In New York City, it’s that time of the year again. When birds are singing, Central Park is abuzz, drunk people wander around the Lower East Side all nite long, and it’s time for Asian films! Subway Cinema is once again throwing the New York Asian Film Festival with a monster schedule this year. (Check it here.) To sweeten up the summer even more, Subway Cinema and Ningin are combining forces to give out TWELVE free tickets to (almost) any screening of the NYAFF. How do you win? Easy. Follow these instructions and no one gets hurt: More »

23 Comments

As promised, here’s Tina Chou’s photo recap of Japan Day @ Central Park! Check out the kids doing their version of the Japan Run. I think the distance for each kid’s race was 50 feet for each year old they were. Plenty of bonding time over some traditional Japanese board games. And tons of drinks and food being cooked and given away free as a thank you to New York City. Artists performing included Orange Pekoe, Ai Kawashima (pictured), Yaz Band, Taro Masuda, and Soichi Muraji. Wish you were there now? More »

43 Comments

Japan Day @ Central Park! I’ve lived in this neighborhood for 6 years and have never seen so many people, Asian or non, at the 96 St subway station. Tens of thousands of people came out to take enjoy the fantastic weather, with a sudden spring shower interruption, in New York City’s Central Park with a festival of Japanese sights, sounds and tastes. More »

43 Comments

Tomorrow is Japan Day in New York City. If anyone is going, you just might find me there. I might be the only girl wearing a Ningin t-shirt. I dunno how yummy the food will be, but it should be fun to try! For now, here’s a list of tasty Japanese food to look at.

43 Comments

Japan Day @ Central Park returns this year to New York City, Sunday, May 31. Among the entertainers will be Kollaboration 2009 winner Kenichi Ebina, Jpop singer-song writer Ai Kawashima, and Japan Gold Disc Award winners Orange Pekoe. The festivities will be held at the East Meadow of Central Park (Fifth Avenue and 97th Street). There’s lots of food and music — and it’s all free! Take my advice and go early else there won’t be any chow mein, gyoza, gyudon Over Rice, miso soup, and sanuki udon noodle left. (Yes, I have learned the hard way.) More »

28 Comments

Local New York City cable news channel asks YOU to vote for “Who Will Be America’s First Asian Pop Star?” You’ve got Wonder Girls, Se7en and Utada on the voting ballot.

Ummm… Where’s BoA? Yeah. Nice diss, NY1. More »

16 Comments

Jpop starlets Ai Kawashima and Minami Kizuki will both be performing next weekend in New York City to celebrate Sakura Matsuri at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. Minami Kizuki will perform at 4:15pm and Ai Kawashima will perform at 5:15 on both Saturday, May 2, and Sunday, May 3. Minami Kizuki is a 19-year old new star on the Pony Canyon record label with a powerful voice. Her latest single (pictured) is a double release — “Dareka No Tame Ni / Wasurena Gusa” (誰カノタメニ / ワスレナグサ). Ai Kawashima will be making a live appearance at Kinokuniya Bookstore Friday afternoon before the Cherry Blossom Festival. More »

33 Comments

NYC Japanese party promoters Soundscape and Ningin are teaming for a special Jpop Party! In less than two weeks, Club Elevate in New York City will be bumping with the latest and greatest from Hamasaki Ayumi and Amuro Namie. Reduced admission for saying NINGIN at the door and free admission if you come in cosplay! More »

25 Comments

Meet Ningin’s KRAZY! Online Cosplay Contest winner Ali Bader! The fifteen year old cosplayer from Ohio travelled to New York City to compete in the KRAZY! Cosplay Contest and Party at Japan Society. Ali took a break from writing for quizilla.com and horseback riding to talk about the six days it took her to arrive on stage in New York City. More »

31 Comments

For all the talk about how Asians are the model minority in this country and how much disposable income we have, there’s not much talk about how 10.2% of Asians in this country live below the poverty line. That number is higher of course in urban areas. More »

42 Comments

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is prepping for its annual Sakura Matsuri on May 2 & 3. The weekend-long family festival is a celebration of Japanese culture and arts. This year over 50 performances are scheduled that include taiko drumming, an anime voice actor panel, bonsai pruning workshops, Jpop DJs, and a traditional kimono show. In the meantime, you can keep track of the gradual blooming of the Garden’s more than 200 cherry trees online with the CherryWatch Blossom Status Map! More »

19 Comments

Ningin reader Minakocat sent us a recap of her unforgettable backstage and on-stage experience with the Wonder Girls in New York City…

After a 10 hour drive to New York, I arrived the next day at the Concert Hall early in order to practice the dance and go once through rehersal. I got to meet all the other dancers! They were all soo fun to hang out with, especially since we were from all over the place! We were just practicing the dance when we heard “Yoobin check.” We all dashed to the stage to watch Wonder Girls rehearse. More »

55 Comments

Ningin reader Penguin Dude sent us a recap of his awesome backstage and on-stage experience with the Wonder Girls in New York City…

I arrived at the Manhattan Center Studio a little before 4pm for rehearsal with the other YouTubers. After we all met, we were give instructions about exactly when and what we were going to perform. We all started practicing “Nobody” and were teaching it to those who didn’t know the dance as well. More »

55 Comments

“Paco and the Magical Book” will have its American premiere in New York City, Tuesday, April 7 as part of New York-Tokyo’s ANA Nippon Eiga Series. The screening is free with RSVP, but seating is limited. “Paco and the Magical Book” is directed by Tetsuya Nakashima whose credits include “Kamikaze Girls” and “Memories of Matsuko” (an absolute favorite of mine). More »

28 Comments

OK ok ok, so maybe I’m not supposed to say this but… Wonder Girls are coming back tomorrow! They’re on the plane right now! I was soooooo tempted to say it at the end of the Wonder Girls Top 10 Reader Questions. I had some self control then… but I can’t keep it a secret any more!

I’m going to try to make it out to JFK Airport tomorrow around 8pm with a nice big “Welcome Back, Wonder Girls” sign. Anyone else going?

Updates: Flight Korean Air KE85 arriving at 8:25pm, Terminal #1. Yes, this information is 100% correct. Wonder Girls are moving to NYC! Yes, moving as in staying, living, getting mail, all in NYC!

71 Comments

Wow, what a weekend in New York City! The cosplayers, the anime fans, the manga maniacs and the Jpop listeners showed up in full force for the KRAZY! Cosplay Contest & Party! It was completely and absolutely sold out with another 100 people waiting outside just hoping to get in. Special guests include Akihabara singer Reni, World Cosplay Summit 2009: Team USA (& 2008!), head of New York Anime Festival Peter Tartara, and Ningin! The winning cosplayers were phenomenal. Be sure to check both photo galleries one and two! More »

72 Comments

Wonder Girls are in Korea now, but they answered questions from Ningin readers over email. Originally we were going to ask your questions in a video interview. Unfortunately, both Wonder Girls’ and Ningin’s schedules didn’t work out before they left for Korea.

We got a lot of questions sent in from Ningin readers. In the end, we picked 10 questions to send the Girls. Do you see one of yours? More »

59 Comments

We’re just days away from the KRAZY! Cosplay Party and Contest in New York City! This Saturday, Japan Society will host the KRAZY! Cosplay Party and Contest to celebrate the opening of the the exhibition “KRAZY! The Delirious World of Anime + Manga + Video“. The exhibit, party and contest are all included with tickets for this Saturday, March 28. More »

72 Comments

Se7en has left New York City. Life has returned to normal here, but it was one crazy weekend. Jeanette Eng and I managed to sit down with Se7en for some sun and fresh air overlooking Fifth Avenue. We almost didn’t catch it on camera because of a faulty microphone, but Dan Fisher came thru for us in the clutch. He was the official videographer for Se7en’s NYC visit. The man flew all the way out from Seattle. No joke. I don’t want to bore you with camera talk, but Dan knows his stuff. And who wouldn’t want to have his job? More »

48 Comments

A big thanks to the BoA fans that came out to Club Touch in NYC last nite! It was awesome to hear “Look Who’s Talking”, “Eat You Up”, “Touched”, and “Energetic” on the big sound system. I won’t forget when the cheers went up from the dancefloor when we started off with “Look Who’s Talking” then going straight into a special video edit of “Eat You Up”. My favorite was “Touched” which got a response of “This track is hot!” from the DJ crew. More »

54 Comments