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Who is Joji? 5 fun facts about the Japanese singer as Internet loses its mind over viral 'Extravaganza' live stream

The online event was branded 'a masterpiece' and saw the 28-year-old performing songs from his sophomore album titled ‘Nectar’ for the very first time

Japanese singer-songwriter Joji, whose real name is George Kusunoki Miller, had been teasing his unique live stream event called ‘The Extravaganza’ since the last few weeks and when he finally went live, the Internet lost its calm. The online event saw the 28-year-old singer performing songs from his sophomore album titled ‘Nectar’ for the very first time, as reported by the Jakarta Post. The official link of the paid event had said that it was only a one-night event followed by two replays. ‘Nectar’ was released on September 25, 2020.

As his event got a tremendous response from his fans, here are five fun facts about his life and music:

Early Career

Before he shot to fame, the Japanese musician started his creative career as a You Tuber in 2006 where he used to post music and comedy related content on his three respective, but now defunct YouTube channels namely DizastaMusic, TVFilthyFrank, and TooDamnFilthy. The content always revolved around rap songs, swearing, rants, extreme challenges, ukulele performances, and a shock humor show titled ‘The Filthy Frank Show.’

The Harlem Shake

Many won’t know, but Joji and friends are the ones who gave birth to the viral dance craze known as ‘The Harlem Shake’ in the year 2013.  The creation of the original anthem Harlem Shake is attributed to street dancer Al B but it’s completely different from Joji’s dance.

Inspiration

Every musician gets inspired by the legends and we are sure you must not be aware by whom Joji got really inspired. Well, the singer-songwriter got a heavy influence from hip-hop icon Lil Wayne, as reported by TVOM website. He got inspired by the rapper when he first heard Lil Wayne’s 2008 mega-hit single ‘A Milli.’ The song inspired him to learn how to use Garageband where he attempted to recreate the beat. He was apparently also inspired by boom-bap instrumentals while growing up in Osaka, as reported by the website Useless Daily.

Health Issues?

This might not be a fun fact but fans deserve to know that Joji has an undisclosed neurological disorder that causes stress-induced seizures. Apparently, this is one of the reasons that led him to quit his YouTube career. In an interview with Clash Music, Joji had revealed that he has used music as a way to distract him from what’s going on in his body, as published by TVOM website.

Mixed Ethnic Background

Joji has a mixed ethnic background. The singer-songwriter is half-Australian and half-Japanese. TVOM reports that he even though he grew up in Osaka, he was always considered the “white boy.” He had earlier said, “Nobody really took me seriously. And then I was like ‘F**k it, I’ll go to America.’ In America it’s like “Asian boy”, and it’s like, ‘You know what? I’m just nothing then.’”
 
Coming back to Joji's live stream event ‘The Extravaganza,’ fans went berserk on Twitter. While sharing a few snapshots from the online event, one fan said, “Joji really went above and beyond for this. #EXTRAVAGANZA” Another stated, “#EXTRAVAGANZA by #Joji definitely made my year... that’s all” One ardent tweeted with a snippet, “What a masterpiece. #joji #EXTRAVAGANZA” One added, “i regret logged into Twitter, too many spoilers for #Extravaganza AAAAAAAAAAAA.”

Joji’s latest album, ‘Nectar,’ topped the Spotify US Weekly Top 50 chart and had secured the third spot on the Billboard 200 at the time of the release.