Shokotan is Boss
The first time I heard of Shoko Nakagawa, known by fans as “Shokotan”, was when I stumbled across a picture of her stuffing a cat into her mouth.
Two questions immediately popped to mind – what is wrong with this girl and I wonder if PETA knows? but I was too weirded out to investigate further so I promptly forget all about her. At least until last July when the night before Anime Expo I pulled out the schedule and noticed she was a guest.
Turns out that she doesn’t just chew on cats but is an idol who does, well, a bit of everything. She’s a singer who besides releasing her own albums performed Gurren Lagann’s OP “Sorairo Days”, the movie theme song “Tsuzuku Sekai” and the ED to Hakaba Kitarou ”Snow Tears.” She’s also made a number of TV appearances and done some acting and voice acting (like Suzuna in Eyeshield 21), she’s a gravure idol (bikini model), she cosplays, draws and of course obsessively updates her blog which has gotten over a billion hits and been collected into book form.
Not that I cared about any of that at the time, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see if she was really as crazy as that picture made her seem. So the next day I went to her panel and although I am not easily impressed by celebrities I was nonetheless completely won over because of three things:
1) She did a kickass Bruce Lee impersonation (I love Bruce Lee).
2) She was entertaining and incredibly energetic. Nobody was expecting it to be more than just a Q & A but she even got up and sang “Sorairo Days” for us. Pointing to the heavens included.
3) She’s one of us – an otaku. This is the most important point, let me explain why.
Most singers and voice actors in the anime industry may like anime to some degree but they aren’t obsessed with it. Or if they are, they don’t let it show. They don’t go to conventions and not only cosplay at various times as Yoko, Rei, Nia and Kenshin but even buy doujinshi on the con floor. They aren’t extremely knowledgeable about otaku culture, they don’t audition for a sentai show just because they love the genre so much and they probably don’t stay up all night watching anime. Needless to say, Shokotan does all of this and more.
Why is this important? It’s just nice to see a celebrity like her be so open with her hobby. It’s nice to know that it’s not an act and that even though she’s made it big, she still understands fans because she is a fan. She “gets it.” And of course there’s also the fact that she’s talented and good-looking. I suppose that doesn’t hurt either.
Want More Shokotan?
Check out her blog or the English version which was started for Anime Expo and continued until August. Be forewarned: text smiles and Shokotan lingo ahead. She sometimes makes up her own words as in “giza” which means “very.”
Shokotan just released a new album called Magic Time. I don’t think any of the new songs are quite as catchy or fun to listen to as the ones from her debut album Big Bang and your enjoyment of it will depend on your tolerance for J-pop, but for what it is it’s not bad.
Watch this funny and informative lesson on otaku culture. Stay until the end to see her cosplay… and force the host to:
Remember that scene in Enter the Dragon where Bruce Lee rips off his shirt and goes crazy with nunchucks? Here’s the Shokotan version:
And in case you somehow haven’t heard it, here’s her “Sorairo Days” PV:
Must… resist… urge… to become… a fan!