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Some of the J-pop you should hear.

I'm a fan of the Shibuya style that was big a few years ago. I understand that's not the big thing in Nippon now, but I'm not sure what's replaced it.

But just a quick note on some of the things I think you should hear. Later maybe an article with more detail. This music is pop from an alternate universe. They have the loveliness and cuteness that Britney Spears used to strive for when she was supposed to be a virgin.

Often the best place to hear these musicians are on video game and music sound tracks. It can be very expensive to try to import them from Japan and impossible to find anywhere else. *cough* bit-torrent *cough*...not that I would ever tell anyone to illegally download music....

Kahimi Karie-great songs like "Lolitapop Dollhouse" and "I am a Kitten". Really stylish and elegant stuff with a jazz feel.

Akino Arai...she's mostly known for doing the song on the credits of "Outlaw Star"...beautiful songs that don't really seem to make sense when translated to English. One of the titles is "The Song Without a Song" what does that mean?
She is usually uncredited on movies. The best thing I could find from her was the Outlaw Star box set.

And finally, though it doesn't really count as jpop, Cibo Matto. It's a lot easier to find things from them. But they're actually Americans, and Sean Lennon was in the band for awhile, you might know him as the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. But they're an excellent mix of jpop and hip hop.

Learn more about this author, Maxwell Hammer.
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