SNS meets Jun Inagawa

The [adidas Originals SNS GT "Tokyo"](/editorials/adidas-originals-sns-gt-tokyo "adidas Originals SNS GT "Tokyo"") brings back the original "Stockholm GT" shoe from 1980 with a colorway that pays homage to Tokyo. For the campaign, SNS has worked with illustrator Jun Inagawa who blends his UK influences with his signature Manga style for the SNS GT "Tokyo." The Tokyo-based artist has been living abroad for quite some time, however, never in the UK. So how did he get involved with British style, music, and more? Check out the interview below.

SNS : Please introduce yourself.

Jun : I am Jun Inagawa, and I do many things such as writing for an animated TV series, illustrating, and much more.

SNS : Do you mainly do illustrations?

Jun : My main work is illustrating, but recently I have been working on the concept of the story and character designs for an animated TV series, where I draft the original story.

SNS : I've seen you incorporate various aspects of British culture into your work. Can you tell us a little bit about how you came to like UK culture?

Jun : A movie made me fall in love with British culture called "Hooligans," in which soccer fans go to a local pub to support their team and fight rival team supporters. I love anime and manga, and what I saw in the movie reminded me of how otaku gather together in Akihabara and comic markets and how Hooligans in the UK gather. I connected with their culture and fell in love with it. I guess it was because I was very impressed with their lifestyle rather than starting from music or fashion.

SNS : It's amazing that you can connect your roots and interests with UK culture.

Jun : Comic Market is held twice a year, and everyone runs from the station to the venue in search of their favorite merchandise. The venue is Tokyo Big Sight, and it's like the running toward the stadium that I saw in the Hooligans movie. The glare in their eyes at that time matched perfectly, and although we are from different genres, we probably shared the same enthusiasm, and that's why I fell in love with them so much.

SNS : Sneakers like the adidas SNS GT "Tokyo" have been loved by many English soccer fans. This time, we are introducing a group called the Casuals.

Jun : I think it's cool that the Casuals show their lifestyle in their fashion. They don't make it look too much like they are making it up, and I think it naturally shows their lifestyle. Fashion is about the person who wears the clothes that look good on them, and if the clothes don't look good on them, no matter how much you try to imitate from something, they won't look good on you. So I think it's great that the clothes, fashion, and lifestyle match each other. I wasn't really interested in fashion, but rather than trying my best to imitate others, I started to wear clothes that fit my lifestyle and that were similar to the Casuals.

SNS : Did you always like soccer?

Jun : I used to play soccer, and I still play futsal, but I didn't take it seriously. I like to watch it, and I really like Manchester United in England. I had a specific team that I liked, and I supported them, so soccer had an influence on my life for a long time. I like the power of unity and the faces of the supporters, and those elements influence me for my main job of drawing. I also like the drama in soccer.

SNS : You also lived in the US, so you are probably influenced by American culture in many ways too? Do you feel that your current interest in UK culture is different from if you only lived in Japan?

Jun : Overall, how did living in the US influence me? I originally went to the US because of my parents' work, but going to the US gave me the opportunity to see things from a broader perspective, and I was always an indoor person, reading manga and watching anime. But when I went to the US, I met a lot of different people and was impressed by the open-minded culture there, and I had to live with it. When I lived in the US, I was exposed to a lot of different things. It was not because I wanted to be exposed to those things, but because I was in such a natural environment that it became a matter of course. I lived there for 7 or 8 years. Of course, it is important to be exposed to manga and anime culture and to work with them, but I think it is because I lived in the US that I decided to pay attention to other cultures as well. I think it is because I lived in the US that I was able to pay more attention to various cultures, such as UK culture and the culture of writers etc.

Japanese people might force themselves to have an open mind and be exposed to various things, but if you live in the US, it comes naturally to you, and you feel like that is normal. What works over there often doesn't work here, and my personality maybe is too. Often time many people say I am very American but I am not sure about that. I think you have to experience it to understand it. I feel like American culture to not force things. I lived in San Diego, where time really moves slowly, and I felt like I could just do things at my own pace, so when I came to Tokyo, it was very fast, and I felt rushed. I've only been exposed to American and Japanese culture, so I've never been to the UK, even though I say I like the UK. So I don't know what people there are like now in terms of fashion and others. From the movies I've seen and books I've read, I've probably seen books and fashions from the 90s, so I've never seen what England is like in 2022, so I'd like to see what it's like now.

SNS : How is British culture reflected in your work in Tokyo?

Jun : I started to like UK culture from movies, and then fashion, and I thought that the destination of UK culture would probably be music. My father was a big fan of UK and foreign music, like the Clash, and I loved Oasis, Blur, etc. The band that influenced me the most was Gorillaz. I can say that I really started drawing after seeing Gorillaz. I don't say this in other interviews, but Gorillaz has had a huge influence on me. I also like techno and electronic sounds, so I have always listened to Underworld and Chemical Brothers, so everything I like is from the UK. I didn't just happen to concentrate on listening to British music, but the things that I liked and that felt good in my ears came from the UK, so coincidence was a big factor. I often draw illustrations that look like Gorillaz, and many of the parodies I do are of album covers from the UK, so the influence of the art side of my work is significant too. The vocalist of this band is Damon Albarn of the band Blur. Thats how I heard about Blur and how they were rivals to Oasis, and I got to know Oasis and heard a lot of them, and I think that's how I got to know UK music. The characters are all designed well, and they all wear different clothes, and each music video has a completely different fashion and style. I love Japanese animation and music, but I still can't get over the impact of Gorillaz. Personally, from a Japanese point of view, Gorillaz could be called Japanese animation, but Gorillaz is established as Gorillaz, so I think it's really amazing that they have been influenced by so many things, but they make it their own.

SNS : What is your approach to the creation of music?

Jun : I also said that I like UK electronic sounds and techno because I like Karl Hyde of Underworld a lot. About the attraction of electronic sounds, I first fell in love with it when I saw the people in the club, not only from the music, but also because I liked the culture that comes along with the the scene, such as the faces of the crowd dancing around the scene. The sight of the crowd dancing to techno stuck with me. I like the way they are dancing in their own world because they are dancing openly, and I like the rave culture because the video happened to be a video of Underworld's live performance. I started to like playing music so much that I even skipped my illustration jobs. I enjoy making music, playing sounds, DJing, and all of that, because it is all connected to my main work of animation and drawing.

SNS : Please tell us about your thought regarding the shoes

Jun : It's cool to know the flag of Tokyo was purple. People in Tokyo probably don't know that the flag is purple. I personally thought it was really cool that they focused on that and decided on the color. For instance, Japanese people living in Japan don't know much about Japan, and someone from overseas knows more. The reason I fell in love with adidas is simply because I saw in magazines that all of my favorite artists wear adidas, including Karl Hyde of Underworld, the Chemical Brothers, and the most famous of all, Liam Gallagher.