Miyavi Ellen Show 🆕 Updated

At the time, mainstream American TV largely categorized "great guitarists" as blues rockers or shredders in the vein of Steve Vai. Miyavi offered something entirely foreign. He blended flamenco urgency, rock distortion, traditional Japanese aesthetics, and modern hip-hop production tricks—all live, with no safety net.

Using his signature "slap style"—where he plucks, taps, and slaps the strings and body of the guitar like a drum kit—he created a rhythm section, a bass line, and a melody simultaneously. His fingers moved faster than the camera could track. He used his guitar not just as an instrument, but as a percussion set, a tribal drum, and a voice.

They'll realize he's a magician.

Go watch the video. Watch his hands. Watch the audience's faces. And try not to pick up your own guitar immediately afterward. I dare you. Did you catch Miyavi on Ellen back in the day, or did you just discover the clip? Let me know in the comments—I still can't figure out how he keeps that guitar in tune.

The studio audience started clapping along, then stopped because they realized they couldn't keep up. The look on their faces shifted from polite interest to genuine shock . This wasn't just a cool musical performance. It was a cultural handshake. miyavi ellen show

If you only know Miyavi as the intense actor from Unbroken or the stoic samurai in John Wick: Chapter 4 , you are missing the superpower that made him a star in the first place: his guitar.

He broke the fourth wall of instrumental music. He proved that you don't need a single lyric to make a room full of daytime TV viewers hold their breath. The internet did what it does best. Clips of the performance flooded YouTube, Reddit, and guitar forums. "Who IS this guy?" became the top comment on every video. At the time, mainstream American TV largely categorized

For years, fans of J-rock and virtuoso guitar have worshipped the "Samurai Guitarist" for his percussive, slap-style technique. But in 2014 (and again in subsequent visits), Miyavi brought that lightning bolt to one of the biggest daytime stages in the world: