Home » City Guide »

J-Pop Festival

One of the biggest Japanese pop culture fests in the country
By - posted 7/16/2014 No Comment

Japantown hosts one of the country’s biggest J-Pop culture events of the year with the 2014 J-Pop Summit Festival, a two-day event taking place  for more than 80,000 people.

J-Pop Summit Festival
Sat & Sun, July 19-20, 2014 | 11 am-6 pm – Japantown Peace Plaza, SF
Sat, July 19, 2014 | Noon – 8:30pm – Union Square, SF
FREE (most outdoor events are free)

This one of a kind event will feature the best in modern Japanese films, fashion, music art, retail design, and pop culture all weekend long. Enjoy everything from dance performances to anime exhibitions, as well as food trucks, specialty vendors, and more.

  • Japanese Fashion Show – Saturday at 1pm | Japantown – The dynamic fashion show will feature a number of popular Japanese models including Una, Ayumi Seto and Misa Kimura..
  • Pocky Eating Contest – Sunday at 3:15pm | Japantown
  • J-Pop Idol – Sunday at 11am | Japantown
  • Cosplay Masqarade – Saturday at 4:30pm | Japantown
  • Ramen Street – Sat & Sun 11am to 6pm | Japantown on Post Street – Six ramen shops that have gathered from LA, Las Vegas, SF, and even Japan will sell unique version of Ramen at $8 a bowl
  • Live Music: Japanese pop singer Kylee, the U.S. debut of the kimono cosplay idol duo Yanakiku and the hard rocking sounds of J-rock bands Pinky Doodle Poodle, the over-the-top Black Diamond and the all-girl punk rock trio, The Akabane Vulgars on Strong Bypass and more.

Plus one of the highlights is Saturday all day at Union Square with vendor booths, cultural performance and an event concert.

J-Pop Live Concert at Union Square
Saturday July 19, 2014 | Noon to 8:30pm
Union Square, SF
FREE

12pm to 5pm: Traditional Art Performances

  • Cal Raijin Taiko (12:00pm, 1:00pm, 2:00pm) – Powerful Taiko drum performances
  • SF Awakko-Ren (3:00pm, 4:00pm) Japanese Awa-dance, atTraditional dance from Tokushima prefecture

 6:30pm to 8:30pm – J-POP Live

  • 6:35pm: Una – Harajuku fashion model/singer
  • 6:55pm: Daichi – Human beat-boxer
  • 7:15pm: Tokyo Girls’ Style – U.S. debut of popular idol group
  • 7:50pm: Tomomi Itano – Former member of AKB48, U.S. concert debut of pop music superstar
  • 8:10pm Mayn – Japanest pop/anime singer (not a concert, just a “hello”)

Most of the general festival is free to attend including the fashion shows and the live bands on both days.