Joji is a popular artist from Japan who is known for his unusual musical style. His compositions are a combination of electronic music, trap, R&B and folk elements. Listeners are attracted by melancholy motives and the absence of complex production, thanks to which a special atmosphere is created.
Before immersing himself in music, Joji was a YouTube vlogger for a long time. He can be recognized by his pseudonyms Filthy Frank or Pink Guy. The main channel with 7,5 million subscribers is TV Filthy Frank. Here he posted entertainment content and The Filthy Frank Show. There are two additional ones - TooDamnFilthy and DizastaMusic.
What is known about Joji's life?
George Kusunoki Miller was born on September 16, 1993 in the large Japanese city of Osaka. The performer's mother is from Australia, and his father is a native Japanese. The boy spent his childhood with his family in Japan, as his parents worked there. A little later, the Miller family moved to the United States, settling in Brooklyn.
When the boy was 8 years old, his parents passed away, so he was raised by his uncle Frank. However, there is controversy around this information. Some believe that the artist was just joking when he said this. There is also a version that he said this to protect his parents from harassment on the Internet.
The performer studied at the Canadian Academy, located in the city of Kobe (Japan). After graduating in 2012, he entered the University of Brooklyn (USA). Although Joji has lived most of his life in the States, he still keeps in touch with childhood friends from Japan. The artist has real estate and work in Los Angeles, so he flies there very often.
Creative way
George from an early age dreamed of becoming a musician, but thanks to blogging, he gained his first success. Under the pseudonym Filthy Frank, he filmed comedy sketches and released several video sections. In 2013, Joji, dressed in a pink lycra bodysuit, launched the Harlem Shake dance trend that took the internet by storm.
The guy was engaged in video blogging from 2008 to 2017. Due to provocative content for a long time in the media, he hid his real name. Joji did not want his activities to interfere with work and study. In addition to shooting a video, the artist wanted to create music. He was able to master the writing of a melody in the GarageBand program after he heard Lil Wayne's hit A Milli (2008) and wanted to recreate the rhythm.
“I tried drum lessons for a month, but nothing came out. I just couldn’t,” admitted the artist. He also tried to master the ukulele, piano and guitar. However, at one point Joji admitted that his strength was in the ability to perform unusually, and not in creating instrumental music.
YouTube channels Joji originally created as a means to "promote" his compositions. In one of the interviews, the artist noted:
“My main desire has always been to create good music. Filthy Frank and Pink Guy were supposed to be just a push, but they really liked the audience and exceeded any of my expectations. I reconciled myself and began to work further.
Joji began to release the first compositions under the pseudonym Pink Guy. The songs were performed in a comical style, in keeping with the content on the channel. The first full-length studio album was Pink Season, released in 2017. The work was able to get into the Billboard 200, taking the 70th position in the ranking.
Joji performed at South by Southwest and even wanted to tour with the Pink Season album. However, in December 2017, he decided to say goodbye to comedy characters Filthy Frank and Pink Guy. The content maker tweeted about it. According to him, the main reasons for leaving YouTube are a banal decrease in interest in blogging and health problems that have arisen.
Work under the pseudonym Joji
In 2017, the main direction for George was to work under the new pseudonym Joji. The guy began to engage in professional music and abandoned the comedic image. If Pink Guy and Filthy Frank were nothing more than characters, then Joji is the real Miller. The artist signed an agreement with the Asian label 88rising, under whose auspices several songs were released.
George's first EP In Tongues was released on EMPIRE Distributio in November 2017. A year later, the artist released a deluxe version of the mini-album. The song "Yeah Right" entered the Billboard R&B Songs chart, where it was able to take the 23rd position in the rating.
The debut album was BALLADS 1, which was released in October 2018. The artist was assisted by D33J, Shlohmo and Clams Casino in producing two compositions. Among the 12 tracks, you can hear both melancholic and cheerful music. The performer said that he did not want people to be constantly sad during the audition. On the RIP song, you can hear the part being rapped by Trippie Redd.
The second studio work of Nectar, which included 18 tracks, was released in April 2020. On four tracks you can hear parts performed by Rei Brown, Lil Yachty, Omar Apollo, Yves Tumor and Benee. For some time, the album was at number 3 on the US Billboard 200.
Joji's musical style
Joji's music can be attributed to trip hop and lo-fi at the same time. The combination of several styles, ideas from trap, folk, R&B make the music unique. Many critics note Miller's similarity to the popular American performer James Blake. George says the following about compositions:
“The bottom line is that Joji songs are about the same content as regular pop, but often express a different point of view. It's nice to look at everyday topics from a different angle. The lighter and more cheerful songs have a "whimsical" undertone, while the darker ones seem to reveal the whole truth. However, I think that music and the time we live in develop independently of each other.
