Representative Songs: "Only the Strong Survive," "Skin Against Skin," "Shin-Sekai"
Biography
Japanese turntablist and producer DJ Krush is one of the few island-nation throw-ups to be embraced by the global hip-hop world. Releasing material through Sony in Japan, Mo'Wax and Virgin in the U.K., and Axiom, Shadow, and A&M in America, Krush's heady brand of experimental, (largely) instrumental hip-hop has been praised by everyone from hardcore underground hip-hop 'zines like The Bomb to the speckless offices of Rolling Stone and Spin. Beginning as a bedroom DJ in the mid-'80s following the Japanese leg of the Wildstyle tour, Krush moved into mobile DJing, backing up rappers, and eventually solo production. Although his Japan-only debut freely mixed elements of R&B and acid jazz with the beefy breakbeat backbone of mid-tempo hip-hop, Krush's work has since tended more toward the abstract, applying heavy effects and sample manipulation to thick, smart breaks, layered, almost ambient textures, and subtle, inventive scratching. Krush came to larger acclaim in the mid-'90s through his association with the London-based Mo'Wax label, which released his Strictly Turntablized in 1994 and Meiso in 1996, both reissued stateside by A&M. While Turntablized is closer to a collection of DJ tools, Meiso is a return of sorts to his earlier work, including rappers such as Guru and CL Smooth on a few tracks and incorporating a wider variety of instrumental sounds and atmospheres. In addition to 1997's Milight, Krush also featured on a number of various-artists collections, including Mo'Wax's celebrated Headz, as well as Altered Beats and Axiom Dub (both out on Bill Laswell's Axiom label). Kakusei appeared on Mo'Wax/Columbia in 1999, followed by the mix albums Code 4109 and Tragicomic the next year. Zen from 2001 was filled with guest MCs while The Message at the Depth from 2003 featured far fewer and focused on instrumentals. Jaku landed in 2004, and two years later the Stepping Stones collection featured Krush remixing highlight from his back catalog. ~ Sean Cooper, All Music Guide
Hideaki Ishi(石 英明,Ishi Hideaki?), commonly known as DJ Krush, was born in 1962 in Tokyo. He's a producer and DJ known for his atmospheric instrumental productions which incorporates sound elements from nature along with extensive use of jazz and soul samples. After watching the hip-hop film "Wild Style", he was inspired, bought some turntables, and started to learn the art of turntablism. In the mid-1980s, along with DJ's and emcees like DJ Muro, he formed the Krush Posse, which made numerous appearances as a group during the rest of 1980's into the 1990s and earned recognition by becoming the first DJ in Japan to perform with live musicians. For about seven years, he produced tracks and remixes for other artists such as Monday Michiru (whom was also an emcee and singer of his during sets and an instrumental force for Krush Posse) until he finally released his first album outside Japan "Strictly Turntablized" in 1994 under Mo' Wax Records. It contained the hit single "Kemuri" which caught the ear of well-known hip hop figures such as DJ Premier. This album was followed by his first album "Krush" released internationally in 1995 and he has since released eight more. He has had recording contracts with Chance Records, Ninety Nine Records, Mo' Wax (he was the first Japanese artist to join), Apollo and Sony/Columbia. He works internationally as a producer, re-mixer, DJ and recording artist, bringing the unique flavour of Japanese hip hop to the world.
Ishi was born in 1962 in Tokyo. Ishi dropped out of school at an early age and joined a local gang, and a few years later, the Yakuza. Early into his career as a Yakuza underling, Ishi discovered a severed finger wrapped in paper on his desk. Later, after discovering that it had belonged to his best friend, he decided to leave the Yakuza and cut ties with the criminal underworld.[1]
One day in the early 1980s, Ishi went to the movies with his girlfriend and saw the film "Wild Style", the first hip-hopmotion picture directed by Charlie Ahearn. He quickly got the inspiration to become a hip-hop musician, and made the firm decision to become a DJ. The day after seeing this movie, he headed to instrument shops looking for equipment. At this time the term "mixer" was unknown to most of Tokyo's electronic store salesmen. After having a hard time buying the things he needed, Ishi started his career as one of the first hip hop pioneers in Japan.
Role in the Music Industry
Aside from being considered one of the pioneers of Japanese hip hop[1], Ishi has established himself as one of the most respected artists and producers in the hip-hop industry, both in Japan and abroad. He is reluctant to identify his music with any particular genre, for it would place limits on his listeners and on his talents. He has been regarded as ambient, trip hop, some combination of the two, and hip-hop. DJ Krush prefers to exercise an ideological distance from the genres he is usually grouped into, while maintaining a healthy appreciation for all music forms and styles. [2]
