Top of page

Film, Video Follow The Music Interview: Emiko Sugiyama

Follow The Music interview with dancer, mother, physical therapist, Emiko Sugiyama

More Resources

View Enlarged Image
[ Follow The Music interview transcription with Emiko Sugiyama ]

About this Item

Title

  • Follow The Music Interview: Emiko Sugiyama

Names

  • Brickhouse, Junious (Interviewer)
  • Sarakul, Ryan (Recordist)
  • Kell-Abrams, Maya (Contributor)
  • Sugiyama, Emiko, 1980- (Interviewee)

Created / Published

  • Los Angeles, California, March 13, 2023

Headings

  • -  Underground music
  • -  Dance cyphers
  • -  Women dancers--United States--Interviews
  • -  Break dancing
  • -  House music--California--Los Angeles
  • -  Asian American dancers
  • -  Open sessions
  • -  Interviews
  • -  Ethnography
  • -  Moving Image
  • -  United States -- California -- Los Angeles

Genre

  • Interviews
  • Ethnography
  • Moving Image

Notes

  • -  Summary: Emiko tells the story of how she convinced her parents to let her move from Tokyo to California, used dance as a common language while she improved her English, and then contributed to and built various communities in Davis, CA; Los Angeles, CA; and New York City. Emiko is one of the principal founders and organizers of Open House, a weekly house dance session in LA.
  • -  Keywords: African American history; African American culture; Black history; Black dance; Black culture; 2slgbtqia+; lgbtq; traditions; global; electronic dance music; house dance; house culture; club culture; community building; house dance; open session
  • -  Note: Emiko mentions that her best friend is Vanessa Neva, who was also interviewed as part of this project.
  • -  Venue: Recorded at Emiko Sugiyama's Apartment Building, Los Angeles, California.

Medium

  • 1 moving image file (MP4): digital. 1 manuscript file (PDF): digital.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Series: Los Angeles

Source Collection

  • Follow the Music: Exploring Multi-Linear Legacies of House Culture: Community Collections Grant Project, 2022-2023 (AFC 2022/012)

Repository

  • American Folklife Center

Digital Id

Online Format

  • video
  • pdf
  • image

Rights & Access

The American Folklife Center and community fieldworkers who carried out these Mellon-Foundation-funded Community Collection Grant projects (2022-2024) feel a strong ethical responsibility to the people who have consented to have their lives documented for the historical record. Researchers are asked to approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here.

With the consent of the community fieldworkers and people documented in these collections, the Center is providing online access to these materials strictly for educational and research purposes. The written permission of the copyright owners and/or other holders of rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of the items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these collection materials should contact the Folklife Reading Room for assistance. The Center cannot grant permission to use items in its collections, because it generally does not own the copyright to materials in the collections. Whenever possible, however, staff will provide the most accurate information available regarding copyright holders, based on what is known about the materials in our collections.

Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. See our Legal Notices and Privacy and Publicity Rights for additional information and restrictions. 

Ethical responsibilities extend beyond legal obligations. Patrons are responsible for doing their due diligence, which may include obtaining permission from an appropriate cultural authority or tribal government leader to access and make use of a work.

Credit line

Follow the Music: Exploring Multi-Linear Legacies of House Culture, Community Collections Grant Project, 2023 (AFC 2022/012), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Brickhouse, Junious, Ryan Sarakul, Maya Kell-Abrams, and Emiko Sugiyama. Follow The Music Interview: Emiko Sugiyama. Los Angeles, California, 2023. Pdf. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2022012_023/.

APA citation style:

Brickhouse, J., Sarakul, R., Kell-Abrams, M. & Sugiyama, E. (2023) Follow The Music Interview: Emiko Sugiyama. Los Angeles, California. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2022012_023/.

MLA citation style:

Brickhouse, Junious, et al. Follow The Music Interview: Emiko Sugiyama. Los Angeles, California, 2023. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <aj.sunback.homes/item/afc2022012_023/>.