KeNN and the Sound of Growing Up Far From Everything

Some artists build their identity despite where they grew up. KeNN is not one of them.

Raised in Engaru, a small city in Hokkaido prefecture, in the far north of Japan, geographically and culturally removed from Tokyo, KeNN has turned distance into a point of view.

His debut album From Miseducation moves between J-pop, global indie, and vocaloid-influenced sounds without anything feeling out of place: not because it is a calculated synthesis, but because it is, simply, how he has always listened to music.

The son of parents who were part of a hip-hop crew at a time when that world was still viewed with suspicion in the Japanese countryside, KeNN inherited a relationship with music that recognizes no genre hierarchies. His debut single "Something Wrong" simultaneously entered Spotify playlists in 10 countries. A generation ago, that would have been impossible to imagine for a kid from Engaru.

We spoke to him for CZMOS Magazine, starting from that distance.

KeNN in conversation with CZMOS Magazine

You grew up in Engaru, a small town in Hokkaido, geographically and culturally far from Tokyo and the centre of Japan's music industry. How much did that distance shape you as an artist? Was it something you had to overcome, or did it give you a kind of creative freedom that a bigger city might not have?

I am genuinely proud to have been born in a small countryside town. The city is something you can reach as an adult, by your own choice, whenever you want. But growing up among forests, rivers, animals, and clean air from an early age is not something everyone gets to experience. I feel that this has deeply influenced my music as well..

Your parents were part of a DJ and rap crew at a time when hip-hop culture was still viewed with suspicion in Japan, especially in the countryside. Today that culture is mainstream. Looking back, do you think something was lost in that transition from underground to accepted? And how does that history live inside your music today?

As hip-hop became mainstream in Japan, I feel that both things were lost and gained at the same time. There was a shift in how it was perceived, moving increasingly from "culture" to "music." As it evolved into popular music, the original culture that American rappers carried back then faded, while at the same time anyone could easily incorporate its taste as pop music. Precisely because I lived through that transition, I hold a deep respect for hip-hop culture and a love for its sound, and I feel I can reflect that well in my music.

KeNN

KeNN

From Miseducation moves between J-pop, global indie, and vocaloid-influenced sounds, and yet it holds together as a single, coherent project. What is the invisible thread that connects all of it? Is it a production choice, something in your voice, or something harder to define?

I believe the thing that connects all these genres seamlessly is my life itself. I have always had the sensibility to say "I like it because it's cool music," without prejudice and without being constrained by genre. I understand that having listened to a lot of music from when I was still in my mother's womb, and having personal sound preferences even as a small child, are my strengths. It is precisely this style, in which I try to freely express all the influences I have received, that creates that breadth.

Your debut single "Something Wrong" entered Spotify playlists in 10 countries simultaneously, something an artist from a small Hokkaido town could only have dreamed of a generation ago. When you know your listener could be anywhere in the world, does that change how you write? Do you gain something from that distance, or do you lose something too?

Being able to use English without difficulty can sometimes be a weapon and sometimes a constraint. Being able to reach many people and have the groove of two languages is a very powerful weapon. But Japan is not a country with a high level of English comprehension, so as long as I am making music here as a Japanese artist, I am always faced with the difficulty of having to be conscious of the balance between those two languages.

CZMOS Magazine is published from Italy. Our editorial perspective is built on the intersection between Italian culture and contemporary Asia. So we have to ask: is there an Italian artist, a musician, a filmmaker, a designer, anyone, who has surprised or influenced you in an unexpected way?

Without a doubt, Måneskin. They are among my all-time favourite artists. There is so much to learn from their culture, musicality, and star quality, even if the genre is different. In particular, the vocalist Damiano David is almost a role model for me, and his fashion and the way he carries himself on stage always moves me.

And then there is pizza. I have only eaten Italian pizza in Japan, but I truly love it. If someone asked me what I want to eat as my last meal, pizza would definitely be in my top five.

KeNN

KeNN

KeNN

The distance was never a problem to solve

There is one thing KeNN says during the interview that stays with you: "receiving a lot of influences and trying to express all of them freely." This is not a stylistic declaration. It is a posture. The exact opposite of those who build an identity through exclusion, through borders, through the fear of seeming unresolved.

From Miseducation is not an album that tries to please everyone. It is an album built on the idea that pleasing everyone is, in fact, the natural outcome of someone who was never afraid of anything they listened to.

Engaru, Tokyo, English, Japanese, J-pop, vocaloid, Måneskin, pizza: everything comes in and everything becomes sound.

The real distance was never between him and the centre of the world. It was between him and anyone who ever chose to limit themselves.

Listen to KeNN on Spotify: