If I mention the country Japan, a few things immediately come to your mind. For food, you might think of intricate forms of sushi, or the comforting taste of Shin Ramen with a fried egg on top. For TV and media, shows like One Piece, Cowboy Bebop or any Studio Ghibli movie has solidified a specific idea of Japan into our cultural psyche. However in terms of music, I would like to introduce a genre that not many people are all too familiar with. Presenting: City pop. A music genre that takes influence from all over the world, and has a rich foundation in the renaissance of Japanese culture that took place in the latter half of the 20th century.
What is City Pop and where did it come from?
City pop’s origins lie within the Japanese technological boom that occurred in the 1970s and 80s. New inventions such as the Walkman, cassette tape players in cars and the new-wave Yamaha synthesisers influenced the makeup of the genre, and firmly cemented it as “urban pop music for those with urban lifestyles”.
Whilst Yutaka Kumara’s definition above gives us the feel of city pop, the composition of what makes a city pop song is something that has been widely debated. The genre takes influences from a plethora of places. Jazz and RnB are the two obvious ones, but there is an almost tropical feel to it- reminiscent of exotic destinations like Hawaii or Okinawa. There is also something distinctly American about it too, something that becomes very obvious when you actually take a listen. Combined with lyrics about love, longing and saying goodbye, each song scratches a specific part of your brain, using sounds and notions that you are instinctively familiar with but executing them in the most innovative ways.
A Hiroshi Nagai painting, an artist whose work is synonymous with the genre of city pop (Image credit: Printerval)
Where Should I Start?
Now this is the part where I give you some personal recommendations, and show you a list of some of my favourite artists from the genre. Luckily (or unluckily) for you, I have quite a lot to talk about.
I would highly recommend starting with Anri. Songs like Remember Summer Days are filled with deep bass grooves, punchy synth jabs and brilliant layering of trumpets and horns- not to mention Anri’s fantastic voice that sits in the mix just so perfectly. You are instantly transported to the back of a Cadillac, cruising through the streets of Tokyo with this song blasting full volume from the speakers. If you like what you hear on Remember Summer Days, I would also highly recommend listening to all of the Timely!! album for both a fantastic introduction to city pop and Anri’s discography in general.
For more of a predominately jazzy feel, I would recommend Yasuha. Her most recognised song is Fly-Day Chinatown, a brilliant arrangement of punchy bass guitar, drums and a powerful vocal topline to boot. However, the album Transit, where Fly-Day Chinatown is first featured on, provides a perfect bridge between jazz and the city pop genre as a whole. Diminished chords, catchy piano melodies and syncopated drums and bass feature heavily on this project, and Yasuha’s vocals help capture the listener throughout the entire album. This one’s for the jazz fans, and I can guarantee that it won’t disappoint.
Finally, I would recommend you check out Miki Matsubara. A middle ground between Yasuha and Anri, Miki’s vocals sit perfectly atop light synth patterns, groovy bass lines and horn melodies. Stay With Me is her most popular track, but I would overall recommend checking out the Miki Matsubara Best Collection for a simple, yet inviting, introduction to the genre of city pop. Miki Matsubara brings a very relaxed vibe to the party, and one I can absolutely get behind.
So, there it is. A brief introduction to the genre of Japanese city pop. Of course, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of city pop songs that I haven’t been able to mention in this short article. I hope the recommendations that I’ve provided serve as a good introduction for you to explore this wonderful genre even further.
With the rise of generative AI, and what seems to be a decline in human creativity, city pop stands as a symbol that technological innovation does not mean that every creative part of humanity will be replaced by machines. The tech boom of the 20th century brought the genre of city pop to the limelight, alongside a bunch of new gadgets that improved the lives of people worldwide. However, that did not mean that creativity did not stop with the arrival of these new pieces of tech. The Walkman did not mean that live bands died off. At the turn of the millennia, the arrival of Vocaloid music did not spell the death of the singer as we know it. The rise of technology does not mean the inherent replacement of human expression. City pop should remind you of one thing: to create is to be human, and that shouldn’t be taken away for a second.
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