Born in Chigasaki, Kanagawa, in 1997, Namichie is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans music, kigurumi costume creation, and writing. She graduated at the top of her class from the Department of Intermedia Art at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2020, where she received both the Ikuo Hirayama Award and the Purchase Prize. Alongside her solo practice, she is also active in the sibling creative group TAMURA KING. Her first album, Mainichi Rainichi, received a Special Prize at the 2020 APPLE VINEGAR – Music Award, organized by Masafumi Gotoh of ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION. That same year, she was selected for Forbes 30 Under 30 Japan 2020 in the Art category. From January to February 2024, she held her first solo exhibition, Namichie × Kigroom, at Gallery URO in Shinsaibashi, Osaka.

Namichie Tamura is a pioneer of Afrobeats music in Japan. Her practice has grown in so many directions that categorising her work into any single art form feels oversimplifying. In many ways, this fluidity is the nature of Black Art: the need and ability to inhabit multiple forms and escape definition simultaneously. In this interview, she discusses her latest EP and reflects on the evolution of her practice. 

Could you tell us about the themes and concepts that run through your work?

The ideas that underpin my work are a skepticism toward colonialism, a perspective that does not depend on the West, and a Black feminist point of view. Put simply, colonialism is a structure in which one region or culture is dominated by a more powerful nation or by a dominant set of values, and those values are imposed as if they were universal or “normal.” This is not just a matter of the past; it still persists today in cultural and aesthetic standards, in language, and even in the way musical value is judged. For example, many of our assumptions about what is considered “cool,” or which culture is seen as more refined or sophisticated, are often shaped unconsciously by Western-centered standards. My work questions those assumptions. I am always asking: whose perspective are we really looking from?

I am also deeply influenced by Black feminism. For me, it is a way of thinking that begins with the lived experiences of Black women and examines, at the same time, the multiple structures of oppression that shape society, including race, gender, and class. I feel that my own body and existence also stand at the intersection of several different contexts. That is why my work often contains a double meaning. Even when a piece may appear pop or light on the surface, I consciously try to embed within it social distortions and traces of history, in order to subtly shift the viewer’s perception.

Were there any particular social conditions or events happening in the world that influenced your early work?

The biggest influence was media coverage of war and international affairs, especially the tensions surrounding relations between the United States and the Middle East, including Iran. Behind these events, consumed as news, lies a long history of colonialism and unequal relationships shaped by resources and power. Yet I often felt uneasy with the way these issues were discussed through a simplified framework of “who is right and who is wrong”, without enough historical or political context. 

Questions like “whose perspective is the story being told from?” “What is being said?”, and “what is being left unsaid?” became the starting point of my work. Especially because in Japan, these issues are often treated as if they belong to somewhere far away. But in reality, they are deeply connected to our own lives through culture, economics, and global systems. One of my motivations has been to make those invisible connections visible.

Recently, you filmed a video with Fameme and two Japanese rappers in connection with the “Choreographies of the Everyday” exhibition held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT). In a society that is often considered relatively homogeneous, what role do you think art plays in changing the way we view people with different backgrounds and experiences?

I believe one of art’s most important roles is to expand our perspective. What society tends to accept as “normal” is often based on an extremely limited point of view. But we do not often get the chance to recognize that. In this video project, I was involved with people who all had a different background and who each looked different from each other. We were all sharing the same space as we attempted to find meaning in our existence through lyrics that “pierced like thorns.”

I don’t think art exists to provide answers. I think it can instead serve as a trigger, something that prompts a shift in the way we see. I think this is especially relevant in societies that are often described as homogeneous, and where those who are perceived as different are easily treated as exceptions. But diversity is a fundamental part of human existence. I believe art can make this visible and encourage new ways of seeing in those who experience it.

As a Japanese artist with African roots, do you feel any difficulties in working in the Japanese art and music scene? Or do you think it’s a strength? Rap is an expression rooted in Black culture, but do you feel that being Japanese with African roots affects how you are trusted within the rap scene or the persuasiveness of your expression? Do you feel that rap in Japan, as a subculture, is more open to “differences” compared to other areas of expression?

Rap and hip-hop are forms of expression rooted in Black culture, and if traced further back, connected to African culture and history. That is why I value understanding their history and context, rather than treating them simply as styles. At the same time, in the Japanese music scene, what is often framed as “Black culture” tends to be consumed mainly through image and aesthetics. In some cases, this can amount to a superficial appropriation of culture, and I think that reflects colonial structures as well.

Rather than going along with that unconsciously, I try to remain aware of my own position and roots in my work. Of course, this comes with challenges, but I also see it as a strength, as it allows me to speak from a perspective and voice that are uniquely my own.

Your new EP, GHANA, is based on fieldwork in Ghana, West Africa. What kind of reaction have you received in Japan so far? Also, are most of your listeners from Japan, or are most of them from overseas?

GHANA is a work that grew out of fieldwork I carried out in Ghana, in West Africa. In Japan, I think it has been received positively as a way for listeners to encounter the rhythms and sensibilities of Afrobeats, which are still unfamiliar to many people there.  At the moment, most of the listeners seem to be Japanese, but I also feel that the work is reaching people across linguistic and cultural boundaries. Through this EP, I hope listeners will not only enjoy it as music, but also become curious about the culture, the history, and the ongoing connections that lie behind it.

Visit her website: https://namichie-official.com