Lyrics Born
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Lyrics Born

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Lyrics Born aka Tsutomu Shimura is one of the most prolific Japanese-American rappers in contemporary day. After spending the past two decades creating some of hip hops most intricate tracks and albums, Shimura has cemented his place as an iconic and influential artist.

Lyrics Born aka Tsutomu Shimura is one of the most prolific Japanese-American rappers in contemporary day. After spending the past two decades creating some of hip hops most intricate tracks and albums, Shimura has cemented his place as an iconic and influential artist.

Returning in 2010 with his latest record As U Were, Shimura has implemented his finesse of complex rhythmic patterns, various rhyming techniques and melodious and powerful hooks to formulate an organic and pure album, one which we shares holds great significance for his artistic growth, “I think on this album I wasn’t really concerned about creating hits, what people’s pre-conceived notion of me would be and anything that I had done in the past. All that I cared about for this album was that an artistic step forward for me and for music and I really was more concerned in making sure that I was on track with my vision” he explains proudly, “I was definitely inspired by a lot of early 80’s stuff, synth-soul, pop and a lot of what’s going on now. Everything from David Bowie, Grace Jones and Cameo to modern artists such as MGMT, Franz Ferdinand and Chromeo. I really love old music and it just so happens that we’re in a period where old music and new music from the different eras are sharing a lot of similarities.”

The end result is ferocious and engaging record. Shimura has undoubtedly matured further with each passing release and As U Were is an encapsulation of his progression and evolution as not only an artist, but as a person. “I think that with this album I just tried to go deeper and all the way around. For some tracks on this album I brought in an orchestra and a string section and really delved further into the production behind it. I wanted it to be powerful. I have to be honest; I didn’t care if people thought myself be optimistic or generating positivity about my album was corny – I didn’t give a shit.”

An artist who promises to continue his growth and ethos, with As U Were Shimura has undeniably cemented his already established name within the global hip hop community. He continues to revolutionize his approaches and methods towards producing, whilst ensuring his mantra and message is never left behind, “I’ve been making records for quite some time and for me I’ve really experienced a lot of things I remember older artists talking about with the transitions of nature. I think that one of the things I’m most fortunate about is that I’ve been able to stay true to my vision, adapt and focus on my vision. People around me are saying that’s it the best album of my career, and that means a lot. I’m really looking forward to taking it on tour and showing it off to my fans. It’s going to be special.”

As U Were is out now through Decon Records and Mobile Home Recordings.