OKI (Hokkaido, Jp) + Nina Yamada (Kamakura, JP)

OKI After a long time estranged from his Ainu indigenous roots as a young man, Oki (Oki Kano) led a fascinating journey towards them. After moving to New York in the 1980s, he got a taste of the global and sought out for his belonging once he returned to Hokkaido: that is when he taught himself to play the tonkori –– five string lute bound to Ainu culture, part of his heritage –– and never looked back. The result is a visionary amalgamation of indigenous Ainu music with global vocabularies. A balancing act held together by traditional strings, peppered with jangly tones of sunny dispositions –– just listen to Yaykatekar Dub (Love Dub) and you will recognise this merge right away. OKI’s performances (both live and recorded) bring the imperishable force of Ainu music, languages and traditions into currency. Received with great acclaim by international press – from The Guardian and Mojo to The Wire and The Quietus –– Tonkori in the Moonlight (2022) is a fine display of the enthralling power of the tonkori. Oki’s music carries the heft of ancestrality: his father was renowned Ainu wood sculptor Bikki Sunazawa and he continues to connect with heritage with his production ventures alongside Ainu elder singer Umeko Ando. OKI’s music is nothing short from intergenerational magic: it is played with the tenderness of someone who consciously and intentionally embraces their languages and knowledges eager to expand and transmit them. In OKI’s multi-layered and beautiful pieces, the once outlawed Ainu culture converses with transnational traditions from dub to funk. Through this dialogue of global traditions, Ainu knowledges come back full force, never to be erased. NINA YAMADA Born and raised in Kamakura, Japan, and now based in London, Nina Yamada is a DJ and the founder of Jazzy Sport London – the first international branch of the independent record label and record store Jazzy Sport, which has been an influential force in Japan’s music scene since its establishment in 2002. Deeply influenced by her father’s extensive vinyl collection, Nina began DJing at a young age. Years of digging and listening have shaped a distinctive sound in which deep house meets Afrobeat, jazz, Latin, reggae and other groove-driven styles. Her sets move freely between genres, creating an organic, soulful and adventurous dancefloor experience. Nina has performed extensively across Europe and Asia, appearing at renowned clubs and festivals including Berghain Panorama Bar in Berlin and Wonderfruit in Thailand. In the UK, she has opened for Detroit legend Theo Parrish at We Out Here, further establishing her presence on the international club circuit. Alongside her club and festival work, Nina’s “UK Trip Hop” DJ set for the popular YouTube channel My Analog Journal has surpassed 500,000 views and was selected by Mixmag as one of its Top 10 Mixes of 2023. As a producer, Nina takes a forward-thinking approach, bringing together deep house, dub and soulful intuition. Her distinctive sound features on a highly anticipated forthcoming remix for Wah Wah. As the head of Jazzy Sport London, she is also preparing to release her debut EP on her own label.