Should SR sing in English ?

[Akagaminosteven]

I have to say no.

I'll concede that her English is much better than the majority of Japanese artists, but I just don't see it warranting the praise some people give it. I find her English sometimes cute, but for the most part distracting and something that interrupts my appreciation of her music. I don't mind her making the occasional English song or verse every now and then, but overall I'd be all the happier if she strayed away from it.

[badtzmaru]

Hmm, I guess you guys are right. I like the amount of English songs she does right now: b-side covers in singles, one English song in albums, and an occasional English cover during performances. Although I like the idea of more English songs, I guess any more than that would be a bit too much for her level of English which isn't perfect.

And from her recent English songs, I'm starting to think that she has a British accent when she's speaking. What do you guys think?

Originally Posted by Canto

Ringo did write some English lyrics all by herself, like Sigma and Genjitsu wo Warau and Konoyo. And she did loads of translation work in HF session. That proves she has the ability to adopt English as her tool to express herself. The reason why she needs a translator sometimes may be she needs some different flavor to her songs, just like why she asked other members to compose Variety.

Oh, that's a good point. Then I guess I would be more okay with that idea if we knew what kind of person Robbie Clark is. >_< Hopefully he's someone Ringo knows well or is maybe even friends with. I don't like the idea of a stranger editing her lyrics.

[HEDOfloe]

Originally Posted by badtzmaru

Hmm, I guess you guys are right. I like the amount of English songs she does right now: b-side covers in singles, one English song in albums, and an occasional English cover during performances. Although I like the idea of more English songs, I guess any more than that would be a bit too much for her level of English which isn't perfect.

And from her recent English songs, I'm starting to think that she has a British accent when she's speaking. What do you guys think?

Yea, I also think she has a sort of British accent. But isn't that just because she lived over there for a while?

Also, I don't think it would be bad for her to do a greater number of English songs because her English is not perfect, but just because she DOES live in Japan. They like a mix of English and all that over there but I'm sure they would prefer her to still have a majority of songs in Japanese.

[Inaudible-Whisper]

There's no such thing as a British accent :p But if you mean stereotypical middle-class London accent (i.e not Queens English, but not Cockney), then yes, she does sound a bit like that. At least that's the general English accent most people associate with England. The majority don't sound like that, unfortunately.

[kuro_neko]

Originally Posted by Inaudible-Whisper

There's no such thing as a British accent :p

says the brit

then can you explain why many of my japanese friends asked me to fake one? Or, by the same token, there must not be an American accent, so why do American actors and British actors employ the use of both in movies.

I get your point, but to most people Cockney or Queens English or whatever, doesn't matter, sounds the same, just as to many Europeans it doesn't matter if one is from Boston or New York or has a really heavy accent from the deep South, its still American accent.

[Inaudible-Whisper]

then can you explain why many of my japanese friends asked me to fake one?

Because, as I've said, that's how most people think we speak. And I can differentiate between a few American accents. American and British actors use the 'stereotypical' British accent because that's the stereotypical British accent That's how they're expected to sound. Not to mention thick accents like Scouse and Geordie would be too hard to understand.

I get your point, but to most people Cockney or Queens English or whatever, doesn't matter, sounds the same

No, it really doesn't sound the same. It's different for America. Most people worldwide can tell if an American is from the south, or New York or wherever. It might not matter to them, and they'll class them all as American accents, but they can tell the difference. With England, people have a certain expectation for the way we all speak which just doesn't really fit with how a lot of us speak. The only really differentiation we get is 'You're either English, Scottish or Irish'.

When my 'English speaking' friend goes to America (He does so often) he always gets asked where he is from. Surely if we all sound the same, and anyone outside of the country can't differentiate, he'd be instantly classified as 'English'. Or maybe it's just that he doesn't sound like your view on what an English accent should be.

And I have no problem with people classifying actors or Shiina or whoever as having an 'English' accent. Just trying to let you know that we don't all sound like that

[zach]

I think SR's English is pretty awesome. Not awesome because it sounds so natural and native (it doesn't, although it's remarkably good for a non-native), but awesome because she makes it her own unique musical tool. She has quite an "accent," but it's certainly not a FOtB Japanglish accent... it's something else entirely, whether it's an affected thing or just colored by her own lens. Her deviances from standard English are part Japanese accent, part her own thing. Her mispronunciations are delivered with staggering confidence. It makes it a blast to listen to. I think in that regard categorizing her with Björk is perfectly acceptable.

Oh and let me mention that as a songwriter I am totally jealous of SR's ability to write hooky lyrics in her second language.

So I voted yes. Also, if there were a "Should SR sing in <any language>?" poll, I would vote yes.

[badtzmaru]

Zach, you've convinced me yet again. >_< I also enjoyed her imperfect English sometimes, but I had a hard time being okay with her obvious mispronunciations, like 'nuke' and 'dielemma.' I always wondered if she accidentally pronounced them like that, but it's really a part of her style and it is pretty cool.

FOtB

[HEDOfloe]

Speaking of "nuke", I never really made a point to say that it was "wrong", but I just found it cute that she pronounced it that way. But then somebody here, I think Shadynook , mentioned it, and just seeing it written down has affected me and every time I hear the song I think of what he said.

[zach]

I love "nuke." In fact, if I had been her language coach, and she had sung it "correctly," I would have recommended the mispronunciation. It's the same as a vast number of (native) singers who pronounce "again" like "a-GAYn" just for the sake of rhyme. Plus, it's terrifically cute, and fits the song perfectly.

To be fair, she has some indefensible mispronunciations, such as "PRO-stitute" (Genjitsu wo warau). It may be cute, but it still just sounds like a mistake.