Forum - View topicDo You Promote Japanese Music?
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Full_Metal1923
 Posts: 312 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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If you're posting on this board then it's more than likely you're a fan of Japanese music. Whether it be music composed by a Japanese composer or a theme song by a Japanese band/singer. It's a likeness that we all share on this board. Many of us listen to Japanese music freely, plugging up the sound of idiotic questioning with our headphones.
For some, that in itself is an accomplishment of osrts. But who among us promote Japanese music? Not merely suggesting a song or artist to a friend (though that is beneficial, keep it up!) but by either grabbing the radiowaves whether through school radio programs like myself or through podcasts and other mediums. Basically I'm talking about promotion on a larger scale. Recently, my school was in search of somethign to play in the mornings leading up to the final bell before class begins. Previously, they used the ever popular William Tel however they wanted a change and the alternatives used were simply abysmal. I don't understand how the theme song for Law & Order could give the sense of urgency that is provided with William Tel (sure it's old and overused but it's affective). After going a couple of days of experimenting with new music, I decided to pitch a song. I burned it on a CD, wrote the length, artist and other information on a pieces of paper and gave it ot them. Since then, it's been played along with the other "experiments". What was this song? "Tank" by The Seatbelts, composed by the amazing Yoko Kanno. A name that is unfortunately unknown by the majority if any at all students and teachers in the school. Now just think about it for those who've seen Cowboy Bebop and have heard "Tank!". It's perfect isn't it? Every time I hear it I light up a bit inside. And everytime Iget my chance to play on my school radio program, a small smile crosses my face. Recently, the Fullmetal Alchemist movie premiered here in Canada and Death Note was set to come the week after. I was fortunate enough to play on the school radio program on the week of the FMA movie. So what did I do? "Link" by L'Arc~en~Ciel Announce the movie's premiere and song significance. "The World" by Nightmare Announced the arrivial of Death Note. If I can I want ot try and play for Eureka 7's last episode here which is in two weeks given YTV doesn't do somethign stupid with the scheduling. The great thing is, my friends know its me and most of them enjoy it but to everyone else I'm Edward Elric. Some of my teachers will probably know too since they know my voice and I've handed in a couple of asignments with Edward Elric as a pen name. I've continued to use Edward Elric in many ways. It's the name I use when playing Pokemon Diamond (Edward), some assignments like a movie poster, and now the articles I've provided for my school newspaper. So far I've only done for Yoshitaka Amano (famed Final Fantasy artist) but I plan to continue to promote Japanese music through promoting artists/composers and albums with my spotlights. It seems like quite a lot but it's fairly simple and I'm not saying you have to do all that but do any of you guys promote Japanese music and how? BTW, you can nickname me Edward if you want.  It's already happened on GameSpot forums, oops hope I don't get in trouble for mentioning another site.
Additionally, forigve any spelling errors, I kind of just started writing off the top of my head. IF I notice somethign I'll change it. |
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P€|\||§_|\/|ast@
 Posts: 3498 Location: IN your nightmares |
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I like your approach in subtly integrating anime theme songs and J-pop to the ears of the entire student body and faculty of the school. If it's a great song and not obviously foreign then people will be exposed to the greatness of anime music without realizing exactly what it is. And hopefully gain new fans of either the music or the shows themselves:
"Hey what was that song you were playing over the PA today? I've never heard it before but it was fantastic!" "Oh that was the theme song for a Japanese animated show called Cow-Boy BeBop. It's a great show and the music is as good as mainstream quality material you'd find in the U.S." I used to be on the A/V crew of my high school's daily TV news program and I have always wished back then I was an anime fan because we always played a different song every morning during the opening. I would have so offered anime or J-pop songs to be played since it would just be something different and fun. |
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Murasakisuishou
 Posts: 1469 Location: NE Ohio |
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I've used songs from various OSTs for powerpoint projects in school (I used "Requiem" from the FMA CoS soundtrack for a project about Demosthenes), and whenever I had to bring an example of poetry in lyrics to English class, I usually ran off a translation of a song by L'arc, Buck-Tick, or someone else. I only listen to Japanese music, so I didn't really have much choice :p
It's really neat that you're using anime songs for school announcements. I wish I had the capacity to do something like that... |
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HMMcKamikaze
 Posts: 189 |
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I can't say I've recommended any Japanese music to anyone as most of is orchestral like Joe Hisaishi's work, or some of Yoko Kanno's, and few people I know appreciate that sort of thing be it Japanese or otherwise.
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BleuVII
 Posts: 672 Location: Tokorozawa, Japan |
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Well, I'm an Ethnomusicologist in Japan. Does that count? I will be writing my Master's thesis on the subject of 'perceived authenticity in the Japanese production of western-style music' sometime next year.
So, I guess you could say I'm promoting it academically. I hope to show how "Japanese Music" is not just the koto, shamisen, and shakuhachi, but also the Electone, guitars, bass, drums, and the like. Anime and game music will take up a significant portion of my studies, since many bands "make it" by having their single appear as the opening in an anime. But playing songs on the school radio sounds fun too. |
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Zoe
 Posts: 898 Location: Austin |
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I used to be active in promoting it at conventions, but almost nobody cared. Those who did care didn't share the same interests (mainstream vs VKei).
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jetz
 Posts: 2148 Location: Manila, Philippines |
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By your definition of "promotion", I'd say no. I haven't promoted Japanese music enough to cause a large impact upon a large group of people. The most promotion I've ever done is recommend some songs to my friends and brother, who are also into anime.
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omnistry
 Posts: 1019 |
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I recommend J-MUSIC to people like crazy (both when I'm on the air and when I'm not). Whenever I hear a band I know my friends might like I play it for them and see how they react. I even handed out some free J-POP mix CDs to promote our school's Japan Club, and I gave out all of them!
Recently I played for my friend a song by Bleach 03, and was instantly hooked by the crazy bass-slap. Another time I recommended monobright, a new up-and-coming band I heard while on my Japan trip this summer. Again, he fell in love with it. (He just started being one of my cohosts on my radio show/Podcast, and is now really getting into the music scene over there; and we've gone and seen a few shows that have come around to Boston, most recently melt-banana.) Of course you've got the idiots that go "Ohhhh, I will never listen to something that I cannot understand! Now if you'll excuse me I'm gonna listen to my Daddy Yankee CD!"  Honestly, who gives a flying monkey's bum if you can't understand what they are saying. If it sounds good, then it is good.
BTW jetz, love the avatar. I'm in less despair now  .
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fighterholic
Posts: 9193 |
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I think that the most effective way for me to promote Japanese music in my area has been to just burn whatever music I have that may sound appealing to my friends for them. This has had some good influence on them and such, they seem to like the music, maybe it's because a lot of times I'm getting them Ketsumeishi, or Hamasaki Ayumi.
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velocet
Posts: 240 |
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Out of curiosity, did you go see melt-banana because they were Japanese, or because you're into the style of music they play? I'm just interested, I've been a melt-banana fan for years, but they're so not the sort of thing that generally appeals to anime fans, though since Bambi's Dilemma came out I've seen them discussed a lot more in J-music forums etc. whereas before I've only ever seen them discussed in broader scope forums, as they've had a western following for a long time. More people buying MB records can only be a good thing though 
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omnistry
Posts: 1019 |
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I first heard of them a couple years back; and their style appealed to me. I have never seen a more violent mosh pit than at a melt-banana show, IMO. And yeah, "Bambi's Dilemma" is a great album. |
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velocet
Posts: 240 |
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I like Bambi's Dilemma and Cell-Scape in a different way to their early stuff, they've gotten downright catchy of late! Not that it's a bad thing, but compared to the 40second noisebursts of their 90s work it seems like a huge departure from the style that made them so well known. I can imagine the moshpit was absolute carnage.
And yet, despite BD being the most accessible album of theirs that I've heard, it's entertaining to see the reactions of the people who downloaded it assuming that 'they're Japanese so it MUST be like Anime Themetune Band X!' and then watching them trying to compute it. I'm a bad person, I know... 
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roujin
 Posts: 139 |
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I can't say I've promoted Japanese music on the level that you've had. But I always make sure to recommend some stuff to my friends if they ever want something. None of them ever like Boredoms though
Melt-banana ftw 
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sheenafan1000
 Posts: 1 |
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Wow. That is an amazing idea Ed. I have promoted it a little, but not really to your extent. In New Zealand we dont really have school radio stations or anything because were too poor
 But I have used it for ALL powerpoint style presentations and any other opportunity I get with schoolwork. 9I do the same thing with anime, my english project was on clamp, my TIM project is on anime and my math project had gaara from naruto stuck all over it). I think the biggest thing I do is make people CDs of my favourite japanese music and pass it around my class and to a lesser extent, the school community. I've made roughly 10-12 new otaku that way... heh heh heh
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Full_Metal1923
Posts: 312 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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I'm glad to see that there's at the least a small effort being made to promote Japanese music. I also do recommend songs sometimes, I got one of my friends hooked on Nightmare's "Raison d'Etre" and my teacher dancing to "Ready Steady Go" - a music teacher for that matter.
Sry, I haven't been on in a while but in regards to using songs in school work. I've also done this as well, for a play I used various songs from the Fullmetal Alchemist OST including "Sad Resolution - Seperation", from the CoS OST which really did capture the moment in both the movie and play (the script I wrote was rather sad, almost Grave of the fireflies like). |
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