Pertorika's new music video just may be the loveliest water coloured story ever told. There is something so graceful about this bands style; every guitar lick, vocal harmony and piano flourish is delicately placed in the song with care and thought. Beautiful melodies, a gentle, unique singing voice and emotive sound make for a beautiful, soothing experience. 

​http://www.pertorika.com/

Sou Max is singer/songwriter Sou, and drummer Max. The pair perform indie/folk/pop music and boy, is it mesmerising. It's always impressive when an act can create such an emotive performance with minimal instrumentation, and the combination of Sou's haunting, powerful voice alongside goosebump-inducing softer moments is perfection. 

Get the latest release here: https://itunes.apple.com/jp/album/wake-up-single/1383619677

​http://soumusic21.com/    

A possible scenario upon clicking on this video:

First thoughts: 'KAWAII!!!' 'SO CUTE!!!'

Second thoughts: Wow, they're a really tight band! 

This band contains: a whole lot of pop/rock goodness, uber amounts of girl power, straight up coolness and a bad ass guitar solo.  

Oh, and their hair looks perfect after so much head banging. I need to uncover their secret. 

http://futsutsuka.com/profile.html

The heart and soul of the music community in Tokyo - Jerry Mera is a LEGEND.    

​It's virtually impossible not to feel inspired after seeing Jerry perform on stage. Whether he's jamming out with a rock band, singing and playing an acoustic guitar or sharing the stage with many a musician from all over the world, his groove and enthusiasm is infectious!

Aimer is a pop singer and lyricist. She collaborated with a whole bunch of different producers on her last album 'Daydream' and along with her distinctive, husky voice, the result was magic. Her music really fits in many different pockets, with the opening track 'Daydream' being heavier (in a "Michelle Branch 'girl with a guitar' era" kind of way), morphing into softer, more etherial moments as well as slick, acoustic tracks like the one below. 

​www.aimer-web.jp/

HOLLY: ​Moving overseas is a huge shake up! What was the catalyst for making the move? 
NATALIA: I had always had an interest in Japanese culture from a young age, and I think I had always been preparing to move here one day.
That being said, I feel like Japan is a pretty easy place to live on your own. Everything is so convenient!

HOLLY: ​What opportunities have you had overseas that wouldn’t have been possible in your own country?
NATALIA: A lot of it has to do with the fact that I was living in a small town in the states, but living in Tokyo has made it so much easier to meet people in the same industry as I am. And being a foreigner, there is a really small community of other foreigners doing the same thing, so you meet a lot of people who can give you advice/help you out on a project/introduce you to more artists.
I’ve also been able to meet so many different types of people from all different walks of life. I don’t think my worldview would be the same if I had just stayed in Missouri forever.

HOLLY: How do you handle negativity? 
NATALIA: I’m at a point where I’m so focused on trying to stop being negative towards myself, that I don’t even notice other peoples opinions of me.
In the end I think we all have insecurities, and the things that people say don’t really have anything to do with me, it’s just about how those people feel about themselves on the inside. Knowing that people will talk regardless of what I’m doing really helps.

HOLLY: What has living abroad taught you about yourself?​​
NATALIA: Is this a real question??? like.. I could write a book about this. 
I guess I’ll just say the most cliche thing, but you can really do anything you put your mind to. 
There are ways to do ANYTHING. It’s just a matter of becoming somebody who doesn’t crumble when something doesn’t go perfectly. Like if you fail, get back up and try a different approach.

HOLLY: What is the #1 piece of advice you’d give to an aspiring artist who is thinking of moving overseas?

• NATALIA: When I first came to Japan, I was signed to a big record label, and I thought that it would bring me instant fame. I was obviously very wrong… Have a PLAN! 

What do you want to do here? How will you make it happen? How are you going to support yourself. 
I didn’t do this in my first 2 years here, and I was a mess. Around March of this year, I wrote down all of my goals and how to accomplish them, and I’ve done more in the past 8 months than in my first 2 years here. Having a plan and writing down your goals is so important.

Name: Leah Martin-Brown
Hometown: Burleigh Heads, Queensland, Australia
Current City: Los Angeles, California, USA
What you’re doing: Performing, writing and working hard in a rock and roll band.

HOLLY: ​Moving overseas is a huge shake up! What was the catalyst for making the move? 
LEAH: I was at a point in my life that I wasn't sure what I was going to do next with my music and didn't know how I was going to move to the next level. I received an email from an A&R company in Los Angeles offering me the opportunity to move there for a while and potentially build a professional career over in the US provided things worked out. Almost four years later and I am still here!

HOLLY: ​What opportunities have you had overseas that wouldn’t have been possible in your own country? 
LEAH: I have had the ability to work with some incredible people who would not have been accessible in Australia purely because they are based in the United States. I have been able to share the stage with some insane musicians who, again, would nearly impossible to access otherwise. 

Name: Kate Beck
Hometown: Los Angeles
Current City: Tokyo
What you’re doing: Playing shows around Tokyo, finishing up my EP, and session singing (and a little bit of lyric writing and narration) for commercial projects out here in Tokyo. 

KATE: First of all, thanks so much for having me Holly! I’m a big fan of yours and I love that you’re encouraging this community of female musicians! Unfortunately the music scene/industry here in Tokyo is very male-dominated, so I’m always so grateful to connect with other female musicians and lend support any way I can.
HOLLY: Thanks Kate! :) Thanks for jumping on board and doing this interview, I'm a big fan of your work and you inspire me loads!

HOLLY: ​Moving overseas is a huge shake up! What was the catalyst for making the move? 
Yes, moving overseas is a huge step! I became really interested in traveling and learning about other parts of the world as a teen back in California, and in University I studied World Religions (and music!) and got to go abroad a couple times. I just had this endless curiosity about how other people lived, so I became sure I wanted to spend some time after graduation living and working abroad. English teaching is a great way to do that, and I’m also ethnically half-Japanese, so I settled on teaching English in Japan. I taught on the JET program at a high school in Tokyo for 2 years. In the meantime I spent nights playing at open mics and eventually shows, joining an amazing community of expat and Japanese musicians in Tokyo, and in the last year have transitioned to doing music full-time. 

HOLLY: ​What opportunities have you had overseas that wouldn’t have been possible in your own country?
KATE: Well, on a personal level, I had so much less fear to put myself out there and play a lot of shows because I had less to loose, less people I knew watching me. Because I felt free to make mistakes, I took on challenges I’d probably never have dared face back home (for instance playing live shows regularly—always had crippling stage fright haha—or even stepping into a recording booth to record vocals for a commercial for the first time). I had a lot of room to grow and push myself without the fear of failure that I’m sure we all know too well.
 
Interestingly, there’s a market in Tokyo for Western pop songs for commercials, TV shows, etc, as well as English narration for those commercials or as educational material. There’s a smaller pool of English-speaking singers/narrators, so I’ve been lucky enough to slip into the recording industry here without the kind of competition I would have had in Los Angeles.

The third thing is definitely community—being “foreigners” and expats can be an isolating experience sometimes, so I think the music community I’ve found here (made up of lots of expats and also Japanese natives!, amateur to professional to just listener) sticks together with a strong sense of solidarity because of this. There’s so much love and genuine support amongst each other, playing shows together, promoting each other on their social media sites, going to see each other play live, wearing each other’s band shirts, etc. It's a really positive energy and has made 100% of a difference in my journey as a musician. 
​
HOLLY: How do you handle negativity? 
KATE: Luckily people here are pretty positive and at least polite, so I rarely get rude comments or outright negativity about my music, but sometimes being a musician feels like an uphill battle—lots of work that you don’t always see the fruits of. There are definitely moments of self-doubt, or I’ll have a bad show, or I’m stuck in writer’s block, or I haven’t had a gig in a while. I guess the best way to fight negativity is to find inspiration. For me, going to other musicians’ shows is hugely inspiring, just watching people do what they do on stage and also watching audiences being transported and getting lost together in the moment. I always leave shows or open mics feeling hugely inspired about the transcendent power of music, and it makes me forget about any negative thoughts, and resolve to work harder and push through any tough times.  

HOLLY: What has living abroad taught you about yourself?​​
KATE: I’ve learned how much I value where I come from! That sounds funny, but being so enchanted with the idea of different places probably made me take a lot of things about my home for granted. Being curious and open to new ideas and ways of life is so important, but so is knowing and appreciating where you came from, especially as an artist! 

HOLLY: What is the #1 piece of advice you’d give to an aspiring artist who is thinking of moving overseas?
KATE: Ah, so many things, but #1 is find a community where you’re going (assuming you make that leap! Which I hope you do if you want to!). Search for open mics or meetup groups, on google, ask around, however, and meet other musicians. I bet you’ll find support, encouragement, and a chance to learn the ropes from the people who’ve been doing it longer than you. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there as much as you can—play any chance you can and also go to other people’s shows, ask a lot of questions, watch and listen! 

Hands up if you've ever heard these statements (or said them yourself).

'I want to be a musician but I've got to have a back up plan.'
'My son is working hard at music but he'll have to have a back up plan of course.'
'A career in music is unrealistic.'
'I'm a poor musician'
'I'm DESTINED to be a struggling musician'

WHOA WHOA WHOA. Stop right there! Lets regroup. 

I'll be honest, I've had those statements drummed into me, and once even believed them myself on some level. 

But they're not true, and here's why:

An entrepreneur, tech student or even law student's ambitions are generally met with approval from others where as artistic pursuits are often met with discouragement, or fear. 

A lot of musicians are programmed from a young age to believe that there has to be a never ending struggle,  that you're somehow more authentic if you are a ‘struggling’ musician.

In reality - anyone who is chasing their dreams in any oversaturated industry is going to need a plan and a strategy. We're all in the same boat.

YOU DON'T NEED A BACK UP PLAN...
...but you do need a plan which takes every part of your life into consideration - your happiness, health and finances to think of a few. 

YOU DON'T NEED A BACK UP PLAN...
...but if in effect what you want to do is run your own business, you need to learn skills in that area, or have the resources to hire those that do. 

YOU DON'T NEED A BACK UP PLAN...
...because there are a lot of paths you can go down as a singer/songwriter/instrumentalist. It's important to work hard to be the best you can be, and be honest about your strengths and weaknesses. 

I hope at the very least I've given you a couple of things to consider when thinking about your musical future.

​Let me know what you think below! 

Keep dreaming, working hard to reach your goals, and enjoying life.
​

I love my life in Tokyo but the more days I spend on a train surrounded by concrete high rises, the more I crave nature. 

"Enter Mt Takao"

What is instantly striking about this place, is that there is something for everyone: a cable car for those wanting to take in the sights without a steep walk, beautiful temples and shrines for those wanting a cultural experience, a beautiful looking waterfall and the Inariyama trail - a good ol' hiking path.

We opted for the waterfall trail and then took the Inariyama trail by accident. (note: the signs are in English...I don't know how we got this confused) so it wasn't the relaxing walk we intended to do...

 However! Here are my personal pro's and con's to this trail:

Pros:
* It was much quieter and when we did pass people, we always exchanged a 'konnichiwa'
* I now know this was a sign of mutual respect for entering the climb of pain
* Birds were singing which was lovely
* It eventually links up with trail 6, the waterfall trail.
* I felt bad ass walking up a river crossing.
* There's a lookout that is quite nice 
​
Cons:
* Not a relaxing stroll.
* Begins up a hill of many stairs. Hill continues. 
​* A lot of the other people had walking poles. We could have benefited from this also. 
* If you are catching the train home in peak hour, your legs will feel the burn
​* Not as scenic compared to some of the other trails

 The way down was a completely different experience. This mountain has got some serious temples and shrines. Seeing these beautiful buildings and monuments has got to be one of my personal highlights in Japan so far.

Unlike the Inariyama trail, these paved paths were filled with tourists, families and couples there to enjoy a relaxing afternoon. 

If you've never taken a cable car. Come here just to do that. It's seriously cool and fun. (I recommend listening to 'how to save a life' by the Fray in anticipation) 

​​I also made a vlog of our mountain journey which you can check out here.

 THIS ALL SOUNDS GREAT BUT HOW DO I GET HERE?
Take the Keio Line to Takaosanguchi station. It takes under an hour from Shinjuku station.
 
​Any more questions? Have you been here before? Comment me below! 

I thought about naming this blog post 'the blood, sweat and tears that went on behind the scenes of creating Not The Same' because it certainly wasn't a straight road from A to B. 

I had a very clear vision of what I wanted - many people thought I was channelling Lady Gaga but I was actually drawing inspiration from Japanese shironuri fashion - in particular, the artist and fashion icon Minori. I wanted to wear a dream like, etherial costume that would kind of... blend into the forest.

I also wanted to find an absolutely stunning dress for the shots inside...ala J'Aton Couture. 

I spent days of dedicated, focused music video dress shopping and kept coming back empty handed feeling like I'd wasted a whole lot of time. 

So I went to Spotlight, (a material/arts and crafts store for all you peeps not from Australia), bought a bunch of material and hassled the staff for sewing tips. I had never sewed in my life but I was completely prepared to do it! 

Just as my sewing career was about to kick off (much sarcasm), my friend told me about a really cool vintage store that I should check out, so the next day I headed to Tum Vintage and found SO many amazing things! More material plus an absolutely beautiful silver floor length dress that I decided would be perfect.

I met the owner Jonathan Pampling ,who I found out is an amazing fashion designer, and told him about my project, showing him my inspiration pics and told him that I'd bought a bunch of material. 

To cut a long story short, (pun intended) the material ended up in the incredibly capable hands of Athan and became the amazing piece in the pic above. 

The silver floor length gown? Ta da! Athan upcycled it, making this amazing purple dress. I'm still in awe of the fact of the length of the train - no material was added! Just very strategic cutting. 

I'm so glad I decided not to settle for something store bought. When I was preparing to sew, I actually cut up one of my vintage dresses at home that I quite liked - if quick unpicking a beloved dress to try your hand at sewing for art is not an act of faith, I don't know what is! 

Keep going for it!! 

You can check out the vid here