Light falling on an empty town April 2020 Kabukicho

Light falling on an empty town April 2020 Kabukicho

In April 2020, Kabukicho was enveloped in unprecedented silence due to the spread of the new coronavirus. The neon lights were gone, the bustle of the city was overshadowed, and only memories of the hustle and bustle remained in the air. Due to the declaration of a state of emergency, restaurants and host clubs closed their doors and the flow of people came to a halt. Even in the morning hours, people on their way home from work at night were not to be seen, and only the wind walked the streets.

Even in the midst of all this, cleaners, young men handing out tissues, and a man selling The Big Issue continued to stand. Like the faint pulse of the city's heart, their presence was a small light of life in the silence. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Shinjuku City officials tried to prevent the spread of infection in the city by calling for the avoidance of the three clandestine areas.

The lights of Kabukicho have never been so extinguished. This town, born from the ruins of the postwar fire, was a symbol of revelry and chaos. In the spring when its heart was about to stop - in the empty town, only, silence descended.