Quick Facts
Biography
Yuki Chiba (千葉雄喜, Chiba Yūki, born April 22, 1990) better known by his stage name KOHH, is a Japanese hip hop recording artist from Oji, Kita, Tokyo.
Early life
Chiba was born in Oji, Kita, Tokyo. He was raised by a single mother along with his younger brother. His younger brother is also an up-and-coming rapper. His father committed suicide by jumping off an apartment building while high on drugs; his mother struggled with an addiction to methamphetamine. KOHH grew up around violence and drugs along with his crew of local friends who share the same experience. His tough environment along with his desire to become a rapper gave him a head start in the Japanese hip-hop scene.
Career
KOHH started producing and recording music at the age of 18 with while making various mixtapes, until he met producer 318 and started releasing material under the label GUNSMITH PRODUCTION. He saw an early underground success within the sub-urban Japanese scene when he produced the song "Young Forever" of his younger brother 'lil kohh' whose music video went viral in Japan.
In 2014 KOHH released his major 2nd studio album titled 'MONOCHROME'. The album was a fair success among the urban acts and its lead track I don't mind if I'm poor (Japanese: 貧乏なんて気にしない, Hepburn: Bimbo nante Ki ni shinai) had big reception on YouTube.
In 2015, KOHH along with Japanese artist Loota collaborated with Keith Ape's track '잊지마 (It G Ma)' which became a major hit single in Japan and South Korea apart from gaining international media attention. Back in Japan, KOHH resumed his work and continued working on his new album 'DIRT' after releasing his delayed 1st album '梔子 (Gardenia)'. 'DIRT' was released on the 28th of October. The album was also released internationally via iTunes in the 23th of October. KOHH featured along with OG Maco on the track 'BUCHIAGARI' by Japanese DJ RYOW.
In 2016, KOHH collaborated with major singers like R&B singer Frank Ocean, in the song Nikes, available in the physical CD of his album Blonde. KOHH was featured in a new song from Japanese American superstar Hikaru Utada, titled Bōkyaku, from her 6th Japanese album Fantôme.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Monochrome |
|
| 梔子 |
|
| Dirt |
|
| Dirt II |
|
Mixtapes
- 『YELLOW T△PE』(Released: November 28, 2012)
- 『YELLOW T△PE 2』(Released: August 31, 2013)
- 『YELLOW T△PE 3』(Released: June 30, 2015)
- 『YELLOW T△PE 4』(Released: December 20, 2016)
- 『Complete Collection 1』(Released: May 20, 2015)
- 『Complete Collection 2』(Released: May 20, 2015)
Singles
- Keith Ape - 잊지마 (It G Ma) ft. JayAllday, loota, Okasian, Kohh
- HIROI SEKAI (Worldwide) - KOHH, J $tash, Young Sachi
- KOHH & J $tash - Tatted up
- J $tash X Kohh - HOOD RICH
- J $tash x Kohh - Don't Get Me Started
- KOHH, PETZ, Tokarev - 十人十色
- JOE IRON - Tomareranai feat. KOHH, Steelo & YUKI a.k.a. JUTO
- Y'S - プリンス feat.KOHH&MONY HORSE
- DJ RYOW - Don't Stop Remix feat. DJ Ty-Koh, Kohh, Dizzle & Socks
- DJ RYOW - Turn Up feat KOHH, SMITH-CN & ZEEBRA
- Goku Green - チョーヤバイ feat. KOHH & MONY HORSE
- VITO (SQUASH SQUAD) - I Need Her (Remix) feat. Cherry Brown, NIPPS, KOHH
- 般若 - 家族 feat. KOHH
- DJ SOULJAH - aaight feat. KOHH, MARIA (SIMI LAB)
- AKLO - Break The Records (Remix) feat. KOHH & 漢
- ANARCHY - MOON CHILD feat.KOHH
- ANARCHY - BANK TO BANK feat. KOHH
- LORD 8ERZ - TROY feat. KOHH, 三島, RAW-T
- Lil Herb , Kohh, Seeda, Norikiyo - Chiraq 2 Japan
- SD , Kohh, Sky-Hi - Ballin
- DJ KEN WATANABE - G.O.L.D feat. KOHH
- DJ KEN WATANABE - G.O.L.D PART 2 feat. KOHH, Kayzabro & Y'S
- Zeebra - Hate That Booty Feat.Y'S&KOHH
- T.O.P. - I'm So High feat. KOHH
- KOWICHI - BOYFRIEND#2 REMIX feat. YOUNG HASTLE, KOHH & DJ TY-KOH
- JOYSTICKK - LOLLIPOP (DJ KM Remix) feat. KOHH
- AKLO - NEW DAYS MOVE -REMIX- ft.SALU, STAXX T(CREAM), KOHH & SHINGO☆西成
- Brandon Thomas - 24 7 Feat. KOHH
- DJ☆GO - MIX GRILLZ feat. KOHH, HORI
- DJ CHARI & DJ TATSUKI - GIMME THE LIGHTS(A.C.E.TIME) FEAT.YUKI A.K.A. JUTO,KOHH A.K.A. YELLOW T-20 & YOUNG FREEZ
- Loota - Somewhere feat.KOHH
- SALU & the dreambandgunjo - ピラミッド feat. KOHH
- FIGHT FOR TOKYO - GIRAGIRAガールズ, 巌, MEGA-G, MC漢, MC SHOW, MCクローバー, Y'S, YOUNG HASTLE, KOHH, LOOTA,EGO, 海, エリカ
- HOPE-TOKYO TRIBE ANTHEM-（TRIBES UNITED VERSION）- 海, 巌, MC漢, MEGA-G, GIRAGIRAガールズ, D.O, T2K, Y'S, KOHH, 十影, YOUNG HASTLE, VITO FOCCACIO,LOOTA, EGO, MC SHOW
- MINMI - #ヤッチャッタ featuring KOHH
- Barry Chen - AIR FORCE ONE Feat. MJ116 Kenzy & KOHH
- TeddyLoid - Break'em all feat. KOHH
- DJ RYOW - BUCHIAGARI feat.KOHH & OG Maco
- SOCKS - Bash feat.KOHH
- タイプライター&YMG - Let me Know Feat. AK-69 & KOHH
- KOHH - PARIS (SAM TIBA REMIX)
- Frank Ocean - Nikes (Pop-Up Store Version)
- Hikaru Utada - Boukyaku feat. KOHH
- 5lack - 24356 feat. KOHH
- CashPassion Ft. Dumbfoundead & KOHH – All In
Reception
KOHH has been mentioned several times as a major influential force to the Japanese hip hop scene in recent years. KOHH has occasionally criticized how small the hip hop scene is in Japan and has tackled major mainstream TVs for its negligence of noticing hip hop. KOHH has also being praised for his smart use of topics like drug use and violence within the Japanese society which are considered controversial in the country. After being featured in '잊지마 (It G Ma)', KOHH received an even bigger praise from international audiences who recognized his use of the phrase 'Arigato' in his verse as the trademark of the hit song and praised the artist whose performance was the one that 'left the biggest impression on the track'. M-flo's Taku Takahashi has appointed KOHH as one of the main acts in the Japanese hip hop renaissance.
Several videos featuring KOHH have gone viral on social media like YouTube, Facebook and Vine among others.
Accolades
Space Shower Music Video Awards
| Year | Nominee/work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | KOHH | Best Hip Hop Artist | Won |