Towa Tei | |
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.jpg) Towa Tei in 2007 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Sweet Robots Against the Machine |
| Born | (1964-09-07)September 7, 1964 (age 60) Yokohama, Japan |
| Origin | Tokyo, Japan |
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| Labels | Elektra |
Towa Tei (鄭 東和,Tei Tōwa, born September 7, 1964) is a Japanese artist,record producer, andDJ. Born in Yokohama, Japan, Towa was a member ofDeee-Lite, from the USlabelElektra Records in 1990 and shot to fame via their internationalhit single, "Groove Is In the Heart". He made his solo debut with the albumFuture Listening! in 1994. He has since relocated from New York to ruralNagano Prefecture in Japan.[1]
Towa's second studio album,Sound Museum (1997), became his highest charting effort at number 17 on theOricon charts. Its single, "GBI (German Bold Italic)" featuringKylie Minogue andHaruomi Hosono, reached number 50 and 63 in Australia and the United Kingdom, respectively. He saw continued success with 1999'sLast Century Modern as its single, "Let Me Know" featuringChara, peaked at number 34 in Japan, his highest entry.
Towa has collaborated withRyuichi Sakamoto,Yukihiro Takahashi,Akiko Yano,Ringo Sheena, andArto Lindsay, among others. His concept party, "Hotel H", started in 2009 as a social spot for music industry people in Tokyo.[2]
Towa is a third-generationKorean-Japanese.[3][4] Towa began making demo tapes at the age of 16 having bought his first synthesizer, aKorg MS-10. While studying atMusashino Art University Junior College of Art and Design, he sent his tape to a radio program ofRyuichi Sakamoto titledSound Street.
In 1987, Towa moved to the U.S. to study graphic design and joined house actDeee-Lite, a trio with Supa DJ Dimitry andLady Miss Kier, enjoying almost instant success after debuting in 1990 with their albumWorld Clique and the single "Groove Is In the Heart".
In 1991, Towa collaborated with his idolRyuichi Sakamoto on Sakamoto's albumHeartbeat. He also appeared on Sakamoto's follow up albumSweet Revenge.
In 1994, Towa returned to Japan after seven years in New York.[1] He sustained a back injury falling from a stage during a performance with Deee-Lite in Brazil. While recovering, he began to drift toward other musical styles.[5][6] He debuted as a solo act withFuture Listening! that same year, incorporating an array of styles, including electronic, bossa nova, house, jazz and pop. It featured collaborations withJoi Cardwell,Bebel Gilberto,MC Kinky,Hiroshi Takano,Ryuichi Sakamoto,Haruomi Hosono, Toshihiko Mori,Satoshi Tomiie, Yuichi Oki ofTokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra andPizzicato Five vocalistMaki Nomiya.
Sound Museum followed in 1997, thenLast Century Modern in 1999. 2002 brought the albumTowa Tei, under the pseudonymSweet Robots Against the Machine.Flash surfaced in 2005[1] by which time Towa was DJing regularly in Japan. He has admitted, though, that he does not enjoy performing and prefers producing and using computers.[1]
Big Fun, featuringVerbal andMademoiselle Yulia, was released in 2009 and was the third album to feature the artwork of San Franciscan painter andgraffiti artistBarry McGee.[1] For the album, Towa utilizedMySpace to collaborate with artists from around the world, even if he didn't know them, such as with German act Taprikk Sweezee.[1] Another collaborator he worked with forBig Fun wasMiho Hatori ofCibo Matto, though they also met only on MySpace.[1]
Towa has established his own creative company, hug inc, which, among other things, manufactures his trademark sunglasses.[1]
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