Annual Weekend-Long Pop Culture Celebration to Present Video Game-Inspired Artists and DJs Source: MediaLab press release, NEWPEOPLEWORLD.com Official Site: j-pop.com Special Thanks to Erik Jansen NEW PEOPLE, a dynamic entertainment destination bringing the latest examples of Japanese popular culture to North American shores, invites the Bay Area to get its dance groove on at this year’s 2012 J-POP Summit Festival as the company continues to expand the event’s roster of live programming. Celebrating the Festival’s theme of “Cyberpop Overload,” a just-announced full slate of video game-inspired artists and DJs will feature mesmerizing and danceable sets from Random Encounters, The Glowing Stars, SpaceKraft, DJ Amaya and Vex Mode. More performers and artists will be announced next week! The annual J-POP Summit Festival, now in its fourth year and presented in association with the Japantown Merchants Association, will be held across San Francisco’s Japantown district on Saturday, August 25th and Sunday, August 26th. The event is FREE to attend (although some individual attractions charge a modest entrance fee). The live musical performances will take place on the main stage of Japantown’s spacious Peace Plaza, located across the street from the NEW PEOPLE venue which is at 1746 Post St. Additional information about the J-Pop Summit Festival is available at J-Pop.com. Dates and performance schedule is subject to change. RANDOM ENCOUNTERS – Saturday, August 25th Random Encounters is the wily otaku team responsible for producing comedic musical numbers based on popular video games. Their show-tune-inspired shorts have developed a massive online following and have caught the attention of game developers at Nintendo, Namco and Electronic Arts. The group’s first music video, inspired by Sonic the Hedgehog, won them a trip to Tokyo and the interest of Sega of America, who has become a recurring ally in their quest to celebrate gaming as musically -- and humorously -- as possible! More information on Random Encounters is available at facebook.com/GameMusicals. THE GLOWING STARS – Saturday, August 25th There are many chiptune artists, but not a lot of chiptune bands. The Glowing Stars, which consists of guitarist/vocalist Lizzie Cuevas, drummer Game Boy, and synth programmer Matt Payne, combine the clicky waveforms and perfect arpeggios of 8-bit processors with the fury of live drums and distorted guitars. Influenced as much by Frank Zappa and Freddie Mercury as Mega Man and Metroid, the band’s wistfully emotional lyrics are more boy-meets-girl than Game-Boy-meets-boss. With customized game hardware sharing the stage with 100-watt half-stacks, The Glowing Stars are half Weezer, half Wario and utterly unique. More information is available at facebook.com/theglowingstars. SPACEKRAFT – Saturday, August 25th SpacEKrafT is a performance group that re-creates a futuristic interactive travel environment complete with flight attendants, ground crew, video projections, sound chairs, interactive music equipment, personality feedback station and interactive art. The crew of SpacEKrafT also interacts and instructs the persons inside the exhibit. More information on SpaceKraft is available at myspacekraft.com. DJ AMAYA – Sunday, August 26th DJ Amaya has been DJing and producing his own original tracks and remixes since 2002. He is known best for his underground remixes of the Japanese superstar Ayumi Hamasaki and pop idol group AKB48 as well as a variety of Vocaloid music. DJ Amaya’s podcast “Hitsuzen Radio” features the best in Japanese remixes, and dance music from around the world. More information on DJ Amaya is available at djamaya.com. VEX MODE – Sunday, August 26th Vex Mode is a DJ and musical artist who started producing video game music in 2005 under the name David Nereus. Vex Mode will join the 2012 J-POP Summit with the pulsing beats of Japanese Rave music (J-Core) remixes to kick off the festival! More information on Vex Mode is available at facebook.com/vexmode. “Japan has long been a global Mecca for electronic entertainment and innovation and we’re very excited to welcome an array of musicians, DJs, and artists that are inspired by Japanese pop culture in some way or another,” says Seiji Horibuchi, the President/CEO of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. and Co-Chairman of the J-POP Summit Festival Committee. “This year we will present one of our most robust music line-ups yet, with a variety of rock, pop and electronic artists all set to perform. We invite music fans of all stripes to enjoy a ‘Cyberpop Overload” and savor a truly dynamic weekend that will be the 2012 J-POP Summit Festival.” A variety of other pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, theatrical film premieres, live art performances, celebrity appearances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands are planned for the 2012 J-POP Summit both inside the NEW PEOPLE complex, and outdoors at the adjacent Peace Plaza. Innovative artists from Japan will join a variety of product merchants and food vendors from the Bay Area to offer an array of pop-inspired products and delicacies for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street, the main Japantown thoroughfare. NEW PEOPLE opened in 2009 and has become a unique must-see attraction of San Francisco’s cultural landscape. The 20,000 square foot contemporary venue features the latest examples Japanese popular culture expressed though film, art, fashion, and a variety of specialty boutiques and ongoing monthly events. NEW PEOPLE is located at 1746 Post Street in the city’s Japantown.

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About NEW PEOPLE

Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE Inc. offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as through licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE Entertainment, a film division of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA.