51³Ô¹ÏÍø

Tag - hip-hop

 
Menu
Search
 
July 24, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

HIP-HOP

Okinawan rapper Awich ruled the summer music festival circuit last year. Which act will prove to be the most memorable in 2025?
CULTURE / Music
Jun 23, 2025
Stage dive into summer: Japan¡¯s best music festivals, month by month
The weather will be hot, but the concert calendar is looking even hotter.
Emergency responders gather outside the site of a deadly night-club fire in the town of Kocani, North Macedonia, on Sunday.
WORLD
Mar 16, 2025
Toll in Northern Macedonia hip-hop gig blaze rises to 59: interior minister
Thirty-one of the dead were residents of Kocani, the eastern town where the concert took place.
¡°Hypnosismic ¡ª Division Rap Battle ¡ª Movie¡± centers on groups of male rappers from neighborhoods around Tokyo and Japan at large.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 20, 2025
¡®Hypnosismic ¡ª Division Rap Battle ¡ª Movie¡¯ lets viewers remix the narrative
Armed with LED-lined gloves and their smartphones, audiences take control of the action for Japan¡¯s first interactive movie.
Recording artist Kendrick Lamar speaks at a press conference for the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Feb 9, 2025
Kendrick Lamar promises ¡®storytelling¡¯ at Super Bowl show
Speculation abounds as to whether the rapper will perform his award-winning diss track, ¡°Not Like Us.¡±
Hip-hop duo Creepy Nuts' uptempo ¡°Bling-Bang-Bang-Born¡± quickly became a TikTok favorite after its release days into 2024, which helped turn the song into a Billboard Japan Hot 100 topper for 19 weeks before rising up viral streaming charts around the world.
CULTURE / Music / 2024 in Review
Dec 27, 2024
Bling-Bang, baby: The J-pop soundtrack of 2024
Japanese music made waves globally, fueled by Coachella debuts, TikTok virality and unexpected hits like Creepy Nuts¡¯ ¡°Bling-Bang-Bang-Born.¡±
Sean "Diddy" Combs in 2017. Prosecutors have accused Combs of running a criminal enterprise to facilitate his exploitation of women, dating back at least 16 years.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Sep 18, 2024
Sean ¡®Diddy¡¯ Combs pleads not guilty to sex trafficking; judge denies bail
Prosecutors said the rapper and producer used his fame to coerce women into demeaning sexual acts as part of a long-running scheme.
Flavor Flav is at the Paris Games as the hype man for the U.S. water polo team.
OLYMPICS
Jul 26, 2024
Hip-hop legend Flavor Flav relishes role as hype man for U.S. water polo team
The rapper is using his fame to help support the U.S. team.
R-Shitei (left) and DJ Matsunaga have scored the biggest hit of the year so far in Japan with ¡°Bling-Bang-Bang-Born.¡± The track is inspired by the Jersey club style of music, right down to the squeaky chair sample.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 3, 2024
Is Creepy Nuts¡¯ catchy, rapid-fire ¡®Bling-Bang-Bang-Born¡¯ the song of the year?
The fast-paced ode to a style called Jersey club is everywhere in Tokyo, and it may just be the rap duo¡¯s key to international success.
Atarashii Gakko! released its third album, ¡°AG! Calling,¡± on June 7. The group is currently touring Asia with songs from the new release featured in its set
CULTURE / Music
Jun 21, 2024
Atarashii Gakko! schools crowds overseas on just how bananas J-pop can get
With appearances at major festivals, on U.S. television and new album ¡°AG! Calling,¡± this sailor-suited rapping four-piece is on quite a roll.
Tokyo-based artist Jumadiba says he forgoes the label of simply ¡°rap¡± for his music because the Japanese rap scene isn¡¯t confined to a particular sound.
CULTURE / Music
May 16, 2024
Japanese rap creates its mecca in Pop Yours
The two-day music festival showcases Japan¡¯s growing and diversifying hip-hop scene through local acts such as Awich and Jumadiba.
Kendrick Lamar has long been cast as the authentic and artistic representative of modern rap.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
May 10, 2024
Japanese MCs jump in on the Kendrick Lamar-Drake rap beef ¡ª and pick a favorite
The way artists here have joined the feud between two of rap¡¯s biggest names says more about hip-hop beefs in Japan than you realize.
The "style architect" for Jay-Z since 1994, June Ambrose sees influences of her work across the Japanese fashion landscape.
LIFE / Style & Design
May 1, 2024
June Ambrose: ¡®Cultural appropriation is the best form of flattery¡¯
Ambrose has been Jay-Z¡¯s designated ¡°style architect¡± since the billionaire started Roc-A-Fella Records back in 1994.
A breaker performs during the Red Bull BC One 2023 Camp Day and National Finals at the Fillmore in Philadelphia on Aug. 26
MORE SPORTS
Oct 12, 2023
Breakers grapple with hip-hop¡¯s Olympic moment
B-boys and B-girls wonder if their art will translate into sport when breaking makes its debut at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Tupac Shakur
CULTURE / Music
Sep 30, 2023
Suspect in rapper Tupac Shakur¡¯s 1996 slaying charged with murder
The charges marked a breakthrough for a long-unsolved case that was a defining moment in the history of rap music.
Rappers Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa perform during the Hip Hop 50 Live concert, marking the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip hop, at Yankee Stadium in New York City on Friday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Aug 13, 2023
Hip-hop stars helm marathon birthday party
Thousands of people partied deep into the night Friday as part of an all-star Bronx bash celebrating 50 years of hip-hop, featuring trailblazers including Run-DMC, Nas, Lauryn Hill and Snoop Dogg.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Low-income families in Japan cut food and air conditioning during summer break
Yumiko Watanabe, the chairperson of nonprofit Kidsdoor, explains the results of a survey in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on July 1.
Iran strikes on CIA facilities prompt questions about possible Russian role
Iranian drones are displayed in an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on Jan. 13, 2025.U.S. officials have acknowledged that Russia has ?provided targeting ?and other support for Iran in its drone strikes on U.S. targets in the Persian Gulf region.
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE 51³Ô¹ÏÍø

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER