Shinichi Osawa (MONDO GROSSO) has had a profound impact on Japan‘s music scene through his musical sensibilities, focused on the newest and most creative dance music and his collaborations with a wide range of artists. RHYME is an Australian artist (poet, performer, DJ, and beatmaker) based in Japan. These two contrasting creators, with their differing backgrounds, nationalities & musical careers, make up the dance music duo RHYME SO.
They debuted in 2019 with the 88rising single “Just Used Music Again.” Then in the spring of 2020 they dropped “Fashion Blogger.” The music video featured MILK, who rose to popularity on RuPaul’s Drag Race, and the song’s title itself, “Fashion Blogger,” is deeply intertwined with the RHYME SO concept.
Osawa: “I think it was back in 2017, when I was getting my hair cut, I saw some video on my iPad of this woman overseas talking about the outfit she was wearing that day. When the interviewer asked her what her job was, she said “fashion blogger.” I don’t think she was actually writing a blog, but she was making a living sharing her fashion on Instagram. That came as a bit of a surprise to me. The internet and social media permeate our society, but there are a lot of things that we take for granted that make me think ‘Is this really an everyday thing?’ I think it would be interesting to use music to pose questions like ‘What do you think of this situation?’ Not as criticism, just as questions. That’s the concept behind RHYME SO.”
RHYME: “RHYME SO sounds like ‘I’m so.’ ‘I’m so happy,’ ‘I’m so sad,’ ‘I’m so hungry.’ I, I, I… Sometimes that (showing off on social media) is a positive, but…
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