KOHH (Japanese artist)

KOHH
Birth name Yūki Chiba (千葉雄喜)
Also known as
  • KOHH
  • Yellow T20
Born (1990-04-22) April 22, 1990
Oji, Kita, Tokyo, Japan
Genres
Occupation(s)
Instruments Vocals
Years active 2008–present
Labels Gunsmith Production
Associated acts
Website kohh.tokyo

Yuki Chiba (千葉雄喜 Chiba Yūki, born April 22, 1990) better known by his stage name KOHH, is a Japanese hip hop recording artist from Oji, Kita, Tokyo.

Early life

Chiba was born in Oji, Kita, Tokyo. He was raised by a single mother along with his younger brother. His younger brother is also an up-and-coming rapper. His father committed suicide by jumping off an apartment building while high on drugs; his mother struggled with an addiction to methamphetamine. KOHH grew up around violence and drugs along with his crew of local friends who share the same experience. His tough environment along with his desire to become a rapper gave him a head start in the Japanese hip-hop scene.[1]

Career

KOHH started producing and recording music at the age of 18 with while making various mixtapes, until he met producer 318 and started releasing material under the label GUNSMITH PRODUCTION. He saw an early underground success within the sub-urban Japanese scene when he produced the song "Young Forever" of his younger brother 'lil kohh' whose music video went viral in Japan.

In 2014 KOHH released his major 2nd studio album titled 'MONOCHROME'. The album was a fair success among the urban acts and its lead track I don't mind if I'm poor (Japanese: 貧乏なんて気にしない Hepburn: Bimbo nante Ki ni shinai) had big reception on YouTube.

In 2015, KOHH along with Japanese artist Loota collaborated with Keith Ape's track '잊지마 (It G Ma)' which became a major hit single in Japan and South Korea apart from gaining international media attention.[2] Back in Japan, KOHH resumed his work and continued working on his new album 'DIRT' after releasing his delayed 1st album '梔子 (Gardenia)'. 'DIRT' was released on the 28th of October. The album was also released internationally via iTunes in the 23th of October. KOHH featured along with OG Maco on the track 'BUCHIAGARI' by Japanese DJ RYOW.

In 2016, KOHH collaborated with major singers like R&B singer Frank Ocean, in the song Nikes, available in the physical CD of his album Frank Ocean. KOHH was featured in a new song from Japanese American superstar Hikaru Utada, in the song Bōkyaku, from her 6th Japanese album Fantôme.

Discography

Studio albums

Title Album details
Monochrome
  • Released: July 30, 2014
  • Label: Gunsmith Productions
  • Formats: CD, digital download
梔子
  • Released: January 1, 2015
  • Label: Gunsmith Productions
  • Formats: CD, digital download
Dirt
  • Released: October 28, 2015
  • Label: Gunsmith Productions
  • Formats: CD, digital download
Dirt II
  • Released: June 17, 2016
  • Label: Gunsmith Productions
  • Formats: CD, digital download

Mixtapes

Singles

Reception

KOHH is been mentioned several times as a major influential force to the Japanese hip hop scene in the recent years. KOHH has occasionally criticized how small the hip hop scene is in Japan and has tackled major mainstream TVs for its negligence of noticing hip hop. KOHH has also being praised for his smart use of topics like drug use and violence within the Japanese society which are considered controversial in the country.[3] After being featured in '잊지마 (It G Ma)', KOHH received an even bigger praise from international audiences who recognized his use of the phrase 'Arigato' in his verse as the trademark of the hit song and praised the artist whose performance was the one that 'left the biggest impression on the track'.[4] M-flo's Taku Takahashi has appointed KOHH as one of the main acts in the Japanese hip hop renaissance.[5]

Several videos featuring KOHH have gone viral on social media like YouTube, Facebook and Vine among others.[6][7][8]

Accolades

Space Shower Music Video Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2016 KOHH Best Hip Hop Artist Won [9]

References

  1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn36uJvwIvA
  2. ↑ Dexter Thomas (2015-02-15). ""It G Ma" Made Asian rap History". Noisey. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  3. ↑ Cristina Quinn (2015-03-15). "Rapper Kohh shows a side of Japan that is often ignored". Public Radio International. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  4. ↑ Danny Masao Winston (2015-03-15). "The verse that launched Kohh's rise into rap stardom". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  5. ↑ Ronald (2015-03-15). "m-flo's Taku Takahashi finally clears up his F*ck J-Pop tweets". Arama Japan, The Japan Times. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  6. ↑ "Arigato Japanese Trap Music". YouTube. 2015-03-15. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  7. ↑ "Japanese Trap Music". Facebook. 2015-03-15. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  8. ↑ "None". Vine. 2015-03-15. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  9. ↑ "Winners - Space Shower Music Video Awards". Space Shower. 2015-02-28. Retrieved 2016-02-29.
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