Pretty Intense デザート: Japan Edition—Part One, BIG IN JAPAN
Katya Delaney’s Desserts series is your semi-frequent installment of all things internet (and a few things internet-adjacent).
You don’t need me to tell you that the Internet nerd-Japanophile connection is strong. The Japan-obsessed American archetype as we presently understand it is approximately forty years old (!!) and the phenomenon, more generally, of Westerners having a special interest in Japan is even older than that. (Just ask Edward Said — but that’s another Dessert for another time. 😬)
To honor that connection, we’ll be doing a series of installments all about how Japan has helped shaped Western Internet culture. Join me as we embark on an adventure through everything from emojis to image boards to influential cats.
Today, we start with two expats, a British schoolgirl, and one shy Pennsylvanian who tried to become Big in Japan… using the World Wide Web.
What Does “Big in Japan” Really Mean?
Being “big in Japan” is a phrase that doesn’t just describe being famous in Japan.
For example, Naruto, an anime with characters whose image bedeck Japanese skyscrapers, buses, trains, aquariums, and commercial shipyards, is not “big in Japan.” It’s definitely famous, it’s without a doubt Japanese, and it’s famous IN Japan, but it’s not “big in Japan.”
Being Western is a precondition to being “big in Japan.” The phrase was coined back in the ’60s when bands like The Ventures saw widespread success in Japan, but not larger “more desirable” markets like the US and UK.
In the 1960s, the sentiment was othering and chauvinistic. People thought, “look at this thing that’s too weird for us to like, but the Japanese seem to love. Isn’t that funny?” These days however, people strive to be big in Japan, or to create a product that is. It’s not a consolation prize, it’s the primary goal.
Not all people achieve this goal, but plenty of people try — including and perhaps especially YouTubers.
Enter: Gaijin Tarento
Welcome to “Gaijin tarento,” or Westerners who have made a career of being famous for being famous in Japan, and all in fluent in Japanese.
Western people, places, and products that have found widespread success in Japanese markets always — without question — embody Japanese expectations of what the West should be, while still being palatable to Japanese audiences.
This usually amounts to a friendly mockery of the West, which makes the whole “well, the Japanese seem to love it” train of thought kind of ironic. Historically, Westerners have misread success in Japan as the Japanese having bad (euphemistically described as ‘kooky’) taste. Really, it’s just an appreciation for kitsch.
Making Sense of Gaijin Tarento
This might be a difficult concept to understand, but let’s use Italian American food as an example. I’ll say this with the disclaimer that this is reductive, but bear with me.
For a long time, Italian food in the United States rarely represented actual Italian food from Italy, even if it was prepared by Italians or Italian-Americans. It was a genre all its own: never distinguished geographically, menus that were familiar and in some sense, standardized, and prepared to meet the expectations of American palettes. We even have our own “Italian” dishes that can only be found in the States (e.g. garlic bread, spaghetti and meatballs, alfredo, the list goes on) — when you get down to it, it’s a product for and by Americans. What Italian food in America does, however, is meet an American expectation of what Italian food (and by extension, Italians) “should” be. It’s our perception of Italy, and their cuisine, as opposed to a true-to-life representation. Italian food isn’t the only kind that gets this treatment, either.
So — back to how this relates to Japan.
That whole “Americanized version of insert ethnic enclave’s food here” thing that we’ve got going on in the states? It exists in Japan, too, but for more than just food.
In Japan, Westerners who are able to fulfill a specific image of the West can find fame by virtue of being able to fulfill this image. These “gaijin tarento” are informal spokespeople for their home countries.
During the Japanese economic boom of the 1980s, it was easy to find reliable commercial work and celebrity in Japan using this strategy. An interesting thing to note is that these people are not necessarily famous in their home country. In fact, they almost never are.
“Gaijin tarento,” just like the products and people who become “big in Japan,” are curiosities, meant to satiate a fantasy, one that doesn’t fall too far outside the Japanese comfort zone. There’s a great 6-minute long documentary about the first wave of gaijin tarento here.
Complicating Factors
Here’s where it gets complicated: what happens when Westerners fashion themselves to meet Japanese expectations of the West, using distinctly Japanese mannerisms?
It’s like if an Italian-from-Italy came to Nebraska and started doing non-stop chef kisses and had an over-the-top mustache in an attempt to meet the Nebraskan expectation of what “Italian” looks like.
The airs that Italian person is putting on are a distinctly American invention, and a fellow Italian, unaware of the existing stereotypes, might read them as play-acting as an American, instead of behaving like an American idea of what Italians look like.
Now, think of how problematic that gets from the perspective of a Westerner, watching a fellow Westerner role-play as what the Japanese think a Westerner should be, using Japanese mannerisms, fashion, and language. How would you know that they’re doing a parody of themselves through the lens of Japanese humor? You wouldn’t!
And that’s part of the reason why people who try to become gaijin tarento and fail are all the more confounding to those of us who are out of the loop.
“Gaijin Tarento no Youtube”
YouTube’s Gaijin Tarento
Scores of young Westerners come (or try to come) to Japan with the intention of achieving some amount of celebrity, akin to gaijin tarento. They have varying levels of success: some make it into advertisements displayed in Tokyo’s famous Shibuya Crossing, others become models and TV personalities, and some still just get mocked off the Internet by 4chan.
Below, I’ll introduce you to four of them:
Magibon
Magibon became famous for her minimalist YouTube videos, where she looked straight into her webcam. It started in 2006, when she uploaded a video entitled “Me doing nothing.” Sometimes in her videos she would blink or say a few words in Japanese, but they never went beyond that.
In 2008, two years after her initial video, her popularity skyrocketed in Japan, where she appeared on several television shows and magazines. She was labeled the “next Leah Dizon,”* a popular gaijin tarento of the mid-aughts. Magibon did not find lasting success, but she is one of the most iconic examples of Westerners who went viral in Japan via YouTube.
Applemilk1988
Good old Applemilk1988. She’s my favorite Western-YouTube-personality-who-absconded-to-Japan. She’s also one of the most controversial on this list.
Have you ever heard the word “weeaboo”? As in,non-Japanese people who are obsessed with Japan to a fault?
We don’t have Applemilk1988 to thank for its genesis, or even its popularization, but I will say this: I can’t think of another person who’s dealt with as much harassment as Applemilk1988 for her alleged weeaboo status. If you’re curious about her full story, you can check out her entry on the EncyclopediaDramatica here.
She started with a series of fun, DIY, and of course “pretty intense” (her catchphrase) Japanese lessons. Eventually, she moved to Japan, where she tried to kick off a singing/modeling career. The short version? She achieved moderate popularity, then moved back to the United States.
Venus Angelic
Venus Angelic, AKA Venus Palermo, is special because she satisfies two categories of internet celebrity. She’s not just famous for being a Westerner (she’s white) who achieved some level of popularity in Japan; she also helped kick off the “living dolls” craze of 2011–2013.
Dakota Rose
Dakota Rose, also known as KOTAKOTI, is a model living in Japan. Her sister was also internet famous — any scene kids here remember Kiki Kannibal? There’s been a lot of controversy about how she represents herself; she may or may not actually look the same online as she does in real life. Either way, her unique look (or masterful photoshopping skills) earned her a modeling contract. She continues to enjoy a cult following online, composed of equal parts fans and haters.
Beckii Cruel
Finally, Beckii Cruel: arguably the most successful person on this list. She became famous in Japan after a video of her 14-year-old-self dancing went viral. She went on to become a singer, record deal and all.
Final Thoughts
I am not Japanese and it is not my place to make a value judgment on how J-Vloggers approach Japanese culture. My theory is they are following a formula in an attempt to appeal to a Japanese audience, but I can’t say if that formula is respectful or the right thing to do.
Cultural appropriation and respect for national identities outside of our own is something we should keep top of mind — so as you digest these stories, consider: how might you feel if you saw this happen in your home country?
*Leah Dizon has been excluded because she did not become popular via YouTube. She’s an actual gaijin tarento!
Further Reading:
Japan’s Gross National Cool
How Japan Copied American Culture and Made It Better
Linguistic Nationalism and Fictional Deception: Metapragmatic Stereotype of Non-Japanese in Japan
The Japan Times’ Coverage on J-Vloggers
JapanToday’s Coverage on Dakota Rose
Wacky Japan: A New Face of Orientalism
