It’s funny the way life let’s you know that you are human. Less then a month ago, Nujabes, one of the most amazing producers passed ( February 26), in a car accident. Only recently, was the information publicly released. Being a very private individual, that is nothing short of a surprise.

Like many others, I was introduced to Nujabes’ work by watching Samurai Champloo, a short series that covered a warrior’s journey through the dying institution of feudal Japan. Stylistically, the marriage of the music and animation were one of the closest what I have seen to a flawless pairing.

Nujabes (born Jun Seba), a Japanese hip-hop producer, was killed in a car accident in Tokyo. Nujabes crashed when leaving the Metropolitan Expressway in Tokyo’s Minato Ward.

Nujabes was 36 years old when he died. The car crash that killed Nujabes took place on February 26, 2010, the same day a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck off the coast of Japan. Nujabes’ death was only publicly confirmed by Hydeout Productions and by his friend and collaborator, Shing02, today; he was buried by his family in a private ceremony.

Nujabes: Producer and Scenemaker

Nujabes was the founder of Hydeout Productions, as well as the owner of two Tokyo record stores, Guinness Records and T Records. Nujabes (who came by his artistic name by spelling his real name backwards) also contributed music to the anime Samurai Champloo, an anachronistic tale mixing samurai lore and modern hip-hop culture.

Nujabes was a private person, and so many, even those who worked closely with him, did not know he had died. The common Internet death rumors did not make it to the English-speaking web, and this is a rare case in which an artist’s actual death notice preceded the rumors.

One of the favorites…

Rare live performance.