AKLO's musical vision for his walk and this weekend's live show "The Walkers" at Vision.

A YouTube channel created by key people active on the streets, from the overground to the underground.INSPIRATION CULT MEDIA. The live recording party "THE WALKERS Supported by JOHNNIE WALKER" will be held at the club "SOUND MUSEUM VISION" in Shibuya on Saturday, April 23.

With the support of Johnnie Walker, a company that has been following the spirit of "Keep Walking" for more than 200 years, TOKYO culture is opening up a new path in the midst of days when light is hard to come by.

AKLO, a hip-hop artist who performs on the live stage, is one of those who walk the walk with us. We visit his studio and take a peek into his thoughts on the cultural scene and the mindset and inspiration behind his nostalgia.

Vibes to enjoy your days in Tokyo.

The equipment on display, the sneakers, your favorite pisto bike ... all of these things are very AKLO-like. Is there anything you like to do so much that you can't do without it?

AKLO:I like bicycles very much , and if it is not raining, I would like to basically get around by bicycle. I like Tokyo very much, but the downside is that it is very stressful. I'm the type of person who can't stay still, so I don't like cramped places. . So, while there are many traffic jams, a bicycle is the most freeing means of transportation.

Among bicycles, riding a pistol is similar to riding a skateboard, and it makes getting around thrilling and interesting. Bicycles are one of the ways to live comfortably in Tokyo.

I heard that you also ride a bicycle to the concert.

AKLO: Oh yeah . Vibes will be better!

AKLO, your fashion is also attracting a lot of attention. Is there anything you are conscious of?

AKLO:I am quite particular about my daily wear, and I sometimes buy another piece of clothing that I like. I wear a lot of clothes, and the perfect outfit that fits well in my mind is the one that has been chosen.

I try to have that kind of "isn't this perfect?" . Even though I am not a minimalist, I still have to reduce my stuff, don't I? Even though I am not a minimalist, I still have to reduce the number of things I own. However, I don't want to be so scared that I stop buying things, so I give things I bought but don't wear to my juniors. I think of it like cutting my losses (laughs).

Do you feel like you are buying clothes as an investment until you find the perfect one?

AKLO:Otherwise, I would be wearing the same clothes for the rest of my life, right? . I don't want to be Steve Jobs. It's not that I want to be Steve Jobs, but I want to have my own style at the time.

Definition of happiness.

Do you spend time away from music on your off days?

AKLO:First of all, I don't have a set day off, but I have some time off during the day. I wake up very early, at 4:00 a.m. every day, and work until about 8:00 a.m., which is my golden hour, and I finish what I have to do by about 11:00 a.m. After that, I listen to my favorite music, go for a walk, and spend my time mellowing out. I spend the rest of the day listening to my favorite music, going for a walk, and mellowing out.

. So music is still an essential part of your off-time? What made you decide to follow that path?

AKLO:I had a huge complex about black people . I love hip-hop, so I had a lot of admiration for it. I originally wanted to be a rapper, but along the way I felt like, "If you're not black, you're not going to get there in the end, are you?" I felt like I had to be black to get there. . So I decided to get involved in the American hip-hop scene, and I went behind the scenes. While going to engineering school in New York, I had a home and studio in Harlem, and I recorded rappers who came to my studio for a reasonable price. As an engineer, I would fix and feel things like, "He's got a bad sense of rhythm," or "He's tone deaf.

I realized that my complex was not about race when I was recording the young people over there. I realized that I had been negative about myself, and I decided that I was better than them and that I needed to contribute to Japanese rap, and that is when I returned to Japan.

You have so much love and respect for hip-hop that it has taken you a bit of a detour to get to where you are today.

AKLO:I really liked it so much that I decided to work behind the scenes. That's why I still record by myself, and that's the way it should be.

AKLO has produced your own works, collaborated with others, and even produced some of your own works.

AKLO:SPARK." It's also the moment when I have a flash of inspiration, or when I get a "YEAH!!!" moment. I want to have as many of those moments in my life as possible. I want to experience that as much as possible in my life, and music always helps me to do that. I'll come up with a rime, and I'll be surprised at how good it is! I'm surprised at myself. Even though I'm the only one there (laughs).

(laughs) That was around 4:00 in the morning, right?

AKLO:Yes, yes, isn't that a great feeling? Because I can enjoy this feeling, I feel that music is the "spark" of my life. That is my definition of happiness, and I am unhappy when I cannot "spark.

. keep walking in the face of difficult circumstances.

Do you sometimes experience unhappiness...what you call a slump?

AKLO:There was a time , you know, like that. It was a time of negativity, like, "I'm screwed. I may never come up with anything. But I've been through it many times, and now I have my own solution, so I don't fall into a slump that often.

What is AKLO's solution?

AKLO:I try to make a failed work. When I try to make a good song, I get stuck, so I ask myself, "Well, what kind of song is lousy in my opinion? Then I ask myself, "Well, what kind of songs are lousy songs in my mind? Then I would start to see something. It's like creating the shadow first.

A: Nowadays, the world is in a negative state due to the Corona Vortex, but as an artist, have you been affected by it?

AKLO:I cancelled a gig I was going to do with ZORN at the beginning of Corona. It was a big game for me after I became independent, and I was very anxious because I had no idea what I was going to do to make up for it afterwards, and it was still hard. That was the beginning. After that, various gigs were canceled, and I had been refraining myself from performing for over a year, but when I was invited to perform, there were problems there. All of us are not so lucky, but I think I am especially unlucky with Corona. I don't know if I will be able to make it happen, but right now, my stance is that if I am offered a gig, I will accept it.

. Is there anything you think about from your point of view?

AKLO:My father said, "Artists have to do interesting things at times like this because they are creative." He rarely says that. He rarely says that kind of thing. So we did a live broadcast from this studio. It was very well received, and I thought it was interesting. I wanted the live broadcast to be seen live, so it would feel like I was sharing it with everyone on the spot. I wanted to continue with my rule of not archiving, but unfortunately, someone recorded it and uploaded it.

When I think of it as a digital tattoo that will remain in the world, it gives me the vibes of "it will remain forever," which makes me more nervous. I think it's better to be more relaxed and just "SPARK!" the idea on the spot at a live performance.

What kind of message do you want to put in this "THE WALKERS" live concert?

AKLO: VISION was such an impactful venue for me that I was shocked to see it go, and I thought it would be the last time, but I was lucky enough to be invited this time, and I am very happy and grateful to be able to perform once more. Regardless of Corona, I've been doing a lot of day events at live houses recently, so nighttime club events are rare. In that sense, it's the first time in a very long time to have a party atmosphere, and since it's with ICM, it feels more like Tokyo, so I'm looking forward to it! It's also been a while since I've performed with my guest NORIKIYO, so I hope I can charm the audience with a bit of an austere atmosphere.

Can you give us a sneak peek of the music you plan to perform?

AKLO:I would like to play a song called "One Million Thousand Thousand" with Norikiyo, and then I would like to play a song that I don't usually play myself.... I am looking forward to playing a new song called "Roller Coaster" since it is the first time for me to play it! I am sure that the quality of the song will be conveyed in a live performance.

Lastly, please tell us about your enthusiasm for this archived live performance!

AKLO:I am a little nervous about the fact that it will be recorded on video, but I would like to perform as if I were recording the atmosphere of the venue, focusing on the venue and not so much on the camera. I want to focus on the venue and not on the camera too much!