Shin Koyamada is an actor, producer, martial artist, philanthropist and entrepreneur. Shortly after moving to Los Angeles from Japan, Koyamada became known for his roles in the Hollywood blockbuster The Last Samurai alongside Tom Cruise and Ken Watanabe and Disney Channel’s Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. The latter scored the high- est rating in the history of Disney Channel in Europe and Japan. Since then, Koyamada has gained recognition for his long-running advocacy of global philanthropic causes, supporting many international non- governmental organizations around the world, including his own Koyamada International Foundation. Koyamada holds black belts in Japanese and Korean martial arts. He has also won U.S. national cham- pionships in Chinese martial arts. In 2016, Koyamada was appointed the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics Karate Ambassador. Tokyo Journal Editor-in-Chief Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with Shin Koyamada about how learning the way of life through karate influenced his journey in America, his career in Hollywood and his ongoing philanthropic pro- jects, such as Guardian Girls.
Roy English, a U.S.-based songwriter, producer, and musician known by his moniker Jagwar Twin, started writing and developing music at a very young age. After multiple musical endeavors and years of releasing music, Jagwar Twin’s popularity reached unprecedented heights after two of his songs, “Happy Face” and “Loser,” were uploaded on YouTube with Japanese translations. Jagwar Twin became an overnight sensation in Japan. As of August 2022, “Happy Face” had crossed 43 million streams on Spotify, with Japan being in the top five global markets on all streaming platforms. Tokyo Journal Editor-in-Chief Anthony Al-Jamie spoke with Jagwar Twin about his experiences as an up-and-coming musician, as well as his connection to Japan.
Buy an In-Print Issue |
|
INSIDE JAPAN: Single in-print issue: ¥1,000 > Click here OUTSIDE JAPAN: Single in-print issue: $15 > Click here |
|
Buy a Digital Issue and Download it now | |
Single digital issue: $15 Click a magazine cover in the bookcase below |
Quarterly Printed Magazine Subscription For residents of Japan only, click here |
Supermodel Jessica Minh Anh visited Tokyo, Kyoto and Fukushima to explore potential catwalk venues. The Vietnamese model has made history by producing fashion shows atop famous architectural wonders, including the Eiffel Tower, One World Trade Center, London’s Tower Bridge, PETRONAS Twin Towers’ Skybridge and the Grand Canyon Skywalk.
Tokyo Yosakoi (dance festival) is the second half of the Fukuro Festival, which has been an annual tradition in west Ikebukuro since 1968. The festival begins with a mikoshi (portable shrine) procession in September, and then Tokyo Yosakoi in October. Yosakoi is a dynamic Japanese dance competition uniting more than 100 teams from throughout Japan, who come together to show off their best moves using wooden clappers called naruko. Performers often combine the standard yosakoi melody with folk songs or modern rock music. The colorfully costumed dancers put on one high-powered performance after another, complete with fervent shouting.