Shoukichi Kina

Music career with Champloose

Shoukichi Kina & Champloose is a Japanese band from Okinawa blending traditional Okinawan music with a strong Western rock influence. Their name is apparently derived from the word for a traditional Okinawan stir-fry, chanpuru. Singer and lead songwriter Shoukichi Kina's electric sanshin was a particularly distinctive part of their sound. First major single was the classic "Haisai Ojisan" (Hey, old man), written while Kina was still in high school but not a hit until a few years later, in 1972. Later, Champloose's version of the Okinawan folk song "Jin Jin" (Firefly) was a minor hit in British discos, and their ballad "Hana" (Flowers), with vocals by Kina's wife Tomoko, became a weepy favourite in many Asian countries.

Their first, self-titled album, released in 1977, remains a Japanese folk-rock classic.

Activism

Kina's activism is especially focused on peace efforts in his own prefecture of Okinawa, and much of his work as a composer makes explicit links between his art and his activism. Examples of this include his song "Kana-ami no nai shima" or his revision of the song "Shin-jidai no nagare" to add in lyrics that contain words by political activist Chibana Shoichi. He also created The White Ship of Peace Project, to “bring to the USA a message of peace for the future,” to counter to what he called the "black ships" that came to Japan after Matthew C. Perry opened Japan's doors to trade with the west. He also coined the slogan, “Lay down your weapons, take up musical instruments,” which he used during a trip to the United States for the project where he presented a sanshin to the UN secretary general. Kina also performs "peace concerts" in war-torn places, most recently in Baghdad.

References

References

1. Strauss, Neil. (16 Jul 1994). "Okinawa Gives Its Flavor To Rock". New York Times.
2. (15 July 2010). "Shoukichi Kina fails in re-election bid".
3. Strauss, Neil. (16 July 1994). "Okinawa Gives Its Flavor To Rock". New York Times.
4. Roberson, James. (2009). "Memory and Music in Okinawa: The Cultural Politics of War and Peace". Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique.
5. Figal, Gerald. (2003). "Islands of Discontent: Okinawan Responses to Japanese and American Power". Rowman & Littlefield.
6. Figal, Gerald. "Waging Peace On Okinawa." ''Critical Asian Studies'' 33.1 (2001): 37-69. ''Political Science Complete''. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
7. (February 15, 2003). "Live peace in Baghdad". The Globe and Mail (Canada).