Staged Seduction: Selling Dreams in a Tokyo Host Club is a new book by Akiko Takeyama, published by Stanford University Press. It is an ethnographic study of the men and women who produce and consume love in Japan's host clubs, examining not only the "fixed times and formal spaces" like the late-night sessions in the clubs themselves, but also beyond.
Why it is very easy to find media reports and articles about hostesses, male hosts are less famous outside of Japan.
And yet arguably, this is the more interesting phenomenon, since there are bars and clubs where you pay to hang out ...
We know that rich Japanese politicians, businessmen and celebrities have a penchant for hostesses.
But feminism happened, don't you know. It's not just the men having all the fun.
According to the tabloids, there are plenty of prominent female celebrities who are addicted to male hosts, a habit which costs them dearly.
Josei 7 magazine recently published a report claiming that actress Yoko Maki had once spent ¥20 million in a single night at a host club!
The 33-year-old divorcee, known for her stunning breasts, clearly liked the services she was given.
Maki's not ...
Like most places, older politicians in Japan are no strangers to sex scandals: from gay prostitutes to forcing young sportsmen to kiss them or even putting bondage club visits on the expense books.
And it's not just the politicos. The bureaucrats are at it too.
In 1998 seven senior civil servants in the Ministry of Finance were arrested and charged with corruption. They had received favors from figures in the finance world, such as trips to a "no-panties shabu shabu" establishment in Tokyo's Kabukicho.
Japan's anti-prostitution laws -- paying for penetration is officially illegal ...
Ever hired a lady of the night and then changed your mind? Tried to cancel and had trouble with the girl or her handlers?
One man had such a problem in Kabukicho but ended up on top, legally speaking.
Yukie Shimoyachi, a 30-year-old prostitute, was arrested earlier this week for extortion. She had forced a man to pay her a "cancellation fee" of ¥50,000 ($410) in the early hours of September 27th.
The man had been lured by a street tout in Kabukicho (lesson of the day: DON'T trust those guys) with the promise of a lady who could provide full penetrative sex services (technically ...
It seems whenever the western media wants something saucy, they make an article or video about Japanese hostesses.
Vice did a 24-hours-in-the-life-of video of a "high-class hostess" last year.
Now the BBC has jumped in with this interview with a Kabukicho hostess.
As a hostess at a club in Shinjuku Kabuki-cho, Emiri Aizawa, 27, pours drinks, lights cigarettes and listens to men.
"My main job is let them have fun," she says.
"Of course, there have been customers who asked for more, because we are men and women, but I politely say, 'No.' "I don't think you can do this job ...
Directed by Ryuichi Hiroki, Kabukicho Love Hotel (Sayonara Kabukicho) came in 2014, promising to be a dark romance.
Okay, let's get something straight.
As you might expect, star Atsuko Maeda may have left her AKB48 days behind her but unsurprisingly she does NOT strip off in this movie. (Apparently after Maeda was cast the script was radically changed.)
Instead we have to make do with modest nude scenes and sex scenes starring members of the supporting cast.
As the title suggests, the film is set in a love hotel in Tokyo's sex capital, Kabukicho.
Actually, the main (and best) sex scene ...
Google is essential for ours lives -- searching for information, browsing images, checking a location on a map.
It can even help you pick the right love hotel.
Love hotels have their own websites and there are also plenty of portal sites with information on the various amenities and features at each facility.
Needless to say there are images.
But none as detailed as these provided by Google Street View, which lets you tour a love hotel in the heart of Shinjuku's Kabukicho.
The Designer’s Hotel & Spa Pasha Resort is more fancy than kinky, but sometimes that's what you ...
We spend a lot of time indulging in images of hot girls and the like here on Tokyo Kinky.
What about the guys?
Well, if you've ever wondered about the life of the male host and his world of wining and dining female clients, now is your chance to find out more.
Vice Japan have produced another short documentary looking at Naoki, a top Japanese host at Club Fantasy in Kabukicho. Naoki is so good at entertaining and getting his guests to drink (more overpriced beverages) that he has been awarded the top prize among hosts for his sales. He is now a manager as well, despite being in ...
Remember how we blogged about Soineya in Akihabara in 2012? It's the "bed-sharing" facility where you can get to snuggle up with a cute girl for some shut-eye... charged by the hour.
About this time last year Soineya opened its second store in Shinjuku's Kabukicho and caused a stir with its new service: Oshiri-makura, ass pillow.
As you know, we like Japanese girls' asses.
It's still there in Shinjuku, though the "menu" of girls hasn't been updated in over a year. We couldn't resist blogging again about this truly awesome service. This is what you will look like...
Be ...
A new film is about to be released that promises, so its marketers say, to have only 18 minutes of clothed scenes in its 123-minute running time.
Ai no Uzu (Love's Whirlpool) is written and directed by Daisuke Miura, adapted from his award-winning 2006 play that won him the top drama prize in Japan and has since been performed in Europe.
It depicts a Kabukicho sex club where singletons and couples gather to share their bodies. Miura is no stranger to visiting such establishments himself, so the rumors have it, so no doubt the portrayal is realistic.
The play and film are less ...
