Reggae quartet Shounannokaze’s style pays homage to dancehall music, and it has brought them to a level of commercial success that almost no Japanese artist performing in the same genre has achieved before.
Shounannokaze (sometimes romanized as Shounan no Kaze) was created by two MCs, RED RICE and HAN-KUN, in their hometown of Shounan, which is a popular resort area in eastern Japan. HAN-KUN originally began as a dancer, but he had worked on various reggae projects since 2001. Later, hip-hop DJ SHOCK EYE and reggae bar owner Wakadanna joined, and the quartet known as Shounnannokaze was complete!
The group released four mixtapes on their own label, 134RECORDINGS, between 2001 and 2002, but it was in the summer of 2003 when they debuted on major label Toy’s Factory with the album, Shounannokaze ~Real Riders~, that they really began to gain momentum. Extensive performances earned them quite a bit of popularity and the album ranked 60th on the Oricon charts. Shortly after, the band participated on two omnibus albums, and in spring 2004 they released their first single, Ouenka / Kaze. It ended up ranking in the Oricon Top 20, reflecting their increasing popularity.
In 2005, they only released two singles, as they were preoccupied with an important collaboration with hip-hop musician MINMI. Shounannokaze were featured in five of the twenty-two songs on her album FRIENDS MINMI featuring works BEST, and thanks to this release, the young reggae act's popularity received an enormous boost.
However, their real breakthrough in the Japanese music world came one year later with the single Junrenka, which remained in the top three of the charts for several weeks and also ranked eighth on the annual chart. Riding this momentum, their third studio album, Shounnanokaze ~Riders High~, even went on to hit number one. Numerous event performances and one-man shows followed, as well as their first live DVD, Kaze densetsu ~itsumo dareka no sei ni shite bakkari datta ore TOUR2006~.
In April 2007, the band took another big step in their career by performing overseas in Los Angeles. Wakadanna and MINMI also married that June, and she would go on to produce their first single after the successful Junrenka, Suirenka. Suirenka went on to peak at number two on the charts.
On July 9, 2008, HAN-KUN released his first solo album, VOICE MAGICIAN. He wasn’t the only member to branch out from the group either, as that year also saw SHOCK EYE, Porno Graffitti guitarist Shindou Haruichi and a sound creator named Atsushi form a rock band called THE Yatou.
The year 2009 brought the album Shounannokaze~JOKER~, which managed to reach number one on the Oricon charts and sell over 240,000 copies.
In 2011, Shounannokaze released the single BOMBERMAN and two best-of albums: Shounannokaze~Live Set Best~ and Shounannokaze~Single Best~. Wakadanna launched a solo career in January with the digital single Inochi~sakura no kioku, and THE Yatou also released their debut album, 8:10 pm, on February 9th that year. Towards the end of the year, Shounannokaze released a Christmas-themed love song called Setsugekka.
The year 2013 saw Shounannokaze celebrate the tenth anniversary of their major debut with their first full album of new material in about four years, Shounannokaze ~2023~, and the announcement of a commemorative one-man live at Yokohama Stadium that took place on August 10th.
