Popping, locking and a whole lot more. This past November 19, 71 teams of “street dancers” gathered in Osaka to participate in Osaka Dance Delight Volume 33, an annual dance competition related to one of the top street dance competitions in the world, Japan Dance Delight. As usual, the audience at the event was treated to some truly impressive routines …

Your phone is ringing. Go to an anime song or idol concert in Japan and you will almost certainly see a bunch of guys frantically waving lightsticks around, cheering and jumping around, all while working up a mean sweat. This is called otagei (sometimes written wotagei) and it is one of the many ways otaku (hardcore fans of anime, manga, …

Sexy legs and big boobs, she is the embodiment of every guy’s fantasy, right? From middle-aged eagle men to giant pink dog poops, Japankyo has covered a number of bizarre Japanese mascots in the past but the one we’ll be looking at today may just take the cake. Who is Paiko-chan?   The name of this bizarre mascot is Paiko …

The latest dance craze to hit Japan, the “omusubi.” Dance Studio Native, a dance studio located in the Hokkaido city of Sapporo has released a tasty new dance video based on one of Japan’s most delicious portable food, the  rice ball. Set to the tune of the hip hop song “Just Like That” by E-Rock & Clayon Willam, this carbohydrate-laden …

All you need is the power of kawaii. In an effort to promote tourism to the city of Okayama, the city has released a video that can only be described as “kawaii.” Released on October 7, this new promotional video stars model, actress and Okayama-native HInako Sakurai. The video presents a super “kawaii” (cute) version of the classic Japanese fairy …

Feel Gaina’s Aloha Spirit. Nerfy Guiner Bieber, a.k.a. Gaina, has released her third music video and this time it seems she drew inspiration from the tropicl paradise of Hawaii. Gaina, whose real name is Hina Nagai, is a member of the Japanese female pop idol group Cheeky Parade (a.k.a. Chikipa). She took on the identity of Nerfy Guiner Bieber in …

NHK fee collectors may soon be replaced by armies of robot Domo-kuns. Domo, or as he is typically called in Japan, Domo-kun (どーも くん Dōmo-kun) is that chocolate bar with a face-looking character that is the mascot of Japan’s public broadcaster NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation). He was created in 1998 in order to commemorate the 10th anniversary of NHK-BS, which …

Dancing doggie style. With their short little legs, fluffy little bodies and general inability to appreciate music, you wouldn’t think that Pomeranians would be particularly good dancers. However, there’s a little Pomeranian pup in Japan that is proving you don’t need to be human to dance like a madman. The video below shows an adorable roughly 2-year-old Pomeranian named Kotetsu. …

Not sure what African dancers have to do with snacks but… The Japanese snack company Koikeya has released a commercial promoting some new flavors of their popular Sukoon (スコーン) snack product, which features Zaouli dancers from the Ivory Coast. The Zaouli is a traditional mask dance performed by the Guro people of the African nation of Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).  …

Children, avert your eyes! A video of a bizarre, yet hilarious mishap involving a deflating dancing Pikachu getting whisked off stage in the middle of a performance at a Pokémon festival held in Korea has gone viral. Serving as both a celebration of the popular Pokémon franchise and a grand opening event for a new outdoor mall called Triple Street …

Who says otaku can’t dance? Just in time for the April 1st start date of the highly anticipated second season of the hit anime series, Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin), a Hokkaido otagei (otaku dance) group has released an Attack on Titai themed dance video that is sure to get you pumped. If you’ve ever been to or seen …

Kyū Kyū Tama, Tama Tama Kyū Kyū The ending sequence for the latest installment in the Super Sentai series of shows is getting quite a bit of attention online for its use of a horribly infectious song and a totally ridiculous dance. The outer-space themed, Uchū Sentai Kyūranger (English: Space Squadron Nine Ranger) is the 41st entry in the long-running …