, better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

DJ Krush, is a record producer and DJ. He is known for his atmospheric instrumental production which incorporates sound elements from nature and extensive use of jazz and soul samples.

Early life

Ishi was born in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

in 1962. He dropped out of school at an early age and joined a local gang and, a few years later, the

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

. Early in his career as a yakuza underling, Ishi discovered a severed finger wrapped in paper on his desk. Later, after discovering that it had belonged to a friend, he decided to leave the yakuza and cut ties with the criminal underworld. Ishi was inspired to start DJing after seeing the film ''

Wild Style ''Wild Style'' is a 1983 American hip hop film directed and produced by Charlie Ahearn. Regarded as the first hip hop motion picture, it includes appearances by seminal figures such as Fab Five Freddy, Lee Quiñones, Lady Pink, The Rock St ...

'' in 1983. "When I discovered the film Wild Style in 1983 I found what I really wanted to do, to express myself," he said in a 2015 interview. "Breaking, grafitti, rap, DJ… I always liked music so I chose DJ. My body wasn’t built for breaking, DJing was the thing for me."

Career

Aside from being considered one of the pioneers of Japanese hip hop, Ishi has established himself as one of the most respected artists and producers in the hip hop industry, both in Japan and abroad. Upon entering the industry, Ishi, with his experimental beats and instrumental sounds, changed the face of hip-hop at a time when it was dominated by the American rap scene. He is reluctant to identify his music with any particular genre, for it would place limits on his listeners and on his talents. He has been regarded as ambient,

trip hop Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with "downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic fusion of hip hop and electronica with slow temp ...

, some combination of the two, and hip hop. DJ Krush prefers to exercise an ideological distance from the genres he is usually grouped into, while maintaining a healthy appreciation for all music forms and styles. Still, in general, he admits to having more affinity to the musical underground than the mainstream. "Hip hop in Japan is divided in two parts. Mainstream and Underground," he says. "Underground is more interesting and I feel comfortable here."

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

Krush Krush were a UK dance music group, who had a crossover hit single with "House Arrest" in 1987. Career The group consisted of musicians Mark Gamble, Cassius Campbell and record producers Mark Brydon and Robert Gordon. Ruth Joy was the featur ...

'' (1994) * '' Strictly Turntablized'' (1994) * '' Meiso'' (1995) * '' Ki-Oku'' (1996) (with

Toshinori Kondo was a Japanese avant-garde jazz and jazz fusion trumpeter. Career Kondo was born in Ehime Prefecture. He attended Kyoto university in 1967, and became close friends with percussionist Tsuchitori Toshiyuki. In 1972 the pair left university, an ...

) * '' MiLight'' (1996) * '' Kakusei'' (1998) * ''Ga'' (1999) (with DJ Hide and DJ Sak, as Ryu) * ''

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), an ...

'' (2001) * '' The Message at the Depth'' (2002) * '' Jaku'' (2004) * ''Incunabula'' (2010) (with

Bill Laswell William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, ...

, et al., as Method of Defiance) * ''Nahariama'' (2013) (with Bill Laswell, et al., as Method of Defiance) * ''Butterfly Effect'' (2015) * ''Kiseki'' (2017) * ''Cosmic Yard'' (2018) * ''Trickster'' (2020)

Compilation albums

* ''Reload: The Remix Collection'' (2001) * ''Stepping Stones: The Self Remixed Best: Lyricism'' (2006) * ''Stepping Stones: The Self Remixed Best: Soundscapes'' (2006)

Mixtapes

* ''Cold Krush Cuts'' (1997) (with DJ Food and

Coldcut Coldcut are an English electronic music duo composed of Matt Black and Jonathan More. Credited as pioneers for pop sampling in the 1980s, Coldcut are also considered the first stars of UK electronic dance music due to their innovative style, ...

) * '' Holonic-The Self Megamix'' (1997) * ''Code 4109'' (2000) * ''OuMuPo 6'' (2006)

EPs

* ''Bad Brothers'' (1994) (with

Ronny Jordan Robert Laurence Albert Simpson, known professionally as Ronny Jordan (29 November 1962 – 13 January 2014) was a British guitarist and part of the acid jazz movement at the end of the twentieth century. Jordan described his music as "urban jaz ...

) * ''The DJ Krush EP'' (1995) * ''Meiso: Another Maze'' (1996) * ''Selektions'' (1997) * ''Code 1255'' (1999) (with Gravity) * ''Saihate'' (2016) (with

) * ''道 -STORY-'' (2022)

Singles

* "Lost and Found" b/w "Kemuri" (1994) (with

DJ Shadow Joshua Paul Davis (born June 29, 1972), better known by his stage name DJ Shadow, is an American DJ, songwriter and record producer. His debut studio album, '' Endtroducing.....'' was released in 1996. Biography Early years (1989–1995) DJ Sha ...

) * "A Whim" b/w "89.9 Megamix" (1995) (with DJ Shadow) * "Big City Lover" (1995) * "Dig This Vibe" (1995) (with

Roni Size Ryan Owen Granville Williams (born 29 October 1969), better known by his stage name Roni Size, is an English DJ and record producer. He came to prominence in 1997 as the founder and frontman of Roni Size & Reprazent, a drum and bass collective ...

) * "Meiso" (1996) * "Headz 2 Sampler" (1996) (with Zimbabwe Legit) * "Only the Strong Survive" (1996) * "Milight" (1997) * "Final Home" (1999) * "Tragicomic" (2000) (with Aco and Twigy) * "Never Too Soon" (1999) (with DJ Hide and DJ Sak, as Ryu) * "Rhythm Asobi" (2000) (with DJ Hide and DJ Sak, as Ryu) * "Supreme Team" b/w "Alepheuo" (2003) * "Koufu no Tsubasa: Breathe of Wings" (2011) * "Kuon: Far and Away" (2011) * "Shuya no Chiheisen: Sleepless Horizon" (2011) * "Kagi no Te: Phasic Swing" (2011) * "Kouro: Optical Path" (2012) * "Kuroi Ame: Black Rain" (2012) * "Aoi Ame: Green Rain" (2012) * "Genun: Passage of Time" (2012) * "Kyofu: Conflicts" (2012) * "Yushin: Brave Heart" (2012) * "Shuen" (2014) (with

)

DVDs

* ''History of DJ Krush'' (2007)

Guest appearances

* Monday Michiru - "Cruel 2 Be Kind" from ''Double Image'' (1998) * Luna Sea - "Sweetest Coma Again" and "Kiss" from '' Lunacy'' (2000) *

Ryuichi Sakamoto is a Japanese composer, pianist, singer, record producer and actor who has pursued a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). With his bandmates Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi, Sakamoto in ...

- "Zero Landmine" from '' Zero Landmine'' (2001) * Yasushi Ide - "Black Night" (2006) *

DJ Kentaro Kentaro Okamoto (born c.1982), better known as DJ Kentaro, is a musician and DJ from Japan.''Tuff Kuts'' review, '' The Wire'', 2008, vol. 293-298, p. 70 He won third place in the Technics category of the DMC World DJ Final in 2001 and won it in ...

- "Kikkake" from ''Contrast'' (2012)

Productions

* Inoran - ''Sou'' (1997) * Kukoo Da Baga Bonez & World - "Krush Ya Dreams" from ''Insane Psycho Home'' (2002)

Remixes

* Monday Michiru - "When I'm with You (DJ Krush Mix)" from ''Groovement'' (1994) * k.d. lang - "Sexuality (DJ Krush Full Mix)" (1995) *

Roy Hargrove Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing sty ...

- "Roy Allan (DJ Krush Remix)" (1995) * Naniwa Man - "L.O.V.E. '95 (DJ Krush Mix)" (1995) *

DJ Vadim Vadim Alexandrovich Peare (russian: Вадим Александрович Пир, Vadim Aleksandrovich Pir ...

- "Variations in U.S.S.R. (DJ Krush Remix)" from ''U.S.S.R. Reconstruction: Theories Explained'' (1997) * Miki Nakatani - "Tengoku yori Yaban (DJ Krush Mix)" from ''Vague'' (1997) * Sugizo - "Eternity in Luna" from ''Replicant Truth?'' (1997) * Sugizo - "Spiritual Prayer" and "Shangri-la of the Europa" from ''Replicant Prayer (Remixes)'' (1997) * Monday Michiru - "Givin' It (DJ Krush Remix)" from ''Adoption Agency'' (1999) * Kodō - "Ibuki Reconstruction" from ''Sai-So'' (1999) *

Toshinobu Kubota is a Japanese singer, songwriter, musician, music producer, and radio personality. He has produced six million-seller records and thirty-three Top 40 singles during his career. Kubota is currently part of Sony Music Japan. In addition, he has co ...

- "Soul Bangin' (DJ Krush 80's Mix)" (1999) *

Boom Boom Satellites were a Japanese electronic music duo consisting of guitarist and vocalist Michiyuki Kawashima and bassist and programmer Masayuki Nakano. They were signed to Sony Music Entertainment Japan, with whom they had released all of their albums in Jap ...

- "On the Painted Desert (DJ Krush Remix)" from ''On the Painted Desert - Rampant Colors'' (1999) * Aco - "Aishu to Ballad (DJ Krush Remix)" from '' The Other Side of Absolute Ego'' (2000) *

Dragon Ash is a Japanese rap rock group founded in 1996 by Kenji "KJ" Furuya and Sakurai Makoto. They were one of the first groups to popularize hip hop in Japan. Dragon Ash is a member of Mob Squad, which is an affiliation with the bands Source and End ...

- "Deep Impact (DJ Krush Remix)" (2000) *

Nigo is a Japanese fashion designer, disc jockey (DJ), record producer and entrepreneur. He is best known as the creator of the urban clothing line A Bathing Ape (Bape) and currently serves as creative director for Kenzo. Additionally he is a membe ...

- "Something for the People (DJ Krush Remix)" (2000) *

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

- "The Essence (DJ Krush Main Mix)" (2001) *

Boredoms Boredoms () (later known as V∞redoms) is a rock band from Osaka, Japan formed in 1986. The band's sound is often referred to as noise rock, or sometimes Japanoise (Japan’s noise music scene), though their more recent records have moved to ...

- '' Rebore, vol. 3'' (2001) *

Tetsuya Komuro is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is recognized as the most successful producer in Japanese music history and introduced contemporary electronic dance music to the Japanese mainstream. He was also a former owner of the ...

- "Blue Fantasy Remix" (2002) * Akira Sakata - "Kaigarabushi (DJ Krush Remix)" (2002) *

Soulive Soulive is a funk/jazz trio that originated in Woodstock, New York, and is known for its solos and catchy, upbeat songs. The band consists of Eric Krasno (guitar), Alan Evans (drums) and Neal Evans ( Hammond B3 organ, bass keys, clavinet). Althou ...

- "Turn It Out (Remix)" (2003) * Angelina - "Babybayboo (DJ Krush Remix)" (2003)

Compilation appearances

* "Only the Strong Survive" and "A Whim" from ''The Story of Mo'Wax'' (1995) * "Shin-Ki-Row" from ''Altered Beats: Assassin Knowledges of the Remanipulated'' (1996) * "Ryu-Ki" from '' Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip'' (1996)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krush, Dj Japanese hip hop musicians Japanese hip hop DJs Yakuza members 1962 births Living people Musicians from Ibaraki Prefecture FFRR Records artists