Advertise on podcast: Unpacking Japan

Meet Billy Blanks, a fitness coach known for his Billy's Bootcamp Tae Bo workout program, which skyrocketed him to celebrity status when it came to Japan. He sits down to talk about developing Tae Bo and Billy's Bootcamp, what it was like coming to Japan for the first time, and his own fitness goals here. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Finding out he's famous in Japan 4:15 Developing Tae Bo workout 15:15 How Tae Bo became Billy's Bootcamp 25:47 Coming to Japan 33:04 Breaking through the language barrier 36:07 How Billy's teaching changed in Japan 42:34 Tae Bo vs. martial arts 45:13 Fitness in Japan 50:47 Training with martial arts masters 55:56 Billy's goal in life 1:01:31 Last words from Billy -- Follow Billy: https://www.youtube.com/@taebo https://www.taebonation.com/ https://www.instagram.com/billyblanksofficial1 https://www.tiktok.com/@billyblanksofficial https://www.facebook.com/thebillyblanks/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Carla, a German designer known for her videos sharing her eccentric and sometimes silly office and coworkers in Japan. She sits down to talk to us about her journey to and misadventures in Japan, how she got hired at her company and what she does, and projects like the manga she wrote for Comiket. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Interest in Japan and anime 5:36 Coming to Japan 11:07 Internship in Osaka 15:25 Homestay with president's parents 19:15 Getting hired at current company 25:56 First day at work 33:52 The eccentric company president 36:16 How the social media started 40:14 T̶h̶e̶ o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ c̶a̶s̶t̶ m̶e̶m̶b̶e̶r̶s Carla's coworkers 43:22 Surprises about Japanese office life 51:09 She went viral, what now? 55:54 Setting up a booth at Comiket 1:00:12 Making a manga (Comiket Take 2) 1:07:08 Carla's vending machine designs 1:10:22 Is Hayakawa-san single? Follow Carla: https://www.youtube.com/@misstranslatio https://www.instagram.com/misstranslation https://www.tiktok.com/@misstranslation https://misstranslation-shop.fourthwall.com/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Adrian, an illustrator in Japan best known for his work on magazines like Popeye, Tarzan, and Hanako. He sits down to talk to us about building his career in Japan, what's great about Japanese magazines, and the secret to being a productive artist. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Adrian 5:13 First year in Aomori 12:19 Coming back to Japan 18:25 Getting work by drawing in public 22:04 Selling point of his style in Japan 24:22 Viral coffee cup illustrations 26:47 Adrian's sketchbook: Drawing is observation 34:15 Role of social media for artists 37:25 Working with Popeye magazine 51:15 Proof of trust as an artist in Japan 53:37 Making a magazine cover 56:55 Print magazines vs. social media 1:04:58 Selling merch as an artist 1:08:38 Community as an artist 1:13:07 Blind drawing exercise 1:16:48 Adrian's sketchbook 1:20:14 Drawing Tobi/Reverse interview -- Follow Adrian: https://www.adrianhogan.com https://www.instagram.com/adehogan https://x.com/adehogan Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Gearoid Reidy, a journalist at Bloomberg Japan. He sits down to talk to us about his career as a journalist, his perspective covering finance and some of the biggest scandals in recent history, and his perspective as an opinion writer and why people should pay more attention to Japanese politics. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Gearoid 5:03 JET in rural Hiroshima 10:17 Working at Capcom in Osaka 13:00 Joining Bloomberg Japan 22:19 Learning to write about finance 25:27 The Toshiba scandal 29:45 Managing a news team 33:12 Reading between the lines in corporate speak 36:26 Translating Japanese information to English 38:17 Difference in journalism for finance company 39:52 Machine learning to filter information 43:48 Does Japan need AI? 49:35 Becoming Bureau Chief 52:32 Pivoting to opinion columnist 1:06:23 What you need to be an opinion writer 1:12:34 People should care more about Japanese politics 1:19:44 Where to begin with Japanese poiltics 1:24:36 On the Takaichi administration 1:30:57 What is the "real" Japan? 1:36:24 Goals for the future 1:39:29 The Carlos Ghosn scandal -- Follow Gearoid: https://x.com/GearoidReidy Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Tim Koleto, an American-born ice dancer who naturalized and took the silver medal for team Japan in Beijing in 2022 with his partner Misato Komatsubara. He sits down to talk to us about the sport of ice dancing, going to the Olympics, and what it's like to compete for Japan as a naturalized citizen. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 First experience on ice 4:43 Difference ice sports 7:09 Interest in ice dancing 7:53 Beginning competition 13:43 Switching to pairs 16:10 The mechanics of skating 25:30 Finding a partner 28:44 You can compete for other countries? 33:38 Competing for Japan? 37:12 Working with Misato 42:02 Competing with team Japan 47:53 Marriage to partner 50:47 Going to the Olympics 58:07 Strategy for competing to judges 1:03:53 Silver medal performance 1:15:12 Delayed medal ceremony 1:18:54 Retiring from competition 1:26:01 Final words -- Follow Tim: https://www.instagram.com/timkoleto https://www.tiktok.com/@timkoleto https://x.com/timkoleto https://www.twitch.tv/timkoleto Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Rena, also known by her stage name ukurena, a Japanese ukulele player from Kobe, who became the junior world champion in 2016. She sits down to talk to us about her discovery of the ukulele and subsequent career, how the ukulele is so often misunderstood, and how she's reinventing what people think of as ukulele music. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Rena 1:56 Learning from a former champion 11:00 The piece that drew Rena to ukulele 13:32 Early wins in ukulele competitions 16:03 What is a ukulele competition? 19:45 Ukulele in Hawaii vs. Japan 23:38 Winning international competition 27:52 Ukulele in Japanese music 33:44 Becoming a professional musician 35:58 Different genres with ukulele 39:28 Studying jazz and performing with emotion 47:58 Signing with a record label 52:32 Composing her own music 57:59 Goals for the future 1:01:21 Ukulele performance -- Follow Rena: @rena_ukulele_japan https://www.instagram.com/rena_ukulele https://www.facebook.com/rena.ukulele https://x.com/rena_ukulele Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Joshua, a professor at Chuo University in Tokyo, who has been pioneering the field of cute studies. He sits down to talk to us about the difference between cute and kawaii, the development of kawaii culture, and the psychology of cuteness. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Joshua 5:15 Interest in kawaii culture 6:37 Cute vs. kawaii 12:54 Kawaii culture 14:36 Forming a new field of study 19:40 Cuteness in Japan 22:47 Origins of the word kawaii 25:56 Cuteness in everyday life 29:45 The "feeling" of cuteness 32:10 Managing cuteness studies research 37:47 Academics vs. culture 41:18 Artists and cute aesthetics 44:22 Japanese academics on cuteness 46:49 Applications of cuteness research 51:56 Spread of kawaii culture 55:45 The future of cute studies -- Follow Joshua: https://www.cutestudies.org/ https://www.instagram.com/dalejoshuapaul/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Hector, a pastor and the head of Tokyo Union Church, who sits down to talk to us about Christianity in Japan. He tells us about the history of his Church and Christianity in Japan, how present Christianity really is in everyday life here, and the commodification of Christianity in Japan. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Interest in Japan 4:58 Becoming a pastor 11:05 Serving in Korea, Switzerland 16:40 History of Tokyo Union Church 19:05 Coming to Japan 24:51 Leading an interdenominational church 27:36 Japanese members of the church 32:02 Guiding different denominations 39:48 History of Christianity in Japan 44:03 How Christianity shaped modern Japan 48:58 Christianity in everyday Japan 51:27 The value of commodifying religion 58:12 Interfaith community 1:03:04 Does Christianity belong in Japan? 1:09:29 Experience as a pastor in Japan -- Follow Hector: https://www.tokyounion.org/ https://www.instagram.com/tokyounion/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Alex, a tourism consultant based in Kagoshima. He sits down to talk to us about his study of martial arts, his experiences at a traditional Japanese company, and his work preserving traditional arts through tourism. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Alex 4:55 Studying Iaido 9:15 Arriving in Kagoshima 12:28 Studying local martial art jigen-ryu 17:59 Why jigen-ryu is kept secret 20:10 Joining a traditional company 32:00 Explaining Japanese culture to foreigners 35:21 Sending Japanese culture to Buckingham Palace 39:06 Founding a company to promote traditional culture 47:08 Commercializing traditional arts 52:40 What is "authentic" culture? 55:59 Making culture sustainable 1:01:12 Working with local governments 1:07:16 Are traditional arts being preserved? 1:09:37 Where to visit in Kyushu -- Follow Alex: https://gotoku.travel/ https://gotoku.consulting/ https://www.instagram.com/gotokutravel/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Alex Karlsson, a Swedish idol music producer based in Seoul, Korea, known for his work with Korean groups like Ateez and Enhyphen, as well as Japanese groups like SixTones and &Team. He sits down to talk to us about the foundations of idol music, the differences between k-pop and j-pop, and the authenticity of manufactured pop music. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Start as artist 7:55 Transition to producer 11:39 Royalty split in k-pop vs. j-pop 14:16 Producing hits for foreign bands 19:25 K-pop vs. j-pop 23:21 The sound of manufactured pop 30:49 Modern idols are more involved in production 33:33 When the slave contract ends 35:30 The breadth of Asian pop music 41:00 Why k-pop is huge overseas but j-pop isn't 44:55 How Gangnam Style changed k-pop 47:25 Breaking in to the Japan market 50:51 Why Japan is so different 53:36 How moving to Korea changed his career 58:37 Adding emotion to manufactured pop 1:00:55 What's most important when producing 1:02:12 Boy bands vs. girl groups 1:05:28 The problem with AI music 1:10:43 The future of the industry 1:12:43 Next steps -- Follow Alex: @AlexKarlssonofficial https://www.instagram.com/lefauxreal https://www.tiktok.com/@lefauxreal https://x.com/AKarlssonMusic Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Joey, a Japanese-Australian content creator known by his alias The Anime Man. He sits down to talk to us about his passion for manga and anime, moving to Japan to make anime videos and what that's taught him about the anime and manga industry, as well as his work on the Trash Taste Podcast and his fashion brand NØИSENSE. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Joey 6:19 Early obsession with manga 13:07 Moving to Japan for anime reasons 16:18 Early anime YouTube 18:31 Interviewing manga authors 23:36 What makes manga so popular? 27:56 Joey's favorite manga 36:29 Trash Taste started in a karaoke bar 45:54 Being "the" anime man 49:18 Anime has gone mainstream 54:48 Going beyond Shonen Jump 1:00:14 What's important in good anime 1:08:36 The secret doujin engine running the industry 1:17:54 Branching out beyond anime 1:23:53 Tackling Japan misinformation 1:33:38 Starting a fashion brand 1:40:38 Licensing IP for fashion 1:45:11 What makes NØИSENSE cool 1:50:57 Work as a musician 1:57:18 What's next? -- Follow Joey: @TheAnimeMan @JoeyTheAnimeMan https://www.twitch.tv/thean1meman https://www.instagram.com/joey.the.anime.man/ https://www.facebook.com/TheAn1meMan/ https://nonsense.jp/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Lowell, the retired director of Hope International in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region. He sits down to talk to us about running an NPO in Japan and the challenges of operating here, as well as his retired life as a YouTuber sailing around Japan. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Lowell 4:54 Leaving missionary work 7:02 Founding an NGO in Japan 11:06 NGOs in Japan 15:01 The Fukushima disaster at home 17:56 How to spend $2.5 million 29:42 Lessons biking across Japan 38:29 Sailing around Japan 45:11 Japanese boating license 48:04 Buying a boat 51:03 First trip in Japan 56:15 Lessons sailing across Japan 59:11 Settling in Okinawa 1:04:15 What you should know about sailing in Japan 1:17:10 Book and research on longetivity -- Follow Lowell: @JapanSoloNotes @nevertoolateacademy https://www.instagram.com/lowellinjapan/ https://www.nevertoolateacademy.com/ Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Amanda, an photography gallery manager and consultant living in Tokyo. She sits down to talk to us about her work exhibiting Asian/Japanese photography, her work in book design, and why physical books still matter. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Meet Amanda 5:18 Post-colonial grandfather 8:23 Studying at Waseda 20:26 Start in gallery work 28:54 Galleries in Japan 32:55 Exhibiting Chinese photography 37:46 Japanese audience interest 40:16 Photo galleries as a business 42:12 Amanda's favorite projects 49:38 Focus on designing photography books 1:05:52 Why books still matter 1:19:59 How to get into Japanese photography 1:29:27 Current projects 1:42:03 Working as an exhibition producer 1:48:05 How to fit into a community -- Follow Amanda: https://www.intermediart.co/ https://www.nitesha.com/ https://lolingning.tumblr.com/illustration Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Pablo Aida, a shibari artist who's been practicing in Japan for the last 10 years. He sits down to talk to us about discovering shibari, the philosophy and history behind it, the differences between shibari and kinbaku, and the common misconceptions of this still developing art form. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 Coming to Japan 10:44 Deciding to stay 12:42 Discovering shibari 19:14 Shibari apprenticeship 31:57 Why tie people up? 41:05 Kinbaku vs. shibari vs. BDSM 47:36 Does shibari have rules? 51:40 Common shibari misconceptions 54:16 Shibari and the power of surrender 1:07:05 Shibari overseas vs. Japan -- Follow Pablo: https://www.pabloaida.com https://aidamethod.studio https://www.instagram.com/pablo.shibari Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/

Meet Keiko Fukuichi, a Japanese freelance translator, who sits down to talk to us about her experience translating games, particularly indie darlings Undertale and Hades. She talks to us about nuances of Japanese translation, the biggest challenges she's had, and her experiences studying abroad and learning English. -- 0:00 Intro 0:50 How Keiko learned English 5:10 Studying at Florida high school 11:20 Deciding on translation as a career 13:40 Translation school 18:28 Interest in book translation 23:44 Experience as a gamer 25:35 First game translation project 27:21 Limitations translating games to Japanese 28:40 Taking on Undertale project 30:12 Translating Papyrus 33:40 Limitations of not using kanji 38:41 Keiko's translation philosophy 40:35 Translating puns, jokes, and memes 43:54 Working with Toby "Radiation" Fox 45:11 Translation workflow 48:37 Do you play your own work? 49:48 Translating Hades 52:33 Translating old English 55:41 Can you use difficult kanji? 1:00:14 Translating with voice acting 1:02:38 Changes in translation industry over 20 years 1:06:07 Dealing with slang 1:08:38 Looking back 1:09:42 Are you worried about AI? 1:12:55 Do you have time to play games? 1:16:01 Studying vocabulary for Return of the Obra Dinn 1:17:42 Is interest in foreign indie games growing? -- Follow Keiko: https://www.instagram.com/keiko.fukuichi/ https://www.facebook.com/keiko.fukuichi https://x.com/keiko_fukuichi https://note.com/kfukuichi Follow us: https://unpacking.jp/ https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japan https://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingjapan https://www.facebook.com/unpackingjapan https://www.youtube.com/@unpackingjapanshorts https://www.x.com/unpacking_japan https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/unpackingjapan Subscribe for more in-depth discussions about life in Japan! Interested in working at a global e-commerce company in Osaka? Our parent company ZenGroup is hiring! To learn more, check out https://careers.zen.group/en/