Shadowing Practice: Growing up in Japan as a Blasian - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Bro, I've been living in Japan for 15 BOMBOKLA years, man.

Of course I speak Japanese, yet I still have conversations like,

Oh, you talking about the language that we're having a full-ass conversation in right now?

What part of 15 years makes you think I'm still in the learning phase?

This has happened to me an insane amount of times.

It feels like no matter what, it just doesn't click in some people's brains that this foreign-looking-ass nugget can comprehend just as much Japanese as they can.

Oh yeah, um, I got restricted on TikTok when I said the N-word, so from now on I'll try to use the word nugget instead.

Growing up in Japan has been interesting, for me to say the least, especially considering the fact that people see me and go back.

I have a lot of stories to share and I honestly didn't know where to start, So I decided to make a series called Growing Up in

Japan as a Blazian Alongside some day-to-day story times I have

that I want to share with you guys And in this part 1 video, I'm going to talk about times people assumed I couldn't speak Japanese

When you live in Japan and you look like this

People are going to assume you don't understand the language at

all Like I'm not even kidding One of the most occurring

bullshit I have to deal with Be them annoying ass high

schoolers who don't know how to shut the fuck up and my door business What?

You're so bad.

You're so black.

You're Bobby Orgong.

Oh, is that?

What?

That movie was a bad guy.

I'm really mad.

Yeah, I understood that.

It's annoying most of the time, but it also creates some funny and also a bit awkward situations I've experienced, which I'm about to share with you.

I had a friend back in high school.

I'll refer to her as Diana.

She didn't speak any Japanese other than Konichiwa or Arigato.

No idea where she got that American accent.

One day in class, a man walks in mid-lecture and introduces himself as the translator.

Okay buddy.

I don't know how common it is for other countries, but when foreign students come to school, they almost always have a translator for the student if they don't speak Japanese.

I had one too, but that's a story for later.

Let me talk about how this man pulls up a chair and looks at me.

Bro, I closed my eyes just sitting there like this nigga about to be dead wrong.

My name is Takeshi.

I am your translator.

It's nice to meet you, Diana-san.

Ah, I'm good.

Diana is at the back of the room.

When I tell you, that shit was so embarrassing.

Bro, imagine being told you gotta translate for a student.

Japanese to English.

Then you go to the class, you spot the one most non-Japanese looking one.

A nugget!

And they introduce themselves with the most Japanese name you have ever heard in your life.

Just for context though, I have a Japanese Japanese name.

Like up to this very day, I still get surprised looks whenever I introduce myself.

So I understand.

I understand but like you could at least ask the teacher

and have him point to the seat I don't mind the extra help

but I think she needs it more than I do There was also

that one time when I was working at the convenience store a few years back

and this one customer walked up to my register

I'm speaking Japanese bitch!

My name tag is literally in Japanese.

Do you not see it?

Are you blind and deaf?

Bro?

I was so done I just packed up his stuff and gave it to him and I can't even blame him.

You know what?

It's fine This happens to me no matter where I work

There was also a time I was on registered duty on my recent job

and the customer would just reply to me using this really bad English

When they were clearly speaking Japanese to their friend a few seconds ago, please I genuinely can't understand half of what you're saying.

Please stop.

It's insulting for some people.

Actually, it's insulting for me I'm one of those people.

There's a reason why we keep replying in Japanese, regardless of your attempts to speak English.

I'm really sorry, but it's true.

Okay, the next one might be the worst one yet.

I went to go get a test.

I forgot the name of it, but it's a test to see if you have COVID or not.

It was my first time going to the hospital alone

and I was scared

so I was standing there looking around just very confused about

how I get to the part where I actually get the test

and to any of you wondering I had already walked up

to the receptionist to ask her what I was supposed to do and she told me to wait okay.

Girl had me waiting for 20 minutes dog how long are you expecting me to stay here?

As I was I was considering leaving this woman walks up to me and says Hello, may I help you?

You need to buy a ticket at the machine over there

and she pointed at the vending machine in the corner So I was like, oh, oh my gosh, thank you so much and I bowed to her

and went to the machine bought the ticket then turned around to head to the receptionist Okay, let's go Hmm?

Is she taking a test too?

Yes, are you together?

No, I'm not sure if this girl is a little bit different Oh, that's right I will explain the process of the test.

speak Japanese yet so we also had a personal translator.

Our translator happened to have the most horrendous Japanese accent known to mankind.

I was not able to understand a word that she was saying

and as a 10 year old I got frustrated pretty quickly

and pretty easily and I would go home and complain to my mom.

My sister would do the same as well.

The reason why I didn't like her wasn't just because of the accent it was also because she was condescending towards us.

Our Japanese wasn't very good to be honest but our comprehension was pretty decent.

Guess you will still explain stuff to us as if we were stupid.

It really got on our nerves and we did not like her at all.

After a good while of complaining, I noticed she stopped coming at some point.

I didn't really remember why, so I went to ask my mom, mind you, the audio is pretty shitty.

100

I asked her if we could record, she said yes, and she was a little too shy, so I had to record when she was at least expecting it, so she's pretty far away from the mic, and I'm on my phone,

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so please bear with me.

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You're a teacher for a teacher?

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Yes, yes, yes.

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You're a teacher for a second.

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Yes, yes, yes, yes.

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You're a teacher for a teacher for a second.

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You're a teacher for a little English.

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Because you didn't understand what you were saying.

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I mean, that's the point to having a translator, right?

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So if you were to learn a teacher without a teacher, you'd better be able to learn a lesson.

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You're a teacher for a little bit.

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Oh, so I didn't have that.

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I'm a teacher for a teacher.

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I'm a teacher for a teacher.

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What is English?

116

This speech is English?

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What kind of English?

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Okay, so apparently my mom asked for a new translator after that because we would complain so much.

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I don't really remember getting a new translator though.

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Keep in mind this was like a decade ago.

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I was still a child.

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I was being a brat.

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I don't want to see any comments being like, oh, you're so mean.

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I was like 10.

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So that's the end of the video.

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I really hope you enjoyed it.

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And oh, I went to America to see my friends friends

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and I had so much fun oh my god

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so my next few videos are probably gonna be about America yes there's multiple videos

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because I want to talk about everything that happened oh

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and look at this cool shirt I got I got a few shirts at Hot Topic Hot Topic is

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so cool bro oh my god did you know they had

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jugs of milk in Walmart Jesus real actual jugs not this this it's humongous how do you guys finish

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that I have mad respect for you guys y'all live in the dream for real I want to live in America.

135

I also learned some valley girl accents so maybe I'll use it in my future videos. Who knows?

136

Anyways, see you in my next video.

137

Bye!

138

I'm literally craving right now.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Growing up in Japan as a Blasian”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Japanese, teacher, translator, English, speak. This video has 138 sentences and 1520 words to shadow. The speech runs for 8:15. The speaker talks fast, about 184 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 83% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.

Key vocabulary in this video

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
translator noun	/ˈtɹænzleɪtɚ/	A person or thing that translates various forms of text.
accent noun	/ækˈsɛnt/	A higher-pitched or stronger (louder or longer) articulation of a particular syllable of a word or phrase in order to distinguish it from the others or to…
nugget noun	/ˈnʌɡət/	A small, compact chunk or clump.
complain verb	/kəmˈpleɪn/	To express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment.
annoy verb	/əˈnoɪ̯/	To disturb or irritate, especially by continued or repeated acts; to bother with unpleasant deeds.
jug noun	/d͡ʒʌɡ/	A serving vessel or container, typically circular in cross-section and typically higher than it is wide, with a relatively small mouth or spout, an ear handle…
receptionist noun	/ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃə.nɪst/	An employee (such as a secretary) who works in reception (receiving visitors and/or calls) for a person or business, especially an office.
insult noun	/ɪnˈsʌlt/	Action or form of speech deliberately intended to be rude; (countable) a particular act or statement having this effect.
condescend verb	/ˌkɑndəˈsɛnd/	To come down from a superior position and do something; to deign; (with a negative connotation) to stoop.
embarrass verb	/ɪmˈbæɹəs/	To disrupt someone's composure or comfort with acting publicly or freely.
frustrate verb	/ˈfɹʌsˌtɹeɪt/	To disappoint or defeat; to vex by depriving of something expected or desired.
horrendous adjective	/həˈɹɛndəs/	Extremely bad; awful; terrible.
humongous adjective	/ˌhjuːˈmʌŋɡəs/	Of an extremely large size.
schooler noun		A student, or in some cases member, of a particular type of school or schooling. (ordinarily used in combinations such as "high schooler")
craving noun	/ˈkɹeɪ.vɪŋ/	A strong desire; yearning.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
go back verb		To return to a place or state after having been there at a previous time.
look around verb		To inspect a building or area.
pull up verb	/ˌpʊl ˈʌp/	To lift upwards or vertically.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

Do you not see it?
Are you blind and deaf?
I'm really sorry, but it's true.
Yes, are you together?
You're a teacher for a teacher?

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	has happened · I've experienced · have ever heard
Past continuous was/were + -ing — an action in progress at a moment in the past	was working · was standing · was considering
Superlatives the -est / the most … — the top or bottom of a group	the most occurring · the most Japanese · the worst
Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form	keep replying · stopped coming

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 52 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: receptionist /ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃə.nɪst/, comprehension /ˌkɑmpɹɪˈhɛnʃn̩/, gosh /ɡɑːʃ/
Long words — get the stress right: receptionist /ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃə.nɪst/, genuinely /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.ɪn.li/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like translator, accent, nugget.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

Shadowing Practice: Growing up in Japan as a Blasian - Learn English Speaking with Video

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