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August 12, 2026
 

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MUSIC FESTIVALS

Summer Sonic stalwarts Babymetal curated an eclectic lineup to celebrate the summer music festival's 25th anniversary.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 10, 2026
Too much music, not enough weekend: A guide to Summer Sonic 2026
From metal to 1990s dance nostalgia, this year¡¯s event packs an absurd amount of music into one long weekend.
Japan's famous Fuji Rock festival this year included flag-waving for regimes whose actions contradict the ideals of peaceful assembly and human rights that reflect unexamined political sympathies that risk legitimizing oppressive regimes.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 7, 2026
Flag-waving at Fuji Rock: Conviction or fashion?
Music has long served as an expression of a fundamental human freedom ¡ª the right to speak, to challenge authority and to be heard without fear of the state.
Music fans gathered at Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata Prefecture for the 2026 Fuji Rock Festival, held from July 24 to 26.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 29, 2026
This year, Fuji Rock rediscovered its nerve
From cult favorites to future stars, Fuji Rock rewarded listeners willing to wander beyond the biggest names.
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 23, 2026
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Fuji Rock Festival has long been known for its international headliners, but Kaze Fujii is poised to make a big splash on the Green Stage.
Veteran improvisers Kazuo Imai and Atsuhiro Ito brought some unruly energy to NU Festival, a three-day multimedia event held at the Takanawa Gateway City complex. ?
CULTURE / Music
Jul 4, 2026
NU Festival tests Takanawa Gateway City complex¡¯s culture cred
JR East has been positioning the sprawling new Takanawa Gateway City as a cultural hub since before it even opened. The music, art and tech NU Festival put that claim to the test.
The quintet from Nagoya ¡ª comprising (from left) Sangen Ron, Junsei Iwai, Musashi, Hayato Komiya and Kion Umemura ¡ª released their debut album ¡°Tomogachi Ga Imashita¡± on June 17.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 27, 2026
Trooper Salute marches to its own beat on dazzling debut album
The quintet¡¯s debut album ¡°Tomogachi Ga Imashita,¡± released on June 17, features an impressive array of styles drawn from the band members¡¯ wide-ranging influences.
The members of TV Tairiku Ondo ¡ª (from left) Harea Togari, Ryuji Chiyotani, Kotaro Suzuki and Hiroto Yanagawa ¡ª met as high school students in Sapporo and went viral in 2024 with an energetic 90-second track.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 12, 2026
TV Tairiku Ondo channels the chaotic creativity of youth
After going viral with a 90-second track in 2024, the rock quartet from Hokkaido has been hitting stages big and small and working hard on a debut album.
Seven-member group Hana kicked off California music festival Zipangu with a high-energy performance showcasing the act¡¯s wide-ranging sound.
CULTURE / Music
May 28, 2026
Girl group Hana channels positivity into every performance
Before joining Hana, the group¡¯s members were told ¡°no¡± by the entertainment industry. Now they¡¯re part of one of Â鶹´«Ã½ most talked-about new acts.
At music festival Zipangu¡¯s inaugural edition, headliner Ado performed original songs as well as classic J-pop hits such as Miki Matsubara¡¯s 1979 track ¡°Mayonaka no Door: Stay With Me.¡±
CULTURE / Music
May 28, 2026
Music festival Zipangu offers a glimpse of J-pop¡¯s future beyond anime
Ado, Chanmina, Atarashii Gakko!, Yuki Chiba and more turned a Pasadena golf course into a showcase for the breadth of Japanese music and its growing appeal abroad.
The Sphere in Las Vegas lights up after an earnings report in 2024. SBI Holdings is exploring a similar idea for a venue in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Apr 9, 2026
Tokyo¡¯s concert scene searches for its next act
Tokyo¡¯s live music future is coming into focus ¡ª and it looks more domestic, and possibly more immersive.
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
A new Stateside event tests whether viral success can become a lasting international presence.
Kaze Fujii, 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
Kaze Fujii, Massive Attack among Fuji Rock Festival 2026 performers announced
Among the 66 acts unveiled, are also Khruangbin, The xx, Asian Kung-Fu Generation and more.
American rockers The Strokes will perform at the 25th edition of Summer Sonic, one of Â鶹´«Ã½ biggest summer music festivals.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 2, 2026
Summer Sonic marks 25 years with expanded 2026 festival
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.
Nodoka Okisawa conducts the Saito Kinen Orchestra to perform Benjamin Britten's opera "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Matsumoto Performing Arts Center in August for the 33rd edition of the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 28, 2025
Nodoka Okisawa is carrying the baton for Seiji Ozawa in Matsumoto
Japanese conductor Nodoka Okisawa embraces both tradition and renewal at a festival that still embodies Ozawa¡¯s spirit.
Polish pianist Hania Rani took the audience on a synth odyssey at the first Japan edition of Unsound Osaka over the weekend.
CULTURE / Music
Sep 11, 2025
Unsound turns Osaka into a laboratory of avant-garde music
Long-running Polish music festival Unsound channels Expo ¡¯70 at its first Japan edition.
Musical act Petalhead, comprised of Jaime Alise (left) and Riku Ogura, performs at More Than Music¡¯s beachside event in Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Aug 25, 2025
More Than Music makes space for creative communion
Since 2018, Tokyo-based duo Justin Sachs and Atsuko Sunaga have been organizing live shows and curating a community with shared passions.
Summer Sonic¡¯s 2025 lineup demonstrated its strength, showcasing the latest in J-pop, including ¡°new kawaii¡± act Fruits Zipper.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 22, 2025
Alicia Keys closed Summer Sonic, but J-pop owned it
Summer Sonic 2025 showcased Â鶹´«Ã½ pop power: Mrs. Green Apple, Hikaru Utada and rising stars outshone the festival¡¯s headliners.
Metal-meets-idol trio Babymetal is sure to bring spectacle to this weekend's Summer Sonic.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 13, 2025
The early bird gets the bangers at this year¡¯s Summer Sonic
This year¡¯s festival makes its biggest moves before noon, with Â鶹´«Ã½ top acts and K-pop stars commanding early slots.
Kid carts and strollers were a common sight at the Fuji Rock Festival this year.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 4, 2025
The families that rock together at Fuji
Taking children to Fuji Rock is a rite of passage that should be supported.
This year, Fuji Rock Festival's ticket sales were the strongest they have been since the COVID-19 pandemic, with overseas ticket buyers accounting for roughly 10% of all sales.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 4, 2025
From far and wide, overseas visitors flock to Fuji Rock
From Singapore to Greece to Michigan, fans came to Japan not just for the music, but for the nature, the relaxed atmosphere and the freedom to dance into the early hours.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Strong wind and heavy rain forecast as tropical storm approaches Japan
Tropical Storm Chan-hom is expected to make landfall in northern Kanto between late Tuesday and early Wednesday.
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is one of the few cemeteries in Japan that allows burials, albeit with conditions for the deceased, including foreign nationality and permanent residency in Kanagawa Prefecture.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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