photo courtesy of Akiko Higuch
The first time I met Haruka Lynn Sakurai, better known among her club followers as Haruka Salt 999, she was rocking a side ponytail, sneakers, and a getup that would make Punkie Brewster the most jealous girl on the block. Despite her playful look, her music was nothing to mess with. Haruka dropped more heavy beats in the matter of 45 minutes than many of her male counterparts could even graze that night.
Haruka has more tattoos than I can count, but at the end of the day, loves looking and feeling ultra-feminine. She started with classical, but has made hip hop with hood roots her music of choice. Despite her petitie stature, she comes off as tough, but her infectious laugh instantly gives away her sweet side. But the key to truly understanding the woman behind the decks lies in not being confused by all these paradoxes of personality, but instead appreciating all the juxtpositions at play.
Haruka hails from Fukushima, Japan, but has followed life to Tokyo, Chicago, and finally New York, where we had the opportunity to sit down with her on her birthday a few weeks ago. While at her BedStuy apartment, which is painted bright red and decorated with her favorite records, we were joined by her adorable (and, might I add, well-dressed) 4-yr old Chihuahua DJ and had a chance to hear Haruka’s story with her mixes serving as a soundtrack. Now the resident DJ for BANANAS! Dance Party and a fixture at many clubs around NYC, Haruka spends most of her time working and prefers low-key get togethers in the place of major blowouts. But don’t let her laid back vibe fool you. Haruka is full of energy and her music is no different.
But enough from me. Take a moment to find out What’s Good with Haruka Salt 999:
How did you come up with the name Haruka Salt 999?
It’s from my best friend. He’s also a good DJ – one of my favorite DJs. We were not feeling each other at the beginning, so for about a month or two, we didn’t talk at all. But all of a sudden, he came up to me like, “Hey – what’s your sign?” I said, “Taurus.” Then he said, “Really? I’m a Taurus too!” So I said, “When is your birthday?” “April 24th, yours?” “April 24th” That’s how we started to get to know each other, then it led to music.
One day, he asked me to DJ with him for a houseparty in Bed Stuy. The houseparty was amazing. The place was a brownstone with three floors and a rooftop. Everybody was there; it was packed! Anyway, before the party, we were thinking about making flyers, so we knew we had to put my name on it. We just didn’t know what it was going to be. Akasha (that’s his name) was like “Haruka, no one can pronounce your name right. How about Haruka Salt?” I was down.
Then next thing, we were talking about the necklace I had bought on the street for 50 cents a few days before we hung out. He thought it was cute and I told him I had bought it just 50 cents. But when I turned it over, I say that it said, “9.99” on the back (that used to be the price). So he said, “What about Haruka Salt 999?” So since then, my name has been Haruka Salt 999 [nine-nine-nine]! [laughs]
That was around 2007, right after my life really started changing. Things were going bad, so I changed my job and started working at a café, which is how we met.
You used to live in Chicago, right? How did you go from Japan to the U.S. and from Chicago to NYC?
My life is like a comedy! [laughs] It’s just crazy. Sometimes, I just think, “How the hell did all this shit happen to me?”
Basically, in 2001, I came here – right after 9/11. Since I was into black music – hip hop, soul, r&b – I always wanted to see what was real. Music is all about personality, what your life is. You can’t fake it. I mean, now it’s kinda fake, but back in the day, you couldn’t fake it. For example, if you have money, you can make a song that’s more for luxury, but if you don’t have money and you live in the hood, you sing about how hard it is, how tough life is there.
I was feeling it, and I always wanted to come [to the U.S.] to see what the “real” is. In Japan, nothing is going on – there’s no hood. I was listening to hip hop, but not really. I wanted more. Finally, I came to NYC to visit. I went to parties and thought, “This city is for me. I should come back to live, not just to visit.” I needed to come back to live in order to feel and experience exactly what I wanted for my life and for my music.
But I was in Tokyo DJing, partying and whatnot, and I met one guy, got married, and ended up moving to Chicago. I really wanted to be in New York, but I kinda gave up. I mean, I was married. Marriage is not a party! [laughs] Every day was the same, but unfortunately, that was not what I wanted. Marriage was not for me. I decided I was going to move to New York. I knew I could do it.
I didn’t give up on what I wanted.
What about Japan? What was your involvement in music there?
I had been DJing there since I was about 14. I was always engaged with the music scene. I started off playing the piano and the violin. I was more of a classical music girl. I never thought I’d get into hip hop and other types of music because I was all about classical.
But to me, music is music. Music relates to life, how you live, where you’re from.
My first cd was Crazy, Sexy, Cool by TLC. At that time, in the mid-90s, some people in Japan were already going hard on hip hop music. Right now, reggae and hip hop are really popular over there, but back in the day not as much. My boyfriend at the time was listening to hip hop and I realized that I kind of liked it. Next thing I knew, I really started digging it.
After that, I started buying records. The scene in my city was really deep. Pete Rock even came over. Music-wise, my hometown (Fukushima) is like the Japanese version of Chicago or Philly. It’s not like New York (which is more like Tokyo). There are so many good artists and DJs. The music scene is very underground, not commercial. The people know what’s up.
To Be Continued . . .
Check back tomorrow for part two!
- Retail DJ
I want to just create a club in which you MUST check your cell phone at the front – or at least one that bans any cell phones, PDAs (unless they’re the type borne of lustful couplings), and anything digital with the exception of the DJ’s gear. I didn’t always feel that way, but after a few years of clubbing until the passed the generation that came to be my dancefloor peers, I’ve changed my mind.
