From Sanrio characters to starry-eyed idol singers, it’s no secret that kawaii (“cute”) culture is huge in Japan. Whole museums and theme parks have been dedicated to the concept of kawaii. Heck, it’s ...

For some reason, the Japanese Internet just loves polling its readers about a variety of (often mundane) topics in the form of surveys, polls, and other data collection methods. One of the biggest ...

Manalovesall things colorful and cute — to a certain extent. As she gives me a tour of her bedroom via Zoom, the Tokyo-based singer and lead vocalist of the Japanese pop band CHAI points to a figurine ...

CHAI’s lead singer and keyboardist, Mana, rebels against cute culture by finding beauty in imperfection. Japanese Pop Group CHAI is redifining beauty standards through their fashion and music. From ...