feather

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Nujabes – “Feather” feat. Cise Starr & Akin

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Nujabes -”Lady Brown” feat. Cise Starr

Jun Seba, aka Nujabes, has passed away in a car crash. As the most widely recognized hip-hop figurehead out of Japan, Nujabes produced some of the most incredible beats that are cherished by the underground hip-hop scene. The smooth, laid-back, yet vivid sound of his instrumentals is like none other, making it a simple task to identify a Nujabes beat in the sea of hip-hop production. His work was featured heavily on the hit anime series, Samurai Champloo, which was famous for being the first major show to fuse anime with hip-hop elements. It is no exaggeration to say that Nujabes was unparalleled as an artist. They’ll reminisce over you, Jun Seba.

 Recently Corey posted “Jackin’ My Fresh” by Black Noise, a group from South Africa, and now I’m inspired to throw up something international of my own. Nujabes is a producer/DJ from Japan who has been on the scene for a little while now, who lists under his accomplishments being a main contributor for the music of the highly successful hip-hop-influenced anime show, Samurai Champloo (side note: Samurai Champloo fused anime with hip-hop three years before Afro Samurai did).  He has a very mellow sound to his beats, utilizing jazz elements and softer instruments like piano and acoustic guitar. Though some might write off his beats as too tame, they definitely draw you in with their vivid warmth and colour. This is a guy who I’d love to see produce for someone like Lupe or Common. Unfortunately Nujabes is not on iTunes, so hit up youtube if you’re interested in more.