East & South Asia
The sound of Japan
The deepest music market outside the United States and the least exported, which is why so much of it feels like a discovery decades late. City pop, visual kei and Japanese noise share almost nothing except a willingness to commit completely to a form.
1,992 artists in the catalog.
What Japan does that nowhere else does
Genres far more common here than across the rest of the catalog. The multiplier is how much more common, weighted by how many artists carry it.
Five records to start with
Not a canon — a way in. Each one links to what it is, who it's for and where to go next.
Japanese artists worth walking into
Ordered by how much we can tell you, not just by how well-known they are.
AKB48
J-pop · bubblegum music
Where to start →Gackt
rock music
Where to start →Dir En Grey
alternative metal · extreme metal
Where to start →Mr. Children
pop rock · power pop
Where to start →Mika Nakashima
J-pop
Where to start →Yumi Matsutoya
J-pop · city pop
Where to start →Misia
J-pop · rhythm and blues
Where to start →Glay
rock music
Where to start →Do As Infinity
J-pop
Where to start →Kumi Koda
Hi-NRG · J-pop
Where to start →Every Little Thing
J-pop · pop rock
Where to start →Porno Graffitti
J-pop · alternative rock
Where to start →