, known professionally as , is a

Japanese hip hop Japanese hip hop is hip hop music from Japan. It is said to have begun when Hiroshi Fujiwara returned to Japan and started playing hip hop records in the early 1980s. Japanese hip hop tends to be most directly influenced by old school hip hop, ...

recording artist and DJ who made his first appearance in 1995. Zeebra is a former member of the hip-hop group

King Giddra King Giddra was a Japanese hip hop group that started in 1993. They were signed to the indie label P-Vine Records. After a six-year hiatus, they would go on to sign with DefStar Records, a sublabel under Sony Music Entertainment Japan (SMEJ) f ...

, which also included DJ Oasis and

K Dub Shine , known professionally as K Dub Shine, is a Japanese rapper. Early life Kagami was born in the Shibuya, Tokyo, Shibuya ward of the city of Tokyo, Japan. In 10th grade K Dub Shine enrolled in an exchange program which landed him in Philadelphia. ...

, and the older brother of fellow hip hop recording artist SPHERE of INFLUENCE. He went on to pursue a solo career shortly after in 1997, and signed with the Future Shock record label. Zeebra is one of the most popular rappers in Japan, and his popularity is not specific to either gender. He appears not only in hip-hop magazines, but also in fashion and

street culture Street culture may refer to: * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities * Street market * Children's street culture * Street carnival * Block party * Street identity * Street food * Café culture * Several youth subculture or countercultu ...

magazines. He often features in and produces other rappers' songs, and appears in their

videos Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) syste ...

. He has also performed live with various rappers from

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 1998 Zeebra undertook his first solo tour. He became recognized as an individual rapper for the first time, making hip-hop more familiar to Japanese listeners. In the same year he started the first hip-hop TV program in Japan, titled ''Beats to the Rhyme''. One of Zeebra's songs was used in a

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

promotion video for

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

Japan games. The following year Zeebra released the single "Mr. Dynamite", the first hip-hop single to break into the top 50 on the Japanese pop charts. In June 2000, he released his new album ''Based on a True Story'', which sold 250,000 copies. At the end of that year Zeebra started his first Japan tour, the first hip-hop event to sell out. In 2001 Zeebra released the single "Never Enuff", the

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...

for a Japanese movie called ''

Brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...

'', directed by

Takeshi Kitano is a Japanese comedian, television presenter, actor, filmmaker, and author. While he is known primarily as a comedian and TV host in his native Japan, he is better known abroad for his work as a filmmaker and actor as well as TV host. With th ...

and starring

Claude Maki (born October 3, 1972) is a Japanese surfing and flight champion, actor and hip hop singer, under the stage name A.K.T.I.O.N., from Akasaka, Tokyo. He is the eldest son of actor and singer Mike Maki. His mother is , a Japanese-American actres ...

. In 2002 he temporarily rejoined King Giddra, but has been doing solo work since 2003 and has released many songs. At present, he is producing songs not only for rap artists, but also for pop stars like

Namie Amuro Namie Amuro ( ; ja, 安室奈美恵, Amuro Namie, label=none; born September 20, 1977) is a Japanese former recording artist, producer, songwriter, dancer, model, actress and entrepreneur who was active between 1992 and 2018. A leading figure of ...

Early life

Zeebra was born and raised in Tokyo. During his childhood, he lived in the United States for a brief time while trying to become a professional tennis player. He is the grandson of businessman Hideki Yokoi, former president of the Hotel New Japan. The hotel's flagship property in central Tokyo caught fire in 1982, disgracing Hideki Yokoi and causing Zeebra to be bullied by his classmates. Zeebra eventually dropped out of high school during his first year. He married around the age of 20 and fathered two sons, Kento and Ren Yokoi, before divorcing his first wife. Ren is a DJ who plays a mixture of House and Techno, where he is also a main MC for Tokyo Scene; Tokyo’s radio show by Inter FM 89.7. He kept custody of both sons, and later remarried to Miwa Nakabayashi, to whom he fathered two daughters, Kanon and Rima Nakabayashi of

NiziU NiziU ( ja, ニジュー; ko, 니쥬), stylized as NIZIU, is a Japanese girl group formed by JYP Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The group is composed of nine members: Mako, Rio, Maya, Riku, Ayaka, Mayuka, Rima, Miihi, and ...

. In November 2020, Zeebra and Nakabayashi announced their divorce.

Pioneer of Japanese Hip Hop

Zeebra began his hip hop career in 1993, joining the rap group King Giddra.Japanese rapper and hip hop artist Zeebra ã‚¸ãƒ–ãƒ© – JapanSugoi – Everything Cool about Japan
/ref> Zeebra, along with his group King Giddra, played an important role in the development of the Japanese hip hop scene. In the mid 1990s, King Giddra, then an underground rap group, began addressing social issues of the time. King Giddra's 1995 album "The Power from the Sky" discussed contemporary issues, particularly the economic recession and the inability of many Japanese college graduates to find employment. Zeebra addressed this issue of working towards a good education and being unable to find employment in his song "Bullet of Truth". Through their music, Zeebra and King Giddra "challenged youth not only to recognize the difficulties faced by Japanese society but also to speak up about them." King Giddra's popularity grew in Japan. In 1996, he recorded his first solo track "Untouchable" produced by

Gang Starr Gang Starr was an American hip hop duo, consisting of Texas record producer DJ Premier and Massachusetts rapper Guru. For the entirety of their association, they were based out of Brooklyn, New York. Gang Starr was at its height from 1989 to 20 ...

producer

DJ Premier Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop duo ...

. By 1997 Zeebra left King Giddra to start a solo career, appearing frequently in trendy hip hop and street culture magazines and TV shows about hip hop. In 1999 he released the single "Mr. Dynamite", which became the first hip-hop single to make it into the top 50 on the Japanese Oricon pop charts. Through his early and newer work, Zeebra became one of the most popular and influential, yet controversial, Japanese hip hop artists. In 2008, after the MTV Video Music Awards Japan Ceremony, an unhappy Zeebra went onto YouTube and published a video criticizing the MTV Japan for not appreciating musicians.

Discography

Albums

* 998.06.17"The Rhyme Animal" * 000.06.14"Based on a True Story" * 002.05.29"The First Struggle" *

003.09.18 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 no ...

"Tokyo's Finest" * 006.02.15"The New Beginning" * 007.10.17" World of Music" * 011.12.14"Black World/White Heat" * 013.11.20"25 to Life"

Singles

* 997.07.25"Mappiruma" * 998.12.16"The Rhyme Animal Remix E.P.1" * 999.02.24"The Rhyme Animal Remix E.P.2" * 000.03.23"Mr. Dynamite" * 001.01.25"Neva Enuff" feat. Aktion * 001.08.08"Baby Girl" * 003.01.22"Big Big Money" feat. Hiro * 003.04.23"Supatech (What's My Name)" * 003.07.30"Perfect Queen" * 005.06.01"Street Dreams" * 005.09.21"Oh Yeah" * 006.12.06"Stop Playin' A Wall" * 007.07.18"My People" feat.

Miliyah Kato (born June 22, 1988), better known by her stage name of is a Japanese pop and urban singer, songwriter, fashion designer, and author. In 2003, Kato started her career as a singer when she provided vocal to Reggae Disco Rockers' song "Cherry Oh ...

* 007.09.19"Not Your Boyfriend" feat. Jesse (

RIZE Rize (Greek language, Greek: ρίζα, Laz language, Laz: რიზინი, Georgian language, Georgian: რიზე, , Ottoman Turkish: ريزه) is the capital city of Rize Province in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region of Turkey. Rize ...

) * 008.03.05"Bushido" * 010.03.17"Butterfly City" feat.

RYO the SKYWALKER Ryo may refer to: * Ryō, a gold currency unit in pre-Meiji Japan Shakkanhō system * Ryō (actress) (born 1973), Japanese model, actress, and singer * Ryō (given name), a unisex Japanese given name * Ryo, Georgia Ryo is an unincorporated communit ...

, Mummy-D &

DOUBLE A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

* 010.11.17"Fly Away" * 011.07.27"Blue" feat. AI * 013"I Do It" * 013"Mr. Miyagi"

Compilations

* 008.9.17''The Anthology'' * 010"Z – The Best of Zeebra" * 013.12.25"100 Feat-Zeebra 25th Anniversary Box"

Awards and nominations

''2002'' *

MTV Video Music Awards Japan The MTV Video Music Awards Japan (MTV VMAJ for short) are the Japanese version of the MTV Video Music Awards. Like the MTV Video Music Awards in the United States, in this event artists are awarded for their songs and videos through online votin ...

– Best Video from a Film – Neva Enuff (feat. Aktion) ''2003'' *

– Best Hip Hop Video – F.F.B. (with King Giddra) ''2004'' *

– Best Hip Hop Video – Touch The Sky (Winner) *

– Best Male Video – Touch The Sky ''2006'' *

– Best Hip Hop Video – Street Dreams ''2008'' *

– Best Hip Hop Video – Not Your Boyfriend (feat. Jesse (RIZE))

Music videos

;1997 *"真っ昼間" (Daytime) ;1998 *"PARTEECHECKA" right Light Mix ;2000 *"ZEUS 2000" ''(feat. Sugar Soul)'' *"MR.DYNAMITE" *"Children's Story" ;2001 *"Neva Enuff" ''(feat. AKTION)'' *"Baby Girl" *"城南ハスラー 2" (Seongnam Hustler 2) ''(feat. DABO, UZI, GKMARYAN)'' ;2002 *"UNSTOPPABLE" ''(Zeebra with K Dub Shine & DJ OASIS as 'King Giddra')'' *"FFB" ''(Zeebra with K Dub Shine & DJ OASIS as 'King Giddra')'' *"911" (Remix) ''(Zeebra with K Dub Shine & DJ OASIS as 'King Giddra')'' *"Generation Next" ''(Zeebra with K Dub Shine & DJ OASIS as 'King Giddra')'' ;2003 *"Big Big Money" ''(feat. HIRO

rom 'Full of Harmony Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * R ...

)'' *"Supatech (What's My Name?)" *"Perfect Queen" *"Touch The Sky" *"GOLDENMIC" ''(w/ DJ MASTERKEY)'' ;2005 *"Street Dreams" *"Oh Yeah!" ;2006 *"Do What U Gotta Do" ''(feat. Namie Amuro, AI & Mummy-D

rom 'RHYMESTER' Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...

'' *"Stop Playin 'A Wall" ;2007 *"My People" ''(feat. Kato Miliyah)'' *"Not your Boyfriend" ''(feat. JESSE

rom 'RIZE Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...

" *"Shinin' Like A Diamond" ''(feat. May J & Sphere of Influence)'' ;2008 *"Bushido" *"Jackin '4 Beats" ;2010 *"Butterfly City" ''(feat. Double, RYO the SKYWALKER & Mummy-D

'' *"Fly Away" ;2011 *"Gang On The Backstreet" ''(feat. TOKYO SKA PARADISE ORCHESTRA)'' *"Blue" ''(feat. AI)'' ;2012 *"Money In My Pocket" ''(feat. NaNa)'' ;2013 *"Moonlight" *"Young Soldier" *"Mr. Miyagi" ;2014 *"Hate That Booty" ''(feat. Y's & KOHH)'' *"Diamond In The Sand" ''(feat. May J)''

References

External links

Official Zeebra Myspace

Official Zeebra website

Official Zeebra website by Ariola Japan/Sony Music

Japanese Hip-Hop by Ian Condry (MIT)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zeebra 1971 births Japanese rappers Living people Pony Canyon artists Sony Music Entertainment Japan artists