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April 01, 2026
 

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CULTURE

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Author Haruki Murakami (right) joins Roland Kelts on stage for the Murakami Mixtape event. Murakami is the contemporary Japanese novelist most emblematic of the country’s love of jazz.
CULTURE / Music / CULTURE SMASH
How the Japanese made jazz their own
Through Haruki Murakami and a Tokyo-to-New York performance, hints of how Japan reinterpreted jazz.
CULTURE / Music
Bad Bunny plays first-ever Japan show at exclusive Spotify event
The Puerto Rican superstar’s Japan debut drew roughly 2,300 top listeners and celebrity guests for an invite-only show near Tokyo.
CULTURE / Music
For Evan Call, every melody is a conversation
The "Frieren" composer builds anime's fantasy worlds with folk-infused scores.
Takuya Chigira, the CEO of Japanese talent agency Cloud Nine, is launching Zipangu, a Stateside festival devoted to Japanese culture. Chigira and Cloud Nine are working closely with American promoter Goldenvoice, best known for Coachella.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 26, 2026
What is Zipangu? Inside J-pop’s first-of-its-kind Los Angeles festival
By Patrick St. Michel
A new Stateside event tests whether viral success can become a lasting international presence.
Fujii Kaze, seen here performing in Kuala Lumpur in 2024 during his Asia Tour, is one of the domestic acts set to perform at this year's Fuji Rock Festival.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 20, 2026
Fujii Kaze, Massive Attack among Fuji Rock Festival 2026 performers announced
By Patrick St. Michel
Among the 66 acts unveiled, are also Khruangbin, The xx, Asian Kung-Fu Generation and more.
Composer Jung Jaeil began his career when he was a middle school student and has since become one of South Korea’s most sought-after film scorers.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 18, 2026
Jung Jaeil composed for ‘Squid Game.’ Now, he steps on the stage as himself.
By Kris Kosaka
The South Korean composer returns to live music and is set to stop by Tokyo for a show with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.
College students Jun Kim (left) and Rihito Mizoguchi are the co-founders of Login.jp, a project launched in February 2025 to “archive the Japanese experience through music.”
CULTURE / Music
Feb 13, 2026
Login.jp spotlights everyday Japan, one DJ set at a time
By Patrick St. Michel
The student-led project brings club sounds into fish markets, barbershops and corner stores, reframing everyday Japan through music.
Rob Brown (left) and Sean Booth performed a recent Tokyo gig in almost complete darkness.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 9, 2026
No lights, total immersion: Autechre’s 'pitch-black' Tokyo show
By Erik Augustin Palm
At Zepp DiverCity, Autechre stripped a Tokyo concert of sight, saturating the room with sound — and controversy.
Aina The End’s rock single “Kakumei Dochu — On the Way” was the singer’s surprise breakthrough last year, surpassing 100 million streams on Spotify and spreading rapidly across TikTok.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 6, 2026
Aina The End is more than just anime's opening act
By Patrick St. Michel
The singer reflects on breakthrough hit "Kakumei Dochu — On the Way” and embracing her husky vocals.
American rockers The Strokes will perform at the 25th edition of Summer Sonic, one of Japan’s biggest summer music festivals.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 2, 2026
Summer Sonic marks 25 years with expanded 2026 festival
By Patrick St. Michel
To mark its quarter-century milestone, the music festival is stretching to three days and featuring major acts such as The Strokes, Jennie, Jamiroquai and L’Arc-en-Ciel.

Former mayor of Ito indicted after allegedly falsifying academic record
Maki Takubo, former mayor of Ito in Shizuoka Prefecture, was indicted without arrest on Monday by public prosecutors on suspicion of violations including contravening the local autonomy law through alleged academic fraud.
ADHD medication in short supply in Japan as demand soars
Concerta, an ADHD drug marketed by Janssen Pharmaceutical, is in short supply in Japan as demand has climbed recently.
JMA warns of potential tremors throughout the week after magnitude 5.0 quake
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck Tochigi and Ibaraki prefectures on Wednesday morning.
Japan’s 'counterstrike capability' takes shape with missile deployments
Kumamoto Gov. Takashi Kimura (left) and city of Kumamoto Mayor Kazufumi Onishi (second from left) speak to reporters after viewing upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile systems (seen in the background), which have a range of about 1,000 kilometers, at the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Camp Kengun in the city of Kumamoto on March 17.
Yemen's Houthis enter Iran war with attacks on Israel, as U.S. Marines arrive in region
Young Houthi supporters hold weapons during a rally in solidarity with Tehran and Beirut, amid the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa on Friday.
Japan’s 'counterstrike capability' takes shape with missile deployments
Kumamoto Gov. Takashi Kimura (left) and city of Kumamoto Mayor Kazufumi Onishi (second from left) speak to reporters after viewing upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile systems (seen in the background), which have a range of about 1,000 kilometers, at the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Camp Kengun in the city of Kumamoto on March 17.
ADHD medication in short supply in Japan as demand soars
Concerta, an ADHD drug marketed by Janssen Pharmaceutical, is in short supply in Japan as demand has climbed recently.
What happens when Japan curates its aesthetic for the world?
The Sui Collection, a Cabinet Office-backed showcase of traditional Japanese artisanship, is visually stunning, but what is lost in translation when the state is a partner in cultural communication?
With the end of 3G, Japan's beloved flip phones go dark
Japan was the first country in the world to adopt 3G, but this month, it cuts off access to the obsolete wireless network for good.
Japan to tighten requirements for naturalization starting April 1
Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday.

Podcast

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

Longform

Amy Yee poses for a photo in Lalibela, Ethiopia. An award-winning journalist and former foreign correspondent for the Financial Times, Yee shifted her focus to the issue of Tibetans in exile for her book, “Far From the Rooftop of the World: Travels Among Tibetan Refugees on Four Continents.”
The voices of Tibet, far from home
By Michael Judge

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