Artist Profile
YAKENOHARAYAKENOHARA
He uses his unique nose to move across a variety of fields, including DJing, composing, rapping, and writing.
He has performed at many parties throughout Japan, from big festivals like the FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL to underground parties. He has participated in over 100 remixes and other works by pop artists such as THE BLUE HEARTS, Tatsuro Yamashita, and YUKI, as well as rock bands and dance music.
In 2009, he released "Rollin' Rollin'" under the name Nanao Tabito x Yakenohara. In 2010, he released the rap album "THIS NIGHT IS STILL YOUNG," and in 2013, his second album "SUNNY NEW LIFE." The music video for the song "RELAXIN'," produced by Saigo no Shoken, won the Newcomer Award at the 17th Japan Media Arts Festival.
As a DJ, he specializes in long sets centered on house, techno, and disco, as well as a wide range of music selections according to the time, place, and occasion, and has worked on numerous mixes, including the official mix for the 15th anniversary of Stones Throw, "Stones Throw 15 mixed by Yakenohara."
He also works as a member of the ambient unit "UNKNOWN ME." In 2017, his work "subtropics," which is themed around the subtropics, was selected as a notable work by the British magazine "FACT Magazine," and he has also appeared in the Japan tour of Gigi Masin, a key figure in the ambient revival, and at the global electronic music and digital art festival "MUTEK." In April 2021, after three mini-albums, he released his first full-length album "BISHINTAI" on the long-established indie label "Not Not Fun" in LA, USA.
Under the name TARO NOHARA, he will release a new age techno album from Germany's GROWING BIN in April 2022, and an ambient album from Switzerland's WRWTFWW in September. In 2023, he will produce the album PARADISE LOST for the automatic music construction system AISO.
He also works as a writer, including a column series for the magazine POPEYE, and published his first book, Cultural Water Stream Exploration, from Seidosha in October 2018.
Genre: Hip Hop/Rap, JazzActive Area: Tokyo