Nujabes 山田 淳 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jun Yamada |
| Also known as | Jun Seba, Nujabes |
| Born | (1974-02-07)February 7, 1974 Nishi-Azabu, Minato, Tokyo, Japan |
| Died | February 26, 2010(2010-02-26) (aged 36) Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan |
| Resting place | Tama Cemetery Tokyo, Japan |
| Genres | |
| Occupations | |
| Instruments | |
| Years active | 1995–2010 |
| Labels | Hydeout Productions |
| Website | Hydeout Productions |
Jun Seba (Japanese:瀬葉 淳,Hepburn:Seba Jun, February 7, 1974 – February 26, 2010), bornJun Yamada (Japanese:山田 淳), better known by his stage nameNujabes (ヌジャベス,Nujabesu), was a Japanese record producer, audio engineer, DJ, composer and arranger best known for his atmospheric instrumental mixes sampling fromhip hop,soul, andjazz, as well as incorporating elements oftrip hop,breakbeat,downtempo, andambient music.
Seba released two studio albums during his lifetime:Metaphorical Music (2003) andModal Soul (2005), while the albumSpiritual State was released posthumously in 2011. He was the founder of the independent labelHydeout Productions and released two collection compilations:Hydeout Productions 1st Collection (2003) and2nd Collection (2007). Additionally, Seba collaborated on the soundtrack forShinichirō Watanabe'sanime seriesSamurai Champloo (Music Record: Departure andImpression) in 2004.
In 2010, Seba died in a traffic collision at the age of 36.[1] Although relatively niche during his lifetime, Seba has since achieved posthumous acclaim and been referred as the"godfather" oflo-fi hip hop.
Seba was born as Jun Yamada[2] on February 7, 1974, in theNishi-Azabu district ofMinato in centralTokyo,Japan. He grew up in eastern Tokyo, the city where he would remain in for all his life.[3]
Seba's father worked for theNational Tax Agency, but was an amateur jazz pianist and exposed him to music at a young age.[4][5] Seba dabbled in music-making since high school and studied design at theNihon University College of Art.[1][5]
In 1995 (shortly after graduating, at the age of 21) much to the dismay of his father but supported by his mother, Seba opened a record store inShibuya called Bongo Fury Records, later renamed to Guinness Records.[2] The selection skewed away from commercial releases, mostly featuring underground hip-hop.[6][1]
While operating Guinness Records, Seba began exploring different aspects of the music industry. In 1996 he started writing for music magazines under the pen name Seba Jun.[7] Then, under the monikerDimention Ball, he started making his own beats and pressing them into vinyl to sell in the store.[6]
In 1998 he founded an independent record label first known as Hyde Out Recordings, then as Hyde Out Productions, and ultimately renamed toHydeout Productions.[6] In the same year, he released a 36-track mixtape titledSweet Sticky Thing~Reload All Good Music From Old To The New~. The name was a nod toOhio Players's homonymous track in their seminal albumHoney. This was the first full-length work to be signed under the moniker Nujabes (his name spelled backwards).[6]
In 1999 he released his first 12" recording,Ain’t No Mystery, in collaboration withVerbal (at the time known as L Universe). In the same year he also releasedPeoples Don’t Stray in collaboration withFunky DL. In 1999 he discoveredSubstantial through the mutual friend, rapper, and employee of the store,Sphere of Influence [jp] , and in 2000, he flew Substantial to Japan to collaborate for a month on what would become Substantial's debut album:To This Union A Sun Was Born.[1] Both Funky DL and Substantial would go on to become lifelong collaborators.[1][6]
In 2000 he met the MCShing02 in Tokyo, and exchanged music with him. One track in particular stood out to Shing02, a beat that Seba had created for American producer and songwriterPase Rock. Shing02, who already knew Pase Rock thanks to a previous collaboration, obtained permission from him to use the beat, and thus, in 2001, the track "Luv(sic)" was born.[6] This was the first track of theLuv(sic) Hexalogy, one of Seba's most popular and influential works. The second track, "Luv(sic) Part 2" followed shortly in 2002, after theSeptember 11 attacks forced Shing02 to stay in Tokyo longer than expected.[8]
Between 2001 and 2004 he collaborated withNao Tokui, an artist andAI technology researcher, on a shared project called URBANFOREST.[9] Despite spending many days together over the years, experimenting withMax software and listening to new music, they only finished one track together, "Rotary Park", one of Seba's most experimental works.[6]
In 2003 he opened a second record store, affiliated with Hydeout Productions, called Tribe.[10]
In April 2003, Seba put together a compilation album from songs produced by Hydeout Productions,Hydeout Productions 1st Collection, which featured artists such as Funky DL,Apani B. Fly, Substantial, Shing02, L-Universe, Pase Rock,Five Deez, Uyama Hiroto, andCise Starr.[11]
In August 2003, Seba released his debut studio album,Metaphorical Music. Recorded and mixed in Seba's private Park Avenue Studio, the album's initial release was modest, with recognition growing significantly in later years, to eventually become a cult classic.[6]
Seba was one of the main contributors to the soundtrack of the anime seriesSamurai Champloo directed byShinichirō Watanabe, which blended afeudal Japanese setting with modernanachronisms, such aship hop culture,graffiti, and rapping.[12] This is where he met rapperFat Jon, who would become a friend, collaborator, and strong influence on Seba's later work.[6]
WhileSamurai Champloo was met with lukewarm reception in Japan,[13] it was critically acclaimed and developed a cult following in the West, partially due to its soundtrack which was widely praised[14][15][16] and was ranked byIGN as tenth among theirTop Ten Anime Themes and Soundtracks of All Time.[17] To this project Seba contributed some of the most popular tracks: the opening theme "Battlecry" (another collaboration with Shing02), "Aruarian Dance", which spread virally through the internet,[18] and "Departure" and "Impression" which became seminal works forlo-fi hip hop artists.[6][13] This success catapulted Seba, who at the time was still an underground figure, into the international spotlight and reached many fans who would later discover his earlier works.[13]
In 2005 Seba released his second studio album,Modal Soul. Like his debut album,Modal Soul fuses jazzy, smooth rhythms and hip hop, but with more downtempo and a different quality to transitions and mixing that has been attributed to Fat Jon's influence. The fourth track is another installment of his collaboration with Shing02, "Luv(sic) Part 3".[6]
In 2007 Seba released another compilation album that would be his very last,Hydeout Productions 2nd Collection. The album features some of his most recurring collaborators such as Pase Rock, Uyama Hiroto, and Shing02.[6]
On February 26, 2010, Seba was involved in a traffic collision leaving theShuto Expressway inTokyo: he was taken to a hospital inShibuya Ward, where he was pronounced dead after efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.[19][20] Seba is buried inTama Cemetery, Tokyo.[21]
His death interrupted work on his third studio album,Spiritual State, and his decade-long collaboration with Shing02, theLuv(sic) hexalogy, both of which have been completed posthumously by his friends and collaborators.[22]
Spiritual State features work from some of Seba's classic collaborators like Pase Rock, Substantial, Cise Starr, and Uyama Hiroto, as well as introducingHaruka Nakamura. The tracks featuring vocals focus on encouraging messages, touching on themes of perseverance and pursuing one's aspirations.[22]
After Seba died unexpectedly, many doubted that theLuv(sic) series would ever continue. However,Luv(sic) Part 4 andLuv(sic) Part 5 were very close to completion, and after putting the finishing touches in Seba's recording studio in the basement of his home inKamakura, they were released by Shing02 shortly after Seba's death in 2011. The instrumental to what would eventually becomeLuv(sic) Grand Finale was discovered on Seba's cell phone a few weeks after his death.[23] The track was completed once again in the Kamakura studio, and then released on February 26, 2013, on the third anniversary of Seba's death.[24]
Seba was an underground figure in Japan's hip hop scene and was virtually unknown in the West until the success ofSamurai Champloo, which propelled his popularity both in Japan and, especially, abroad.[13] While this rise in fame started when he was alive, it significantly increased posthumously thanks to the popularity of lo-fi hip hop in the 2010s and its spread throughinternet culture, and it culminated with Seba becoming widely regarded as the godfather of lo-fi hip hop.[25][13][6] Seba's production techniques and career have also been compared favorably withJ Dilla, both of whom coincidentally shares the same birthdate.[26]
Frequent collaborator Shing02 paid tribute to Seba, saying he was "a unique talent", "a close friend", and that "he [had] touched so many people around the world, even beyond his dreams".[27] He has since performed at several tribute concerts for Seba, including at the anime conventionOtakon in 2019, along with artists such as musicianMinmi and rapperSubstantial.[28]
On November 11, 2010, his label released a tributecompilation album,Modal Soul Classics II, featuring previous collaborators andcovers andremixes of his songs.[29] Several other tribute albums and songs have been released: the 2013 tribute album25 Nights for Nujabes by Australian hip-hop producerTa-ku;[30] "Kwiaty dla J", a 2018 tribute song by Polish rapper Zeus;[31] and the track "Nujabes" from American rapperChester Watson's 2020 album,A Japanese Horror Film.[32]
In 2016Kei Nishikori, a Japanese professional tennis player, released a compilation album titledKei Nishikori meets Nujabes that features his favorite pieces from Seba's repertoire.[33]
Seba has been mentioned in two songs by American rapperLogic: in the track "Thank You" from his 2018 albumYSIV, which was written "over a Nujabes vibe",[34] and in "Perfect" from his 2020 albumNo Pressure, where Seba was cited as a major inspiration in his production style.[35] Seba was also mentioned by American rapperSahBabii in his 2018 song "Anime World", with the rapper stating in an interview that he admired Seba's music.[36]
The 2022 adventure video gameStray features the song "Cool Down" inspired by Seba's track "Counting Stars".[37]
Seba has generally been described as humble, quiet, calm, unassuming, and shy,[8][7][38][39] but also as having strong passions for food,[6] soccer,[39] and being uncompromising, meticulous, and a perfectionist when it came to his work.[38][8][7]
Seba had two brothers: an older brother who continues to manage Hydeout Productions,[8] and a younger brother that operatesUsagi (うさぎ), a ramen shop in Shibuya that plays Seba's music and is decorated with Nujabes memorabilia.[40] Seba is survived by his wife and daughter.[38]
| Hydeout Productions | |
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| Founded | 1998 |
| Founder | Nujabes |
| Genre | |
| Country of origin | Japan |
| Official website | hydeout |
Hydeout Productions is anindependent record label formerly run by Seba.
Artists:
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)| International | |
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| National | |
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