Japan reveals music video for Olympic promotion song

Watch the video at the end of the article!

Earlier this month, Tokyo 2020 released the music video accompanying the Tokyo Gorin Ondo song promoting the upcoming Olympics and Paralympics.

The video features many things characteristic of Japanese summer festivals, such as wooden fans, fireworks, bon-like dancing and people wearing yukata, the summer version of kimonos. “I have a good feeling that fun summers are on their way and that this song and the dance can help take our minds off the stresses of daily life,” said Yuichi Kodama, director of the music video.

The song is performed by established Japanese artists Sayuri Ishikawa, Yūzō Kayama and Pistol Takerhara, whom all are featured in the video.

The original Tokyo Gorin Ondo was released in 1964 to promote the Olympics and Paralympics also held in Tokyo. Although still remembered fondly by older people in Japan, the Tokyo 2020 representatives said that they hoped a reproduction of the song, with updated lyrics and a new arrangement would encourage younger generations to engage in the games.

The word Tokyo Gorin Ondo means “Tokyo Olympic Dance”, the latter word ondo being a special kind of traditional dancing in Japan, commonly seen at summer festivals. Throughout the video past and present are bound together to celebrate 56 years since Japan first hosted the Olympic Games.

The video begins with television presenter and sports commentator Ichirō Furutachi narrating a scene from Tokyo’s busiest hub, Shibuya Cross:

“The neighbourhood that seems to be celebrating Halloween all year round, Shibuya, without further ado is acting as if the games are starting today!”

Scenes of Tokyo in the past during the 1964 Olympics flash by and are tied together with images from the present. “From Tokyo Tower to Skytree, the baton has been past on,” says Furutachi, referring to the representative power of both towers. Since its erection in 1958, all the way up until 2012, Tokyo Tower was the tallest structure in Tokyo, and the main landmark of the city before, during and well after the 1964 Olympics. In modern times, the Tokyo Skytree has taken over the role of highest landmark, making it the new memorable sight for athletes and Olympic tourists.

Past and present are tied together again, as a girl wearing a sci-fi suit flies into the scene, only to reveal herself to actually being Japan’s biggest traditional folk singer Sayuri Ichikawa. Surrounded by both Japanese and foreigners wearing specially designed Tokyo 2020 traditional summer kimonos, Ichikawa commence the song in the traditional singing style of Japanese enka and folk music.

“The moon that I saw in Rio De Janero, now illuminates the city sky,” she sings, surrounded by people of various nationalities dancing the Ondo while wearing specially designed Tokyo 2020 Yukata.

The specially designed yukata has also been made available for purchase along with the release of the video. “The common theme of these engagement initiatives this summer is Happy and Peace.” Said Tokyo 2020 President Yoshirō Mori in a promotional event ahead of the release of the song.

The choreography for the Tokyo Gorin Ondo is displayed in the music video, and has also been made available via Tokyo 2020’s website for community event organisers to use. “We have produced these [yukata] in the hope that many people all over the country will wear the Tokyo 2020 summer festival costumes and dance to the song. We hope that people around the world can thus have a glimpse of Japanese culture,” he said.

Watch the Tokyo Gorin Ondo 2020 Music Video here

I’ll never tire…

I’ll never tire of the mountains in the Japanese landscape. Every time I see them my heart flickers like a school girl’s after her very first kiss

Misty peaks
Countless crumble
Moonlit mountains

Self-introduction

I originally intended to call this blog something along the lines of “An untraditional view on Japan” or “The untraditional Japanese experience”. However, I quickly agreed with myself that such titles were simply too dull and unsatisfying for the things I want to tell.
However, using the word “untraditional” didn’t seem like such bad an idea for a number of reasons.
First an foremost, it breaks with the image of “traditional Japan”, which refers not only to the temples of Kyoto and such ancient sights, but also to the people and their way of interacting with each other; formal speech, traditional greeting and traditional ethics. If there’s anything I’ve learned from staying in Japan, it’s the fact that what we see as “traditional Japan”, is really only the tip of the iceberg, compared to “untraditional Japan”, strongly ongoing beneath the ocean surface! Exploring the untraditional Japan and writing about is what I will mainly strive to do (whilst of course, not forgetting about traditional Japan!)
Second, when using the word “untraditional”, I’m referring to myself. When Japan-freaks like myself search out information (blogs, videos etc.) on the internet, what you will mostly stomp across are blogs written by Americans and/or English Teachers. Not that there’s anything wrong with this, but in my own experience, it left me with a one-sided guide to surviving in Japan: the ALT-guide.

So when I say my Japanese experience is “untraditional”, it’s because of these fact:

1. I’m not American
2. I don’t teach English
3. Almost all my friends here are Japanese

I believe that these 3 factors gives me an opportunity to see a Japan different from other bloggers and foreigners. 

But in the end, I guess that’s up to you to decide. 😉

最初はブログを「日本での非伝統的な表示」とか「日本での非伝統的な経験」っていうようなタイトルにしょようと思ったですよ。しかし、こういうタイトル伝えたい事が伝えきれない、まったくインパクトがないタイトルだってすぐ自分の中で分かりました。
ただ、「非伝統的な」っていう言葉を使うのは、いくつかの理由でよくない考えじゃなさそうでした。
まずは、「伝統的な日本」（トラディショナル・ジャパン）っていうイメージを潰すからです。「伝統的な日本」といえば、京都の神社とお寺だけじゃなくて、日本人がどんな封に他の人と交流するっていうこともあります：たとえば、敬語、礼儀（倫理）。
日本にいる間に知ったことといえば、やっぱり私たち外国人が見える「伝統的な日本」というのは、「非伝統的な日本」っていうものに比べたら、たしかに氷山の一角ということになります。
非伝統的／アントラディショナルな日本をメインにして、そっちを探検しながらこのブログを書きたいと思います。もちろんそれはトラディショナル日本を忘れずに！
次は、「非伝統的」っていう言葉を使ってるとき、それは自分のことも言ってます。自分と同じようなジャパン・オタクがインターネットで日本のことを探したら、ほとんどアメリカ人や英語の先生が書いているブログとか動画しか出てこないです。それは悪いことではありませんが、自分が経験したのは、調べても残った見解は一つしかなかったです：ALT向けのガイド

だから、私が経験した日本が非伝統的だっていうのは、理由三つはあります：

1. アメリカ人じゃありません
2. 英語の教師じゃありません
3. 日本でできた友達はほとんど皆日本人です

この三つの理由におかげで、他のブロッガーと外国人と違った日本を経験していると思います。

でもやっぱり、それを判断するのはあなたですね  d(・∀<)