Anthony Al-Jamie
Anthony Al-Jamie lived and worked in Japan for over 20 years. His in-depth understanding of Japanese language and culture has allowed him to carry out interviews with many of the most renowned individuals in Japan. He first began writing for the Tokyo Journal in the 1990s as Education Editor, later he was promoted to Senior Editor, and eventually International Editor and Executive Editor. He currently serves the Tokyo Journal as Editor-in-Chief.
Apocalyptica
Classical Cello Metal Maestros
Formed in 1993 in Helsinki, Finland, Apocalyptica has come a long way over the past two decades. First gaining recognition as a Metallica cover band after their 1996 debut album Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, they have gone on to release eight albums and sell over five million copies. Consisting of three cellists (Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen and Perttu Kivilaakso) and one drummer (Mikko Sirén), the band has progressed from playing instrumental music to featuring guest vocalists — such as Ozzy Osbourne, Marilyn Manson, Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Corey Taylor of Slipknot and Gavin Rossdale of Bush — to recruiting Franky Perez as their full time lead vocalist. Tokyo Journal’s Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with cellist, songwriter, producer, arranger and Apocalyptica cofounder Eicca.
VAMPS
Japanese Rock Phenoms HYDE and K.A.Z
Not many Japanese bands tour internationally a year after their founding, let alone perform on the battleship USS Missouri, but VAMPS did just that. Formed in 2008 by L’Arc~en~Ciel vocalist HYDE and Oblivion Dust guitarist K.A.Z, each of the four records released by VAMPS between 2009 and 2014 has reached the top ten on Japan’s Oricon music chart. A stadium headliner in Japan, VAMPS supported Finnish metal band Apocalyptica and the L.A. hard-rock band Sixx:A.M. (featuring Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe fame) for 12 stops on their 2015 North American tour. Tokyo Journal’s Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with HYDE and K.A.Z in Los Angeles.
Miyavi: The Samurai Guitarist
Making Music and Movie Magic
MIYAVI is making waves on both sides of the ocean in the music and movie industries. Born in 1981as Takamasa Ishihara in Osaka, Japan to a Korean father and a Japanese mother, the singer, songwriter, guitarist, record producer and actor took on the stage name MIYAVI. Known for his unconventional style of slapping the guitar rather than playing it with a pick, his international fan base has nicknamed him the Samurai Guitarist. Tokyo Journal’s Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie talked to MIYAVI about his multifaceted career.
Living Legend - Dr. Shuji Nakamura
Nobel Physics Laureate Shuji Nakamura Sheds Light on How He Invented the Blue LED
Dr. Shuji Nakamura, along with two other Japanese researchers, Dr. Isamu Akasaki and Dr. Hiroshi Amano, received the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics in recognition of their major breakthrough in lighting technology with the invention of efficient blue light- emitting diodes (LED), which has enabled bright, energy-saving white light sources. Dr. Nakamura is a physicist and inventor specializing in semiconductor technology. He is a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara College of Engineering. Tokyo Journal’s Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with Dr. Nakamura about his career, the intellectual property legal battle he faced with his former company, Nichia Corp., and the impact of his invention on the world.
Akira Kurosawa’s Legacy
Akira Kurosawa’s Legacy Impacts a New Generation of Filmmakers
Hisao Kurosawa Shares his Father’s Legacy with Young Filmmakers Throughout the World
AKIRA Kurosawa, one of the most influential directors in the history of film, will once again shape a new generation of filmmakers through a medium that Kurosawa himself might only have imagined: an online MFA program in digital filmmaking. Like celebrated moviemakers before them, aspiring filmmakers will learn their craft by studying with experts in the field. In addition, they will view hours of never-seen-before footage of Kurosawa himself on the set, allowing students to go behind the scenes and learn visual articulation directly from the master.
Chiaki
Chiaki
Known simply by her first name, Chiaki has not only been a Japanese television icon for over two decades, but she is also known as the lead vocalist of Pocket Biscuits; a voice actress in the beloved Doraemon anime series; a children’s clothing designer and the author of children’s, cookery and parenting books. Her most recent endeavor is the children’s app Mirno’s Adventures - The Precious Strawberry Ring. Tokyo Journal’s Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with Chiaki about her career and newest project.
Manga & Anime
Cosplay Conventions in Tokyo, London, and Melbourne
Summer Comiket 2014
August 15-17, 2014 in Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo Street Editorial
Inside this Issue
This issue features interviews with a number of the world’s most extraordinary people including one of the greatest minds in the world today, the esteemed MIT Professor Noam Chomsky; Nelson Mandela-appointed South African constitutional court judge and freedom fighter Albie Sachs; CNN chief medical correspondent & practicing neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta; Kyocera founder and one of Japan’s most respected business leaders Dr. Kazuo Inamori; Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on his recent trade delegation to Asia; and one of Japan’s greatest rock groups of all time X Japan and their bandleader Yoshiki (pictured here) on their historic concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Dr. Sanjay Gupta: A Real Life Superhero
From Mild-Mannered Reporter to Lifesaving Neurosurgeon
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who can be seen on the ground reporting from sites of natural disasters and wars around the world, discretely changes from suit to scrubs on Monday mornings to perform neurosurgery on patients’ brains, spinal cords and other parts of the nervous system. Dr. Gupta is CNN’s multiple Emmy award-winning chief medical correspondent. In addition to hosting CNN’s Vital Signs, he has reported on topics ranging from health care reform to brain injury, medicine, HIV/AIDS, fitness and dis- aster recovery. Dr. Gupta advised First Lady Hillary Clinton as a White House Fellow and authored three New York Times best-selling books. He is currently the associate chief of neurosurgery at Atlanta, Georgia’s Grady Memorial Hospital and a member of the staff and faculty at the Emory University School of Medicine. He is so committed to the profession of neurosurgery that to continue his work as a practicing neurosurgeon he withdrew his name from consideration for the position of Surgeon General of the United States. If all of this isn’t enough to qualify him for superhero status, then add being named as one of the sexiest men alive by People magazine and one of the most influential celebrities by Forbes. Tokyo Journal Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with Dr. Sanjay Gupta on December 3, 2014 for an update on the Ebola outbreak and insight into medicine, health and the multifaceted doctor’s extraordinary career.
Judge Albie Sachs
Judge Albie Sachs
South African Freedom Fighter Exacts Soft Vengeance
Albie Sachs is one of South Africa’s most noted political activists and judges. Appointed by Nelson Mandela to the Constitutional Court of South Africa, Albie was among the group of 11 judges who certified the country’s groundbreaking Constitution after the first democratic elections in 1994. Sachs, who holds a law degree from the University of Cape Town and a Ph.D. from Sussex University, began his legal career defending victims of apartheid’s repressive laws. His work with the freedom-fighting movement, resulted in him being put in solitary confinement for nearly six months without trial and later went into a 24-year exile in England and then Mozambique, where in April 1988 he lost his right arm and sight in one eye due to a car bomb. Sachs, who retired in 2009, has received multiple awards, including the Tang Prize for the Rule of Law. He continues to write, teach and speak internationally about the South African experience in healing divided societies. Tokyo Journal Executive Editor Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with the eloquent freedom fighter Albie Sachs about his groundbreaking achievements and his views of the world today.