He is a cultural anthropologist who specializes in media, popular culture, and globalization, with a focus on contemporary Japan and the United States. His first book, Hip-Hop Japan: Rap and the Paths of Cultural Globalization (Duke University Press, 2006), is an ethnography of the Japanese rap music scene, exploring issues of race, gender, language, popular music history and cultural politics, primarily through the perspectives of Japanese musicians. He is currently writing The Soul of Anime: Collaborative Creativity and Japan’s Media Success Story (to be published by Duke University Press).