Jero
Jero (Japaneseジェロ; born September 4, 1981 in Pittsburgh, USA, as Jerome Charles White, Jr.) is the first black enka singer - Japanese popular music - in Japanese music history.
Life
His enthusiasm for Enka goes back to the influence of his grandmother coming from Yokohama Takiko Kondō (近藤 多 喜子), which met his grandfather, an African-American soldiers during the Second World War. Both got married, had a daughter, Harumi (晴美), and moved to Pittsburgh in the hometown of his grandfather. His parents got divorced during his childhood, and he grew up with a strong sense of Japanese culture. With the singing of Enka he began six years, and it especially Hibari Misora coined. Japanese he learned, however, only to the Pittsburgh High School Perry Traditional Academy and later at the foreign language high school Kansai. In 2003 he completed his studies in information science at the University of Pittsburgh and moved to Japan in the same year. There he worked as an English teacher in Wakayama and as a Computer Engineer. He actively tried to be enka singer because he promised his grandmother to appear one day while Kohaku Uta Gassen. Therefore, he participated in numerous singing competitions and performed after only two months in Japan on the TV show NHK Nodo Jiman on, a competition of amateur singers. As a result, he was taken from Victor Entertainment under contract.
His first single Umiyuki (海 雪, dt " marine snow ") was released in Japan on 20 February 2008. This reached # 4 on the Oricon charts and was the highest occurrence of an enka single. Shortly thereafter, he received his first endorsement deal - a television commercial for Kirin Fire Coffee Beers.
In 2008 he was honored at the 50th Japan Record Awards as best new artist. He was also selected the 59th Kohaku Uta Gassen for the annual NHK New Year Spectacular. However, his grandmother did not live to this, since she died in 2005. However, he stepped in her honor with her image on his shirt. Even a year later, at the 60th Kohaku Uta Gassen, he went on again.
On March 28, 2009, he was invited by the Japanese Embassy his first major appearance outside of Japan at the opening ceremony of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, DC. However, he has already appeared on 27 August 2008 for the first time in the U.S. when he was a live concert in front of 500 fans were at his alma mater the University of Pittsburgh. His first U.S. tour started on 28 March 2010 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Appearances to the 30 - year anniversary of the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center on March 30, 2010, and a concert at the Aratani / Japan America Theatre in Los Angeles on March 31.
His success ensured that the "revival " of the Enka it is said. The modern Enka emerged in the 50s and had his wedding in the 1960s and 1970s, so that the audience today are mostly seniors. In contrast, since the early 1990s has the African-American culture in the Japanese youth a certain popularity. Jero does not carry as most enka singer a kimono because he felt it was inappropriate, but his hip- hop clothing, so that he could inspire the younger population layer in combination with its origin. In addition to attracting the youth but also caused his devotion to his grandmother, his good Japanese, and be well-mannered behavior that even the older followers of Enka buy the plates.
Discography
( As of June 29 2010)
Singles
- Umiyuki (海 雪, February 20, 2008, # 4, 59 weeks) Umiyuki Special Edition ( 3 December 2008)
Albums
Studio albums:
- Yakusoku (约束, February 25, 2009, # 18, 10 weeks)
Mini albums:
- Covers (カバーズ; 2008; # 5, 30 weeks)
- Covers 2 (カバーズ2, September 23, 2009, # 52, 5 weeks)
- Covers 3 - Roots of Jero (カバーズ3 ~ Roots of JERO ~, June 16, 2010, # 54, 1 week)
Movies
- Donju (钝 獣) as Akira (2009)
- Crayon Shin -chan: Otakebe! Kasukabe Yasei Okoku (クレヨンしんちゃん オタケベ!カスカベ 野生 王国) Himself ( 2009)
Awards
- 50th Japan Record Awards as Best New Artist
- 41 Nihon Yusen Taishō as Best New Artist
- 41 Nihon Sakushi Taishō ( Nihon Sakushika Kyōkai / Japanese Lyricists Assosiation )