![Code Switch](https://cdn.statically.io/img/media.npr.org/assets/img/2022/09/22/code-switch_tile_npr-network-01_sq-02ce31e198d3918fb20e7c3e519566ba44f86bda.jpg?s=1100&c=15&f=jpeg)
Japanese American musicians across generations draw identity from incarceration
Japanese American musicians across generations draw identity from incarceration
![Japanese American musicians have turned to the story of World War II incarceration camps to explore and express identity, from more recent immigrants to those who were incarcerated themselves.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/26/japaneseincarceration2b_wide-06a89944c380fd534f6b9dded7474915738f78dc.jpg?s=1100&c=85&f=jpeg)
In February of 1942, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the U.S. government issued an executive order to incarcerate people of Japanese descent. That legacy has become a defining story of Japanese American identity. In this episode, B.A. Parker and producer Jess Kung explore how incarceration has influenced Japanese American music — from the camps to today. Musicians across generations turn to that story as a way to explore and express identity, including Mary Nomura, known as "the songbird of Manzanar," Erin Aoyama, a 4th generation descendant of incarceration, and Kishi Bashi, the descendant of more recent Japanese American immigrants who is influenced by that history.
Help support Code Switch and listen sponsor-free every week by signing up for Code Switch+ at plus.npr.org/codeswitch
This episode was reported by Jess Kung, produced by Christina Cala and edited by Dalia Mortada. Our engineer was Maggie Luthar. Greta Pittenger contributed to the research and fact-checking on this episode.