Japanese Hip-Hop

[Steve Bildermann]

This site aims to give a small introduction to the world of Japanese hip-hop, including some of the music with my own translations. The music and lyrics are for educational and research purposes only.

http://web.mit.edu/condry/www/jhh/

Rapping was slower to catch on. Why? Many in the music world doubted that it would be possible to rap in Japanese, that is, to be able to perform with the needed flow (rhythmic nuance) and rhymes, because the language itself was viewed as deficient: Japanese does not contain stress accents and sentences must end with one of a few simple verb endings.

I thought Kimi ga Yo! was Japanese rap until I started drinking Smirnoff

[puargs]

For some reason, no matter how yakuza-ish or harcore a Japanese rapper looks/is, he still isn't grizzled enough to compete with American guys. I've seen plenty of salarymen that looked fucked up enough on their way home, but the rappers nowadays just don't seem to cut it.

Anyone have any pictures of normal guys they think could cut the Snoop feel if they rapped?

[kotatsuneko]

didn't you (or was it someone else) post this link a couple of years ago, mr B?

it was that site that got me into jhiphop, never thought anything of the american variety.. imho theres a ton of great talent out there, some excellent energy vibes too.. culturally, american hiphop is bereft of relavance to me, having never lived there and the culture never having any influence on me, jhiphop continues to have an effect, of sorts alongside excellent j rock/dance..

the prince charles cinema in chinatown recently showed a series of hip hop movies/documentaries, featuring a well known japanese photographer who has made it her trade to document various aspects of hip hop culture in the states, i have the link on one of the other decks and will post it when i can. she's pretty damn good too.

the uk scene is still very much underground, but there is some recognition, with the ever excellent roots manuva even featuring alongside cornelius at the v&a recently.

[Ptyx]

Obviously the j-mc's cannot play the thug card on their act. Still there are excellent hiphop stuff in Japan.
The whole Tha Blue Herb crew is really good. They come from Sapporo and now have their own label. They released the soundtrack to a movie called "Heat" last year, and on their label, the first album of Shuren The Fire.
Both records are very good imho.
They're famous abroad because they collaborated with dj Krush at some time.
Tha blue herb is playing in shinjuku loft the 29th of this month. It's still a hiphop act so it's not that exciting live but the tickets are usually cheap so it might make a nice evening.

Tha blue herb rec

[kotatsuneko]

found that site:

http://www.atsukotanaka.com/

[foody]

went to my first battle in japan a few days ago. not a pleasant expericence.

(yeah... i know ... the spelling ...)

it just wasnt worth it. of course i had to speak in english, so the crowd had no clue what i was saying. the lead up beats before the battle were like nelly and that ish.

the worst part was the other mc was so crap ... i understood what he was saying. on some, this is japan... learn japanese ... you are white (hakujin) this is japan... learn japanese ish.

not worth it and it will not be repeated. cause they cheered for this bull***t racsit stuff. they dude won.

now, my flow wasnt amazing that night but i desreved more aplause than i got.

never again.

[Larmia]

not worth it and it will not be repeated. cause they cheered for this bull***t racsit stuff. they dude won.

Wow, talk about a tough pill to shallow.
I guess stupidity lies greatly in Japan just like here in the U.S.
That was very unfair...

[foody]

i didnt feel too bad about it really. worse happens in my hometown.

but it didnt feel great.

(and looking back at my post i think i need to get an editor or spell check or something...)

[jim katta]

I actually know a bit about the hip hop scene in Japan. Any gaijin coming to Japan (who isn't already a big star outside) can basically forget getting any love in Japan as a rapper. The market was once enthralled with gaijin rappers, but now Japanese have found their own voice, and it is seeking to be very aggressive and very proud of Japanese culture. Personally, I find no problem with this and think it's perfectly natural. It's the same thing that happened in Paris years ago.

As for getting dissed as a hokujin rapper in Japan, yeah, that's the deal now. But there's no excuse in the U.S. I've seen too many good white rappers rip a black dude to pieces in the States and get their props. In the U.S. if you're really good, and you rip a guy, no matter what race, you'll get your props.

Back to Japan... I feel sad for the gaijin in Japan trying to make it as hip hop DJs or rappers. It's a lost cause. You'd have a better chance of going back to a Western country, make a little name for yourself and THEN come back to Japan. But even then, Japan is really mostly about japanese rappers/djs when it comes to new groups.

On the up side, I do think that if a gaijin comes to Japan and truly raps well in Japanese, then he/she has a great chance to make some big waves. But the Japanese raps have to be clever and well done, not just some common catch phrases from Japanese Class 101. If a white dude or black dude came from the States rapping WELL in Japanese right now, I think he/she would kick ass in Japan.

Imagine a gaijin dude who not only raps/speaks fluent japanese at a tokyo hip hop club at a battle ripping down some good japanese kid in a rap battle by coming up with all kind of references and ideas that japanese kids understand -- AND delivered in japanese -- sh-t, he'd rock tokyo.

[jingai]

I think Jim's right and would love to see that- kind of like what Jin's been up to in the states (though he's a native speaker I believe). Being able to rap a few verses of a King Gidora song got me plenty of attention from some hip Japanese, though I don't even pretend to be a rapper. Enka's more my thing

[Bongo]

Hip Hop & Rap are nothing more than utter mindless rubbish designed to further degenerate what was once called "music".
Both of them rate alongside Pachinko parlor music!

And people buy that shit?

[foody]

yes

by the truckloads

it's the new jazz/blues

here's your late pass

[emperor]

Drop it like its hot


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobuo_Uematsu

[Taro Toporific]

Sorry, but it's impossible for me to tell if this satire has some element of "truth."

(She-e-eit/ I've heard hip-hop/rap/whatever with bagpipes in it so it would be possible that Nobuo Uematsu, like many crap composers, could have thrown money at a rapper to get a producer credit on a rap album.)

Drop it like its hot


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobuo_Uematsu

[Buraku]

Nip-hop site

http://web.mit.edu/condry/www/jhh/#artists

[hundefar]

Nip-hop site

http://web.mit.edu/condry/www/jhh/#artists

Dude..it's the same site that is in the first post in this thread. Are you drunk? (I know I wish I was)

[IkemenTommy]

Always imitated, never duplicated

[D-San]

Hip Hop & Rap are nothing more than utter mindless rubbish designed to further degenerate what was once called "music".
Both of them rate alongside Pachinko parlor music!

And people buy that shit?

If the only Hip Hop you ever heard was on the radio and music video channels, then I guess you'd say that.

"Real" Hip Hop is some of the best poetry I have ever heard. You may not be able to relate, so i guess you would'nt get much of it. I don't like country music, but I can see where they're coming from. It's very ignorant to generalize.

Here are some great Hip Hop songs:

[kusai Jijii]

Hip Hop?
Itz all shit dowg!

KJ
Keepin it Real!:cool: