SWEEP is an artist working in a soul and R&B universe. He began his career in 2006 and has since evolved his style while continuing to work his voice very soft and powerful on emotional titles revealing his sensitivity.
He recently collaborated with DJ YOKU and his group A HUNDRED BIRDS, grouping a soul orchestra of more than forty musicians. Their album, DISCOvery was released in the UK in 2016. SWEEP interprets three songs: Relight My Fire, I Love Music and I’m Caught Up.
We went to meet these two artists at Japan Expo 2018 for you to be able to discover them a little more!
Could you present yourselves?
SWEEP: Hello, my name is SWEEP. That’s the second time I am coming to Japan Expo. I am doing Black Music, African-inspired music, but also R&B and soul. I am also composing songs and I like to share those tracks with other artists.
DJ YOKU: I am DJ YOKU. I am here today as a band. We mainly play electro and house music. My band is named A HUNDRED BIRDS. Lately, I am working with SWEEP and we came together as we have too many people in the band for everyone to come.
SWEEP: I am working as a solo artist, but I also am A HUNDRED BIRDS’ singer.
SWEEP, how did you choose your stage name?
SWEEP: Indeed, I really enjoy basketball and American NBA since I was young. When you win at basketball with a very important difference in scoring, we call that a “sweep”. It also means “the master”, the one who dominated the game. When I started to play basketball, I was 18 years old and I also had this feeling that I could dominate the game by eliminating all the negative elements to stay concentrated.
What made you both want to collaborate?
SWEEP: We both worked at the same recording studio. I first heard of A HUNDRED BIRDS and enjoyed their music. I asked the band if it was possible to collaborate and the time came to create a song together. It was the first time we all met. Then, for every show we were doing together, I was there as an invited member. Finally, I became a permanent member of the band.
Thanks to this we had the opportunity to work together. Now, it has been almost 10 years than we are collaborating.
DJ YOKU: As I live in Tokyo and he [SWEEP] is living in Osaka, we can’t meet often. We try to move in turn.
What preparations did you make to come to Japan Expo this year?
SWEEP: I have learned a few words! Bonjour je m’appelle SWEEP, enchanté [In French: Hi my name is SWEEP, nice to meet you]. Since people also understand English and sometimes Japanese, I didn’t really prepare much apart from the songs we choose to sing of course.
I also discovered that Japan Expo is a place were you can talk about anime, manga, idols… but it would be even better if people could learn a lot of things about different aspects of the Japanese culture thanks to this event since that is not the only thing you can see in Japan. That is a good way to discover new things. I hesitated when coming here because people are coming cosplayed, they almost become stars, more than us!
What other aspects of the Japanese culture would you like the public of this event to discover?
SWEEP: Of course there are a lot of aspects and I do not forbid anyone to be interested with mangas… I just would like to draw a little more attention to other things that would be as interesting as the pop culture.
Both my Grandmother and Grandfather are traditional singers. I also learned a bit of traditional music when I was young. I would like people to be aware of the existence of this kind of music because all parts of Japan have their own songs. I would like people to discover this type of universe. Another thing, in Japan there is a dance called “bon” on which everyone goes in a circle to dance. It is a dance that is mostly done during the summer, and I would like people to discover this kind of tradition through Japan Expo.
I saw that there were still some traditional instruments represented here like Shamisen for example. It’s great to find them here, and there are others that could probably be shown to the public to make them discover new things and new sounds.
What projects do you have for the months coming?
SWEEP: Thanks to this opportunity to come in France, we can play in front of a different public. We would be really glad to be able to collaborate with foreign artists and play in front of the whole world.
Here, as in Japan, music is mostly American. In another hand, when we talk about European music, we tend to think of British songs. French music is not well-known in Japan. Here, I listened to more French songs and it seemed sentimental. I also released an album last year called “If” and, in this album, I find that the rhythm I used is very similar to the rhythm of French songs. While playing on stage I also could see that it really corresponded to the music of France. So I do not have ideas of artists in mind with whom I would like to collaborate but I am very open to any proposal and I hope that an opportunity will arise someday.
Do you have a message for the French public?
SWEEP: I love you [In French]
DJ YOKU: I love you too [In French with “too” said in English]
SWEEP: Thanks to this opportunity I would like people to discover more about our music. It is also a chance for us to create a link, a contact with the French public. From a personal point of view, it is also a first contact that is created here. I am very happy.
It’s a big thank you that we send to SWEEP and DJ YOKU. We had a great time with them during this interview full of discoveries with a very interesting exchange from these artists curious to know more about our country and to make us discover their culture as much as they can. Thanks also to Japan Expo without whom this interview could not have been possible.
