INDEX
Launching the web magazine “NeoL” to give back to the culture that supported us.
Celeina：You are currently the editor-in-chief of the culture web magazine “NeoL”.But when did you start working in publishing?
Kuwahara:It’s been so long ago that I don’t remember exactly, but it was right after I graduated from university.
Celeina: What made you choose the publishing business?
Kuwahara: I’ve always loved books to the point that I originally wondered if there was a job where I could just read books. I thought about becoming a librarian or a bookstore owner, but I felt that I didn’t read as many books as I thought I would, so I decided to try my hand at being a creator. Since then, I have worked in editorial work for a major publishing company, fashion magazines, and then culture magazines.
Celeina：Have you loved books since you were a child?
Kuwahara: I grew up in a strict family where TV and music were restricted, so books were the only things I had access to. Inevitably, I was the student who read the most books.
Takano: Is there something similar to a reaction to growing up that made you fall in love with K-pop?
Kuwahara: I already had a reaction from my school days. I was selfishly inspired by Pippi from “Pippi Longstocking” and Snufkin from “Moomin”, who were doing what they wanted to do, and I thought, “I will not go on rails. I remember sneaking into my parents’ study to watch TV and listen to Western music.
Takano: That is a great episode. Perhaps it was because of these restrictions that we were able to launch Culture Magazine.
Celeina：We also read “NeoL” and found it to be a good read, with information on the latest movies and articles on vegan restaurants in Korea.
Takano: Do you curate the articles with your own taste?
Kuwahara: Rather, there is nothing that is not curated. I started “NeoL” partly as a way of giving back to the culture that stimulated and supported me in my repressed life. So, I want to be sincere about culture, and I want to deliver it to people who, like me, are looking for salvation and feel the need to “go somewhere other than here.
Celeina: I found the article to be a source of comfort.
Takano: I hope everyone will check it out and read it. Now, we would like to play one song here. I asked Ms. Kuwahara to choose a song that he would like everyone to listen to together on the radio at this time. Please tell us the reason for your song selection.
Kuwahara: I’m currently reading the artist’s autobiography, and I think it is directly related to the issue of “objectification of women” that Ms. Suzuki mentioned yesterday. I chose “Toxic” by Britney Spears because I feel that she has been expressing herself in a more independent way recently.
