Nebuta first appears in Little Tokyo | August, 2007
On August 19, 2007, Nebuta first appeared in Little Tokyo.
This was the first landing of its kind in the mainland U.S., and debuted as the final float of Nisei Week Parade.
The "Samurai Warrior" Nebuta was created by Mr. Hiroo Takenami, a 20 year-career master artist of Nebuta Floats.
The float was shipped to Los Angeles dismantled in separate pieces and rebuilt upon landing.
The 17 ft tall Nebuta Float “Samurai Warrior” was illuminated with over 600 lights during the parade.
During the Nebuta Parade, more than 200 “HANETO” dancers,
along with the traditional music, played by taiko drummers, Japanese flute players,
and cymbals accompanied the float.
Since 2007, Nebuta has been a part of the Grand Parade during the Nisei Week Celebration held every August in Little Tokyo.
Kodomo Nebuta | 2009
Kodomo-Nebuta was introduced in 2009 for the Nisei Week parade.
The float in 2007 had left an emotional impact on the LA community and requested for us to continue the Nebuta event in Los Angeles.
This was when the “Kodomo-Nebuta” was introduced.
The kodomo-nebuta, literally "child nebuta" is a small Nebuta float, which is created by school children or other small groups in Aomori.
It is designed and created by the children and brings everyone together to participate in the famous Aomori Parade.
Just as the children in Aomori are able to create something and be a part of the festival,
we worked with the LA community to build their own kodomo-nebuta to be a part of the nisei week parade.
Nebuta float | 2009
The second nebuta from Aomori in the Nisei Week Grand parade
Continuing the legacy | 2011 - 2014
A neputa style float from Hirosaki, a smaller region in Aomori.
Nebuta style art
While Samurai Warrior left a big impact, the funds to bring another Nebuta did not happen overnight.
In the meantime, we had donations to add as part of the parade, such as painted works in the style of nebuta,
and a neputa, a float from the city of Hirosaki also known for their parades.
Born in the USA Nisei (Second Generation) Nebuta! | 2015
In 2015, Mr. Takenami's team spent a month in LA to build a new Nebuta, from scratch.
This new nebuta was built and painted in LA, and a new nebuta to participate in the Nisei Week Parade.
Hollywood Christmas Parade | 2015
The Hollywood Christmas Parade is one of the major winter events in Los Angeles,
is in its 84th year; the parade starts on the red carpet in front of the Chinese Theatre and the Dolby Theater
and goes down to Sunset Blvd., a distance of about 3 miles.
Every year, the parade gets a boost of excitement
as Hollywood celebrities, famous people, marching bands,
and enormous floats take part in this joyful occasion.
2015 marked the very first time that a Japanese festival was included in the Hollywood Christmas Parade.
The Hollywood Christmas Parade will be broadcast on TV across the United States.
Nebuta lovers from Japan flew into participate in this monumental experience.
Nebuta has participated every year since 2015 in the Hollywood Christmas Parade.
