By Lyla Bariso
As an indie songwriter, I’ve done many open mics to get practice performing in front of an audience, introduce my music to a new audience, and meet fellow musicians. When I travel, I love to take the opportunity to explore the local music scene while I’m there, and I was determined to find something in Japan. I kept forgetting about it until my last week while I was coaching in Tokyo Shinjuku, but eventually I found an event online that sounded perfect for me: an Acoustic Open Mic Night at a small venue called eltopito!
The online description was written in both Japanese and English. It described their casual atmosphere where anyone can play two songs, and that there would be an acoustic guitar to borrow–great for me, who wasn’t able to bring my guitar to Japan and wanted to practice! Additionally, the description said there’d be an hour of English conversation before the music started, but I’d have to miss that part. I wondered if there would be other foreigners present and performing music in English.
The open mic was the night after the last day of coaching, so I knew most coaches would be busy with their post-Global English Camp festivities. While I couldn’t find any coaches who wanted to go, I knew I’d be fine because I’d been training all summer to navigate Tokyo’s transportation. I successfully took the Odakyu line from Shinjuku station all 37 kilometers to this fairly quaint area called Odakyu-Sagamihara; a one-hour trip. The venue wasn’t far from the station, and I could soon see tonight was going to be the true “hole-in-the-wall” experience. One interesting part of Japanese urban architecture is things are pretty clustered together, so tiny spaces for businesses are stacked on different floors in the same building. Once I got to the correct street, signs for different businesses were everywhere, and it took me a while to find the tiny sign saying eltopito with their adorable dog mascot. Another sign mentioned “eltopito English Club” on the third floor, and that today’s conversation topic was, “Which can you tolerate more: sweltering heat or freezing cold?”
I heard the sound of women singing and playing guitar growing louder as I climbed the stairs. The venue was cozy, intimate, and looked something like a living room. Cozy couches, rugs, and coffee tables filled the space. A calm audience group of various ages sat at the corner couch under beaded dreamcatchers. Amplifiers, microphones, guitar stands, a small piano, and a romantic disco ball lit up the small performance space as two women sang a guitar ballad. Various trinkets and dolls decorated the intricately organized shelf behind the singers.
Source: https://www.meetup.com/tokyo-acoustic-open-mic/events/308725616/?eventOrigin=group_past_events
I made my way to the counter, talking to the owner to pay the entrance fee. I spoke in a combination of English and Japanese, assuming English was fine since they’d just had English Club, after all. Of course, I’d forgotten the fee was almost certainly cash only, and I hadn’t brought enough. “I’ll be back shortly,” I said as I made a brief adventure to a Lawson ATM.
Once I was back, I took another look around and noticed everyone was speaking Japanese! I was surprised that no English-speakers in a similar situation to me had discovered the posting online and admired its openness to English-speaking. I told the owner in Japanese I wanted to perform, and he wrote down my name and said there were three more acts and then I’d perform! I ordered mint-flavored tea and made myself comfortable in a seat in front of the performances. I set my tea tray on the table behind me.
After the next act ended, the two emcees and a nice woman sitting near me asked my name and where I was from. I explained I was doing an internship coaching English for Toshin High School, and they thought it was so cool! The woman next to me, Maria, offered me her chips, Jagarico, and I said I loved these when I worked at Daiso in Chicago.
I realized it would be polite to introduce my performance in Japanese, and a good chance to practice my language skills. As I watched the next performers, I anxiously rehearsed all the sentences for my self-introduction over and over again. One older woman performed a sweet rendition of the traditional “You Are My Sunshine”. It was my turn. I picked up the guitar and the disco lights and attention went on me. I spelled the name of my band: “In English, it’s L-Y-L-A-J-E-A-N,” as the owner quickly interrupted me, saying in English, “One more, please!” Light laughter went around the room as I spelled my band’s name once again, and the owner repeated the letters to ensure he got it.
I performed my songs “But When I Know Who I Am” and “Airpush Down the Stairs”. I felt so grateful for everyone’s kindness, and also proud of myself, as the whole audience, although small in size, erupted in applause for me. I sat back down and people had many questions for me. The woman who’d performed “You Are My Sunshine” earlier wanted to practice her English with me. We talked about her English teacher who was in the US now, and it was interesting to hear her passion for the language. I did the same, practicing my Japanese and making it a bilingual conversation. I made sure to tell her to visit Chicago if she ever came to the US. I felt a bit silly taking people’s attention, as it was the next performer’s turn to go, and he looked me in the eye, smiling and saying “Can I sing?”
I had to leave, as I was getting up real early tomorrow for another adventure. I thanked my new friends again from the bottom of my heart and went back to the station. It took almost two hours to get back, as I had to back to Shinjuku and then go north to Kawaguchi. The open mic night was such a last-minute plan, and a bit scary to go so far east of Tokyo all by myself, but it was truly everything I’d hoped for–everyone was nothing but welcoming, and I got to explore and connect with the local scene.
