Beer-belly dancers buck the trend
by Atsushi Kodera Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer
September 16, 1999
Off-stage, they lead normal lives working sensible jobs--a truck driver, a salesman, a business manager, an instructor teaching the art of elocution, an emcee for amusement park events and a musician-choreographer. On a few nights every month, however, they transform into the outrageous Oyaji Dancers, a six-man song-and-dance sensation whose offbeat charm is taking the country by storm.
Oyaji Dancers is a relatively new venture. But the spandex-clad men have performed in front of thousands at a Southern All Stars concert, made numerous television appearances and released two CDs, all of which they did without jeopardizing their day jobs, an oath they took under the group's leader-choreographer, Papaya Suzuki.
About two years ago, the 100-kilogram Suzuki began contemplating ways to challenge hip-hop dancers, whose moves, to him, were becoming boring and mainstream. He thought he could show younger dancers a thing or two.
Suzuki's parents were entertainers and his showbiz career path has crossed with those of such entertainers as Bibari Maeda and Lisa Akikawa. But he weighed a much more agile, athletic 50 kilograms when he performed with them.
"The fun is in the unpredictability," Suzuki said. "It's all about what-ifs--what if real businessmen danced, what if a team of fat, middle-aged men such as myself danced, or what if skinny, wimpy-looking men danced? Wouldn't that be hilarious?"
The idea became reality a year later when Suzuki brought together amateur dancers who fit his image of the Oyaji Dancers. One by one, men from different walks of life were introduced to the leader by his circle of friends in the business.
Hasegawa 16t (pronounced "juroku-ton," or 16 tons) drives a 16-ton truck, while Matsumoto Dokan (onomatopoeia for "bang") works as a teacher for aspiring announcers. Nakajima Jutemu ("je t'aime," or "I love you" in French) is a manager at a high-tech company, and Otsu Nenkintecho (pension handbook) is a top salesman at a major beverage company. Hashimoto Mania is the only member who works in the entertainment field, appearing in various events at amusement parks. Suzuki, of course, is a choreographer and composer-arranger, appearing regularly in Machikado Do-Re-Mi, a children's television program on NHK Educational channel.
The dancers' unusual status as employees-cum-entertainers has created a tricky situation for at least one of them.
As mentioned, Nakajima Jutemu, the oldest member at 42, has a managerial position in a major firm, which he prefers not to name. In a world where even slightly eccentric behavior raises eyebrows, he has to be careful. This prevents Nakajima from participating in all the rehearsals.
In contrast, Otsu Nenkintecho seems to charge his batteries by slipping into an Oyaji Dancer shell after 5 p.m. "He's the No.1 salesman at his company," Suzuki said, asking that that company also go unnamed. "And he says his spirits are up after dancing with us."
In April 1998, Suzuki made a demo video, a television commercial for an imaginary pep drink called "Oyaji Mamushi." The video led to a paid appearance in an actual TV commercial. While they continued their shows at the Shinjuku club CODE, Keisuke Kuwata, leader of the popular rock band Southern All Stars, took an interest in them. This was the beginning of Oyaji Dancers' road to fame.
Though they define themselves as oyaji, a popular term used for uncool, washed-up middle-aged men, the average age of the Oyaji Dancers is 36, which has them teetering on the border where they can decide--looks aside--whether to join the oyaji circle.
By calling themselves oyaji, though, they are addressing how oyaji are perceived. Since typical middle-aged company men tend to be colorless characters, the rest of the populace tend to mock their appearance and habits, dismissing them as obsolete.
Was it self-contempt then, that made the Oyaji Dancers brand themselves as such? Or was it meant as a sophisticated joke?
"Some people say, 'I'm still as young as a 30-year-old' at the age 40 or 50. To me, that's uncool," Suzuki said. "I like calling myself oyaji at 33."
Appearance-wise, the Oyaji Dancers--with their receding hairlines and beer bellies--are typical middle-aged men. It is hard to tell them apart from the oyaji you find drunk on trains on Friday nights.
But once the Oyaji Dancers leap onto the stage, they rock the house, singing and violently thrusting their hips to music by Southern All Stars, James Brown and the Jackson Five. Their numbers, choreographed by Suzuki, require highly synchronized, fast moves.
Ambitious, Suzuki already has an eye on Kohaku Utagassen, the annual New Year's Eve male-female song contest on NHK. "I told the men to leave their schedule open for New Year's Eve," he noted.
The group's recording debut actually came as BMG Funhouse label's bid to counter the mammoth success of "Dango Sankyodai" (Three Dumpling Brothers), a catchy tango song, originally aired on NHK that was all the rage this spring.
"We were racking our brains trying to come up with something that could achieve a similar success," said Funhouse's Kazuhiro Nakahara, the key figure behind "Yakitori Samba," Oyaji Dancers' first single.
His team hit upon the idea of making a samba song about yakitori chicken. It was a perfect counter-dumpling song because yakitori is the staple of oyaji bar-goers, he said.
With their success, the Oyaji Dancers are advocating something of a coming-out for oyaji, while sending a strong message to younger people that not all oyaji are washouts.
"What about this word oyaji-gari, huh?" Suzuki said, referring to the term for cases in which teenage ruffians and gangs assault vulnerable older men. "We shouldn't relegate ourselves to that. We are saying, 'Watch out, boys! Oyaji Dancers are going to get you!' "
Papaya Suzuki with Oyaji Dancers will perform Oct. 30 and 31 at Hakuhinkan in Ginza, Tokyo. Tickets are 4,500 yen in advance and 5,000 yen at the door. (03) 5459-9220.
