Published in the Nichi Bei Times Weekly Aug. 27 - Sept. 2, 2009.

By ANTHONY YAZAKI
Nichi Bei Times Contributor

Kero One is not the average hip-hop artist. He is not from the traditional hip-hop hot spots of Los Angeles or New York. He is the son of Korean immigrant parents, born and raised in the Bay Area. His style of music isn’t gaudy like many of his contemporaries, but is still eye-catching.

“My music isn’t in your face,” Kero One said in an interview with the Nichi Bei Times.

Listening to his newest album — entitled “Early Believers,” released in April of this year — his analysis seems correct. To describe Kero One’s style in one word, it would have to be “smooth.” He weaves together old-school jazzy beats with fresh rhymes in a way that seems to have gone all but extinct in the new millennium. Kero One proves that there are still times when less can, in fact, be more.

In Kero One’s music you can feel the influence from artists like Kanye West and Amy Winehouse, and you can hear a similarity to groups like The Roots, but the most striking resemblance is with Common, the emcee from Chicago who Kero One lists as one of his biggest influences.

Common has been well known for his rejection of some aspects of mainstream rap culture and for drawing together different elements from numerous genres of music to create his unique brand of hip-hop. Kero One has followed in those footsteps and put together his own mélange of musical tastes, past and present, to form his own style.

“I listen to all types of genres. I deejay and play everything from house, disco and electronica to soul,” he said. “In terms of hip-hop, I’ve listened to a lot of early ’90s pioneers. Guys like Nas, Pete Rock — the classic stuff. Anybody who makes hip-hop should be familiar with these guys.”

Though his beats and melodies have been influenced by an array of artists, Kero One does not look to his predecessors as much when writing rhymes.

“Lyrically, I’m inspired by everyday events — the things I go through,” he said.

With a lyrical emphasis placed on real life experiences, it is no surprise that Kero One likes to work with people close to him.

“A lot of the collaborations I’ve done were with good friends,” he said. “I had known many of these people for a while, but we had never made music together. That definitely took it to the next level.”

Regardless of any other musical analyses that can be made and similarities that can be drawn, Kero One sets himself apart from much of the modern music world by having built his whole career from scratch. While it may sound like many other trite stories of musicians trading in rags for riches, few have personally taken the time to fulfill every step of the music business from recording, producing and pressing to distributing and promoting their work.

“In the beginning, I had millions of questions,” said Kero One. “When I started, I had no label so I started my own, called Plug Label. Then I had no means to get my stuff out there so I did some research and sent out a few copies of my single — only about 50 — across the world.”

He soon got his break after a few weeks when a Japanese deejay uncovered the single and immediately asked for 3,000 copies. Since then, Kero One has gone on to tour across Japan and worked with Asian artists like Epik High from South Korea and DJ Kentaro from Japan.

Though Kero One grew up in the United States and said he identifies most strongly with the Bay Area, he also said his Asian heritage has definitely affected his life.

“When I was a kid and wanted to go out skateboarding with my friends, I would sometimes have to go home early and kids would wonder why,” he said. “There is a difference in the discipline and I think it has helped me.”

This dichotomy between Eastern and Western culture can be observed in Kero One’s choice to embrace both the old and the new.

“Every artist has their time and starts to fade away. It’s time for the new guys to come in,” he said. “There is so much hidden talent in the Bay Area alone. With all the changes in the industry, it’s a very interesting time not just for hip-hop, but all music in general.”

Read more about Kero One or his latest album, “Early Believers,” by visiting his Website, www.kero1.com.

photo courtesy of Audible Treats

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