ItalianoGACKT Official X Update. Translation below
[How much do you need to earn to live in Tokyo?]
The question itself sounds defensive in some way.
Tokyo is not a “place to live.”
It’s a [battlefield].
¥4 million annual income and 30 square meters.
¥7.2 million annual income and 50 square meters.
¥9.6 million annual income and 65 square meters.
The numbers are beautiful.
It looks like growth.
But what is the reality?
Every time your annual income increases,
rent dutifully follows.
Doesn’t this seem like a [pyramid scheme] inflation structure?
Going up just gives you a slightly wider view.
You don’t gain more freedom.
Since when have you started measuring freedom in square meters?
This time in Brazil, I was reminded of something.
Central São Paulo is certainly expensive.
But if you stray a little,
a house with a garden can become a reality for less than half the price of Japan.
The population is increasing, the city is expanding,
and energy is swirling.
There are risks.
Public safety, currency fluctuations, and politics are all turbulent.
But there are also rewards.
There’s space, options, and room for growth.
What about Tokyo?
Risks are rising.
Taxes, prices, and fixed costs.
What about rewards?
5 square meters.
Will 5 square meters expand your life?
4% rent increase.
8% property price increase.
Where does the difference go?
Have you ever felt that way?
‘My future is being translated into my rent bill.’
The article says:
‘Buy even a small amount while you’re young.’
It makes sense as an investment.
But it’s a theory based on the assumption that
Tokyo will continue to win forever.
What if that assumption breaks down?
What about population decline?
What about interest rates rising?
What about tax changes?
A 40% increase in five years?
So what happens in ten years?
Who will support that price?
The people who end up buying it aren’t young people,
full of hope.
It’s the old and tired.
If you live abroad and look at other countries, you’ll understand.
[Cities are living things]
Some cities rise.
Some cities stay put.
Some cities fall.
And when they fall, it’s faster than you’d think.
No city stays successful forever.
I don’t hate Tokyo either.
But before calculating the annual income you’ll need to live on in Tokyo’s 23 wards,
there’s something you need to consider.
[Where will I fight?]
Will I waste my money in Tokyo?
Will I invest abroad?
Will I diversify my assets?
Tokyo was a place to buy dreams.
But there’s a thick, high wall standing in the way of those dreams.
And those dreams are getting smaller every year.
It’s not about the size of the city.
It’s about freedom.
If I were 20 years old now.
If I were alive today,
I’m sure I would say this.
“Don’t plan your life based solely on one country.”
Tokyo is just one option.
Don’t base your standards solely on Tokyo.
Base your standards on the world.
It may not feel real to you yet.
It may be scary to just imagine it.
But go outside.
You will experience the reality firsthand.
Rather than dreaming in a cramped 30-square-meter space,
it’s more exciting to take on the wider world.
Life is definitely more interesting that way.
Life isn’t meant to be hunkered down in a safe zone.
It’s meant to be fought, chosen, and expanded.
Why not go wild on a bigger stage?
You only live once, after all.
【東京で暮らせる年収はいくらか？】
その問い自体が、どこか守りに入っている。東京は「住む場所」じゃない。
【戦場】だ。年収400万で30㎡。
年収720万で50㎡。
年収960万で65㎡。数字は美しい。
成長しているように見える。だが実態はどうだ？
年収が上がるたび、… pic.twitter.com/1zLuCleTcw
— GACKT (@GACKT) February 15, 2026
Translation: GACKT ITALIA Team
Translation © GACKT ITALIA