John Mayer speaks Japanese when asked about Jessica Simpson

In case anyone thought I was criticizing John Mayer for speaking Japanese without a perfect accent ...

I just made this video for people who can't speak Japanese and wondered:
Is his Japanese correct?
Is that translation right?
So, I tried to point out nicely that the grammar is perfect, but his accent is not.
It seems like he had a friend write that -- and he hasn't had much experience studying Japanese.

I think good on him for speaking Japanese and I would encourage people to try and speak other languages even if their accent isn't very good. I often try to say things from other languages -- and it sounds ridiculous -- but I think it's good to try. I also speak some Japanese -- but my accent is far from perfect too : )

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• 2007
• Grammys
• Red
• Carpet
• Grammy's
• John
• Mayer
• Ryan
• Seacrest
• Japanese
• Jessica
• Simpson

[bsullivan2]

Language is complex, crispix. And language teachers always try to oversimplify it. "Suteki" if overused by a man will probably make him sound a bit feminine. But that doesn't mean you can't use it at all. It's not a word like "boku" which is used exclusively by men.

[tdesnihongo]

Yeah, good explanation.

[crispix59]

Hey , I am asking you because you seem extremely proficient in Japanese - Isn't the adjective "suteki" an extremely feminine adjective?! In class, I learned that Boys shoule NEVER say it. I learned to say sugoi instead. I was just wondering. It is this correct?

[tdesnihongo]

I checked with my (native speaker) boyfriend about this - and he said that boys can use it. But your teacher is half right in that it can be strange for guys to use it. It some cases it might make them sound gay - like an English speaking guy saying lovely, gorgeous, fabulous etc. So then if you want to sound gay you could use it.

[tdesnihongo]

I think generally girl talking to girl or boy talking to boy about girl - suteki OK. Boy talking to boy about something else - try using another word. Boy who wants to sound very tough - avoid suteki. : ) Hope this helps.

[chsdrumcorps]

He's a white man born and raised in america. don't expect him to have a perfect accent. it was understandable, so leave it alone.

[nao1163]

i totally agree with you that comment was totaly stupidé im french and im trying to learn english (write and speak) sumtimes i make horrible mistakes but who cares , im just learning!

[JessOrdaz]

THUMBS UP if you think Mayer should have learned with Pimsleur. (audio)

[BronxBeauty22]

did john mayer even speack at all, becuase that sounded pretty japanese to me

[fargaiaalpha]

@chsdrumcorps

His Japanese doesn't have any fatal problems. His accent? His accent has no problem. Because linguistically Japanese pronunciation and the accent are not important, they usually depend on local dialect .

[robotpanda77]

とても is a awful sounding word. It should be forbidden from being spoken. FORBIDDEN!

[Toubuki]

"iru"; to exist or to be ^^

[rissehx3]

why is everyone being so anal about it? he was just joking around.

[eggleng]

ooh..thank you... may i know the root word?

[Toubuki]

irarete" means "being able to be (with her)."

[Toubuki]

He didn't say "you'll be the last to know" at all, though.