It all started when I began watching animes, this was back when I was a little kid. It grew even more when I started watching Japanese Music Videos in MTV (back in the days when it was till free). Until the addiction was irreversible, I started buying cassettes of Utada Hikaru, then eventually CDs. When Angel bought me a desktop computer, I consistently downloaded a huge number of MP3 files as well as JPOP music videos. Until I started to self learn Nihongo, so I can watch animes in Animax without reading the subtitles.
Until this day, I still enjoy listening to JPOP. I don't just get the songs that we usually hear in the opening or closing credits of animes . I also get the usual songs that they play in Japanese airwaves, even whole albums of some the Japanese artists I like. I just have this fascination in anything Japanese, specially literature, music, and food; and Japan is my dream country to go to. There is something fascinatingly nice when I listen to their songs even if I don't understand what the singer is singing about, at all. As long as it sounds great, it's fine with me.
With the Kpop craze conquering the world, I still remain loyal to Jpop. I have listened to Kpop songs, and they are very "poppish" and some Kpop artists tend to overdo stuff, like men looking like "girly-boys". Although some are very mature and are a great listen, the language is not the same. I still want the usual Japanese words I hear. Generally, listening to songs one does not understand is crazy, but as I've said, as long as it sounds good, I'll listen to it, but I still prefer JPOP over Kpop. Even though I despise a lot of pop songs these days, Jpop is still the pop I love and will always be.
Here are some of Jpop videos I just want to share. The first video is one of the best Japanese ballads I've ever listened to, and it's 7 minutes long. The last two videos are the ones that I have been playing on loop since the first time I've discovered them and I can't help but to sing along to those songs, every time. They are just on repeat whenever I play them in my iTunes, in youtube or on my phone. The song by Juju (2nd video) has been playing non-stop for more than a day now (as of this writing). Enjoy watching the videos, I hope you'll like them too!
NOTE: I highly recommend the last 2 videos!
Everything - Misia
素直になれたら - Juju
Heart Station - 宇多田ヒカル
NOTE: The Heart Station video is the reason why I am constantly "salivatingly" craving for those white Audio Technica ATH-SQ5 headphones which were used in the video! Some electronic and Mac stores have it here, but it's so damn expensive. P7++k was its price last year, the last time I checked a Mac store in SM North this year, it's down to P5++k, still expensive! (sigh)
