While the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics has come and gone, a singer named Aya Nakamura confused Japanese netizens watching the event.
Aya Nakamura, pictured above from her performance in the Paris 2024 Olympics, immediately caused confusion across the Japanese slice of the internet.
Responses from Japanese netizens had many users wondering if she had any connection to Japan, as she had a very Japanese-sounding name.
Many posts on social media immediately began pointing out that Aya Nakamura (アヤナカムラ in Japanese), whose real name is Aya Danioko, is actually from Mali and has no connections to Japan.
For those wondering where her very Japanese-sounding name comes from, she chose the stage name “Nakamura” after the character Hiro Nakamura from the American series “Heroes.”
Nakamura’s home country of Mali was a French colony from the late nineteenth century until its independence in 1960. While their written language is officially French, the predominant spoken language is Bambara.
“Aya Nakamura has no connection to Japan,” said one user while also pointing out the embarrassing fact that “the Olympic flag is upside down.”
Another user said “I liked Aya Nakamura when she first became famous, but since then I’ve had mixed feelings about her cultural appropriation of Japan and Asia.”
The latter part of that last response was echoed by many other users on Japanese social media.
Eagle-eyed watchers of the performances also noticed that Nakamura, Lady Gaga, and other performers seemingly lip-synced their live performances, while the iconic Celine Dione actually sang live even though she was feeling ill.
A very common response to Nakamura was a joke that her name reminded users of actor/singer Yusuke Nakayama, who goes by the stage name Yusuke Santamaria.
It’s worth pointing out the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics was held partially outside of the stadium for the first time in history. Opening performances, the torch relay, and more parades were held along several kilometers along the Seine River in Paris.
Japan hosted the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo despite intense pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic and international politics, the latter of which is strictly forbidden to be shown during the Olympics Games.
