Towards a new stage in Tokyo’s culture

Having compared Tokyo with other major cities, the focus next turned to the capital’s street life and its many musical subcultures. The discussion was headed by Zeebra, a hip hop artist and activist who represents the Tokyo scene, and Reiji Okamoto, a Tokyo native and the drummer for rock outfit Okamoto’s.

To start out, Zeebra recapped the changes undergone by the city itself and its music scene, viewed from the perspective of a hip hop artist. ‘When we were young, artists were expected to come to Tokyo if they wanted to make it big. The period spanning the dawn of Japanese hip hop in the 1990s all the way to the boom years of the noughties represented hip hop’s ‘bubble era’, and there was a generational shift every five years. This has all been building up to the present moment, and I mean this in a good sense.’ There’s no question that hip hop has become an integral part of Tokyo’s culture, with kids now freestyling in front of Shibuya Station.

‘Hip hop is rooted in one's place of origin – just think of how New York rappers nickname themselves after the district where they were born. We have also ended up dividing Tokyo into different areas, and now rappers say they represent their school districts, such as Jonan or Joto. One of my tracks is even called “Jonan Hustler”. Repping one's home town has taken hold in our culture, and maybe my track has helped things move in that direction. The way songs like mine become representative of specific areas is probably the biggest difference with how things were back in the '90s.’ (Zeebra)

A significant part of Zeebra's recent activities involves behind-the-scenes work, including helping young artists with the practical and business side of things. On the other hand, he’s also an active participant in initiatives unrelated to his hip hop career, such as promoting an amendment of Japan’s ‘no dancing’ law. Here’s what he had to say about his motivation. ‘I’ve become aware of music as a revolutionary force, of the fact that music can change the world. With hip hop, you have groups like Public Enemy, who sparked social change with their message. It's easy to include the word "peace" in your lyrics. But what matters is how you put those words into action. It's not enough to just complain – I want my complaints to also be constructive and explanatory.’ (Zeebra)

Next, Reiji Okamoto shared his first-hand feelings on the state of urban music. ‘There are venues all around the city, so being a musician isn’t that rare any longer. But the number of venues is actually decreasing. There have been many changes – one of them being that the chasm between the big mainstream and the small indie scene is growing, with the middle ground disappearing.’

Commenting on that point, Zeebra argued that ‘Korea’s K-pop is even more westernised than Japanese music. Japan's national market is big enough, but since Korea has only half the population of Japan, artists have to aim their music at international audiences. Similarly to how Berlin is known as the capital of techno, I’d like Tokyo to become the capital of hip hop. For that to be possible, there needs to be 24-hour train service like in New York, which would allow for gigs that end at 2am or so. I wish we had more diverse frameworks,’ he said.

Both rock and hip hop were born in the West but have evolved in relative isolation in Japan over subsequent decades, resulting in distinctly Japanese subgenres. But promoting these forms and making the world stand up and take notice still requires quite a lot of additional work – work that needs be done domestically before taking aim at overseas audiences.

The last speaker to take the podium was energetic 24-year-old filmmaker Kento Yamada (aka Dutch_Tokyo), who works on expressing Tokyo’s charm in video form. Introduced as a man who’s been hard to reach lately because of his busy schedule, Yamada is currently seeing his popularity skyrocket.

His music videos for the likes of Suchmos (‘Stay Tune’) and Hikaru Utada (‘Bokyaku feat. Kohh’) have earned him plenty of attention, making Yamada the filmmaker of choice for up-and-coming Japanese artists. He’s also making waves as the VJ for hot Tokyo indie band Yahyel. At the seminar, the Tokyo native spoke mainly about the sources of his creativity and how he goes about producing his works.

Born and raised in the capital, Yamada devoted himself to American football in high school. After moving on from the sport, he started his filmmaking career by producing the opening movie for the Aoni Festival, run by high school students in Setagaya. He had already met and made connections with members of bands like Suchmos, Yahyel and Sanabagun during his student years. While tasked with making music videos for these bands, Yamada developed his sensibilities and built up the artistry that has carried him through to this day. ‘I want [all my videos] to be made up entirely of cool scenes.’ A simple concept, sure, but this force has powered him to always create uncompromising pieces.

Above all, what Yamada emphasises in his work is the relationship with his collaborators. When he takes a commission to create something, he says he always thinks of what the work looks like when viewed from an outsider’s perspective. ‘The VJ work I do with Yahyel is completely me, I think. So when making music videos for other artists, I feel like I shouldn’t be putting my own artistry first. The songs belong to the musicians, so when you attach pictures to them, some form of meaning gets added. So the first thing I think about is how I should be shooting. Instead of thinking what I’d like to do, I respect the artist in question.’

As he moved on to discuss future plans, Yamada revealed that his music video production would henceforth be limited to pieces for trusted collaborators only. He is looking to work more in film, including making short movies. Yamada spoke in a detached tone throughout his talk, but his passion could be felt in every word. Take this quote: ‘All I can do is put the existing culture on my back and stride forward.’ Those in attendance were able to come into contact with the reality of a filmmaker raised deep inside the Tokyo music scene.

Tokyo boasts a rich music scene, both in domestic and international terms. This conviction of mine was only reinforced by the three Tokyo Music Odyssey talks. What’s currently emerging is a network of connections on the creative side of Tokyo, a network that may provide a platform for promoting the capital’s culture on a global scale. The next challenge will be to lay a foundation upon which even more valuable work can be done. Forging a creative environment that can give birth to outstanding culture and draw out the potential of local artists is what will be required in Tokyo from now on.