What Does it Mean to Really Be Cool

“ Is something hip if nobody is there to see it,” is an interesting premise because it begs the question of needing an audience to validate if something is cool or not.

Since watching the NHK special on Cool Japan, the idea that Japan has a desire to be a world power, and uses their Cool Capital to do that.American recognition is absolutely important for something “Japanese ” to be cool. In regards to YMO, the fact that they got more popular after touring in America is a testament to that. I was surprised to hear that the Hello Kitty was originally supposed to be a white character. According to the Sanrio website, Hello Kitty “Kitty White” born in the suburbs of London. However, I think the appeal in the states is largely based on the fact that people believe Hello Kitty is Japanese.

I feel there is a mutualistic cool relationship between America and Japan. I feel the creators of the Cool Japan video would agree that the Western appeal is important for validating “cool”. Had America not recognized City Pop as cool, city pop probably would have stayed a cool underground subculture, but perhaps not on the global scale that it is popular today. The fact that the Cool Japan video was made was a way to validate the coolness of city pop worldwide from foreigners from different countries.