Born 1962 in Tokyo KRUSH’s superb sense in mixing and composing sound has been greatly received in the international club scene. He gains attention by using turntable as musical instrument and has played with renowned jazz artists. He is known to be the Japanese artist whose music has been listened to the most globally. He has started to work on his anticipated solo album this year.
My Highlights | I’m proud of my family, coworkers, and friends who support me – by no means I’m perfect, so I really need that. Also, I’m proud of all the fans that wait for me around the world. Thanks to all these people, I can transform both happiness and suffering into power, and then I can proceed to the next stage. To feel those exist close to me, and gain power from them is what I’m proud of and grateful for.
A Key Talent | My parents were far from well off, so they didn’t buy me toys such as plastic models which were very popular among kids back then. I used to get broken plastic model parts of a tanker, airplane, or car from friends and used my creativity and made them into my original ‘robot’ or ‘spaceship’. And I was quite happy with that.
But when I became a teenager, I didn’t have anything that I really enjoyed doing, so I went in the wrong direction. I used to ride a motorcycle, have fights… I was a so-called ‘bad boy’. I knew I couldn’t be like that for a long time, but I just didn’t have any clue of what I should do. So I think in those days, I was always frustrated.
During that time, I saw a movie that changed my life. It’s a 1982 hip hop movie called Wilde Style. It vividly illustrated the genesis of hip hop. There was a scene in the movie where a DJ creates a new music using a turntable and records. That reminded me of myself making something new out of plastic model scraps. I was really shaken by the movie.
I bought a turntable and mixer right away, and just practiced every single day from then on. I took part in DJ competitions and won several times. It started as something that I just enjoyed doing, but before I knew it, I was serious enough to make it my professional career.
Of course, as much as I wanted to be a pro, things didn’t turn out the way I hoped at first. I did labor jobs at construction sites for living, and after I got home, I worked on improving my DJ skills without sleeping making demo tapes. I was physically exhausted, but I kept on telling myself that one day I’ll make my dream come true. And now, here I am.
Now that I think about it, my job as a DJ and music producer is just an alternation of making original robots and spaceships of my childhood to music. It’s just that the way I express myself has changed.
By using imagination and assembling many parts, I’m creating new music no one else can make and delivering it to the world.
If I hadn’t seen Wild Style then, I doubt if I would be the same person as I am now. I think everyone has an encounter that changes their life. It’s important to not to miss that moment and grab it. When you get it, there’s no light in your life unless you make actions and set yourself on fire.
Principles I Live By | When one’s having a tough time, other people can’t take over the hardship for you. You just need to overcome the difficulties yourself.
Life is a repetition of surviving hard situations, but that’s what makes your life rich.
Lessons I Have Learnt | When I was younger I didn’t realized how fast the time flies. Don’t put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
Dealing With Doubt | It’s natural to lose confidence and become negative after failing something. People become timid and traumatized from the past experiences.
But the moment you give up, the failure becomes reality. If you don’t give up, then it’s not a failure but it’s just one of the scenes along the way – your life continues. Your heart will be stronger, bigger and richer with time.
It reminds me of what Chaplin said: Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.
Performing At My Peak | Define your character. Focus on emitting your own sound and air into the atmosphere without letting others influence you. And some alcohol and applause and smiles of the audience.
The Meaning Of Life | You won’t be able to find the answer even you think about it. That’s why we make effort and we work hard until we die. We might then find the answer.
The Best Advice I’ve Received | Far back in the past, Keith Herring saw me playing DJ with break dancers on the street of Tokyo. He told us to “Keep on doing it!” So, I’ve kept the promise and for 30 years I’ve been playing. And of course, I’ll keep it up in the future. Thank you, Keith. I really appreciate what you told me!
The Legacy I Would Like To Leave |
‘A millimeter of a moment is the life of the Earth
A millimeter of the Earth is the life of a man
A millimeter of a man’s life is today
A millimeter of today is this moment
100 million cells in one moment
One emotion
One emotion is a millimeter of today
Today is a millimeter of a man’s life
A man’s life is a millimeter of the Earth
The life of the Earth is a millimeter of space
A millimeter of space is the life of the Earth
A millimeter of the Earth is the life of a man
A millimeter of a man’s life is today
A millimeter of today is this moment’
Candle Chant (A Tribute) featuring BOSS THE MC from the album ZEN- DJ KRUSH
