Hisao Shinagawa “I Want to Destroy America” trailer
“I Want to Destroy America” is a documentary about the street musician, Hisao Shinagawa, a Japanese singer/songwriter who has refused to give up on his elusive dream of success and stardom, regardless of personal cost and the solitary reality of his life.
Moving from Tokyo to America in 1974, following in the footsteps of his hero Woody Guthrie, he befriended Johnny Cash and Townes Van Zandt after hitchhiking to Nashville.
For 42 years, he has cast himself as the Japanese Bob Dylan. Now at 60, he plays his music on the streets of Los Angeles while living in near poverty, still hoping to find an audience in a manner that is admirable, bittersweet, and ultimately, heartbreaking.



























