Kohei Japan

Kohei Japan is a Japanese hip hop emcee and a member of the Japanese rap group, Mellow Yellow. Born in Yokohama, Japan, he discovered rap and hip hop while working as a chef.[1]

Many of his songs illustrate the contrasts between his Japanese culture and Western hip hop influences. Indeed, in his song "Hungry Strut",[2] he proclaims that he eats "rice, not bread, and fish, not meat", thereby asserting that while he is a member of the hip hop culture, he remains Japanese. He shows his attachment to Japanese culture by wearing a traditional kimono in many of his appearances. In fact, on his album "The adventures of Kohei Japan", he appears on the cover as a kabuki character in a woodblock print.[3] On the album cover, his hands make the universal "funk" sign, showing the contrast between a traditional Japan and a hip hop culture.

Discography

Albums
  • The Adventures of Kohei Japan (File Records, 2000)
  • Funky 4 U (Sony Music Japan, 2003)
  • Family (Pony Canyon, 2008)

Singles
  • Together Forever (Sony Music Japan, 2003)

References
  3. Ian Condry, "Hip-hop Japan: Rap and the Paths of Cultural Globalization" , 2006
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