinking number of persons with full Japanese ancestry living in the U.S. from 2000 to 2010. The 2000 U.S. Census, I just noticed, separated Okinawans and Iwo Jimans apart from Japanese into independent categories. The 2010 U.S. Census apparently lumped Okinawans and Iwo Jimans together with Japanese into a single category, Japanese. It must be taken into account that many people of Okinawan ancestry in the U.S., most of whom live in Hawaii (I seem to recall reading that 20 or so percent of the total ethnic Japanese population in Hawaii is Okinawan), may have classified themselves as being of Japanese descent rather being of Okinawan descent in the 2000 U.S. Census, as the figures there for Okinawans seem much too small to account for those just living in Hawaii. Using data and figures from the 2000 U.S. census, an astonishing 66.9 percent, or over two thirds, of the total listed Okinawan ethnic population in the U.S. was of mixed descent in 2000. This very high percentage of people of Okinawan descent living in the U.S. with mixed ancestry presumably has a lot to do with the substantial American military presence and bases in Okinawa and the many U.S. servicemen returning to America with Okinawan wives.
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Last edited by Siegel Clyne; 2012-04-07 at 08:17. |
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2012-03-05, 06:49
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Link #2289 | ||||
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
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The Japanese Diaspora, Part 2
Beautiful Uruguayan Mexican actress and model Bárbara Mori was born Bárbara Mori Ochoa on February 2, 1978 in Montevideo, Uruguay to a Japanese-Uruguayan father, Yuyi Mori, and a Mexican mother, Rosario Ochoa. Her paternal grandfather had immigrated from Japan to Uruguay during the 1930s, I think, and married a local woman. She has two siblings, an older sister, Kenya Mori, and a younger brother, Kintaro Mori.
Excluding her non-Japanese descended mother and her son Sergio, Bárbara is the only one in her immediate family without a Japanese given name: Yuyi (Yuji/Yuuji), Kenya, and Kintaro (Kintarou) are Japanese names. Bárbara Mori became famous for starring as the titular bad girl, the "mala mujer," Rubí Pérez Ochoa de Ferrer in the smash hit 2004 Mexican television soap opera (telenovela) series Rubí, (a remake of a 1968 Mexican telenovela, itself based on a short story by Yolanda Vargas Dulché), as well as starring as Zoe (Soniya in the Hindi version) in the hit 2005 Mexican theatrical feature La mujer de mi hermano (My Brother's Wife) - renamed Spanish Beauty (Hindi dubbed version) and A Beautiful Wife (English dubbed version) for the Indian/South Asian market - and co-starring as Natasha/Linda with Indian actor Hrithik Roshan, who plays Jai Singhania, in the much hyped 2011 Bollywood film, Kites. Mori learned to speak English while filming Kites. In an interview conducted by India-Forums, 'I'm not a perfect person' - Barbara Mori, dated May 10, 2010, Bárbara Mori said: Quote:
In an old AOL Latino Entretenimiento interview - which I had to retrieve using the Wayback Machine - Bárbara Mori was asked about her Japanese family name, Mori, and replied that it means "forest." She went on to say that her father (Yuyi) and her two siblings (Kenya and Kintaro), as well as herself, have the kanji for their family name, 森, tattooed on their bodies. Bárbara Mori's 森 kanji tattoo is on her lower back. Bárbara Mori was asked what she learned from her Japanese culture and she answered that she learned to eat raw fish at an early age. She recalled gatherings with her paternal grandfather, when he would get drunk and start singing songs in Japanese. Lots of joy and fun and laughter ensued. This one is for you Barbara Mori Barbara Mori ( Rubí ) - Tu y yo Barbara Mori-rubi mala mujer barbara mori BARBARA MORI Las mejores fotos de Bárbara Mori Barbara Mori-Marlene Favela (Rubi) Moving from Uruguay via Mexico to LA in the USA... R&B/pop singer and songwriter Jhené Aiko was born Jhené Aiko Efuru Chilombo on March 16, 1988 in Los Angeles, California to a mother of half Japanese and part Spanish and Black Dominican descent, Christina Yamamoto, and a father of Black, Jewish and Native American descent, Karamo Chilombo. The little known story of post-World War II immigration from Japan to the Dominican Republic during the 1950s, with all the hardships it entails, may or may not help explain the background of Jhené Aiko's mother. On March 16, 2011, Jhené Aiko released the critically acclaimed mixtape sailing soul(s). Probably the best known selection from sailing soul(s) is "july (feat. Drake)." Many people erroneously assume that "July" is a Drake song: Drake - July ft. Jhene Aiko (With Download Link) Spoiler:
The Japanese koto sounds heard repreatedly throughout the song and Jhené Aiko's sung words ending "July" - I am Japanese if you please - say otherwise. Here is the original version of "July" dating back to late 2008, featuring a then relatively unknown Drake in a much reduced role, heard only toward the end of the song: Jhene Aiko - July (original) with lyrics Spoiler:
Jhené Aiko has a daughter with O'Ryan named Namiko Love Chilombo-Browner. (If they know little or nothing else about Japanese culture, one of things many Nikkeijin is give their children Japanese middle names, or such as in the case of Jhené Aiko, Japanese first names.) Jhené Aiko's "My Mine" Spoiler:
Jhene Aiko "3:16am" teaser Jhene Aiko Exclusive Interview with Yeah Im Famous Staying in the Los Angeles area... Michael Kenji "Mike" Shinoda (born February 11, 1977) is an American musician, record producer, and artist. He is best known as the rapper, principal songwriter, keyboardist, vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Linkin Park. Shinoda is also noted as a solo rapper in his side-project, Fort Minor. He also provides artwork, production, and mixing for both projects. Mike Shinoda was born and raised in the Los Angeles suburb of Agoura Hills, California. His father is an American of Japanese descent and his mother is an American of mainly mixed European descent, with some Native American thrown in. Shinoda and his high school friends Brad Delson and Rob Bourdon formed the band Xero. After high school, Shinoda attended the Art Center College of Design to study graphic design and illustration where he met DJ and turntablist Joseph "Joe" Hahn, a Korean American, and recruited him to join his band. Xero later become known as Linkin Park and the rest, shall we say, is history. The interplay between the rapping vocals of Mike Shinoda and the singing vocals of Chester Bennington helped define the unique Linkin Park sound, e.g., Linkin Park - In The End. (Warner Bros. Records and linkinparktv disable embedding Linkin Park music videos on YouTube, so do not worry about them being embedded here.) Japanese cultural references, including Gundam models, abound in Linkin Park's Somewhere I Belong video. Crossing the pond from North America to Europe, we head off to Sweden... Yukimi Nagano - Swedish singer/songwriter born in Gothenburg, Sweden to a Japanese father and a Swedish American mother. Also known simply as "Kimi," she is the lead singer for the Swedish electronic band Little Dragon, which she formed with some of her high school friends. She has performed with other groups as well, such as Sweden's nu jazz duo Koop and Japan's jazz band Sleep Walker. Little Dragon - Constant Surprises Spoiler:
Koop - Summer Sun Spoiler:
sleepwalker afloat (ft yukimi nagano) Spoiler:
Interview: Little Dragon in Austin Yukimi Nagano's singing voice sometimes reminds me of the great American blues/jazz/pop singer Billie Holiday - you can certainly hear the resemblance to Holiday in Hird feat. Yukimi Nagano - I Love You My Hope [ + Lyrics ] - but still all her own. Nagano's vocal stylings and phrasing remind many fans of African American singer/songwriter Erykah Badu, known as the "First Lady of Neo-Soul" or the "Queen of Neo-Soul," whose own vocal stylings and phrasings in turn evoke memories of the aforementioned Billie Holiday. Yukimi Nagano is a fantastic jazz singer - well, she is a fantastic singer, period - with a unique and beautiful voice, which you can really hear when she performs with jazz and nu jazz musicians from around the world. Check her out on YouTube. It's too bad she isn't better known in America. Of all singers of Japanese descent whom I know of, Yukimi Nagano just may be my favorite. "Summer Sun" just blows me away. Speaking of unique... Maia Hirasawa - Japanese-Swedish singer/songwriter. Someone commented that Maia sounds like a happy Bjork. Maia Hirasawa - And I found this boy Spoiler:
It Doesn´t Stop by Maia Hirasawa Spoiler:
Staying in Sweden (although I think Maia lives at least part time in Japan now, recording for Victor Entertainment there)... Million Stylez is a reggae and dancehall artist born Kenshin Iryo on June 1, 1981 in Stockholm, Sweden to a Japanese immigrant father and a French immigrant mother. Million Stylez is "Europe's No.1 dancehall reggae artist." Million Stylez - Miss Fatty million stylez - all night Million Stylez - Wheres My Wife * Brand New * [ Heart & Soul Riddim Nov 2011] Spoiler:
Interview with Million Stylez by Late Night Munchies Moving to Italy... The "subscribed female singer on YouTube Italia," Sayaka Alessandra was born in Rome, Italy to a Japanese father and a Sicilian mother. Her favorite music artist is Elvis Presley. But here she is doing a bilingual cover version of the 1950s Italian hit song by Renato Carosone, "Tu vuò fà l'americano," sung in the Neopolitan dialect of Italian and English: Tu Vuo' Fa' l'Americano/You Wanna Be Americano (SayakaAlessandra at VideoSicilia TV) Spoiler:
Here is Sayaka Alessandra's cover version of Bobby Darin's 1959 U.S. hit song, "Dream Lover": Dream Lover (Bobby Darin cover by SayakaAlessandra) Spoiler:
Sayaka Alessandra performs a bilingual version, in English and in Spanish, of "Quizás, Quizás, Quizás." "Quizás, Quizás, Quizás" (also known as "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" in English), is a popular song by Cuban songwriter Osvaldo Farres. Farrés wrote the music and original Spanish lyrics for the song which became a hit in 1947. The English lyrics were written by Joe Davis and are not a translation of the Spanish lyrics. Quizás Quizás Quizás (cover by SayakaAlessandra) SAYALESSANDRA UPDATES/MESSAGGIO DA SAYALESSANDRA Heading back to America... Meiko (pronounced MEE-ko), is an American singer/songwriter, born and raised in Roberta, Georgia and currently residing in Los Angeles, California. She independently released a self-titled album on September 1, 2007. All of the tracks from the LP have been featured in major network TV shows.... Meiko is one-quarter Japanese, on her maternal grandmother's side; in an attempt to get in touch with their Japanese heritage, she and her sister, designer Kelly Nishimoto, adopted the nicknames Meiko and Keiko. Meiko - Under My Bed Spoiler:
Rachael Yamagata (born September 23, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist from Arlington, Virginia. She began her musical career with the band Bumpus before becoming a solo artist and releasing four EP's and three studio albums. Her songs have appeared on numerous television shows and she has collaborated with other musicians including Jason Mraz, Rhett Miller, Bright Eyes, Ryan Adams, Toots and the Maytals and Ray Lamontagne. Rachael's father is a third-generation (Sansei) Japanese American. Her mother is a half German, half Italian American. Rachael Yamagata - Be Be Your Love Spoiler:
Marié Christina Digby ( /mɑriˈeɪ ˈdɪɡbi/ mar-ee-ay dig-bee; born April 16, 1983) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist and actress. She is known for her acoustic cover version of Rihanna's "Umbrella", which attracted attention on YouTube in 2007. The song was subsequently played on the radio station STAR 98.7, was featured on the highly rated third season opening episode of the MTV show The Hills,[1] and peaked at #10 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. Digby performed the song on the late night talk show Last Call with Carson Daly on August 2, 2007. Since then, Digby has released three studio albums, including one Japanese cover album. These albums have spawned three singles overall.... Digby, whose mother is Japanese and father is Irish American, is the oldest of three siblings. Marie Digby - Say It Again - World Premiere Video (HQ) Spoiler:
Doug Robb, lead singer of the American rock band Hoobastank, is half Japanese and half Scottish. Hoobastank - The Reason Spoiler:
Superman, that All-American cultural icon, become part Japanese during the 1990s when actor Dean Cain was cast as Clark Kent/Superman in the 1993-1997 ABC television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. Cain was born Dean George Tanaka on July 31, 1966 in Mount Clemens, Michigan to actress Sharon Thomas and U.S. Army serviceman Roger Tanaka. Cain is part French Canadian, Irish, Welsh, and one-fourth Japanese through his biological father. Cain reportedly has his Japanese birth family name, Tanaka, tattooed in kanji on his (left) ankle. I presume the kanji for Dean Cain's Tanaka ankle tattoo are 田中. Dean Cain is Superman Dean Cain and Teri Hatcher on the proposal on Lois and Clark Clark's Return (Lois & Clark 4.01) Crossing the pond back once again, we head off to the United Kingdom... Current British Secretary of State of Work and Pensions and leader of the Conservative Party in the UK from 2001 to 2003, the Scottish-born Iain Duncan Smith (IDS) is one eighth Japanese. One of his maternal grandfathers, the Irish sea captain Samuel Lewis Shaw (a relative of Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw) met his future wife, IDS's maternal great-grandmother Ellen Oshey Matsumuro, a Japanese woman in Beijing, China during the late 19th century. Ellen was a daughter of a Japanese artist. We head back to the good ol' USA, bringing model, actress, and TV host of the Bravo reality show, Work of Art: The Next Great Artist, China Chow along with us... Born in London to Shanghai-born art-collecting restaurateur Michael Chow and the late jewelry designer and internationally renowned model/1980s fashion icon Tina Chow, China Chow moved with father and mother to New York City when she was five. China is 7/16ths Chinese and 1/16th Scottish from her father's side, and 1/4th Japanese and 1/4th German from her mother's side. Here is a funny scene from the 1998 non hit, The Big Hit, which starred her opposite Mark Wahlberg, whom she briefly dated around the time of the making of the movie, attempting to read a ransom note presented by the head kidnapper, played by Lou Diamond Phillips, another actor of mixed Asian and European descent (with a little Native American thrown in): China Chow - Funny scene from The Big Hit Spoiler:
Work Of Art Sneak Peek: Meet the Contestants For more attractive female celebrities and entertainers with partial Asian ancestry, just google "Asian" together with names like "Kate Beckinsale," "Olivia Munn," "Vanessa Hudgens," "Kristin Kreuk," "Lindsay Price," "Naomi Campbell," "Jennifer Tilly," "Phoebe Cates," etc., etc., etc. Excluding The New Pussycat Dolls... Did you know that at one time, during their heyday last decade, over half of the members of The Pussycat Dolls were part Asian? Former Pussycat Dolls member and lead singer Nicole Scherzinger's biological father is Filipino; her mother is half Hawaiian and half Russian. Her family name Scherzinger comes from her German American stepfather. Former Pussycat Dolls member Carmit Bachar is Jewish Israeli, Dutch, Indonesian, and Chinese. (There are conflicting accounts on what exactly are the ethnic makeups of her father and her mother, so I left that alone here.) Former Pussycat Dolls member Jessica Sutta's father is Russian-Polish Jewish; her mother is Japanese-Irish Roman Catholic. The Pussycat Dolls - When I Grow Up Spoiler:
Actor/director Clint Eastwood's wife, Dina Eastwood, is part Japanese. Dina Eastwood (nee Ruiz) was born to a father of African American and Japanese descent and a mother of Irish, English and German descent. Her father was adopted by a Latino family named Ruiz. Dina Eastwood said in an interview published in the Spring 2007 issue of Carmel Magazine: "I call it the Carmel Bubble too. I had the same experience in the suburbs [of Fremont, Calif.]. I was the darkest kid at my elementary school. I used to get called ‘nigger’ in grade school. I had a real problem with my looks until I was about 20. Now everyone is mixed. It’s no big deal. My dad is black and Japanese. And my mom’s Irish, German and English. I was the poor kid in the rich school." The Eastwoods have one daughter together, Morgan Eastwood. Dina Eastwood, Band Manager of Overtone Group Clint Eastwood and Dina Eastwood Talk About The SPCA Clint Eastwood and Dina Eastwood support the SPCA for Monterey County. Carrie Ann Inaba (born January 5, 1968) is an American dancer, choreographer, actress, game show host, and singer. She has been one of the three main judges on the ABC television reality show Dancing with the Stars - a U.S. adaptation of a British television series, Strictly Come Dancing - since its inception. Inaba was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to a father of Japanese descent and a mother of Chinese and Irish descent. Carrie Ann Inaba Gets Engaged on Live TV TOKYOLOGY - Harajuku - Hosted by Carrie Ann Inaba - Tokyo Pop Culture Documentary - HD Carrie Ann Inaba - Judging Moments Montage Fred Armisen (born December 4, 1966) is an American actor, comedian and musician best known for his work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, and portraying off-color foreigners in various comedy films such as EuroTrip, Anchorman and Cop Out. With Carrie Brownstein, he is the co-creator and co-star of the IFC sketch series Portlandia.... Armisen was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and moved to Manhattan, New York City as a baby. He was raised in Valley Stream, New York, on Long Island. His mother is Venezuelan and his father is of German and Japanese descent. He attended the School of Visual Arts (NYC) before dropping out to begin a career as a rock drummer. He has mentioned watching the bands The Clash and Devo perform on television, and wanting to be a performer since he was a child. Here is a sketch from the second episode of the first season of Portlandia, "Put A Bird On It," starring Fred Armisen as Bryce Shivers and Carrie Brownstein as Lisa Eversman: Put A Bird On It - Portlandia on IFC Spoiler:
Fred Armisen Was A Very Disturbed Little Boy - Conan on TBS P.S. Wouldn't ya know it? A couple of days after I last edited this post, it was officially announced that Dina Eastwood, Clint Eastwood's wife, will star in a ten-episode television series, Mrs. Eastwood & Company, set to premiere May 20, 2012 on the E! network, featuring Dina and Clint's daughter Morgan Eastwood and Dina's stepdaughter Francesca Eastwood, Clint's daughter by actress Frances Fisher, as well as the all-male vocal group Overtone managed by Dina, whom she discovered in South Africa while Clint was filming Invictus. Clint is slated to make only a few guest appearances on the reality show. This official announcement confirmed an exclusive report on TMZ late last year, December 14, 2011, that Clint Eastwood and his family would be in a reality show. "Mrs. Eastwood & Company is produced by Bunim/Murray Productions, the people behind MTV’s long-running Real World and E’s other hit family show Keeping Up with the Kardashians." During the early part of the first decade of this century, I remember watching Dina Eastwood co-host Candid Camera with Peter Funt, son of the late Allen Funt, creator, producer, and former host of this classic American TV show which made its debut in 1948 and aired its last original episode in 2004. The lovely (and tall!) Kimora Lee Simmons is "an American fashion model, and former president and Creative Director for Phat Fashions." Simmons was born in St. Louis, Missouri to a Korean-born Japanese mother (though some sources I have read say her mother is half Japanese and half Korean) and an African American father. Kimora: Life In the Fab Lane | Seas. 4 | Ep. 1 Blowouts and Breakdowns 1/3 1-13-11 Kimora Lee Simmons Talks New Baby, Tweeting, & New Reality Show on Lopez Tonight Gorgeous Chrishell Stause, born Terrina Chrishell Stause from Draffenville, Kentucky, is an American actress of part Japanese and part Spanish descent. According to a tweet made by Stause herself: Quote:
Stause is probably best known for playing Amanda Dillon on ABC-TV's All My Children from 2005 to 2011, when the long-running American daytime soap opera series ended. 60 Seconds with Chrishell Stause - All My Children Chrishell Stause Hair Cut Soapography Chrishell Stause chrishell_stause_Reel2011.mov Then again... Interview with Chrishell Stause Judging by her family photos in the Soapography Chrishell Stause video, the second eldest of five daughters, Chrishell looks "the most Asian." Chrishell's sisters, in fact, look all white - one of her younger sisters has natural light blonde hair, much lighter in color than the natural brown hair of their white mother. Their half Japanese, half Spanish father looks "Latino," e.g., Mexican. Ahh, human genetics... From the good ol' All-American, Missouri-born and Kentucky-bred girl feelings one gets from Chrishell Stause, let us make a 180 degree turn to the nasty bitch vibes generated from the dance music videos by former Pussycat Doll Jessica Sutta, whom I mentioned earlier in this post: Jessica Sutta - I Wanna Be Bad Bom Chicka Wah Wah - Jessica Sutta Paul van Dyk ft. Jessica Sutta 'White Lies' Jessica Sutta - Show Me Jessica Sutta @ ABC News "Show Me" is composed as an uptempo dance-pop and electropop song with an electro beat. The song received mostly positive reviews, with music critics complimenting its club anthem-like nature and the synth pop associated with it. The song peaked at number one on the Hot Dance Club Songs in the United States, becoming Sutta's first solo number-one single and first Pussycat Doll to ever top the Billboard Club chart as a solo artist. "Show Me" is Jessica's second time at the top following her 2007 collaboration with Dave Audé, "Make It Last" while her Paul Van Dyk feature "White Lies" peaked at No. 3 in the same year. On her ancient MySpace account from five years or so ago, Sutta wrote: Quote:
Grannis was the winner of the Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest. As a result of winning, she earned a recording contract with Interscope Records and had her music video played during the commercials of Super Bowl XLII. She recently won Best Web-Born Artist at the 2011 MTV O Music Awards. Her progress in the competition was covered in The Orange County Register and The Wall Street Journal. Grannis has also been featured on FOX News Los Angeles, Good Day L.A. and Yahoo! Valentine - Kina Grannis (Official Music Video) Kina Grannis Full Interview, "In Your Arms" on Ellen 11/15 In Your Arms - Kina Grannis (Official Music Video) Alice Hannah Meiqui Greczyn (born February 6, 1986) is an American actress and model. She is best known for roles in the films The Dukes of Hazzard, Shrooms, House of Fears and Sex Drive. She is also well known as Sage Lund in Lincoln Heights, and as Madeline 'Mads' Rybak in the hit series The Lying Game.... Greczyn was born in Walnut Creek, California and lives in Hollywood, California. She is the eldest of five children. As a child, Greczyn competed in figure skating. She was home-schooled in Colorado, graduated early from high school, and started taking classes at Front Range Community College when she was 15 or 16. Informed that she had to be 18 to take Colorado's nursing test, she decided to try modeling and relocated to California. Greczyn is of European and Asian descent. On her heritage, Greczyn stated, "I'm mainly French, Japanese, and Polish, but there's also Chinese, Korean, German, Irish, Native American, Scotch, English, Greek, Hungarian, Turkish, Swedish, Czech." Sexy Alice Greczyn Compilation ALICE GRECZYN at NEW MOON Premiere Arrivals Alice Greczyn An American in China car wash scene Alice Greczyn talks Life & The Lying Game Beautiful and sexy Teri Harrison, or "Teri Marie Harrison Rose (born February 16, 1981 in Bradenton, Florida, United States) is an American model and actress. A former student of the University of Central Florida, she was Playboy's Playmate of the Month in October 2002. She was photographed by Stephen Wayda. Her involvement with Playboy began when her best friend encouraged her to send pictures of herself to the magazine. Although she was chosen almost immediately as a Playmate, it was a year before she was assigned a month. She was also the German Playboy Playmate of the Month, for January 2003. According to Teri, her father is German and her mother is Japanese. "She appeared in the 2005 Playmates at Play at the Playboy Mansion swimsuit calendar as calendar girl of December. The calendar was the inaugural Playmates at Play calendar and it was shot on the grounds of Playboy Mansion in 2004. It was Playboy's first attempt at creating a non-nude swimsuit calendar featuring Playmates similar in style with those from Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. "She was also a Barker's Beauty on The Price Is Right from 2002 to 2005. "Harrison was married to Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose and have a son together. They have since divorced." According to the TERI HARRISON PLAYBOY PLAYMATE OCTOBER 2002 (NSFW link!) entry on the Playboy Blog official website: Quote:
Terri Harrison Hooters High Quality 1080p (Teri is the blonde in the magenta/pink bikini) tpirmodelstv.com - Terri Harrison 1 tpirmodelstv.com - Best of Teri Harrison 2 tpirmodelstv.com - Sun, Sand and Surf Showcase (Teri Harrison) She looks a lot more German than she does Japanese, wouldn't you say? Teri Harrison is a natural blonde with hazel eyes - I have seen photos of her when she was a baby, a toddler, a young girl, and a teenager at the old Playboy official website - so why did she recently go brunette? Miss October 2002 Teri Harrison (Just as is the case with many full Caucasians, when she was young, Teri's hair was literally snow white blonde, but darkened as she grew older. Nevertheless, she remained a blonde. As an adult, she lightened the color of hair to about the color it was when she was a young girl.) Teri Harrison's has an older sister who also looks white, although with naturally darker hair than Teri, judging from their family pictures that were on at the old Playboy official website I had linked to in my "Sushi and Bratwurst" - A Real Life Half-Japanese, Half-German Blonde post in the foreigner stereotypes in anime thread on the General Anime Forum back in 2008. And, if I recall correctly from seeing her family pictures at the old Playboy official website, believe it or not, Teri Harrison's older sister looks even more Caucasian than Teri does. Teri Harrison, especially in the last video, actually reminds me a lot of the three sisters (they also had a brother) who babysitted my siblings and me when we were young. They just also happened to have shared the same ethnic parentage as Teri, that is, a mother of Japanese descent and a father of German descent. One of metal's preeminent and most gifted musical figures today, Matt Heafy - born Matthew Kiichi Heafy on January 26, 1986 in Iwakuni, Japan to a Japanese mother, Yoshiko Heafy, and an Irish American father, Brian Heafy, and raised in Orlando, Florida - is the lead singer, the lead/rhythm/acoustic guitarist, and the main songwriter for the American thrash metal/metalcore band Trivium. Trivium - Dying In Your Arms Trivium - Anthem (We Are The Fire) Trivium - Down From The Sky Interview with Matt Heafy of Trivium Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival July 22, 2011 Going from one kind of musical virtuoso to another kind of musical virtuoso... Anne Akiko Meyers (born May 15, 1970 in San Diego, California) is an American concert violinist. Meyers has toured and collaborated with a number of symphony orchestras and Il Divo, Chris Botti and Wynton Marsalis. Meyers tours with a 1730 Stradivarius violin called the 'Royal Spanish'. She is also the owner of a 1697 Stradivarius called the "Molitor", which is purported to have been owned by Napoleon Bonaparte. She purchased the 'Molitor' from Tarisio Auctions on October 14, 2010 for US$3,600,000, the highest recorded auction price for any musical instrument in history until the Lady Blunt was sold on June 20, 2011. Meyers was featured on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann on October 26, 2010. Anne Akiko Meyers Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E Minor Anne Akiko Meyers Performs the National Anthem Messages From Friends (Anne Akiko Meyers) Anne Akiko Meyers on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson at age 11 And let us move on to a present-day classical music prodigy... Pianist Umi Garrett, dubbed American 'wunderkind' by Luxemburg TV. Featured on Ellen DeGeneres show. Winner at 9 years old of first prizes at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival and the J.S. Bach Competition against pianists up to 18 years of age.... Umi is a student of Mrs. Yoshie Akimoto. Umi also plays violin in school orchestra, and she has learned classical ballet since she was 2 1/2. She loves to paint, swim, read and run. She is interested in science, history, computers, and math. She is fluent in English and Japanese. Umi Garrett Plays For Ellen Umi Garrett with Boston Pops!! (age 9) 8 year old Umi Garrett plays Liszt "Gnomenreigen"!! John Jacobson interviews Umi Garrett Daniella Alonso (born September 22, 1978) is an American actress known for her guest appearances as Anna Taggaro on The CW television series One Tree Hill and her lead roles in The Hills Have Eyes 2 and Wrong Turn 2: Dead End. She was voted #41 in 2006's Maxim Hot 100. Alonso appeared in the ABC documentary-style dramedy television series My Generation, which premiered in Fall 2010. The show was canceled after only two episodes. Alonso plays Matthews in the 2011 zombie horror flick Re-Kill, slated to be released on September 9, 2012. It has been recently announced that Alonso has been cast as Dr. Suzanne Wilkins, a psychiatrist working for the CIA, in the third season of USA Network's television spy drama series Covert Affairs. Regarding her heritage the lovely Daniella Alonso says, "My mom's Puerto Rican and my dad's from Peru, but he's also Japanese." Cambio Connect with Daniella Alonso and Jordin Sparks Daniella Alonso is "the brain" in ABC's new drama, 'My Generation' It is interesting how some singers of Asian and partial Asian descent, such as Yukimi Nagano and AI, who have no black or African ancestry, can sound "black" when they sing and they can sing with a lot of "soul." Despite her all English/Anglo name, Brooke Taylor is an R&B/soul singer from Culver City, California who also happens to be a fourth generation American of Japanese descent (Yonsei). Brooke Taylor "Dear Archer" (Official Music Video) Brooke Taylor - Dose Of U Brooke Taylor- Live on virtuous energy Brooke Taylor - Save It 4 U Brooke Taylor Interview We now leave the US and head up north of the border to Canada to meet Justin Bieber... err... no, that's another Canadian... Justin Nozuka and a few of his brothers... Justin Tokimitsu Nozuka (born September 29, 1988) is a American-Canadian singer-songwriter. His debut album Holly has been released in Europe, Canada, Japan and the United States. He has licensed the album to indie label Coalition Entertainment Records, distributed by Warner Music in Canada, Outcaste Records in the UK/EU distributed by EMI and Glassnote Records in the US distributed by RED.... Nozuka was born to a Japanese father and an American mother of English ancestry. His mother's half-sister is actress Kyra Sedgwick and his first cousin twice removed is Edie Sedgwick. Justin's mother raised him and his six siblings as a single mother. Nozuka is the brother of R&B singer George, actor Philip, and singer/songwriter Henry. Other family members include Christian and two sisters, Margaret and Sandra (Sandy). Justin Nozuka "After Tonight" Mr Therapy Man/ Sun Is Shining - Justin Nozuka Band - Live In Philly Justin Nozuka ft. Zaho - Heartless (la promesse) Justin Nozuka, Philip Nozuka, and Christian Bridges Dancing =] Justin Nozuka, Philip Nozuka, and George Nozuka Acting, well kinda =] <from the Degrassi TV teen drama series in Canada> george nozuka - talk to me - music video George Nozuka - Don't Go George Nozuka- Last Time Returning to America... Far East Movement Profile Members Kev Nish (Kevin Nishimura) – Chinese/Japanese-American DJ Virman (Virman Coquia) – Filipino-American J-Splif (Jae Choung) – Korean-American Prohgress (James Roh) – Korean-American Albums Audio Bio (2005) Folk Music (2006) Flavored Animal Droppings (2007) Animal (2008) Free Wired (2010) Biography The Far*East Movement (also known as FM) is a rapping and songwriting group with ample experience in producing tracks and creating music events, which formed by 2003 in Los Angeles, California, consisting of Kev Nish, Prohgress, J-Splif, and DJ Virman. The four of them represent different generations of Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, and Korean backgrounds within the Asian-American community. They put together the first multicultural live music event in Koreatown, Los Angeles to benefit a drug rehabilitation center in the community called "Movementality”. FM’s first claim to fame was their song “Round Round” featured in the Hollywood blockbuster, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, and its subsequent soundtrack, video game and DVD. Since Round Round, they’ve been featured on various other network shows including CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, HBO’s hit show Entourage, and Finishing the Game (a featured film at Sundance 2007). They were invited to perform on Power 106′s Powerhouse 2009, one of biggest Hip-Hop concerts on the west coast, performing with the line-up including Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Sean Paul, New Boyz, Pitbull, Lil Jon, LMFAO, Ya Boy, Flo Rida, and the Black Eyed Peas. Their new single “Like A G6″ achieved 6th place on the Billboard Top 100 charts [it went on to hit #1 there (see below)] and hit #1 on iTunes as well. The original members of Far East Movement, Kevin Nishimura, James Roh and Jae Choung, grew up in the Koreatown of Los Angeles, California. They were close companions in high school and shared a passion for music together. The trio promoted their music online and began performing at local clubs and events in Los Angeles; soon, they began their musical career with the name “Emcee’s Anonymous” by 2001. However, they later changed it to Far East Movement or FM, originating from a song that they produced and titled as “The Far East Movement”. In 2003, they organized together an event called “Movementality” in Koreatown, LA, featuring ten different performances with all the proceeds sent to a local youth drug rehabilitation center. Their first album called Folk Music was released in early 2006. The single “Round Round” was featured in the film, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, appearing both on the soundtrack and video game. This critical breakout was the catalyst that cemented their decision to pursue music as a full-time career. They proceeded to perform on two world tours (including USA, South America, Canada, and Asia), and they signed distribution deals in Japan and Korea with Avex Network and JF Productions for their album. Their songs continued to be shown in the media and TV networks including VH1, MTV and E!. In 2007, they were featured in the Sundance Film Festival film called Finishing the Game, making the song “Satisfaction” for the film. They also released the single “You’ve Got A Friend” featuring Lil Rob and Baby Bash, which became their first song on major national radio. Far East Movement (stylized Far⋆East Movement or abbreviated FM) is an American electro hop quartet based in Los Angeles. The group formed in 2003 and consists of Kev Nish (Kevin Nishimura), Prohgress (James Roh), J-Splif (Jae Choung), and DJ Virman (Virman Coquia). Far East Movement's first claim to fame was their song "Round Round" featured in the Hollywood movie, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, and its subsequent soundtrack, video game and DVD. Since "Round Round", the group has been featured on various network shows including CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Entourage, Gossip Girl, and Finishing the Game (a featured film at Sundance 2007). They were invited to perform on Power 106's Powerhouse 2009, the Disney show So Random, and one of the biggest hip-hop concerts on the U.S. West Coast, performing with the line-up including Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Sean Paul, Pitbull, Lil Jon, LMFAO, Ya Boy, Flo Rida, and The Black Eyed Peas. Their single "Like a G6" hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart and on iTunes as well in late October 2010. Far East Movement also has the distinction of being the first Asian-American group to earn a top ten hit on the Mainstream Pop charts in the United States. Far East Movement - Like A G6 ft. The Cataracs, DEV Far East Movement - Rocketeer ft. Ryan Tedder Far East Movement - If I Was You (OMG) ft Snoop Dogg Far East Movement - Girls On the Dance Floor ft. Stereotypes Far East Movement - So What? Far East Movement - Jello ft. Rye Rye Far East Movement - Live My Life ft. Justin Bieber After intermarriage with whites, Far East Movement main rapper, songwriter, and producer Kev Nish AKA Kevin Nishimura is a product of the second most common type of intermarriage involving Japanese Americans: intermarriages with other Asian Americans. His father is Japanese American and his mother is Chinese American.
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2012-03-09, 23:14
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Link #2290 |
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Half Australia, Half Tokyo, Bits and pieces in US
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I happen to have met Crystal Kay and BENI. Both really nice girls...
Now, speaking of english singing Japanese singers, how about non-english speaking japanese singing in pretty good english??? Kaho Shimada Dreams Come True |
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2012-03-14, 17:55
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NePoi!
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Ontario, Canada
Age: 43
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I just saw an interesting article (and video) on Nagasaki by Mariko Oi over on the BBC News website.
(I probably shouldn't have been so surprised, but I hadn't registered how Nagasaki is closer to Shanghai than it is to Tokyo...)
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2012-03-21, 15:06
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Link #2293 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Age: 38
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Any suggestions on some nice (gaijin friendly) onsen that I should hit up when in Japan? I'm not sure of what ones may be in Tokyo, but I'd prefer ones that could easily be reached via shinkansen.
As it is, I already plan on going out of my way to visit the Tottori Sanin Bokoro, since I intend to visit Conan Town while I'm there, so I'd prefer not having to go out of my way for others. I seem to recall somewhere near Mt. Fuji being a sort of onsen town, but can't recall. Amani, I think it was? Is that shinkansen accessible and nice/reasonable? |
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2012-03-21, 17:20
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I think Yama-b is one of the best when it come to this. He can't speak english but he sounds fluent when he sings. Not to mention that if you were blind folded and someone asked you does this singer sound Japanese there is no way you would say yes.
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2012-03-21, 20:47
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Join Date: Jan 2006
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Put a Bird On It: More Lovely Part Japanese Ladies in Entertainment Plus Fred Armisen
Since I first wrote these last three posts in this thread - Japanese Singers Fluent in English, The Japanese Diaspora, Part 1, The Japanese Diaspora, Part 2 - I have considerably edited and added more info to each post.
Two individuals I initially forgot to include were singer/songwriter Olivia Lufkin in the Japanese Singers Fluent in English post and comedian/actor/musician Fred Armisen in the The Japanese Diaspora, Part 2 post. I have also added to The Japanese Diaspora, Part 2 (former) TV news anchor Dina Eastwood, actor/director Clint Eastwood's wife and star of the upcoming TV reality show Mrs. Eastwood & Company, fashion model Kimora Lee Simmons, and actress Chrishell Stause. Their segments are at the bottoms of the respective posts. Although neither of her biological parents have a "Latino ancestral heritage," the father of Dina Eastwood (born Dina Ruiz), Michael Ruiz, was born to an African American father and a Japanese American mother (in Hawai'i, I think). Michael was adopted, I have read, by a Latino couple (in Hawai'i, I think) named Ruiz - a stepfather who was of Portuguese descent and and a stepmother who was of Puerto Rican descent. (Yep, that kind of family tree sounds like what one could get in the Aloha State.) Dina Eastwood's mother is of Irish, English, and German descent. Fred Armisen and Chrishell Stause both have part Latino lineages, Venezuelan for Armisen, Spanish for Stause. Armisen can play a member of virtually any ethnic or racial group. Stause plays nothing but Caucasians.
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Last edited by Siegel Clyne; 2012-03-21 at 21:03. |
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2012-03-21, 22:25
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Link #2296 |
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Join Date: Aug 2007
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I am not exactly sure if this is the most appropriate thread (but I can't think of one more appropriate) and thought this was kind of neat.
This is a rare recording of Shirley Temple at age 9 singing two Japanese children's songs. This was recorded in Japan in 1937 when she was there to promote one of her movies. Spoiler for embedded video under cut:
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2012-03-22, 02:24
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Somewhere, between the sacred silence and sleep
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...... just use six days instead.  Use the single day free and go to Atami! The hotspot of hotsprings. Sure, there are other places many people would suggest, but since Atami is the most prominent, they also have largest tourism for onsen, which I would think would help English speakers a bit better. Atami is in Shizuoka pref., pretty close to Tokyo.
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2012-03-22, 07:22
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Land of the rising sun
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2012-03-22, 08:00
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2012-03-22, 10:55
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( ಠ_ಠ)
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Somewhere, between the sacred silence and sleep
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Kaisoku Acty rapid train on the Tokaido Main Line (東海道本線) will get you there, no need for a shinkansen.
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