DJ MAG JAPAN has been involved in various activities to educate Japanese DJs/Producers since 2016. Some of them being, to support up and coming DJs/Producers in Japan to release their music overseas, and through The School of House, providing courses on how-to music production by top class DJs/Producers, and PR/Social Media fundamentals as an artist. In addition, among the DJ MAG global network that is connected to 17 countries and regions around the world, DJ MAG Japan is the most active in Asia.

In the course of these activities, we have carefully unraveled the careers of top-class international DJs/producers in recent years, and have witnessed those who have made use of the backbone of DJs' lives and experiences that others have not had, and have risen to the top of the scene. When we were looking for a DJ who had similar concept and was ready to compete on the world stage, we found an artist, DJ Shacho. He is a big name in Japan as a YouTuber, and his career is not limited to YouTube, and there is probably no one in their teens or twenties who does not recognise him.

Licaxxx, an editor/radio DJ who has performed at Fuji Rock and CircoLoco, one of Europe's most renowned events, and Paris Hilton, a former model for Samantha Thavasa, engages their ability to attract fans/crowds to the event. Ansel Elgort, who stars in last year's blockbuster hit West Side Story (movie), also showcased his skills at Ultra Japan as Ansolo, and it is clear that there is more than one path to a successful career. Another reason may be that the state of DJing has shifted with the COVID-19 pandemic that started from 2020.

We spoke with DJ Shacho to find out more about the daily challenges and struggles he currently faces shifting his base to overseas. We hope that this article will encourage all readers to reevaluate their own stories as artists.

―You were at the height of your popularity in Japan. Why did you decide to go overseas?

When I started DJing at the age of 22, I had a dream of becoming the best DJ in Japan.  However, I thought that I could not become the best DJ in Japan by just making music or DJing on the scene, so I concentrated on gaining recognition and popularity on social media.  Fortunately, when we started putting time and effort into YouTube, that was the time of a YouTuber boom in Japan. We were able to ride the wave of this boom, growing our channel to 2.7 million subscribers and becoming the number one DJ in Japan in terms of music streaming, social media followers, and live performances, and eventually becoming the first Japanese DJ ever to successfully perform in a baseball stadium.

When I stood in front of all my fans at the baseball stadium,  a new dream struck: 'I want to be the No. 1 DJ in the world. Immediately after the Stadium performance, I announced that I was going overseas and flew straight out of Japan.

―How is you career so far in overseas?

I have been active in Indonesia since 2022 and due to the buzz that was created by locals of "No.1 DJ from Japan had come to Indonesia!", I was invited on TV shows immediately after of which many of them were popular shows here locally. We were also able to connect with renowned celebrities and popular influencers who have over 10 million followers on Instagram. As a result of our active collaboration, not only have we already gained over 100,000 followers in Indonesia, but we are also often approached on the street.

―What are some of the good and bad points or things that surprised you about the differences between Japan and Indonesian cultures?

When we came overseas, we noticed that Japan is a country with a huge YouTuber boom. For those of us who were doing YouTuber-like activities, it was quite a tailwind, but overseas, YouTubers are not as popular as they are in Japan. So we have to compete in a way that is very different from the way we have been doing in Japan.

At the height of his popularity in Japan, including performances in stadiums, DJ Schacho moved his base overseas and became a challenger. After expanding overseas and having various setbacks from Japan, let's find out more about his plan of conquering Asia in the future.

DJ Shacho

Started DJing in 2015 and soon after, he formed the DJ group "Reppen Chikyu (レペゼン地球)". In 2016, he released his first single "5454" and was active on Twitter, putting out short videos alongside his DJing. In 2017, he started YouTube and set a record for the fastest million subscribers at the time by surpassing 1 million channel subscribers within a year of starting. In 2018, he became the first DJ to pack Zepp with his first solo live show in Japan, with an attendance of 2,000. In the same year, he became the first DJ to perform to a full house at Makuhari Messe in Japan, with an attendance of 15,000. In 2019, he hosted a Zepp tour and a hall tour together. In 2020, an arena tour was scheduled, but it got cancelled due to a COVID-19. In the same year, he held his first solo live concert as a DJ in Japan at Fukuoka Dome, with attendance of 25,000. In 2021, the group announced its overseas expansion, changing its name from "Repezen Chikyu" to "Repezen Foxx," and in 2022, they moved their base to Indonesia.