♪Song of the Week・CANDY CANDY + PONPONPON by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu♪

For a while there, you thought that ‘song of the week’ had disappeared forever. Well, I’m glad to say, it’s back! Sometimes, music just brightens your day that much more, so I am super-extra- happy to welcome two songs in one week to make up for all the lost songs in the past.. month or so.

The singer’s name きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ・Kyary Pamyu Pamyu does not sound like a name at all, I must admit. Nevertheless, her songs are very addicting to watch, and they do, as by my all-music-must-do-rule, brighten up your day.

Some quick background info on the singer – her real name is actually Kiriko Takemura (I am very humbly sorry to shock many people that ‘kyary pamyu pamyu’ is not her real birth name. Imagine writing that during Kindergarten.) She is also a model and blogger, often featuring in the Harajuku fashion magazine ‘Kera’.

Oh, and she is 19 this year.

Here is a lovely picture of our singer with some ketchup on her face.

PonPonPon – Kyary’s first single. Please do enjoy this psychedelically challenging ride of a MV. It’s amazing how you don’t get bored while watching, and at the same time, the music is so catchy♪ It actually topped the music charts internationally so I’m so proud of her!

Candy Candy – Kyary’s second physical single.

la la la~ Hope you love Kyary Pamyu Pamyu’s bright and bubbly music as much as I do!

Word of the Day

まごまご・mago mago

confusing

Japanese Mobile Phones ケータイ電話 ：Emoji エモジ

Welcome to the next installation of Japanese Keitai!

I would like to introduce to those who don’t know yet, emoji (also known as kaomoji)! The wonder of ’emotional characters’/EMOJI is prevalent in Japan and referred to outside of Japan as ‘smileys’ or ’emoticons’ (you know, those familiar yellow circles with various faces on it).

Now  if I think back, waay back, to my MSN messenger days I can recall collecting endless lists of emoticons that jigged around my screen and did what not. But that was just on msn, definitely not on my brick phone. Only recently did i notice iPhones start popping out their new feature of including ’emoji’ in the keyboards. But sadly they do not move. Still, Awesome! Now I can add that extra cherry on top of my txts with these tiny faces and objects, because we all know how lame and unexciting plain old txts are.

Anyhow if we glance over now to Japan we may discover, oh but hang on, it appears they had this going before iPhones were even born!
Amongst the big three companies AU by KDDI, Docomo NTT and Softbank, each has their own special list of emoji. Complicating matters further, this means that if an AU user sent a ♪ emoji to their Softbank friend, it may turn out in a different color or something. Thus, this creates a big dilemma for many Japanese high school students choosing their new keitai. Anyhow. Not important.

Though Japan’s emoji may not have as much minuscule detail as that of iPhone’s, they have a remarkably extensive variety to choose from, despite being quite quite simple.  Check out below, Japan’s top 10 most used emoji in txt msgs!

I find it hilarious that the cat beat beer in the top 10. Do cats seriously turn up more than beer in Japanese conversations? After all Japan seems to love their beer, indicated by the mass of beer CMs…

Apparently this is how to enjoy beer (if you’re of age!)

Oh and I love these ‘All-free Suntory’ beer CMs, 0% alcohol! (I know it can get a bit repetitive after two)

More!!

and yet there’s still more!!!!

…oh but then again I guess there’s nyancat..

But I digress. Back to emoji. Now if you’re sad that you don’t have an iPhone, or that your friends can’t receive your iPhone emoji, then you can always resort to the good old manual smileys: Exhibit A ” 🙂 ”
But of course, the Japanese wakamono have taken it one step further to:
(●´∀｀●) or even ヾ(●´□｀●)ﾉ【ﾟ+｡･oこんにちはo･｡+ﾟ】ヾ(○´■｀○)ﾉ\\
(These may or may not turn up fully on your screens, depending on the level of awesomeness that your laptop/computer can accommodate. )
For more extreme kaomoji to share with your friends via emails or txt msgs, please make your way to KAOMOJIYA-SAN! (and credit to them for the above faces)

I guess I should close with a cat…~(=^･ω･^)/｡･:*:･ﾟ★，｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ ありがとニャ!

Mori Girl・森ガール

Since we haven’t posted much on Japanese fashion yet [not really much = not at all] I would like to officially start our fashion section! Perhaps the more popular or well known Japanese fashion styles are the bright, neon Harajuku street styles complete with wacky hairstyles gelled up ten feet, the kawaii lolita/hime gyaru, schoolgirl/ganguro, dramatic visual kei – just off the top of my head.

However to start off, I would like to introduce a style that is more subculture but has gained popularity very quickly since 2006, the official launching of the mori girl community by a girl calling herself choco on Mixi, Japan’s most popular social networking site.

‘森・mori’ means forest in Japanese and the term ‘mori girl’ is a style concept that refers to those ‘that like to look they they live in a forest’, wandering in their loose dresses, vintage prints and quaint accessories. It is a rather natural and earthy look and Mori girls are often described as being down-to-earth [literally and metaphorically] as well as being joyful of life’s simple pleasures.

A mori girl! :O I like the vibe of purity and innocence that this style normally gives off.