Penguin Overseer
My story is an immigrant story. A Mexican immigrant story. 🇲🇽 My name is Cassandra. I was born in Mexico but was brought to the USA while very small and raised over here. My situation is a unique and complicated one. Often times, I get the sense I inhabit two different worlds. American culture and Mexican culture. It can be difficult. Especially when American society at times does not want to accept me despite the fact I have grown up within its culture and have a deep, and often times more expansive mastery of the English language than their own citizens. What I find so funny is growing up and really most of my life what I always gravitated towards was not Spanish or American culture but Japanese culture. So the joke is on them! At first anime but later Japan's music.
But really often times whether intentionally or not things I happen to love have some connection back to Japan. Not sure why but it was through one of Japan's biggest pop culture contributions, anime, that I would eventually come across TK's music. While watching Psycho-Pass (2013) and later Tokyo Ghoul (2014). There was a time I thought the name Ling in Ling tosite sigure was Chinese and it must be a Chinese male singer behind the music. Back then there was not much information about TK-san. This was before TK had many interviews out. I even spent many months if not close to a year listening to Abnormalize by Ling tosite sigure not knowing what TK-san looked like. It was not until 2014 with Unravel I discovered what he looked like. Afterwards, I dove into TK's music. I did not come up for air. I was going through a particularly dark and painful time. I was extremely depleted both mentally and physically at that time due to stress. I think the worst was that nobody really noticed how hard I was struggling. But then I came across TK's music. It helped me cope. It soothed something inside me. It was very cool like cold water dripping onto a burning wound.
From 2013-2023, the present, I have continued to listen to TK's music since it both motivates and inspires me. With 2016, being the year I am certain that I first became a superfan of TK with the song like there is tomorrow (Secret Sensation, White Noise) as the catalyst. Since that time many things have changed: Toru is willing to acknowledge his International English fans, he has gotten social media, has gotten an official fan club which I have joined, and is even willing to disclose more about his personal life (his book Yureru (Shake). I am glad.
