The president of Enka

[imomus]

Amidst all the buzz about a black American's chance to become the next US President, let's consider an even more remarkable achievement: a black American is currently poised to revitalise Enka, the genre of trad balladry post-war Japan liked to get drunk and sentimental listening to. The man in question is 26 year-old Jerome White Junior, raised in Pittsburgh. In Japan they just call him Jero.



Jero's grandfather was a black American soldier stationed in Japan who married a Japanese woman. A few years later, back in Pittsburgh, her Enka record collection began to fascinate her six year-old grandson. He signed up for a Japanese language course at school and, after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh, headed to Japan, where Victor Records took a risk and signed him.

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The risk paid off: Jero is now huge, with a fanbase demographic that takes in octogenarian nostalgarians and young girls alike. His energetic synchronised dance routines and brash hip hop outfits may make a bizarre corollary for the warbling ballads he sings, but -- as they aren't saying about Obama and Hillary -- maybe it's the best of both worlds, a marriage made, if not in heaven, then at least in spring, when the blossom falls, bro, yo.

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Having messed somewhat with hybrid Enka on my last album, I must say I love the soaring sentimentality of this musical form. It's not far from the swooping croon Bowie achieved in his cover of "Wild is the Wind". Who says this gorgeous rush of regret and vibrato can only be for Japanese people? Thanks to its new black president, Enka is destined for all humanity.

Comments

[imomus.livejournal.com]

It's arguable that only stereotypes can create truly startling originality, if you can only splice the right ones together. Take cookie-cutter hip-hop signifiers and splice them with cookie-cutter enka signifiers and you get cookie dough no-one's ever tasted before.

As for Obama, sure, I did that "Find your ideal candidate" test and it told me to root for Dennis Kucinich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Kucinich). But where is he now? At least Obama has a real chance of being elected president. And he'll be the most left-leaning president, if he gets the job, since Jimmy Carter.

NewFromUSA

[cheapsurrealist.livejournal.com]

"Find your ideal candidate"
It's an evolutionary process

[thomascott.livejournal.com]

It's default advocacy, putting one's weight behind the most viable, perceived lesser evil.
This is one reason why most democracies are now based around a two party system of essentially similar, post-ideological centrist parties, no one wants to 'waste' a vote on an outsider.

All that said it still seems the only logic to apply to this election, at least with Obama there would seem to be the hope for something different.

Interesting post btw.

[wondrousworld.livejournal.com]

As far as enka standards go, he's just not good. He has a powerful voice, but kurushisa to kurasa ga kanjirenai. He's also not musically innovative. He hasn't done anything particularly special to raise the bar to a higher level or to a different standard. He's just a guy with a pop voice (that's moderately powerful) singing sad songs in a pop kinda way.

And I sort of agree with dzim'as comment, because we can actually see that Jero is being treated like a fad, and a dying one at that.