April 23, 2015
- GMO Internet, Inc.
GMO Culture Incubation to Co-produce After Party at SLUSH ASIA, as World’s Largest Start-up Event is Held in Asia for First Time
After party co-produced by GMO Culture Incubation to feature music festival concept and globally active DJs
April 23, 2015 - Tokyo, Japan -- GMO Internet, Inc. announces it is participating in start-up event SLUSH ASIA, this Friday April 24, 2015 (http://asia.slush.org/) as partner supporting the event’s after party.
Originating in Finland, SLUSH is one of the world’s leading startup events. With one of its biggest attractions being the collaborative, creative and artistic atmosphere, the after party has evolved to become an integral part of the conference.
GMO Internet is supporting the SLUSH ASIA after party with the objective of encouraging the startup scene in Japan and contributing to an innovative and creative feel for the first ever SLUSH event in Asia. The after party will be co-produced by GMO Internet Group company, GMO Culture Incubation.
The after party will feature globally active artists including Red Bull Thre3style world champion SHINTARO, AI DJ and programmer, Nao Tokui, KO MATSUSHIMA whose performances on iPad and wearable devices are being talked about around the world, as well as music producer and DJ TeddyLoid.
After parties have become part of the fabric of tech events and conferences, providing a platform for communication that brings participants together from different backgrounds, countries, industries and generations. SLUSH ASIA brings this unique kind of event to Japan for the first time, and GMO Internet and GMO Culture Incubation are proud to partner with SLUSH ASIA as co-producer of the after party.
Artist Profiles
SHINTARO (http://shintaro.com)
Now world champion and active internationally, Shintaro’s musical roots go back to the age of 4 when he first experienced piano and Japanese drums, shaping his unique sense of music today. At 15, he became interested in hip-hop culture, and tried his hand at DJing. Active in various DJ battles, he won the grand prize for three years at Vestax’s No Tricks DJ Battle, and in 2010 became No Tricks Japan/Korea champion at Seoul World DJ Festival. He later began to focus on playing clubs, and in 2013 entered the Red Bull Thre3Style competition as representative of Japan and became the youngest World Champion in the history of the competition. Shintaro made a huge mark in DJ history as the first DJ not from the host country to win, the first Japanese, and the first Asian to ever become the Red Bull Thre3Style World Champion. What makes Shintaro special is that he not only makes crowds go wild with his scratching skills, but he also keeps them dancing without killing the groove by combining scratching with a smooth music mix, all while he blends different types of music (genres). He’s already had a European Tour spanning seven major clubs in Belgium, Germany, and Holland, as well as touring Asia, concentrating on major clubs in Taiwan. After receiving praise for these shows, he has been regularly invited as special guest to events in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Shanghai, Beijing, and more. Besides playing in clubs, in 2014 he participated in popular outdoor festivals including the Amsterdam based hip-hop ENCORE FESTIVAL and the Japanese leg of the world’s largest EDM festival, ULTRA MUSIC FESTIVAL, where he took the main stage. He has been highly rated by music professionals for being able to play across genres to audiences numbering in the tens of thousands. In November 2014, Shintaro started afresh as the pioneering artist and producer behind the GMO Internet Group globally focused agency GMO Culture Incubation.
Now world champion and active internationally, Shintaro’s musical roots go back to the age of 4 when he first experienced piano and Japanese drums, shaping his unique sense of music today. At 15, he became interested in hip-hop culture, and tried his hand at DJing. Active in various DJ battles, he won the grand prize for three years at Vestax’s No Tricks DJ Battle, and in 2010 became No Tricks Japan/Korea champion at Seoul World DJ Festival. He later began to focus on playing clubs, and in 2013 entered the Red Bull Thre3Style competition as representative of Japan and became the youngest World Champion in the history of the competition. Shintaro made a huge mark in DJ history as the first DJ not from the host country to win, the first Japanese, and the first Asian to ever become the Red Bull Thre3Style World Champion. What makes Shintaro special is that he not only makes crowds go wild with his scratching skills, but he also keeps them dancing without killing the groove by combining scratching with a smooth music mix, all while he blends different types of music (genres). He’s already had a European Tour spanning seven major clubs in Belgium, Germany, and Holland, as well as touring Asia, concentrating on major clubs in Taiwan. After receiving praise for these shows, he has been regularly invited as special guest to events in Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Shanghai, Beijing, and more. Besides playing in clubs, in 2014 he participated in popular outdoor festivals including the Amsterdam based hip-hop ENCORE FESTIVAL and the Japanese leg of the world’s largest EDM festival, ULTRA MUSIC FESTIVAL, where he took the main stage. He has been highly rated by music professionals for being able to play across genres to audiences numbering in the tens of thousands. In November 2014, Shintaro started afresh as the pioneering artist and producer behind the GMO Internet Group globally focused agency GMO Culture Incubation.
Nao Tokui
Programmer/DJ
Founder / CEO of Qosmo Inc. (Tokyo/Japan)
PhD (Engineering)
Nao Tokui has been creating programming-driven sounds and installation art since his days researching artificial intelligence as a student.
Accolades include developing an iPhone app now on display in the New York Museum of Modern Art, and being the recipient of Gold Cannes Lion awards.
In February 2015, Nao launched the AI DJ event 2045 with Manabe Daito (Rhizomatiks). The event aims to discover possibilities and new forms of DJ expression using data and algorithms.
KO-MATSUSHIMA (http://www.ko-matsushima.com/)
What sets Ko Matsushima apart from other DJs is creative mixing and effects using Ableton Live with iPad, and CDJ. Remix works include Strong Together by Kidda on Skint Records,Ultra Music, and Warp 13 by popular EDM duo, Denzal Park on NeonRecords. Original works include Cogweel which reached number 9 in the Beatport weekly Electro House charts and collaboration with Australian artist Jamie Lee Wilson, Where Are You, ranked as high as #3 in the Beatport weekly chillout chart, #19 in the weekly progressive chart, and #1 in the Amazon Dance Electronica rankings.
TeddyLoid (http://www.teddyloid.com)
At just 18 years old, TeddyLoid joined the MIYAVI world tour as DJ sound producer. Since then he has produced the music for anime title “Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt with Taku Takahashi (m-flo) and collaborated with Ko Shibasaki and DECO*27 on galaxias! In August 2014, TeddyLoid released the EP UNDER THE BLACK MOON on King Records followed by the festival concept album BLACK MOON RISING marking his debut as a solo artist.
SLUSH ASIA
First held in Helsinki, Finland, in November 2008, Slush has grown to become one of the world’s largest startup events attracting entrepreneurs, investors, students, and media from around the globe. This year the event is coming to Asia for the first time as SLUSH ASIA. The goal of the event is to light the same entrepreneurial fire in Asian youth as Slush has done in the Nordics through talks by experienced entrepreneurs and a pitching competition. The talks by entrepreneurs will tell stories how they became successful, but also all the failures and life-shaking experiences necessary to get there. The talks will demystify entrepreneurship and encourage a new generation of entrepreneurs that will go head to head in a pitching competition.
About SLUSH
Slush is the focal point for startups and tech talent to meet with top-tier international investors, executives and media. In 2014, Slush brought together over 14.000 attendees and more than 3.500 companies for the two-day event. Slush is a non-profit event organized by a community of entrepreneurs, investors, students and event production professionals. Slush has grown from a 300-person gathering to become one of the leading events of its kind in the world.
About GMO Internet Group
GMO Internet Group is an Internet services industry leader, developing and operating Japan’s most widely used domain, hosting & cloud, ecommerce, security, and payment solutions. The Group also comprises the world’s largest online FX trading platform, as well as online advertising, Internet media, and mobile entertainment products. GMO Internet, Inc. (TSE: 9449) is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.