"Kawaii!", she said in an excited expression. I looked inquisitively at the petite Japanese girl before me, hopefully conveying my utter lack of understanding at what she just said. She seemed to get it, for her next words were an endearing attempt at English; "Berry Pretty!" At that moment, she pointed to my curls, which I had decided to let free for the night. I smiled to let her know I appreciated the compliment, yet, she did not stop pointing. In fact, her finger inched closer to my hair. Before I could stop her, she pulled on a rogue curl and giggled. The oddness of this incident was only enhanced by the fact that we were in the bathroom of a Hip Hop club in Tokyo, Japan. My smile faded a bit. I guess being made to feel like a cute zoo animal tends to do that. But I had to remind myself that this interaction was the result of her enthrallment with Hip Hop and ultimately the African-American culture. Didn't someone once say "imitation is the sincerest of flattery?" However, even this thought couldn't rid me completely of my discomfort.
Cultures around the world harbor a fascination with Hip Hop and Black culture in general, and they fall in love with, copy and often times attempt to make it their own. Many in Japan have taken this to another level and have tried to physically appear like their Hip Hop heroes from America, who are in most cases African-American. In addition to getting their skin darkened, some attempt to create afros, locs and braids out of their naturally bone straight hair. One can even find special salons in Tokyo that cater to these desires of the coily-impaired.Tokyo is a haven for weird and random things, and even with this knowledge, I was still taken aback by dreaded boys in comically sagging jeans and young giggling girls with unnaturally tanned skin. Going to the predominantly Japanese Hip Hop clubs further disoriented me as gyrating bodies flung braids and afros around. Yet, I was amazed at their passion for Hip Hop. They loved it so much, they were willing to look different, believing that this would somehow bring them closer to the spirit of this music-based culture. I did find myself slightly disturbed by their complete surrender to this world, for the one thing I have learned about being natural is loving myself exactly as I was born. Perhaps they will find a happy medium by continuing to have fun with the culture of Hip Hop without having to mask their own natural beauty.
What do you think? SPEAK ON IT!
Cultures around the world harbor a fascination with Hip Hop and Black culture in general, and they fall in love with, copy and often times attempt to make it their own. Many in Japan have taken this to another level and have tried to physically appear like their Hip Hop heroes from America, who are in most cases African-American. In addition to getting their skin darkened, some attempt to create afros, locs and braids out of their naturally bone straight hair. One can even find special salons in Tokyo that cater to these desires of the coily-impaired.Tokyo is a haven for weird and random things, and even with this knowledge, I was still taken aback by dreaded boys in comically sagging jeans and young giggling girls with unnaturally tanned skin. Going to the predominantly Japanese Hip Hop clubs further disoriented me as gyrating bodies flung braids and afros around. Yet, I was amazed at their passion for Hip Hop. They loved it so much, they were willing to look different, believing that this would somehow bring them closer to the spirit of this music-based culture. I did find myself slightly disturbed by their complete surrender to this world, for the one thing I have learned about being natural is loving myself exactly as I was born. Perhaps they will find a happy medium by continuing to have fun with the culture of Hip Hop without having to mask their own natural beauty.
What do you think? SPEAK ON IT!
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