Conversations with Britney Tokyo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Britney Tokyo

Hi Britney, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Born and raised in Tokyo.

Ever since I was a child, I loved having my manicures done by my grandmother, who loved fashion. Even before I knew the term nail art, I was the kind of kid who would draw pictures on my nails with a pen during elementary school classes. I used to love drawing and wanted to become a painter in the future. For me, painting on my nails was like a canvas, and nails are not only beauty , but also contain elements of fashion and art.
Studied abroad in the U.S. , Hawaii, and Seattle during high school. Due to failing the entrance exam for an art university in Japan, I went on to a junior college affiliated with my high school.My major was graphic art. While attending college, I worked part-time as a modeling and actor, but I was dissatisfied because I couldn’t freely dye my hair.
Since I didn’t job hunt, I became a shop clerk after graduation, but my feet got tired from standing all the time, and I quit after three months.
After that, I decided to aim to become a nail technician by a process of elimination. My conditions for choosing a job were that it had to be a sitting job where I could freely dye my hair.
When I told my mom I wanted to go to nail school, she bought me a book called “How to Become a Nail Tech.”My mom told me to read a book and visit several nail schools listed in it to decide which one was best. Of course, I wasn’t the kind of girl who would read a book. I chose the school with the principal who had the best-looking photo from the list and visited that one school, then enrolled there. However, I have always been a lucky girl. The school I went to is a prestigious nail school in Japan that is known as the Harvard of the nail world, and produces many excellent nail artists. And the principal I chose from the photo was the president of the Japan Nail Artist Association.

As you may have noticed by now, I was a child who didn’t really think about anything back then.
I’ve just been lucky to get this far and the same since I moved to the U.S.

ーI moved to Los Angeles with my then-boyfriend. Of course, I had no ambition to become a celebrity nail artist or anything like that. I just followed him.
-I had a lot of free time, so I started an internship at a Japanese owned nail salon. I initially hoped to work once a week, but the owner was intimidating, so I couldn’t refuse and ended up working five days a week. My skills improved dramatically here, though unintentionally.
Even at that time, I hadn’t really thought about making a living with nails. At one point, I was even scouted by Playboy three times and thought about becoming a Playboy Playmate, haha.
When I told my ex boyfriend that I wanted to become a Playmate, we got into a fight in the taxi on the way back from the club. The argument escalated, and I ended up throwing a hot dog at him. He was a designer and cared deeply about clothes. Afterwards, I apologized and took his dirty Vivienne Westwood pants to cleaner the next day. At the dry cleaner’s, the person there asked to see my nails, and I was taken to the shop next door. The shop was his own nail salon, and he told me to work there. So, I started working there from the next day.
I find myself always drawn back into the world of nails like this.
-I started working at a local nail salon next block from my house. The owner told me to pick an American name, so I started calling myself Britney. At that time, I couldn’t speak English well, and when customers asked where I was from, I said I was from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. One day, someone who was going to Ho Chi Minh City appeared, and I thought it was going to be exposed soon. So, from the next day, I added ‘TOKYO’ under my name tag with a pen. That’s how the name BritneyTOKYO originated. I didn’t intend to hide that I was Japanese, but my language skills were not good enough to explain.
But in a way, it was a good thing that I couldn’t speak English. I realized this now that I can speak English. Working at nail salon, on photo shoots and backstage at fashion weeks, I was often criticized or treated unkindly. If I had spoken English back then like I do now, those experiences might have been more hurtful and I might not have continued.
ーWhen I posted nail art on Instagram, Rita de Pinto from founder of Vanity Projects noticed it, and I ended up doing live nail art at MOMA PS1.
The term ‘nail artist’ was coined at this event. Before that, ‘manicurist’ or ‘nail technician’ were more common.At that time, I loved nails. I decided to fully commit and continue with determination. This was in 2013.

ーI was offered a nail job by Ariana Grande through DM on Instagram, which went viral. Since then, I’ve been personally invited to celebrities’ homes, including Katy Perry and Paris Hilton. I’ve become what’s commonly known as a celebrity nail artist.
Afterward, I started receiving work from celebrity clients, as well as from companies like
In 2019, I began seriously pursuing contemporary art after a TV documentary featured my work.I remember my childhood dream.I do nails because I love art💅🏼✨

-2018 American influencer Awards winner
-2020 American influencers Awards nominee
-2021 National Social Media Awards winner

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest thing was that I couldn’t speak English. I’m still not perfect, but I’m a nail artist, not an English teacher, so I don’t need to be perfect.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m an artist.
I do nails, I am writing a column on magazines , I design clothes, I draw, I released a music last year, I developed and released nail products, I design packaging, and I even had a solo exhibition of contemporary art using nail products.
I do everything I want to do, but I think it’s a bit suspicious when people don’t know what their job is, so I stick to my core as a nail artist.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I love Red.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://BritneyTOKYO.com
• Instagram: https://Instagram.com/britneytokyo
• Facebook: https://Facebook.com/britneytokyo
• Youtube: https://YouTube.com/britneytokyo