Get to know Joji, the comedian that became a serious music producer

Remember Harlem Shake? Joji made it viral. The former shock humor YouTube star became the first Asian-born artist to top Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop chart and his new album came out this year.

Singer, songwriter, record producer, author, and former Internet personality, Joji is half Japanese-half Australian and was born in Osaka, Japan. He began his career as an entertainer through different YouTube channels: DizastaMusic, TVFilthyFrank, and TooDamnFilthy, where he used to share comedy hip hop music, and humoristic videos under his Pink Guy alias. Amongst these videos, Joji started the viral dance craze known as the Harlem Shake, which was directly responsible for the rise of DJ Baauer on Billboard Hot 100 in 2013.

In an interview with Pigeons & Planes, Joji said that despite doing humoristic videos online, he always produced more nuanced and serious music without making it public. In 2017, he decided to focus on his music career and released his first EP “In Tongues”, which got to number 58 on the Billboard 200, followed by his debut album “Ballads 1”, which reached number 1 on Billboard’s top R&B and hip-hop chart. This achievement made him the first Asian-born artist to get to that position.

Being described as trip-hop and lo-fi mix with trap, folk, electronic, and R&B, Joji’s music is surprisingly melancholic and serious. His new album “Nectar”, which got more than 500 million streams on Spotify, has a strong list of collaborators such as the American DJ Diplo, a member of the electronic dance music trio Major Lazer. Full of indie-psych sounds, piano, airy vocals, and intense lyrics, this new album is considerably better, more personal, and a clear statement that Joji rebranded himself completely.

I wouldn’t be surprised if you have heard “Your Man” already. This is the first single and, perhaps because it is way lighter, happier, and catchier than the other songs of the album, it is currently well-positioned on Spotify playlists and getting more and more noticed. Along with “Daylight”, this is the poppiest song, which pleasingly breaks the dark and melancholic vibe of the rest of the album.

Apart from being a rising music producer, Joji has been getting attention for his cinematographic videos and also his live performances. The singer is determined to show to the world he is a full-fledged performer and his first online concert “The Extravaganza” was a unique and self-directed show globally broadcasted on his website. The performances of each song were inspired by the different aspects of Joji’s personality, from comedy to moody and darker environments.

Equally extravagant is Joji’s new video for the song “777”. Directed by New York-based artist Saad Moosajee, the video brings elements of a Renaissance painting to life to create a contemporary depiction of Heaven. Apart from the complex concept of the video, Moosajee used Unreal Engine, a 3D creation tool owned by Fortnite developer Epic Games, to create the visual effects.

The opinions are diverse and Joji is, for sure, not an artist for everyone’s tastes. However, the effort and innovation behind his new artistic personality make Joji an interesting character in the music industry with a lot to say and show to whoever wants to follow his work. Do not expect a mainstream or commercial album, you will have to keep listening and go beyond the singles, but the different sounds, visuals, songwriting, and his ability to share emotions are worth for you to get to know him.