Makoto

Makoto, is testament to the international scope and power of electronic music. Born & raised in Tokyo, the young Makoto was influenced by a wide variety of music, ranging from classical to soul and funk. Upon hearing the soundtrack to The Last Emperor by the academy award winning composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, Makoto was so inspired that he made the life-changing decision to pursue a career in music.

Completing an Acoustic Engineering major at Nippon University, and having been introduced to drum and bass through listening to the radio shows of Gilles Peterson on Kiss FM and BBC Radio 1, Makoto began experimenting with the genre through his own compositions. His productions were of such quality that they caught the attention of none other than the legendary LTJ Bukem, who went on to sign Makoto to his seminal Good Looking Records imprint in 1999.

Since then Makoto has become one of the most highly respected producers and DJs in D&B, pushing his unique blend of fast breaks and soul-drenched music to every corner of the globe. His discography includes 2 LPs, Live DJ Mix, a large number of EPs and numerous tracks featured on the world famous “Earth” and “Progression Sessions” compilation albums. Some of his most notable releases include his debut album “Human Elements”, which was released in 2003 and was widely praised for bringing the feeling of 70s soul music into the 21st century, and “Progression Sessions: Japan Live 2003”, which introduced his dynamic musical partnership with talented female vocalist Deeizmto the world. He achieved acclaim with his powerful MC Conrad collaboration, “Golden Girl”, played by DJs across the many sub genres of drum and bass and becoming a certified genre anthem all over the world.

Following a slightly different direction Makoto began to release music for other labels such as DJ Zinc’s Bingo Beats, London Elektricity’s Hospital Records, Fabio’s Creative Source and of course, DJ Marky’s Innerground Records. His musical connection with Marky runs deep, and was solidified with his very own mix cd released on Marky’s label in 2009 titled “DJ Marky & Friends presents Makoto”. The pair went gone on to collaborate and release a whole series of tracks together.

Alongside this hefty release schedule and tours across Asia, Europe, UK and USA, Makoto runs his own label – HE:Digital – releasing the compilation album “HE:Possibilities” in 2010 to draw attention to up and coming producers from Japan. More recently Makoto released the charity compilation album “Something We Can Do” where all profits were donated to the Red Cross in Japan to help the victims of the tragic tsunami and earthquake which struck the country.