When did they start: November 1, 2010 (on MTI Countdowns)

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: August 5, 2015.

How many episode(s) did they participate in: 168 (including episodes from MTI Countdowns)

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 25: Japan Top 10 Best J-Pop Hits Of 2013- I remember I had booked a professional office space in downtown Toronto to record this episode with Sandra, Tim and Andy (who started our sister show, KTop 10). I had a lot of fun playing games (some of which was featured on the episode) and burning Sandra’s tongue (with an extra hot drink). Okay that was not so nice for Sandra, but it was all fun and I really had a fun time that day all dressed professionally in an office space (we were college students during that time, so it was a very different experience). 

A little bit more about them: Sandra is the mother of Japan Top 10! She and Producer Jack jointly began Japan Top 10 in 2013 after she was actively involved in the now default show, MTI Countdowns (which is now the name of the organization of Japan Top 10 and sister show, KTop 10). Sandra loves Japanese music and in particular vocaloid music.

When did they start: December 30, 2013.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: January 1, 2016.

How many episodes did they participate in: 47

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 101: Japan Top 10 Mid/Late August 2015 Countdown- I recorded this episode with Tim in the hotel during our trip to Chicago, it was quite memorable as I had also got him a random drink from Mitsuwa Marketplace, which he ended up enjoying (you can hear his taste test at the end of the episode). 

A little bit more about them: Tim was officially Japan Top 10’s second host/staff member to appear on the show! He’s able to understand basic Japanese and loves Japanese culture.

When did they start: June 7, 2014.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: February 1, 2017.

How many episodes did they participate in: 52

A little bit more about them: Shane was the first host to be dedicated to the artist of the month episodes (before Ethel took over, shortly after he left)! His beloved voice on the podcast will be well missed; have a listen to his episodes and you’ll hear the effort he puts into the episodes he hosts.

When did they start: September 27, 2014 (on MTI Countdowns).

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: August 22, 2017.

How many episodes did they participate in: 54

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 83: Japan Top 10 Early/Mid May 2015 Countdown- One of his first episodes on Japan Top 10 (as a full time host) and Sandra had joined him to introduce him to our listeners. It was memorable as it was recorded in our college and the two of them had the pleasure an unboxing of a Perfume CD album (at the end of the episode). 

A little bit more about them: Nick went to the same school as Producer Jack and was in their radio program, so what better way to gain some experience with what he is studying than to join Japan Top 10! Nick originally joined us on our default show, MTI Countdowns and when that ended, he transitioned to Japan Top 10 and loved the new experience with showcasing Japanese music!

When did they start: March 25, 2016.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: November 2, 2017.

How many episodes did they participate in: 47

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 188: Japan Top 10 June 2017 Special: The Origins Of J-Rock- hosted by one of my favorite hosts, DC, Jordan really showcases his knowledge in Japanese music with this episode. 

A little bit more about them: One of our first content producers that did not engage in any hosting responsibilities, Jordan was an external applicant who joined the podcast from the USA and created some of the most memorable episodes on the early days of Japan Top 10. With his help on content production, the episodes transformed to a more educational and informative production.

When did they start: November 1, 2016.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: November 30, 2017.

How many episodes did they participate in: 25

A little bit more about them: Darcy was a professional who had prior experience in a local radio station near Ottawa, Canada. As a result of Darcy’s help as an audio editor, the episodes became more professionally produced. His audio editing skills were amazing and you were able to hear the difference with his support!

When did they start: May 2, 2017.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: July 7, 2018.

How many episodes did they participate in: 14

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 230: Japan Top 10 April 2018 Special: Viral Japanese songs of this decade so far- People ask me what is Japan Top 10. And this is the episode I show them. This episode really is one of my favorites; it was very well produced and the host’s commentary really shows in this episode. Have a listen. And you will know why Japan Top 10 is a show that everyone loves. And who doesn’t love these well known viral hits?

A little bit more about them: DC wasn’t with our podcast for a long time, but her hosting skills were solid. She had previously had experience working in the BBC and some local radio stations in Europe. Have a listen to one of her episodes and you’ll see how she transformed Japan Top 10 to the next level in terms of the production.

When did they start: January 12, 2013 (on MTI Countdowns).

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: July 31, 2018.

How many episodes did they participate in: 113 (including MTI Countdowns)

A little bit more about them: Paul was our audio editor and also supported the organization through being a board of director member for a period of time. Paul helped greatly with the development of the organization and his support both as an audio editor and contributor to the initial board of directors and foundation of the organization as a non-profit. Not only that, he was with the organization for over 5 years and participated in over 100 episodes, including ones from our previous show, MTI Countdowns.

When did they start: May 1, 2016.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: July 10, 2019.

How many episodes did they participate in: 42

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 297: Japan Top 10 Cultures #6: The Future of Anime in Japan- You can really see how knowledge Will is with anime on this episode. Overall a great episode that he had a keen interest in hosting; in fact it was recorded after he officially stepped down from the podcast as an on-air host. 

A little bit more about them: William was one of Shane’s friends who had joined the podcast and devoted his love for Japanese culture to our team, as an on-air host. Will continues to be part of our board of directors on MTI Countdowns and was actively involved in the creation of our organization.

When did they start: September 30, 2017.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: August 7, 2019.

How many episodes did they participate in: 32

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 260: Japan Top 10 Cultures: Beyond Cute: Kawaii Culture and Sanrio- Our very first cultures episode was scripted and produced by Amanda! She put in a lot of effort shaping our cultures themed episodes, which continues to follow this format that she crafted with my assistance. A very informative episode talking about the Kawaii culture in Japan, listeners alike can learn something interesting from our very first cultures episode.

A little bit more about them: Amanda was one of the early content producers on our podcast. She followed the footsteps of Jordan and Andy (yes the host Andy who was originally a content producer) and continued to provide amazing scripts to our hosts to use for their episodes. Her work was much appreciated and often she is mentioned by the amazing interesting facts she presents

When did they start: September 22, 2015.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: February 16, 2020.

How many episodes did they participate in: 69

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 312: Japan Top 10 Cultures #9: Discover the City Pop Vibe- Recca was a huge fan of city pop music and with Dean, the 2 hosts really had a great time sharing their love for city pop. Their knowledge in this genre really plays out in this episode and you can really hear it in their informative commentary.

A little bit more about them: Recca was the heartbeat of the podcast. She was our first international staff member who joined our podcast (from Texas); as prior to her entrance, we were all college students from Toronto producing this show. She had applied to us as an external staff member and joined us originally as an on-air host. As the years progressed, she’s assisted us with everything from sales, content production and even some audio editing from time to time. All good things do come to an end and she ended her journey with our organization in the beginning of 2020. Recca has immensely shaped the podcast to the what it currently is like today.

When did they start: March 26, 2017.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: June 30, 2020.

How many episodes did they participate in: 53

A little bit more about them: Miki was an all important supportive member who helped us behind the scenes in many ways that listeners probably don’t really get to see. She primarily assisted us in language translation (our liaison to the Japanese public) and provided quality assurance (QA) on our episodes. In particular, her QA work was very meticulous and often included making sure all the information being shared with our listeners are accurate, not to mention where our non-native Japanese speakers may pronounce certain Japanese words incorrectly.

When did they start: December 12, 2017.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: December 31, 2020.

How many episodes did they participate in: 41

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 271 – Japan Top 10 Cultures #3 – Japanese Candy Food Drink- call me evil but giving Eric and his co-host, Erin a bag full of umeboshi really was a delightful episode to listen to. Aside from that, it was a fun episode where the two of them really enjoyed each other’s ASMR reactions to Japanese snacks/drinks.

A little bit more about them: Eric was a professional when it comes to his voice. You listen to his episodes and immediately, you know this isn’t any amateur host. In fact, he does voice overs as a side gig and his episodes were just a lot of fun. In particular, his episodes with other hosts, particularly with Erin, were a lot of fun to listen to. He had great chemistry with a lot of the hosts he was with; just take a listen to some of his cultures episodes!

When did they start: September 14, 2019.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: January 1, 2021.

How many episodes did they participate in: 21

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 340: Japan Top 10 Cultures #14: OMG Weird Japanese Commercials!- Anna provides some insights into her knowledge into Japanese commercials with Eric on this episode! Have a listen and you’ll really discover an informative approach at the wacky world of Japanese commercials.

A little bit more about them: While Anna did not stay on the podcast too long, she had solidified her presence by continuing to be part of the board of directors and continuing to actively participate on the podcast, where she can.

When did they start: June 21, 2020.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: December 22, 2021.

How many episodes did they participate in: 20

A little bit more about them: Vincent was one of our lead audio editors on the podcast and he provided tremendous amount of support for our management team, particularly with the influx of new audio editors joining us during his tenure.

When did they start: January 17, 2020.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: January 26, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 24

A little bit more about them: Johnson was one of our audio editors who helped us continuously right at the beginning of the pandemic and all the way through it as well. His support was much appreciated and his work will be dearly missed.

When did they start: February 21, 2017.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: January 26, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 74

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 186: Japan Top 10 Summer Special #2: Japanese Boy Bands- One of the first collaborative episodes that Andy and Ethel hosted together, you could tell both hosts were extremely passionate and engaged with the topic being featured. It was the beginning of the podcast’s focus shifted focus towards informative commentary discussions rather than just purely a music based podcast. From the launch of this episode, Ethel developed a great bond with her co-host, Andy and both members continue to maintain good collegial friendships to this day.

A little bit more about them: Who doesn’t know Ethel? She was one the longest serving hosts on our podcast. From her early beginnings on the podcast, she particularly had a focus on the artist of the month episodes. She was also a lead host for a period of time, support and onboarding new on-air hosts on the podcast. In her later years, she hosted many special and cultural episodes with her beloved co-host, Andy. We will remember her for the quirky recordings (everything from her cat meowing to the pitter patter of a rainstorm) to her passion towards boy bands and knowledge of Japanese music culture.

When did they start: October 7, 2019.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: March 27, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 42

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Indie artist episodes (none in particular)- Dean is probably most well known for his indie artist interview episodes because like these artists, he is one himself and performs music. So for our listeners, it was certainly a treat to be able to hear how he interacts with the indie artists. 

A little bit more about them: Dean started on our podcast as an audio editor, but then he jumped between content production and hosting. Dean was extremely skilled at all his roles on the podcast, whatever he ended up doing, it was amazing. Dean lived in Japan during the height of its economic boom (in the 80s) and brings forward some insightful experiences to our listeners, especially when we feature songs/topics within that period of time (shoutout to city pop)!

When did they start: July 4, 2019.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: July 3, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 37

A little bit more about them: If you listened to our top 10 episodes within the period Kirby was active, you would have heard him! He was the voice and dedicated host on the top 10 episodes. His commitment to the podcast was impeccable, which was why listeners would always hear his voice on the podcast!

When did they start: October 13, 2018.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: August 7, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 71

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 339: Japan Top 10 2020 Special: I Choose You Pokémon- If our listeners don’t read our episode descriptions, they should. Especially if Hayley wrote them. Here is episode 339’s description: Tell Eevee-body to grab their Pokedex because you simply won’t Bayleef what we have in store for you. Join our heroes Andy and Haru as Japan Top 10 searches far and wide for Pokemon to understand the power that’s inside! Yes, it’s a J-Top10 Pocket Monster special! Hayley also did an amazing job at scripting this episode with lots of wacky fun facts on Pokemon, for which Andy and Haru dissected through!

A little bit more about them: Hayley was one our most committed content producers to have joined our podcast. She was a lead content producer for the later period of her time on the podcast and also supported the podcast through social media platforms as well. Hosts would frequently mention her name on the podcast and for finding facts that were interesting and different. Her scripts were very detailed and thorough; she provided the foundation towards many of our episode formats, such as cultures and indie artist interviews.

When did they start: March 8, 2021.

Last appearance on Japan Top 10: December 15, 2022.

How many episodes did they participate in: 28

Producer Jack’s Favorite Episode from them (and why): Episode 377: Japan Top 10 May 2021 Special: Idoling through the 2000’s (2000-2009)- Both ladies had a lot of fun recording this one, just have a listen to this episode and you’ll hear how passionate and cheerful Tassie and Lydia are when they featured some of their favorite songs from famous idols! Tassie loved girl idols while Lydia loves boy idols, so it was the perfect compliment to each other!

A little bit more about them: Lydia was one our hosts and she had a jovial sound with all her episodes. In particular, she and Tassie had a great bonding dynamic and both of them had a lot of fun when it came to recording their episodes. She was also quite knowledgeable with all different aspects of Japanese culture.