Rising Japan MusicFest debuts in Norco with a musical and culinary celebration of Japanese culture

The artists performing will vary from rappers to reggae singers to DJs to pop groups and boy bands, but they will all be there with the same goal of celebrating Japanese culture at the inaugural Rising Japan MusicFest.

The festival will include performances by more than a dozen Japanese and Japanese American artists on two stages.

“This is a celebration of Japanese music and culture, both nostalgic music like big hitters from the ’90s to more current Japanese performers. We’re bringing OGs from Japan as well as Japanese artists trying to do music in the U.S.,” said Tiffany Saito, who will emcee the weekend event taking place at the SilverLakes Equestrian and Sports Park in Norco June 11-12.

It’s expected to attract up to 4,000 people a day to the venue.

Besides music, the celebration of Japanese culture will also dig into the country’s culinary side with sake and Japanese beer tasting and a food court with booths and trucks serving traditional and modern Japanese food.

The food lineup will include Rated R Burger, which is known for the wagyu beef ramen burger as well as Japanese egg roll makers Egghausted and small traditional Japanese chain restaurant Shin-Sen-Gumi.

“This event is really for everybody because there is music and food and sake, it should be just a nice outing. And even if you don’t understand the language the music should resonate with everyone,” Saito said.

On the musical side, Saito expects the artists to draw crowds from all cultures since the music festival will cover the gamut of genres.

Among the headliners is Micro, a member of Japanese pop duo Def Tech, who called themselves a “Jawaiian” band because of their fusion of Japanese and Hawaiian music. Micro will be performing original music as well as covers of Japanese songs.

Also on the bill is an old-school rapper from Japan named Zeebra.

“He really opened the door to rap music in Japan in the ’90s,”  Saito said.

And fans of boy bands will be able to dance along with the seven-member Travis Japan group while fans of reggae and dancehall can check out Japanese-born singer Minmi.

And Los Angeles will be represented by A Page Unturned, a pop-punk band whose sound is reminiscent of bands like Blink-182 and New Found Glory.

The second stage meanwhile will be the main spot for DJs and a more whimsical experience since this it’s dubbed the “Bubble Stage.” So yes, expect to see bubbles floating all over the place while DJs spin dance tracks.

“This will have more of a club vibe,” she said.

Rising Japan MusicFest

When: Noon- 10 p.m. June 11, noon-8 p.m. June 12

Where: Silverlakes Sports Complex, 5555 Hamner Ave., Norco

Tickets: $40-$280

Information: risingjapan-musicfest.com