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An American friend recently posted a poster he spotted in Kyushu on social media with the comment, “Someone at the Nagasaki tourism board getting creative.” It was this eye-catcher poster at left.
The poster is actually part of a new promotion by JR Kyushu to promote seven sightseeing areas around the city of Nagasaki. Japanese pop culture-loving readers might already be savvy to the reference they are making, but the aggressive sounding tagline seems rife with confusion for international visitors. When I shared the photo to see what people thought, responses from abroad were largely befuddled.
“Nagasaki! Meet seven of our many young men!” “[I] think ‘Naga-saki on this, pal’ would have worked better with the target market of jaded commuters.” “Should I know who these guys are? Is it a musical group or something? It seems weird to have all men of a similar age on a tourism poster. Like ‘come to bro-town!!!'”
While we can’t rule out the possibility that JR Kyushu wanted to rebrand Nagasaki as bro-town, this is indeed a popular boy band called Kis-My-Ft2. Disappointingly, the tagline is a reference to their name, not the train company telling commuters to plant their lips where the sun don’t shine.
And for those now wondering if a reference to foot fetishism is any better suited for an ad campaign, the name is supposedly an acronym of the members’ names: Hiromitsu Kitayama, Kento Senga, Toshiya Miyata, Wataru Yokoo, Taisuke Fujigaya, Yuta Tamamori and Takashi Nikaido, “ni” being one way of reading 2 in Japanese. Why they chose that particular acronym, we couldn’t say.
Given the popularity of Kis-My-Ft2 among young Japanese and the attention-grabbing tagline, this is sure to be a successful campaign for Kyushu. We certainly hope so anyway, because while Nagasaki may not be all that smoochable, it is a great place to visit.
Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Don’t get your lips stuck to this Coke bottle made entirely of ice -- Food art so cool you don’t want to eat it, but mmm…pancakes!!! -- This suave chap is apparently a girl! Don’t believe us? We don’t believe our eyes either【Photos】
© Japan Today
22 Comments
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Yubaru
Right.....I'll take Kumamon over these guys any day of the week!
Aly Rustom
They should have added an extra S and capitalized both of them plus the A that comes before them. That would have been more suitable.
inkochi
This has nothing on 'fukupi' a few years back.
Jeff Huffman
I wouldn't kiss your Nagasaki for . . .
One of the "serious" discussion about Japan post-Gulf War was when it was going to become a "normal country" again. Nonsense like this convinces me that the JSD could develop a crack spec-ops team that successfully infiltrates N. Korea and brings down the regime without a shot fired to a world chorus of "Hallelujahs" and Japan would still never become a "normal country" or even one to be taken seriously.
Yes, I know none of the Engrish is meant for foreign consumption, but it certainly is a testament to the fact that post-war Japan has never taken seriously the acquisition of any foreign language, particularly English. I guess it's Tojo's revenge. It wasn't always so. Prior to WWII, people studied, and mastered in appreciable numbers, German, French, English, Korean and Chinese.
BertieWooster
All the funnier when you consider that, in order to come up with this masterpiece, there must have been endless meetings, reports and brain storming sessions, not to mention "experts" called in to give advice.
Gokorosan!
Speed
I like Nagasaki but I wouldn't want anything to do with those girly boys.
GW
Haha I spent most of Nov last year in FUK & stayed near Hakata station & the infamous big hole!!
And this sign was there in its huge glory, snapped a pic & forwarded it friends a couple of which asked if Nagasaki translated to a.....well....a ...you know what in English LOL!!!
GaikokuJim
I thought it was a joke with "kiss my a.." but well, here we are, another band of obasans. No wait, they are 'boys'?
I don't get the point of this fascination for boy bands where boys have an effeminate look.
Sabrage
Seven girls on a poster doesn't sell it to me. Sorry Nagasaki.
gokai_wo_maneku
Yeah, considering what usually comes after "Kiss my ..." in English, I wonder how tourists are going to react to this. And considering that it is Nagasaki.
wtfjapan
I don't get the point of this fascination for boy bands where boys have an effeminate look. they're called herbivorous men!?
TigersTokyoDome
I would like to recommend a similar 'kiss my' promotion for the current deputy prime minister and finance minister, Aso.
ThonTaddeo
I'm just glad the charming village of Asuka in Nara prefecture is already popular and has no need for this kind of ad.
Laguna
Reminds me of that Three Amigo's scene: (Mexican beauty): "We could take a walk and you can kiss me on the veranda." (Startled Chevy Chase): "The lips would be fine."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ipGbyhypqs
Daniel Neagari
As a trilingual... that slogan is wrong is so many levels and in at least two languages....
smithinjapan
(plants face in palm). Some day they'll ask native speakers if something is a good use of English or not. Some day... in the meantime, they can kiss my... Osaka!
veejay
This is even better considering that you translate the kanji for Nagasaki as "long horn"
Jeff Huffman
Daniel NeagariJAN. 18, 2017 - 03:58PM JST As a trilingual... that slogan is wrong is so many levels and in at least two languages....
English, Japanese and katakana? ; )
BertieWooster
Whenever I write something in Japanese to post publicly or send to someone I ALWAYS get my wife to check it because although I speak Japanese well, my writing is poor and I almost always make mistakes.
Why don't Japanese people do this when they are writing in English?
Is it pride or what?
If they knew how stupid some of the mistakes make them look, perhaps they might think differently.
I remember visiting a hotel in Fukushima - a very large - quite plush hotel. As is the custom in such places they had a large room set aside for weddings. This had a large and probably quite expensive sign above the entrance that said, "Bridal Hole!' I kid you not! I think it was supposed to be "Hall," but I didn't say anything because I didn't want to spoil the fun.
Jeff Huffman
smithinjapanJAN. 18, 2017 - 05:59PM JST (plants face in palm). Some day they'll ask native speakers if something is a good use of English or not. Some day.
Oh no they won't. At the school where I taught decades ago, the non-English speaking advertising department would routinely create promotions for the school containing English, but not show it to one of the native speakers on the staff until it had already been approved by other non-English speakers and gone to the printers. This hasn't changed in 30 years so why should we expect any change now. Just wait until about two years before the Olympics and Engrish this and Engrish that starts showing up around the country. Again, the Japanese just don't care.
Pukey2
I don't get it. English is not the official or national language and only a very very small percentage can speak it well. You just don't need English to get by. Can you imagine UK making slogans in Arabic o̶r̶ ̶U̶S̶A̶ ̶m̶a̶k̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶a̶d̶s̶ ̶u̶s̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶R̶u̶s̶s̶i̶a̶n̶.̶
kurisupisu
Don't you all know that it's a stealth campaign to bring in the 'pink yen' to Nagasaki......