This is what it’s like to be black in Tokyo (spoiler alert: IT’S LIT)

The thought of a black person making it to America is still an insane and very complex idea. We were forced to travel almost 6,000 miles across an unforgiving ocean in chains only to arrive and find that we would be enslaved.

Fast-forwarding to modern times where slavery is a faded rain cloud in America and the world’s dark history, we are now able to travel to foreign places without chains. We are “somewhat” free to think and be.

This fairly new found freedom has taken blacks from around the globe and distinctively placed them in locations you would never expect. The one place that seems to come out of the left field is Tokyo, Japan.

In her recent documentary, Nigerian-American artist Amarachi Nwosu, brings to light a new kind of melanin-blessed being. One that wants to be in Japan.

Nwosu’s documentary, Black in Tokyo, takes you on a tour of Japan’s capital using five different Black perspectives.

Black in Tokyo is definitely aimed at a particular audience. Not a certain race but for those who don’t want to follow a wave that someone else has created. She wants us, the audience, to create our own and be able to shape history, according to a recent interview Nwosu did with Fader.

Dive into the lives of an East African painter, a couple who didn’t second guess about moving to Japan, rapper Antarius Reynolds, and barber Lee Marshal.

Peep what it’s like to be Black in Tokyo

To better understand the woman behind the lens, Nwosu’s eye is an extension of herself. She is a storyteller.

Her background in international communication definitely aids her in seeing the world from a different viewpoint.

The Nigerian-American’s passion proves itself through her content – Nwosu is a self-taught photographer, filmmaker, and writer.

Keep an eye out for her. Nwosu’s work has been featured on CNN Africa, Amuse, i-D, MTV, and VICE.

Lest not forget that she has also produced and shot social campaigns for brands like Adidas Tokyo.

Follow closely you don’t want to miss anything this imaginative being creates. The 10-minute doc is the first of many as Nwosu looks to show the world the perspective of the Black traveler through her platform Melanin Unscripted.