Tommy's [i] on Asia - What's Hot Besides the Weather...

Takeshi Kaneshiro Signed as the New Face for Emporio Armani…

Tommy — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 21:07:11 +0000

Takeshi Kaneshiro, actor and Asian hearthrob known to international audiences for his roles in films such as House of Flying Daggers and Chungking Express, has signed on to be the latest celebrity promoting Emporio Armani. He joins David Beckham, Josh Harntnett and other international supermodels as spokesperson and will be the first Asian model to appear in a Emporio Armani advertising campaign.

As one of the few A-list stars with broad appeal in the Pan-Asian market including China, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia, Kaneshiro is the face of Biotherm’s line of skincare for men as well as products such as Sony Ericsson, Pocari Sweat soft drink, and Morinaga chocolate. Back in the late 1990s he was featured in a campaign for fashion house, Prada, appearing in print ads across Asia and the U.S.

“I have always been a great admirer of Giorgio Armani, not only for his remarkable accomplishment as master of style but I very much respect his enduring support of the film industry,” says Kaneshiro.

Of this new collaboration Giorgio Armani says, “I am excited to collaborate with Takeshi on this new advertising campaign. He is a film and style icon in Asia where his fame transcends cultures both East and West. His sense of effortless style is very contemporary and sophisticated and together with his good look makes him the ideal testimonial for Emporio Armani.”

Source: Vogue

Reese Witherspoon in Tokyo for Avon Cosmetics…

Tommy — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 18:20:08 +0000

Reese Witherspoon made appearances in Tokyo, Japan this week as Global Ambassador for Avon cosmetics. Her mission is to bring a message of empowerment to Asian women and introduce Avon’s first-ever global fundraising product, the Women’s Empowerment Bracelet to Japan.

Dressed in a traditional Japanese kimono, Witherspoon was the guest of honor at a traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony where she met female breast cancer survivors. In addition to the tea ceremony, Witherspoon participated in a dialogue with attendees addressing issues such as the lack of breast cancer awareness and screening facilities in Japan.

“As Avon’s Global Ambassador, I’m honored to have this opportunity to meet with such extraordinary women, and experience a highlight of Japanese culture” said Witherspooon. “While their courage is inspiring, I was saddened to hear that only about 12% of women in Japan receive regular breast cancer screening. The lack of testing equipment and breast cancer experts in Japan means that many women here do not have access to the medical technology and care that is critical to diagnose and fight this deadly disease.”

Source: Reuters

Mariah in Tokyo…

Tommy — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 06:05:37 +0000

During her recent visit to Japan to promote her new album, E=MC², Mariah Carey stopped by the popular Japanese variety show SMAP X SMAP on Fuji TV hosted by the members of the boy band SMAP.

She performed her #1 single “Touch My Body.”

The last section of the show features various musical groups and artists, collaborating with SMAP. SMAP briefly interviews the groups or artists (recorded after they’ve performed) then sings their song, usually a medley, and sometimes with SMAP’s song. Usually when SMAP’s new single is close to being released or has released, they sing their own song as a promotion.

Source: Mariah Daily

The Office in Japanese…

Tommy — Wed, 21 May 2008 02:55:36 +0000

Making the rounds on the Interweb today is this skit from the past weekend’s episode of Saturday Night Live. It’s a parody of “The Office” by Steve Carell himself – complete with an introduction by Ricky Gervais, creator and director of the British version. As a prologue to the spoof, the series creator confesses that the “original” UK version is in fact a remake of the “true original” from Japan.

Though some may find it a little offensive, it’s quite funny. The Japanese is a bit odd but I think the desk configuration are quite authentic!

The video wouldn’t embed, please click here to stream.

Source: Hulu.com

Hello! Kitty Ambassador…

Tommy — Mon, 19 May 2008 21:19:32 +0000

Japan has appointed its latest goodwill ambassador to promote the country to prospective visitors. The honor goes to none other than its ambassador of cute – Hello Kitty!

The Sanrio cartoon cat ubiquitous in Japan and all over the world has been appointed to its new position as part of the Japanese government’s “Visit Japan Campaign,” which is aimed at attracting 10 million overseas visitors every year by 2010. According to Japanese officials, Hello Kitty was chosen because of its popularity as a pop cultural icon and iconic symbol for Japan. The tourism ministry on Monday named Hello Kitty as its choice to represent the country in China and Hong Kong, two places where it is wildly popular among kids and young women. Starting in June, Hello Kitty will have a blog about tourist attractions on the campaign’s Chinese-language website.

Japan’s other goodwill tourism ambassadors include Taiwanese supermodel Lin Chi-ling, Korean singer Younha, Japanese actress Yoshino Kimura and Japanese pop/rock duo Puffy AmiYumi.

Sugoi kawaii ne!

China Suspends Entertainment for 3-Day Mourning…

Tommy — Mon, 19 May 2008 04:57:45 +0000

Beginning on Monday, May 19, China will start a three-day national mourning period in memory of the 30,000-plus people who have lost their lives to the earthquake that shook the Sichuan area one week ago. A three-minute silence will be observed from 2:28 p.m. China Standard Time on Monday, exactly the time when the quake came in all its fury.

For the mourning period, the State Council of China has ordered all websites to remove entertainment and game sections and redirect users to pages dedicated to victim commemoration. Public entertainment including movies theaters, karaokes, discos, etc. will also be suspended during that time.

In addition to state-sanctioned activities, the entertainment industry in the Greater China regions including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Chinese diaspora around the world have already pro-actively suspended all major performances and events in favor of rallying support for relief efforts and donation drives. A-list singers and actors all across the board have pitched in to contribute their own money as well as take the stage for benefit concerts and televised donation drives.

I’m personally all for supporting the relief efforts but a mandatory ban on entertainment seems quite strange and hard to enforce. Television is already state-owned and to a very high degree state-controlled as well. But stopping people from being “entertained” on the Internet? What good will that do? Probably a lost cause.

TVB’s Sichuan Earthquake Charity Show in Hong Kong…

CCTV Charity Concert in Mainland China…

Charity Concert Program in Taiwan…

Comme des Garçons x H&M…

Tommy — Sun, 18 May 2008 06:17:15 +0000

Rei Kawakubo (川久保玲, Rei Kawakubo), founder and head designer of the Japanese label, Comme des Garçons, will be the guest designer for H&M’s upcoming collection for fall 2008. The collection will include everything from men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing to accessories and even an exclusive unisex fragrance. It’s set to launch in early November at the opening of H&M’s second store in Tokyo, Japan, and it will hit other H&M stores a few days later. No word yet on timing of availability in North American stores though.

Since it’s Paris debut in 1981, Comme des Garçons has been known for challenging the norms with use of distressed fabrics, unfinished edges, asymmetrical cuts, and monochromatic tones. Together with Yohji Yamamoto and Issey Miyake, these three Japanese design powerhouses helped bring Asian style to the forefront of high fashion, capturing the eye of fashionistas around the world.

This crossover will help H&M break into the Japanese/Harajuku market to compete with the dominating Uniqlo, as both are known for their fashionable yet affordable clothing. It will definitely be interesting to see how it turns out. Comme des Garçons design at H&M prices!

Times are Changing with New J-Drama…

Tommy — Sat, 17 May 2008 23:02:31 +0000

After the success of the critically acclaimed and popular Japanese drama “Karei-naru Ichizoku” (華麗なる一族) that aired on TBS early 2007, Kimura Takuya returns to the Monday nights at 9pm timeslot in the new political themed drama “Change” for Fuji TV.

As a J-pop icon and the perennial leading man of Japanese “trendy drama,” Kimutaku has played characters ranging from pianists, chefs, pro hockey players to prosecutors and commercial airplane pilots. In this new drama, Kimutaku plays a country bumpkin school teacher with no interest in politics who unexpectedly finds himself on the path of becoming the next prime minister of Japan. Though the scenario is rather implausible, with the real-life backdrop of the Japanese prime minister being ousted from power last year and the currently heated presidential race in the U.S., “Change” is challenging typically politically neutral Japanese viewers to give politics a second thought.

With the pre-season publicity, all-star supporting cast, to the choice of Madonna’s “Miles Away” as the theme song, the network seems to be pulling out all the stops for this drama. As part of the advance PR for the series, special edition “Change” tissue boxes went on sale on May 2 at a nationwide supermarket chain, which were reportedly sold out in less than 3 days. Very promising early signs of success.

However, the ratings for episode #1 that aired on May 12 were just released. “Change” came in at #2 with a disappointing 23.8% in viewership, trailing behind Nakama Yukie’s comedy “Gokusen 3,” which took in a 26.4%.

It’s still too early to call “Change” a flop but this is the first time since Kimutaku’s meteoric rise to fame in the late 1990s that he hasn’t debuted at the top spot. Either politics is still a tough pill to swallow for Japanese trendy drama viewers or times really are changing and Kimura Takuya is just losing his magic tough… I’m personally hoping for the former.

Here is Madonna’s “Miles Away” during the closing credits. It’s also interesting to note that Madonna has always had a huge following in Japan and is very aware of that fact – even capitalizing on it with numerous Japan-only endorsement deals for products ranging from cosmetics to hard liquor to luxury apartments (I know, WTF right?).

Lucky Number Se7en from South Korea…

Tommy — Sat, 17 May 2008 08:38:45 +0000

So how should a Korean popstar try to crack a music market with Americans who aren’t buying CDs or especially interested in popstars from Asia? Well, they can either take a page out of the Rain playbook by taking on a small role in a big budget Hollywood flop or start from the ground up by touring small venues around the country courting fellow Asian folks like what Se7en is doing.

More on Rain’s disappointing American debut with “Speed Racer” here.

Se7en at a press conference in LA…

Se7en introducing his new single @ The Highlands in Hollywood…