Tokyo Wave

Why has the Yen gotten so cheap and what does that mean for Japanese consumers and the economy as a whole? Will we finally see Japan restart foreign tourism as virus worries wane? Aaron and Parker discuss the massive 9.1% jump in wholesale prices driven by the weak yen and the vandalism of artworks in central Japan by junior high students during a school trip.

Are you ready for a sneak preview of our upcoming audio drama? What inspired an 83-year-old Japanese man to sail solo, nonstop across the Pacific? Aaron and Parker discuss a new lawsuit against Japan's dual nationality ban and Toshiba's privatization trials and tribulations.

The voice of the Tokaido Shinkansen, voice actress, entrepreneur, and improv comedian Donna Burke shares her story of how she became one of Japan's top voices. Aaron and Parker discuss Japan slowly accepting foreign tourists, the Okinawan governor's gaffe, and there's a big surprise at the end!

What is going on with Japan's plan to discharge treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station? Are we going to see a PR and health fallout from the planned release in April 2023? Aaron and Parker discuss Tokyo's plan to accept small-scale tours from 4 countries, and a leak that is threatening industrial water supplies to central Japan businesses including Toyota Motor.

Vintage audio repair expert and startup founder Ippei Soma shares his story, going from working at a dorm company to starting his own business fixing and selling vintage gear, and then co-founding a startup, Acoustic Innovations. Aaron and Parker discuss SoftBank Group logging a net loss of $13 billion in FY2021 and Japan police urging officers to avoid the impression of discrimination.

Vintage audio repair expert and startup founder Ippei Soma shares his story, going from working at a dorm company to starting his own business fixing and selling vintage gear, and then co-founding a startup, Acoustic Innovations. Aaron and Parker discuss SoftBank Group logging a net loss of $13 billion in FY2021 and Japan police urging officers to avoid the impression of discrimination.

What is driving a boom in vinyl record sales in the US and Japan? Why is city pop, a genre of Japanese pop music that emerged in the late 1970s and peaked during Japan's golden age of the 1980s bubble economy, seeing a sudden resurgence in popularity? Aaron and Parker discuss the Yen's 20-year low and a Japanese bird researcher's world-first discovery that birds use words and grammar.

Akiya Hunter and black metal warlock Matt Ketchum shares his experiences learning how to surf and rock climb, and how he scored his first surfboard from an eccentric mountain hermit who has a place in Japan's surf history. Aaron and Parker discuss Japan beginning to relax its foreigner entry ban, and a Japanese soap firm who made their April Fool's joke reality by creating a cat-seducing fabric softener.