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Rinken Teruya’s latest solo album “Pause 2” now on iTunes (and more)
Rinken Teruya (leader of the O-pop band Rinken Band) has been one of the most tech-savvy of his peers—as evidenced by the rinken.gr.jp website which has been around for several years as well as his willingness to release his music digitally. Although he’s had numerous projects in the past (like Tink Tink, Mihanagumi, Tomoko Uehara’s…
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Update: Ukulele Picnic 2009 in Hawaii
I posted an entry a couple of weeks ago about the upcoming Ukulele Picnic 2009 in Hawaii concert and it looks like we have a time slot for Keith Nakaganeku and BEGIN’s Masaru Shimabukuro. The special collaboration between these two amazing musicians is set to take the stage from 3:10 PM for a 15-minute set.…
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Website: Simple Sanshin Source
Simple Sanshin Source is “an English-based guide to the Okinawan sanshin” that features kunkunshi (sheet music), lyrics, and tips by Kenji, a self-taught sanshin enthusiast. Given that I haven’t been very good at updating Three Strings, Simple Sanshin Source looks to be the online place to learn about the sanshin. There’s also a YouTube channel…
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Minami Kizuki’s amazing debut single “Aitsumugi”
We’re always on the lookout for new artists to listen to and we’re happy to announce the debut of 19 year-old Minami Kizuki (城南海—interesting how it’s read, no?) who released her first single, “Aitsumugi,” on January 7, 2009. Upon listening to the single, one will definitely think of Chitose Hajime (oh, forgot to mention that…
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Rimi Natsukawa becomes an actress – Tokyograph
Newlywed singer Rimi Natsukawa is ready to make her acting debut. She has been cast in ‘Minami no Shima no Furimun,’ a movie starring and directed by comedian Gori of Garage Sale. The movie is Gori’s first full-length directorial effort. The story is a comedy set in Okinawa, where both he and Natsukawa are originally…
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Namie Amuro continues collaboration with Vidal Sassoon
Following her breakout hit singles (the album “BEST FICTION” sold 1,700,000 copies) in collaboration with Vidal Sassoon in 2008, Namie Amuro will be continuing onto 2009 with a new song “Dr.” as well as a new CM that debuted today. View the beautiful CM on the Vidal Sassoon site. The single will be released in…
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Gakky’s next single includes Monpachi cover – Tokyograph
Some details are now available about Yui Aragaki’s third single, ‘piece,’ which goes on sale February 25. The title track is written by singer-songwriter Minako Kawae and arranged by Motoki Matsuoka. Matsuoka also handled her previous song ‘heavenly days,’ which became a hit after it was used in the movie ‘Koizora.’ The B-sides on the…
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Yu Yamada’s “My All” (PV on YouTube)
Talented model/actress/singer Yu Yamada’s latest single—her first since last April’s “leave all behind”—is set to be released on the 21st of this month. The ballad, titled “My All,” is featured on the movie “Kanna-san Daiseikou desu!” that she’s starring in. Watch the movie’s trailer here. Ordering the single via this link helps us out at…
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Mark this date: 2/14/09 Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii
One of my favorite artists of both Okinawan and Hawaiian music is Keith Nakaganeku (with his band Calabash) and I got a tip that he’ll be performing along with his friend Masaru Shimabukuro (BEGIN‘s guitarist) at this year’s Ukulele Picnic 2009 in Hawaii on Saturday, February 14, 2009. He’ll be singing “Nada Sou Sou” and…
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Ayano Uema’s recording of her 2nd album
While I couldn’t find a release date for utasaa Ayano Uema’s forthcoming (and untitled) sophomore album, we can rest assured that she’s busy recording for it and is posting her progress of it on her blog here, here, and here. If you haven’t already purchased it, Ayano’s (and two other awesome female utasaa, Mika Uchizato…
Karakui 