Nujabes | Artist

Jun Seba aka Nujabes was a Japanese record producer, audio engineer, DJ, composer and arranger born 1974 in Tokyo. He was best known for his atmospheric instrumental mixes sampling from hip hop and soul, often blending jazz influences into his songs creating a mellow, nostalgic and atmospheric sound. He is considered a pioneer of lo-fi hip hop, or "chillhop" sound. Seba released two superb studio albums during his lifetime, both are highly recommended: Metaphorical Music (2003) and Modal Soul (2005), while the album Spiritual State was released posthumously in 2011. Seba was also a major contributor to two critically acclaimed soundtrack albums of the anime series Samurai Champloo. The first, Samurai Champloo Music Record: Departure (2004) was a collaboration with Fat Jon, and the second, Samurai Champloo Music Record: Impression (2004) is with Fat Jon and Force of Nature. Samurai Champloo blends a feudal Japanese setting with the modern backdrop of hip hop culture, rapping and urban graffiti art. As the founder of the independent record label Hydeout Productions, Seba released two excellent mixed artist compilations: Hydeout Productions First Collection (2003) and Hydeout Productions Second Collection (2007). Also highly recommended is the remix compilation Luv(sic) Hexalogy from 2015. As well as running Hydeout Productions, Seba was the owner of two Shibuya record stores, T Records and Guinness Records. In 2010, the artist 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. His production techniques and career have also been compared with mainstream artists such as J Dilla.

Artist Website: hydeout.net

Featured Albums: Nujabes

Related Artists: Urbanforest, Fat Jon