Only a handful of artists can say they've reached the top of their trade, but Kentaro Okamoto is one of them. As DJ Kentaro, his record-scratching skills got him noticed by beat heads worldwide back in 2002, when he won the DMC World DJ Final in London. But, now this DJ wants an image change.
"You know, it's been 10 years (since the DMC event) and I'm pretty much over the hype that came with winning. It's in the past," he tells The Japan Times. "Besides, being No. 1 didn't make me any more of a someone." Modest words for a man who gets the kind of recognition abroad that many of his peers here only dream about.
Okamoto, 30, also established himself as a producer with seminal first album, "Enter," his released in 2007 on the Ninja Tune imprint. His second full-length, "Contrast" (out yesterday on Beat Records/Ninja Tune), continues to demonstrate his talent as a beatmaker.