Ajate

Biography

It all began in the late 2000s: travelling in West Africa, Japanese musician Junichiro “John” Imaeda was struck by the kinship between the afrobeat resounding in the streets of Accra and the Ohayashi, the music of ancestral Japanese festivals he had played since childhood. Back home, he founded Ajate in 2009: a collective of ten passionate musicians.

Alongside drums and flutes come curious, entirely handmade bamboo instruments — the Jaate, an amplified xylophone-balafon, and the Piechiku, a bamboo cousin of the Malian ngoni — a living bridge between Asia and Africa. Carried by powerful, catchy vocals, afrobeat and traditional Japanese music swim together naturally, singing of human connection, the joy of being together and the beauty of life.

The albums Abrada (2017) and Alo (2020), released on French label 180g, opened Europe's doors: Transmusicales de Rennes, Jazz à Vienne, WOMAD in the UK and a celebrated KEXP session in Seattle. With Dala Toni (2024), Ajate became one of the essential acts of the new 'made in Japan' scene, and toured Europe in the summer of 2026, from Paris's Cabaret Sauvage to Germany's Fusion Festival.

On video — official clips and live performances

Full performance · Live on KEXP

Kopilakanka · Live at Jazz à Vienne 2023

Wayayawa · Live at Jazz à Vienne 2023

Travel notebook: Japan with Ajate · RIFFX

Milestones

Founded in 2009 by John Imaeda, Ajate released Abrada (2017), Alo (2020) and Dala Toni (2024). The band performed at Transmusicales de Rennes, Jazz à Vienne, WOMAD and Festival du Bout du Monde, recorded a KEXP session in Seattle and toured Europe extensively in summer 2026 (Cabaret Sauvage, Fusion Festival, Soïo Mundo Festival…). Libération, FIP and France Inter have all praised its groove-meets-tradition fusion.

Show formats

• Live concert
• World music festival