KREVA

Overview

KREVA (born Takashi Hatakeyama on June 18, 1976) is a Japanese rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer and DJ (DJ name: 908). He is a member of Kick the Can Crew and part of Funky Grammar Unit and Mikoshi Rockers. His stage name comes from the English word "clever". Born in Hirosaki, Aomori, he grew up in Edogawa, Tokyo.

Career

Early years

Inspired in junior high by footage of Bobby Brown, KREVA began with dance and turned to rapping after a friend acquired DJ equipment. While studying at Keio University's SFC, he formed By Phar the Dopest with childhood classmate CUE (now CUEZERO) in 1995, performing underground until around 1998 and releasing the album BY PHAR THE DOPEST. He won the B-BOY PARK MC Battle three years in a row (1999–2001), a first, and was inducted into its hall of fame in 2001.

Kick the Can Crew

From 1997 he worked with LITTLE, DJ SHUHO and MCU in Kick the Can Crew, handling MC duties and producing nearly all the tracks. Before their major debut he worked on the music for the TV drama Ikebukuro West Gate Park, and in 2002 the group appeared on the 53rd NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen with "Marché".

Solo career

After a two-day concert at Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall in June 2004, the group went on hiatus and KREVA began his solo career as "Shinjin Kreva". On June 18 he released the indie single "Kibō no Honō" in a limited run of 10,908 copies, and on September 8 made his major debut with "Neiro" on Pony Canyon's Knife Edge label. "Hitori Janai no yo" followed in October and the first album, Shinjin Kreva, in November.

In 2005 he re-branded as "KREVA 2nd season" and released four singles: "Funky Glamorous" (feat. Mummy-D), "Issai Gassai", "Start" and "Kokuminteki Gyōji". His album Ai Jibunhaku (February 1, 2006) became the first number-one on the Oricon weekly chart by a Japanese hip hop solo artist, and the final date of its tour was the first Nippon Budokan show by such an artist. In September 2006 he revived By Phar the Dopest after ten years and released the single "Haji janai" and the album Dakara Dō Shita!.

In 2007 he toured with Toshinobu Kubota, released a collaboration single, and issued "Kureba Ii no ni" with Masamune Kusano of Spitz, plus the concert tours Imishin and K-ing and a two-day Budokan run in November. On March 19, 2008 he released his first best-of, Kreva no Best Ban, and, as part of the temporary unit The THREE with Tomoyasu Hotei and Seiji Kameda, performed the theme song "Uragiri Gomen" for the film The Hidden Fortress: The Last Princess. His national tour drew about 55,000 people over 17 shows in 13 locations; he reunited with LITTLE and MCU at ROCK IN JAPAN FESTIVAL 2008, appeared on MTV Unplugged, and his video collection Chart Busters K! debuted at number one on the Oricon DVD music weekly chart.

In 2009 he released "Seikō" and other digital songs, the singles "Ao" and "Aka", the album Shinzō, and "A to XYZ / Slow Beat" with Toko Furuuchi. In 2010 a back ailment forced him to cancel appearances before he returned in September; he released his first mini-album Oasys on September 15 and held the Budokan shows Imishin 3 with Tetsuya Komuro in the backing band.

In 2011 he released "Idome", the charity download "EGAO" after the Tohoku earthquake (80% of proceeds donated to recovery efforts), and "C'mon, Let's Go", published his first book, and made his first overseas performance at MUSIC MATTERS in Singapore as Japan's representative. His album Go arrived in 2011, followed by the tour "Kreva Concert Tour 2011-2012: Go". In June 2012 he released "Oh Yeah!".

In 2014 he wrote the lyrics for the Japanese production of the Broadway musical In the Heights, which was revived in 2021, and marked his tenth solo anniversary with the three-disc best-of KX on June 18. He held the 908 Festival for three straight years and completed the 47-prefecture tour "Under the Moon" in 2015. He moved to SPEEDSTAR RECORDS in 2016, and later albums include Uso to bon'nō (2017), Sonzaikan (2018), AFTERMIXTAPE (2019), LOOP END / LOOP START (2021) and Project K (2025). Kick the Can Crew has been active again since 2017.

On December 31, 2021 he appeared on the 72nd NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen with Sayuri Ishikawa and MIYAVI, performing "Kaji to Kenka wa Edo no Hana". In April 2023 he performed a specially written rap at the Hibiya Open-Air Concert Hall's 100th anniversary ceremony, and in 2023 he held the Nippon Budokan tour "No Reason". He announced his departure from his agency on March 31, 2024, and from January 24 to February 3, 2025 held the exhibition "Rapper to Kami to Pen" at Shibuya PARCO for his 20th solo anniversary.

Musical style

Working across J-rap, J-pop and J-R&B, KREVA writes, raps, sings and produces his own tracks. He has said he went solo to give shape to melodies and words exactly as they came to him. He has also remixed and guested for artists such as Daichi Miura and Ken Hirai, and produces through his own label. He is known as a football fan and a stationery enthusiast.