Bay Area resident for the past decade, Japanese rapper Kanata the Philosopher dropped his first album Frontier on Thanksgiving, and it’s a feast for hip hop fans. Kanata spits rapid-fire bars in Japanese and English over fellow Japanese Bay Area producer Hellataito’s 90s West Coast inflected funky, soulful downtempo beats. Frontier is hopefully the first release of a fruitful connection between the rapper and producer, and we’re looking forward to learning more about the Japan / Bay Area rap scene.
