, better known by his stage name , was a Japanese record producer, audio engineer, DJ, composer and arranger best known for his atmospheric instrumental mixes sampling from hip hop,

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

, and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, as well as incorporating elements of

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 tem ...

breakbeat Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and U ...

downtempo Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may b ...

, and

ambient music Ambient music is a genre of music that emphasizes tone and atmosphere over traditional musical structure or rhythm. It may lack net composition, beat, or structured melody.The Ambient Century by Mark Prendergast, Bloomsbury, London, 2003. It ...

. Seba released two studio albums during his lifetime: '' Metaphorical Music'' (2003) and '' Modal Soul'' (2005), while the album ''

Spiritual State ''Spiritual State'' is the third and final studio album by Nujabes, released posthumously as a follow-up to ''Modal Soul ''Modal Soul'' is the second full-length album by Japanese hip-hop artist Nujabes, released on November 11, 2005, on Nuja ...

'' was released posthumously in 2011. He was the founder of the independent label Hydeout Productions and released two collection compilations: '' Hydeout Productions 1st Collection'' (2003) and '' 2nd Collection'' (2007). Additionally, Seba collaborated on the soundtrack for Shinichirō Watanabe's

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

series ''

Samurai Champloo is a 2004 Japanese historical adventure anime television series. The debut television production of studio Manglobe, the 26-episode series aired from May 2004 to March 2005. It was first partially broadcast on Fuji TV, then had a complete a ...

'' ('' Music Record: Departure'' and '' Impression'') in 2004. In 2010, Seba died in a traffic collision at the age of 36. Although relatively niche during his lifetime, Seba has since achieved posthumous acclaim and been referred as the "godfather" of

lo-fi hip hop Lofi hip hop (also known as 'chillhop'' and lofi beats to study to) is a form of downtempo music that combines elements of hip hop and chill-out music. It was popularized in the 2010s on YouTube and has been referred to as an Internet meme. O ...

. Seba's production techniques and career have also been compared favorably with

J Dilla J, or j, is the tenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its usual name in English is ''jay'' (pronounced ), with a now-uncommon vari ...

Biography

Seba was born on February 7, 1974, in the

Nishi-Azabu is a district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan, which was a part of the former Azabu Ward. Nishiazabu is bordered by Minami-Aoyama on the north and west, Hiroo (Shibuya) on the south, Moto-Azabu on the southeast, and Roppongi on the northeast. The F ...

district of

Minato Minato (港 or 湊) is Japanese for 'harbor', and may refer to: Places * Minato, Tokyo or Minato City, a special ward in Tokyo, Japan * Minato-ku, Nagoya, a ward of Nagoya, Japan * Minato-ku, Osaka, a ward of Osaka, Japan * Minato (湊), a neig ...

in central

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. Seba was the owner of two

Shibuya Shibuya (渋谷区 ''Shibuya-ku'') is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. As a major commercial and finance center, it houses two of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shinjuku Station (southern half) and Shibuya Station. As of April 1 ...

record stores, T Records and Guinness Records, and in 1998 founded the independent record label Hydeout Productions.

Career

Seba adopted the

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 ...

Nujabes (his name spelled backwards) and became notable for his approach to producing hip hop beats, often blending jazz influences into his songs creating a mellow, nostalgic and atmospheric sound. He is considered a pioneer of

, or "chillhop". Seba collaborated with Japanese artists like Uyama Hiroto, Shing02, L-Universe, and

Minmi Michiko Evwana (born December 8, 1974), better known by her stage name , is a Japanese hip-hop and reggae musician,, United Daily News (in Chinese), August 22, 2008 as well as a singer-songwriter and record producer. She is the first soca a ...

, and with various underground

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

hip hop acts such as CYNE, Cise Starr (as a solo apart from the hip-hop collective CYNE),

Apani B Apani N. Smith (born September 17, 1974) known professionally as Apani B. Fly, is an American hip hop emcee. In 1996 her first 12-inch single, "Estragen", was independently released and shortly followed up by several high-profile guest appeara ...

, Five Deez, Substantial,

CL Smooth Corey Brent Penn, Sr. (born October 8, 1968, New Rochelle, New York), known by his stage name CL Smooth, is an American rapper. He is best known as the vocal half of the hip-hop duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth. Career After the duo Pete Rock & CL S ...

, Fat Jon,

Terry Callier Terrence Orlando "Terry" Callier (May 24, 1945 – October 27, 2012) was an American soul, folk and jazz guitarist and singer-songwriter. Life and career Callier was born in the North Side of Chicago, Illinois, and was raised in the Cabrini� ...

as well as

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

rapper Funky DL. Seba was also a member of the production duo Urbanforest, an experimental collaboration with Nao T. Seba collaborated with Shing02 on the critically acclaimed ''Luv(sic)'' hexalogy, making the parts 1-3 together, but after Seba died unexpectedly many doubted that the series could ever be completed. However, parts 4 and 5 had already been completed, which were released shortly after Seba's death. Part 6 was not among the previously completed tracks, but it was released on February 26, 2013, on the third anniversary of Seba's death. According to Shing02's official Facebook page, the instrumental to what would eventually be part 6 was discovered on Seba's

cell phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive telephone call, calls over a radio freq ...

a few weeks after his death. Seba was one of the most prolific contributors to the soundtrack of the critically acclaimed anime series ''

'', which blends a

feudal Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inven ...

ese setting with modern

anachronisms An anachronism (from the Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time periods. The most common type ...

, especially in regard to hip hop culture such as

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

and rapping.

Death

On February 26, 2010, Seba was in a traffic collision upon exiting the

Shuto Expressway is a network of toll expressways in the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is operated and maintained by the . Most routes are grade-separated (elevated roads or tunnels) and central routes have many sharp curves and multi-lane merges that requi ...

at 22:14. He was pronounced dead at a hospital in Shibuya Ward after efforts to revive him failed. His grave is located within the Japanese section of Tama Cemetery.

Legacy

Seba's death elicited many tributes from other artists around the world. On

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...

, the New York-based Digi Crates records released a series of tribute albums performed by various artists in a style reminiscent of Seba's. Seba's label Hydeout Productions released a tribute album titled '' Modal Soul Classics II'' featuring a number of former collaborators and with lyrics and song titles that reference Seba's work. Frequent collaborator Shing02 remarked, "Through his soulful music, Nujabes has touched so many people around the world, even beyond his dreams", and " deeply regret the loss of a unique talent and a close friend." Shing02 has performed at tribute concerts for Seba. Daniel Hodgman, founder of hip hop culture website BonusCut, in a 2014 highlight of ''Modal Soul'' said that, "Nujabes may not be physically with us anymore, but through his music, his legacy and lust for life lives on." Co-founder Gus Navarro remarked that, "The music of the late producer Nujabes is something to hold onto and never let go." In 2013, Australian producer Ta-ku released the tribute album ''25 Nights for Nujabes''. In 2018, Polish rapper Zeus released the tribute song "Kwiaty dla J." In 2018, American rapper

SahBabii Saaheem Malik Valdery (born February 24, 1997), better known as SahBabii, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia. His song, "Pull Up Wit Ah Stick" featuring Loso Loaded, gained widespread popularity after its relea ...

mentioned Nujabes in his song “Anime World”. He said “RIP Nujabes, nine tails a Jinchuriki”. In an interview with '' XXL'', SahBabii said Nujabes was an influence for him to make music. In 2018, American rapper

Logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...

mentioned Nujabes in the track "Thank You" off of his album ''YSIV'', saying "I had to write this over a Nujabes vibe", referencing the production style of the track, which is reminiscent of Nujabes' music. In 2020, Logic cited Nujabes as a key inspiration behind his production style alongside

MF Doom Daniel Dumile ( ; July 13, 1971October 31, 2020), best known by his stage name MF Doom or simply Doom (both stylized in all caps), was a British-American rapper and record producer. Noted for his intricate wordplay, signature metal mask, and ...

, RZA and

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

in the track "Perfect" off of his album ''No Pressure''. On 26 July 2019,

Otakon Otakon ( ) is an annual three-day anime convention held during July/August. It stands for Otaku Convention. From 1999 to 2016, it took place at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland's Inner Harbor district; in 2017, it moved ...

held a tribute concert in Washington, D.C., featuring Shing02,

MINMI Michiko Evwana (born December 8, 1974), better known by her stage name , is a Japanese hip-hop and reggae musician,, United Daily News (in Chinese), August 22, 2008 as well as a singer-songwriter and record producer. She is the first soca a ...

, Substantial, Marcus D and EyeQ. On October 21, 2020 Chester Watson released the album ''A Japanese Horror Film'' featuring a track titled “Nujabes”. In 2022, videogame '' Stray'' featured track ''Counting Stars'' as a part of collectible sheet music pages.

Hydeout Productions

Hydeout Productions is an

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

formerly run by Nujabes.

Artists

* Nujabes (deceased) * Uyama Hiroto * Emancipator * Kenmochi Hidefumi * Ficus (Cloud Ni9e, Kic. & HISANOVA) * Nitsua (Zack Austin) * Feng (FK) * Funky DL * L-Universe * Marcus D * Pase Rock * haruka nakamura * Shing02 * Jemapur * Substantial * Cise Starr * Monorisick (DJ Deckstream) (deceased)

Discography

Studio albums

*2003: '' Metaphorical Music'' *2005: '' Modal Soul'' *2011: ''

Compilation albums

*2003: '' Hydeout Productions 1st Collection'' *2007: '' Hydeout Productions 2nd Collection'' *2008: '' Modal Soul Classics'' *2009: '' Mellow Beats, Friends & Lovers'' *2010: '' Modal Soul Classics II'' *2014: '' Free Soul Nujabes First Collection'' *2014: '' Free Soul Nujabes Second Collection'' *2015: '' Luv(Sic) Hexalogy'' *2016: '' Kei Nishikori meets Nujabes''

Soundtrack albums

*2004: '' Samurai Champloo Music Record: Departure'' *2004: '' Samurai Champloo Music Record: Impression''

EPs and singles

*1999: ''Ain't No Mystery'' *2001: "Dimension Ball Tracks Volume 1" *2002–2013: ''Luv(sic) Part 1 - Part 6'' *2002: "Blessing It/The Final View" *2003: "Flower/After Hanabi (Listen To My Beat") *2003: "Next View" *2003: "Lady Brown" *2003: "F.I.L.O" *2003: "Still Talking To You/Steadfast" *2015: ''Perfect Circle'' (with Shing02)

Collaborative albums

*2001: ''To This Union a Sun Was Born'' (with Substantial) *2003: ''Bullshit as Usual'' (with Pase Rock)

Official mixtapes

*1998: ''Sweet Sticky Thing'' *2002: ''Good Music Cuisine - Ristorante Nujabes'' *2003: ''Tribe Sampler Vol. 1''

Hydeout Productions discography

* 2001: Monorisick (DJ Deckstream) - Hydrothermal Formation * 2002: Nujabes - Good Music Cuisine Ristorante Nujabes * 2003: Nujabes - Hydeout Productions 1st Collection * 2003: Nujabes - Metaphorical Music * 2005: Nujabes - Modal Soul * 2006: Jemapur - Dok Springs * 2005: Nujabes & DJ Ryow A.K.A Smooth Current - Hydeout Sound Lab * 2006: Emancipator - Soon It Will Be Cold Enough (Japanese release only) * 2007: Nujabes - Hydeout Productions 2nd Collection * 2008: Nujabes - Modal Soul Classics * 2008: Uyama Hiroto - A Son of The Sun * 2008: Kenmochi Hidefumi - Falliccia * 2010: Various Artists - Modal Soul Classics II * 2011: Nujabes -

* 2013: Haruka Nakamura - Melodica * 2013: Ficus - Black Foliage * 2014: Various Artists - Free Soul Nujabes First Collection * 2014: Various Artists - Free Soul Nujabes Second Collection * 2015: Nujabes feat. Shing02 - Luv(sic) Hexalogy

References

External links

Hydeout Productions
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nujabes 1974 births 2010 deaths 20th-century Japanese musicians 21st-century Japanese musicians Chill-out musicians Hexalogies Hip hop record producers Japanese DJs Japanese hip hop musicians Japanese record producers Musicians from Tokyo Nu jazz musicians Road incident deaths in Japan Trip hop musicians Lo-fi musicians