MNNK Bro. Release New Song 'SHUTOKO TOKYO' With 'AKIRA'-Inspired Music Video
The release continues Murakami's project of blending hip-hop, contemporary art, and Japanese youth culture, this time explicitly linking to a canonical manga and its soundtrack.
Reporting from 1 sources: KAI-YOU.
The unit formed by contemporary artist Takashi Murakami and rapper JP THE WAVY released their fourth single 'SHUTOKO TOKYO' on May 22. The music video, directed by New York duo BRTHR, connects the Shuto Expressway with the world of Katsuhiro Otomo's manga 'AKIRA.'
MNNK Bro., the unit formed by contemporary artist Takashi Murakami and rapper JP THE WAVY, released their fourth single 'SHUTOKO TOKYO' on May 22. The music video premiered the same day at 8:00 PM. The visuals were handled by the New York-based director duo BRTHR, who have also worked on projects for Travis Scott and The Weeknd.
The song links the Shuto Expressway, a concept Murakami had envisioned since the unit's formation, with the world of Katsuhiro Otomo's manga 'AKIRA.' Over a beat by ineedmorebux, JP THE WAVY delivers rapid-fire rap. Murakami noted that the over-30-minute remix version 'SHUTOKO TOKYO 1988 -Extended Version-' took about a year and a half to complete and evokes Geinoh Yamashirogumi, the group behind the 'AKIRA' animated film soundtrack.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.