WEBVTT 00:00:01.070 --> 00:00:04.530 Hi everyone, it's Yukimi. Thank you for tuning 00:00:04.530 --> 00:00:08.990 in today. If you are new here, welcome. I'm the 00:00:08.990 --> 00:00:11.869 creative mind behind the YouTube and podcast 00:00:11.869 --> 00:00:15.570 show, The Piano Pod. It's a space where I sit 00:00:15.570 --> 00:00:18.390 down with fellow pianists, educators, composers, 00:00:18.730 --> 00:00:22.289 and other artists to talk about where classical 00:00:22.289 --> 00:00:26.149 music is heading. Over the past six seasons, 00:00:26.390 --> 00:00:28.789 The Piano Pod has grown into a real community. 00:00:29.500 --> 00:00:32.500 artists, educators, students, and music lovers 00:00:32.500 --> 00:00:35.259 who show up for thoughtful, honest conversations 00:00:35.259 --> 00:00:38.579 about our field. It has truly become one of the 00:00:38.579 --> 00:00:41.820 most meaningful parts of my life, and if you 00:00:41.820 --> 00:00:44.960 haven't listened to any past episodes yet, you 00:00:44.960 --> 00:00:48.659 can visit thepianopod .com to start exploring, 00:00:48.939 --> 00:00:52.340 whether you want deep conversations, artist stories, 00:00:52.579 --> 00:00:55.560 or a fresh way of looking at classical music 00:00:55.560 --> 00:00:59.820 today. For my longtime Pianapod listeners, I'm 00:00:59.820 --> 00:01:02.579 excited about today and honestly a little nervous 00:01:02.579 --> 00:01:06.980 to share something new and very personal. Alongside 00:01:06.980 --> 00:01:09.319 everything I already do as a pianist, educator, 00:01:09.700 --> 00:01:12.659 producer, and writer, I'm stepping into something 00:01:12.659 --> 00:01:16.060 that feels like the most natural next chapter 00:01:16.060 --> 00:01:19.379 for me. I'm starting a long -term creative project 00:01:19.379 --> 00:01:23.420 called the Zainichi Music Project, and I am thrilled 00:01:23.420 --> 00:01:26.319 to share that it has been approved and sponsored 00:01:26.319 --> 00:01:30.159 by the New York Foundation for the Arts, an organization 00:01:30.159 --> 00:01:33.799 that truly champions artists like me. It's a 00:01:33.799 --> 00:01:36.379 huge step, even though it's just the beginning, 00:01:36.540 --> 00:01:39.959 and it feels like the exact green light I needed 00:01:39.959 --> 00:01:43.939 to finally move into a journey I have been circling 00:01:43.939 --> 00:01:47.480 for decades. This episode also marks the launch 00:01:47.480 --> 00:01:51.219 of my new Substack podcast, Zainichi Music Project 00:01:51.219 --> 00:01:54.819 with Yukimi Song. Since this is the very first 00:01:54.819 --> 00:01:58.659 episode, there is no intro music, no theme, nothing. 00:01:58.939 --> 00:02:02.159 Nothing fancy. It's just me speaking to you as 00:02:02.159 --> 00:02:06.019 a friend. And honestly, that feels right. Starting 00:02:06.019 --> 00:02:08.539 simple feels true to where this project begins. 00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:13.080 Before I go further, I want to share something 00:02:13.080 --> 00:02:16.400 I rarely talked about publicly, a part of my 00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:19.460 identity that shaped everything, even when I 00:02:19.460 --> 00:02:24.000 wasn't speaking about it. I am a third -generation 00:02:24.000 --> 00:02:28.039 Zainichi Korean. My community, generations of 00:02:28.039 --> 00:02:30.500 Zainichi Koreans, didn't end up in Japan through 00:02:30.500 --> 00:02:33.560 immigration. We were brought into Japan's orbit 00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:38.180 through its imperial rule over Korea. Under colonial 00:02:38.180 --> 00:02:41.780 law, Koreans were labeled as imperial subjects. 00:02:42.060 --> 00:02:45.560 It wasn't full citizenship, but it also wasn't 00:02:45.560 --> 00:02:48.520 immigration. It was the reality of being part 00:02:48.520 --> 00:02:51.819 of a colonized population with no real choice 00:02:51.819 --> 00:02:54.719 in the matter. Here's the part that's important 00:02:54.719 --> 00:02:58.300 to understand. After World War II, everything 00:02:58.300 --> 00:03:03.259 changed abruptly. Japan rebuilt itself as a homogenous 00:03:03.259 --> 00:03:06.939 nation. And in that process, the limited legal 00:03:06.939 --> 00:03:10.240 status Koreans held under colonial rule disappeared. 00:03:10.599 --> 00:03:13.840 By the time the San Francisco Peace Treaty took 00:03:13.840 --> 00:03:17.419 effect in the early 1950s, right in the middle 00:03:17.419 --> 00:03:20.240 of Korean War and the division of the peninsula, 00:03:20.979 --> 00:03:24.000 Zainichi Koreans were left with no recognized 00:03:24.000 --> 00:03:28.400 citizenship at all. Overnight, we became effectively 00:03:28.400 --> 00:03:32.539 stateless. Starting from my parents' generation, 00:03:33.360 --> 00:03:36.620 We were born and raised in Japan, yet we grew 00:03:36.620 --> 00:03:40.219 up inside a fragile legal and social framework, 00:03:40.479 --> 00:03:45.080 shaped by forces far beyond our control or understanding. 00:03:45.900 --> 00:03:48.639 This is what makes the Dainichi story unique. 00:03:48.699 --> 00:03:52.000 We didn't arrive in Japan by migration or choice, 00:03:52.180 --> 00:03:55.319 yet we were never fully included in the society 00:03:55.319 --> 00:03:59.199 we were born into. We weren't treated as immigrants, 00:03:59.479 --> 00:04:03.979 and we weren't recognized as citizens. Not by 00:04:03.979 --> 00:04:07.259 Japan and not automatically by either Korean 00:04:07.259 --> 00:04:11.759 state. We lived in an identity gap created by 00:04:11.759 --> 00:04:15.900 history. So for generations, Zainichi Koreans 00:04:15.900 --> 00:04:19.860 have lived entirely in Japan, but always in an 00:04:19.860 --> 00:04:23.819 in -between space shaped by history, politics, 00:04:23.980 --> 00:04:28.899 and silence. Present, but unseen. Living our 00:04:28.899 --> 00:04:32.259 whole lives there, yet never fully anchored. 00:04:32.620 --> 00:04:36.079 or recognized. That is what makes our story so 00:04:36.079 --> 00:04:40.240 distinct. This is the heart of why this project 00:04:40.240 --> 00:04:43.079 matters to me. If you want to hear more about 00:04:43.079 --> 00:04:46.860 my story, the statelessness, the two names all 00:04:46.860 --> 00:04:51.220 Zainichis were given at birth, all of it, I've 00:04:51.220 --> 00:04:54.519 written about it in my Substack essay, Behind 00:04:54.519 --> 00:04:58.399 the Mic, Reclaiming Voice Through Sound. You 00:04:58.399 --> 00:05:02.040 can find the link in the show notes. So all of 00:05:02.040 --> 00:05:05.620 that brings me to this moment. The Zainichi Music 00:05:05.620 --> 00:05:09.199 Project will grow over the next few years as 00:05:09.199 --> 00:05:13.759 a living archive. I will be researching, commissioning 00:05:13.759 --> 00:05:16.639 new piano works to Zainichi Korean composers, 00:05:17.139 --> 00:05:20.980 recording performances, interviewing scholars, 00:05:21.439 --> 00:05:25.259 descendants, and artists, creating documentary 00:05:25.259 --> 00:05:29.720 material, and eventually presenting screenings, 00:05:29.959 --> 00:05:33.819 and public lectures. I know it's a big goal, 00:05:33.959 --> 00:05:37.839 but I'm excited. Now my goal is to bring music, 00:05:37.899 --> 00:05:41.699 history, and lived memory into one space. Something 00:05:41.699 --> 00:05:46.259 honest, human, and grounded. This is a long journey 00:05:46.259 --> 00:05:51.839 and today is just the very first step. So thank 00:05:51.839 --> 00:05:54.100 you for listening and thank you for being here 00:05:54.100 --> 00:05:57.939 as this new chapter begins. If you would like 00:05:57.939 --> 00:06:01.930 to follow the project, Please follow the Zainichi 00:06:01.930 --> 00:06:06.769 Music Project on Instagram or TikTok or both. 00:06:07.170 --> 00:06:10.790 And if you want to support the work, read the 00:06:10.790 --> 00:06:14.129 essays and follow the podcast version, you can 00:06:14.129 --> 00:06:18.029 subscribe on Substack, Zainichi Music Project 00:06:18.029 --> 00:06:21.490 with Yukimi Song. For those listening through 00:06:21.490 --> 00:06:24.529 the PianoPod feed as a bonus episode, please 00:06:24.529 --> 00:06:27.009 continue following our regular bi -weekly show. 00:06:27.129 --> 00:06:30.889 And if you can, I'd be so grateful if you could 00:06:30.889 --> 00:06:34.129 also support this new initiative by subscribing 00:06:34.129 --> 00:06:38.269 to the Zainichi Music Project podcast and Instagram 00:06:38.269 --> 00:06:43.209 and TikTok accounts. More soon, and thank you 00:06:43.209 --> 00:06:45.629 again for being here. Happy Thanksgiving!