Yatta! Putting the Energy Back into Enka

The term "enka" came by way to me from the Ah! My Goddess! manga, in which enka served a purpose by being a weakness of one of the characters -- specifically the goddess Urd, the older half-sister of Belldandy. In various situations throughout the manga (it's also portrayed in the television series as well), enka was used as a plot device: music to put Urd to sleep. Since I was a fan of the series and encountered the use of enka many times, I assumed enka to be just that: Japanese music that was sleep inducing.

Years later in 2003, enka came up again, this time, by way of Johnny's and Associates, when the agency announced that they were debuting a modern enka group (of eight boys) by the name of Kanjani8. The group was clever (well, I suppose) for being Kansai Johnny's, since all members hail from the Kansai region of Japan. Still with my memory of enka music in mind, I thought, Why would a boyband agency want to release sleepy music sung by young boys? Maybe that was their way of taking over the world? I suppose it's another way of having screaming fangirls fall at their feet... literally.

Kanjani8 released Naniwa Iroha Bushi, which stands for "Naniwa Iroha Song" -- Naniwa is the old name for Osaka and Iroha is a type of Japanese poem. With this, I had the stunning revelation that enka music wasn't what I thought it was. (Well, it sure wasn't sleepy). While Kanjani8 stands as a modern enka group (mixing enka with modern music), there was something distinctive about the music that makes it different from the Japanese pop music you normally hear.

Alas, my friends, I had to figure it out.

Enka means "performance song," and its lyrical structure comes from the traditional poetic style of "waka." It can easily be classified as two kinds of music. The first being the political speeches of activists (set to music) during the Meiji and Taisho period, in a way to avoid being sought out by the government, as political speeches weren't allowed at the time. The other style would be the genre of Japanese popular music made popular during the Showa period, which is how the term is most easily recognized and utilized today. In enka music, you hear more of the striking usage of Western instruments, such as the electric guitar or orchestral music, rather than traditional Japanese instruments, such as the Shamisen or koto, or taiko drum, which is used mostly in the background to give it a hint of Japanese.

Enka generally covers songs of the nostalgia for one's hometown (furusato) and is also considered to be a gendered genre, where women generally sing about unrequited love, drunkenness, and loneliness, while men sing more about perseverance, although they can be sung interchangeably. For a comparison, enka music can be likened to American country music for the similarities they share, such as embodying nostalgia.

Enter Jero

In 2008, Victor Entertainment presented Jero as "Japan's first black enka singer" with his debut single, "Umiyuki (Ocean Snow)." Jero (whose real name is Jerome White) was born and raised in Pittsburgh and is actually ¼ Japanese from his Japanese grandmother, who married a US navy officer while he was stationed in Japan. In countless interviews, Jero mentions his grandmother as the reason he began a love affair with enka music. Before he turned ten, he was already belting out enka tunes from Hibari Misora and Sayuri Ishikawa alongside his grandmother. Although he couldn't understand the lyrics of the songs, there was a connection between Jero and the music. He still grew up listening to hip hop and R&B, but enka had always remained in the back of his mind.

While majoring in Information Studies at Pittsburgh University, he ventured overseas to Japan as an exchange student at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, for a couple of months during his junior year. After those three months, Jero was able to speak Japanese, as well as sing sing enka songs at a local karaoke joint. Japan had left such an impression on him that he was determined to return and live there permanently, but this time, also to try and make it as an enka singer. Come 2003. he gets employed as a computer engineer in Japan, but doesn't really enjoy the mundane work cycle. Although he doesn't start right off the bat as an enka singer, he entered many amateur contests, such as NHK's television program, NHK Nodo Jiman (Proud of My Voice), and eventually was scouted out by Victor Entertainment. And thus his career as an enka singer began.



Jero defies all of the traditional images of an enka singer. One, he maintains a hip-hop persona in the music video, a request made by his management team at Victor. As you can see, the music video opens up with hip-hop beats, but quickly transitions to the electric-guitar-infused melody. And then perhaps the real surprise is when Jero appears slowly on screen, standing on the stage with a wardrobe that's more hip-hop than enka. His first line just seems so unnatural at first, because it's not a sound you'd expect to hear from someone who looks like a hip-hop star. But at the same time, it's remarkable how well you can see the two identities of him: his baggy clothes and baseball cap seems to work so well with the traditional sounds of enka music. I don't know about you, but I completely bought it. And following his debut earlier this year, a lot of others have too.

What's even more striking about Jero is his ability to convey the feelings of the songs to the audience. Enka music is generally melodramatic and over-the-top and while I don't understand most of the words, I'm able to say that he sings with a lot of passion -- almost as well as any other Enka singer out there. It's touching too, because I'm sure he's thinking of his grandmother who passed away in 2005. Like many enka singers, Jero hopes of appearing on Kohaku Uta Gassen, the annual music show that airs on New Year's Eve on NHK in Japan, to pay homage to his grandmother. 

So he doesn't look like your typical enka singer? Is that a problem? No. He's already broken records -- such as marking the highest debut for an enka singer ever and then staying on the charts for quite a while. I mean, if Johnny's and Associates can market a modern enka band, I'm sure Victor Entertainment can darn well market a hip-hop persona with an enka sound. I'm also sure critics are quick to jump and look at the authenticity of Jero's music, but in an age where J-pop pretty much rules the music charts in Japan, it calls for some changes. Jero is the answer to who can revitalize the enka industry while also appealing to a younger generation. While enka tended to resonate with the older generation, because it represents the traditional Japanese aesthetic, Jero's version of enka becomes something that connects the younger generation to what the older generation appreciates. At the same time, it's a good sign that older generations can appreciate him too, despite the fact that he doesn't don traditional Japanese clothes -- or even look like someone from Japan.

At only 27, Jero's already lived his childhood dream and changed the face of Japanese music at the same time. In this time and age, his break into the music industry might be what we all need -- a refreshing change of scenery amidst all the manufactured pop stars.