The Asian Reporter
Pacific Northwest News q Volume 26 Number 21 q November 7, 2016 q www.asianreporter.com
Comedian Pikotaro astonished
by viral success of “PPAP” song
Oldest giant panda
Jia Jia dies at age 38
Page 2
Famed “Afghan Girl”
appears in court
Page 4
VIRAL VIDEO. Japanese comedian Pikotaro performs the “pen-pineapple-apple-pen” (“PPAP”) song at a press conference in Tokyo on October 28, 2016. Pikotaro,
who is behind the viral “PPAP” hit, said he is astonished by the global success of the song. Dressed in his trademark yellow outfit with snake and leopard patterns, Pikotaro
debuted a two-minute “long” version of his 45-second song before taking questions. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
By Ken Moritsugu
The Associated Press
OKYO — The Japanese comedian
behind the viral hit “PPAP” is
astonished by the global success of
his “pen-pineapple-apple-pen” song.
Dressed in his trademark yellow outfit
with snake and leopard patterns, Pikotaro
debuted a two-minute “long” version of his
45-second song before taking questions at
a Tokyo news conference.
His responses had the packed audience
of journalists and others laughing, but it
was often difficult to separate fact from
fiction.
He expressed amazement that a song
that he said cost 100,000 yen ($1,000) to
T
Kirk apologizes for
Duckworth comment
Page 8
produce in a six-hour session in a rented
studio could explode worldwide.
“The internet is amazing!” he said.
In the song, Pikotaro, as the 53-year-old
character who performs it is known,
mimics stabbing a pen into an apple and a
pineapple while singing simple English
lyrics and dancing to a catchy beat.
The performer, whose real name is
Kazuhito Kosaka according to Japanese
entertainment news media, was little
known before “PPAP” took off in
September.
The song initially was popular among
Japanese students, then started spreading
globally and got a major boost when pop
star Justin Bieber tweeted it was his
favorite video, Pikotaro said.
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“PPAP” has more than 155 million
YouTube views and was the first Japanese
song to get into the U.S. Billboard top 100
singles in 26 years. Guinness World
Records recognized it in late October as the
shortest song to make the top 100.
It has also spawned 40,000 lip-synching
copies uploaded to the internet.
Pikotaro said it feels great to be
imitated, and that those from India are his
favorite so far. He discouraged imitators
from using real fruit, though, deeming it
wasteful.
“There’s actually a theme when I’m
singing,” he said, ticking off world peace
and love of family and friends. “And then,
to prove the existence of dark matter,” he
Continued on page 7
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