Japan artist of the week - きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ

When I first saw Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ), I thought she was a girls fashion model for the Harajuku Kawaii style - which she is - but the 19 year old Tokyo-born Kyary is much more. She now has several best selling singles, appears on tons of magazine covers and TV shows, and this is only in a short span of months since her debut in the summer of 2011. She may not be at the level of complete media dominance of AKB48, not yet anyway, but her crazy seeming style and unusual music has a very unique sincerity and enthusiasm.

Much like Lady Gaga, Kyari combines fashion and music into a whole package. And also like Lady Gaga, she is a created character that is both Kyari and her creation at the same time. It's not that she is just acting out a role - she is both the creation and creator at the same time, with no attempt made to separate them, and a complete honesty about who and what she is.

So now take a minute to listen to her first big single, PONPONPON, and if you like what you hear head over to amazon or iTunes (US or Japan).