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What to look forward to for this year’s 61st Kouhaku Uta-Gassen
Ah, I remember years past when we could expect to see several artists from or with ties to Okinawa on NHK’s annual music show, “Kouhaku Uta-Gassen” (Red & White Song Battle). For last year’s (60th) show, a lone artist Yusuke Kamiji (performs under his first name, Yusuke) with ties to Okinawa performed and we were…
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Wallpaper: Yui Aragaki for Tokyo Metro (New Year 2011)
The latest wallpaper for Tokyo Heart featuring Yui Aragaki is to celebrate the new year 2011. (And here we thought with the end of 2010 we were seeing the last of Gakky’s wallpapers for Tokyo Metro’s Tokyo Heart campaign. Oh, it’s good to be wrong.) Download the wallpaper here. (Via 壁紙fan!)
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Wallpaper: Aya Ueto for Kose Cosmeport (Calendar)
Well, Xmas was yesterday, so we’re less than a week away till the new year so what better way than to celebrate with a 3-month calendar featuring our favorite wallpaper idol, Aya Ueto? Download your wallpaper here. (Via 壁紙fan!)
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BEGIN announces tribute and cover albums, plus more – Tokyograph
Pop group BEGIN celebrated the 20th anniversary of their debut this year, and they have now announced the simultaneous release of two special albums to celebrate that milestone. Titled “BEGIN 20th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL TRIBUTE ALBUM” and “BEGIN 20th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL COVER ALBUM,” the albums are scheduled to go on sale on March 2, 2011. The…
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Tokyograph: Manami Higa to star in “Dondo Bare” sequel
NHK is reviving its 2007 morning drama series “Dondo Bare” with a sequel that will be aired as a special program next year. Production on the show was announced at a press conference on Wednesday, attended by the drama’s lead actress, Manami Higa (24). […] (Via Tokyograph.) We’re big fans of Manami Higa and it’s…
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Choho Miyara Music Award (via Power of Okinawa)
The 8th annual Choho Miyara Ongaku Sho (Music Award) ceremony was held yesterday at Ryukyu Shimpo Hall in Naha. I was very pleased and honoured to receive an invitation to attend from Yasukatsu Oshima’s management office. The award is named after the late Choho Miyara who was a songwriter and an educationalist. The Ongaku Sho…
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Learn about awamori? There’s an app for that.
Modern technology is reaching every corner of the globe, and leaving no industry untouched, as now a local company has come up with an Awamori Large-Scale Dictionary for the smart phone iPhone. The software application produced by Rakuen-Keikaku, a company that deals with the restaurant and publishing industries, works with the Apple iPhone, listing all…
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The Power of Okinawa – 40% discount (via Power of Okinawa)
If you’re just getting into or already fairly knowledgable about Okinawan music, I recommend picking up John Potter’s wonderful book, The Power of Okinawa. Check out his website for more info. There is a new reduced price for the 2nd edition of The Power of Okinawa. For those buying the book through the internet only,…
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iOS app: iOkinawa!
Billing itself as a combination of beautiful Okinawan girls and Okinawan dialect, out of curiosity I installed the free (with ads) iOkinawa! app (link opens iTunes US Store) on my iPhone 4. Developed by Sayobs (Ray Matayoshi) from Tokyo, it looks like it’s their first iOS app made for the iPhone. Released November 10, 2010,…
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