As a sonic rollercoaster that defies categorisation, Mixed Ape is a testament to the band’s musical prowess and willingness to push boundaries. Featuring earworm melodies that make you want to sing along without knowing the lyrics, heavy riffs rife for headbanging and jaunty tunes begging for a little shimmying, Osaka Punch have crafted a record that is undeniably fun and original.
For this, and her two US Open titles, Osaka was named Laureus Sportswoman of the Year (Harris, 2021). Athlete-turned-celebrity activist, she used her platform to further the causes of women’s rights and anti-racism. Unlike some other stars, however, Osaka did not seek to soften her activism with apologies and public mea culpas. Instead, she sought to be as precise and efficient in her protests as she was on the tennis court, deploying bold activism shaped by her unique understanding of the world and her place in it.
Whether she was advocating for the victims of 大阪 歌 レコーディング police violence or calling out sexist slurs against her male peers, Osaka’s protests were informed by her perspective as a woman of colour in Japan. She is a minority in a country where racism remains prevalent, and while her stance has won her plenty of praise, there’s been an equal amount of backlash against her — including from within the tennis community.
After her loss to Serena Williams at the 2019 Australian Open, Osaka was accused of being “emotionally unstable” and “acting like a spoiled child,” while she later admitted that she was not mentally prepared for her defeat. It was her first time losing a Grand Slam match and she was visibly shaken.
Osaka was also active off the court, promoting Bodyarmor sports drinks and investing in restaurant chain Sweetgreen as well as creating a line of swimwear and skincare products for people of color (Uwumarogie, 2020). She’s become one of the most successful celebrities to combine athletic prowess with social responsibility.
A self-described ‘foodie’, Osaka’s best-known food is okonomiyaki, a savory pancake-like dish that can be customized with meat, fish, vegetables or noodles. Osaka claims to be the originator of the dish, though the city of Hiroshima disagrees (Uwumarogie, 2021).
As a person who is both Japanese and Haitian, Osaka understands that her identity is complex. She has emphasized that she is not “half anything” and feels both Japanese and Haitian fully, which led to her wearing face masks during the US Open final in New York that bore the names of Black victims of police violence, such as Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd (Lampen, 2020). Similarly, she addressed her tense relationship with the media when commentators minimized her Blackness during the tournament (Gaillot, 2021). It’s this kind of nuanced approach to activism that makes Osaka a potent global ambassador for social justice.
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