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Speak, Okinawa
The English Football League Championship has just been won by the club I support. This means next season Norwich City will play in the Premier League… Speak, Okinawa
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What at lazz (@Whatatlazz)
Rock band What at lazz recently performed a special live at Legend Sports Heroes Okinawa and Nema Ui loved it! The 4-member band (ワトラズ) formed in April 2018 in Okinawa and features female-vocalist Kyon, Yoshinii on guitar, Masshii on bass, and Takkun on drums. Okinawa has a rich history of rock bands and fairly recent…
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Miyako Folk Singer Kuniyoshi Genji RIP
It was announced on May 5th Okinawa time that the great Miyako folk singer Kuniyoshi Genji has passed away at the age of 90 on May 4th. Born on June 10, 1930 on Miyako Island, during his childhood he was known for his love of music. At 35 he decided to make his living as…
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Okinawa VTuber Nema Ui
If you’re into cute culture you’ll definitely want to check out the Okinawa VTuber Nema Ui. If you’re not familiar with what a VTuber (Virtual YouTuber) is, here’s an English example from Wikipedia: … an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. A growing trend that originated in Japan in the mid-2010s, a majority…
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@kanasaorganics on Twitter
One of my new Twitter follows, KANASA Co-Operative, is one that shares words and stories from Ryūkyū in English. They also have a website with longer form articles about Ryukyuan culture that’s a great resource to deepen your knowledge. One of my favorite articles is about the hidari-gomon that I see everyday when I pick…
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Ryukyu Blue Oceans Baseball Team
Did you know that Okinawa has several professional sports teams? Today we’re highlighting Okinawa’s professional baseball team, Ryukyu Blue Oceans. Formed in 2019 and active from 2020, the team features several players from Okinawa and is headquartered in Ginowan City. They have three home fields: Ginowan, Urasoe, and Miyako-jima. Pro baseball makes a lot of…
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New Music Releases
New singles and albums released in April 2021 2021.04.16 [Single] Agena Mana – Hohoemi wo Tayasazuni (Links) 2021.04.18 [Single] Asato Mina – Shima nu Kokoro (Links) 2021.04.21 [EP] Miura Daichi – Backwards (Links) 2021.04.21 [Album] MONGOL800 – etc.works3 (Indies) 2021.04.28 [Single] JO1 – CHALLENGER (Links) 2021.04.28 [Mini Album] Kiiyama Shouten – Akasatana (Indies)
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“Hanamizuki Okinawa Hougen Ver.” is the MV of the Year
If you watch one music video on YouTube, this must be it. The MV is an acoustic cover of the very popular J-pop song Hanamizuki by Hitoto Yō (she’s Japanese and Taiwanese) and matches well with Uchinaa-guchi and Ryūkyū instruments, dance and vocals. (Another version to listen to is from Amami Ōshima’s Minami Kizuki.) The…
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Eisaa Don-Don (Drama)
To commemorate the 65th anniversary of the All-Island Eisaa Festival (canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic), a drama special was shown on OTV on February 13th of this year. It looks like a must-watch drama and I love the part in the above trailer when it shows one of the drama’s themes: “We will…
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BTS’s Dynamite in Uchinaa-guchi
What better example of Ryukyuan pop culture than this cover of K-pop group BTS‘s super-catchy Dynamite sung in Uchinaa-guchi? The brilliant cover is by Toume Yoshiaki (Usumasa Okinawa) who is an uta-sanshin player, Okinawa shibai actor, and a Ryukyuan Dance performer. Be sure to subscribe to his YouTube channel and follow him on Twitter. I’m…
Karakui 