Shikoku Rap: Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime and Kochi | Rap Atlas

Bushi began rapping in Kagawa in 2003. Disry was a regular at Matsuyama’s JUICE party in 2011. On March 9, 2026, Watson, from Komatsushima in Tokushima, played a solo show at Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan. These are different histories within Shikoku, Japan’s island of four prefectures: Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime and Kochi (Bushi’s artist profile; Disry interview; Watson concert report).

The Japanese edition began with a small observation: the word Shikoku did not appear in the August 25, 2026 revision of Japanese Wikipedia’s “Japanese hip hop” article that it checked. That is a limit of one overview, not evidence of a missing scene or an explanation of why it went unmentioned. This Rap Atlas entry brings together seven main acts, one emerging artist, records and venues from the four prefectures under the series’ inclusion criteria.

Is there one Shikoku scene?

There have been explicit attempts to join the island’s artists together. On October 22, 2008, Ehime’s DJ SHUN released 4THCoast through FORCE RECORDZ. Tower Records describes a mix of tracks by 40 rappers across all four prefectures, arranged into 41 tracks. The participant count and track count are different measures of a DJ mix. OTOTOY’s DJ SHUN profile also describes the 40-rappers concept.

In 2018, Disry released “4THCoast Yella,” followed by 4THCoast Yella REMIX with MCs from the four prefectures (OTOTOY). These projects document an island-wide idea. They do not establish how continuously the networks between prefectures operate today.

Several artists in this guide gained wider attention after moving off the island: Watson went to Osaka, Disry to Okinawa and later Kanto, and ID and Hama cham also moved toward Kanto. Other paths include Bushi and TKR working from Kagawa, and T-STONE keeping Tokushima as one of his bases. The selected biographies cannot determine which path is more common across Shikoku.

T-STONE’s use of indigo-dye culture on Ai (藍) and Awa Odori on “ZOMEKI,” Watson’s Awa dialect and his announced homecoming shows give the place a continuing role in the music. The editorial reading here is of artists maintaining or remaking connections to home; birthplace alone does not prove how a local scene shaped their sound.

Selected timeline

The timeline starts with the earliest activity documented in this edition. It does not establish that Shikoku rap began in 2003; research did not locate an overview of the 1990s or, beyond Bushi, the early 2000s.

Seven main acts

Bushi (仏師) — Kagawa

Born in 1985 and from Kagawa, Bushi began rapping in 2003 at 17, with a first show at Marugame’s Club Axis (artist profile). His fifth album, TOKI, appeared on Isshiki RECORD in 2024. Mikiki’s September 13, 2024 review describes a Kagawa rapper with a 21-year career. It offers an entry into a catalog built over years of working locally.

Disry — Ehime, Okinawa and Kanto

Disry was born in 1991 and comes from Mizonobe-machi in Matsuyama. In a 2019 interview with THE MAGAZINE, the profile and his account document his regular JUICE appearances from 2011 and move to Okinawa to join the 604 crew in 2017. His artist profile dates a further move to Kanto to 2023.

The profile accompanying THE MAGAZINE’s interview lists Ehime UMB qualifier victories in 2014, 2016 and 2017. Ultra-Vybe’s profile lists Shikoku qualifier victories in 2014, 2017 and 2018. Both the competition name and the years differ; neither list is treated as definitive here. His 4THCoast Yella REMIX brings together MCs from Shikoku’s four prefectures.

ID — Kochi

ID is from Tosa City, according to HOT KOCHI’s January 2020 feature. A TOKION interview records a Sengoku MC BATTLE victory and his 2022 album B1. In October 2019 he became one of Freestyle Dungeon‘s third-generation “monsters,” the resident opponents who faced the show’s challengers (Real Sound). The specific Sengoku edition and year were not checked against an official result for this guide.

T-STONE — Tokushima

T-STONE identifies his hometown as Kamona in Tokushima City in his HYPEBEAST interview. The accompanying introduction gives his birth year as 1999 and records three consecutive Tokushima UMB qualifier wins. In the interview, he describes combining Awa Odori with hip-hop on “ZOMEKI” (騒〜ZOMEKI〜). He also kept Tokushima as one of his bases and drew on its indigo-dye culture for Ai (藍). His December 2025 lute interview discusses the April 29 solo show at Shibuya WWW and 120, the collaborative EP with NSW yoon released on December 3.

TKR — Kagawa

TKR, born in 1999 and from Kotonami in Kagawa, began rapping at 16 and formed Hick Three Brotherz at 20. With support from Tokyo’s independent label WDsounds, he released his first album, ALCATRAZ, digitally in March 2020 and on CD in April. RhythmJones produced every track (Qetic’s July 2020 feature). His career supplies an example of reaching national distribution while working from Kagawa.

Watson — from Komatsushima, starting to record in Osaka

In his March 14, 2022 PRKS9 interview, Watson names Komatsushima as his hometown. He had already freestyled casually in Tokushima before moving to Osaka at 18 and beginning serious recording at 19. He also describes performing and organizing events back home after Thin Gold Chain, and credits T-STONE’s example with making local activity easier. He gave his age as 21 in that interview; an exact birth date is not established here.

The November 2021 EP Thin Gold Chain and “18K” helped him gain attention through digital releases and YouTube, without an audition-show route. His Nippon Budokan solo show took place on March 9, 2026 (FNMNL live report; HIPHOPCs coverage in Japanese).

The announced July 26, 2025 Asty Tokushima show and August 13, 2026 Akita-machi free show remain separate entries in this record: the Japanese edition had not verified post-event primary reports for either by September 8. The free-show announcement does not by itself establish inclusion in the official Awa Odori program (Asty announcement; Akita-machi announcement; HIPHOPCs article in Japanese). He has also been announced for FORCE FESTIVAL 2026 in Kawasaki on October 25.

GOUU — Matsuyama, Ehime

Born in 2002 and from Matsuyama, GOUU began entering the city’s freestyle battles while in high school. He won NEXT GENERATION RAPPERS BATTLE 2024 THE HOPE and performed at THE HOPE, then released his first EP, ProtoTape, on August 1, 2025 (HYPEBEAST interview). His July 29, 2026 single “IYO” names his home region. “555 Remix,” featuring T-STONE, provides a specific musical link between artists from two Shikoku prefectures.

An emerging artist: Hama cham

Hama cham (はまcham), born in 2004 and from Kochi Prefecture, moved to Kanto around 2023 and began releasing music in 2024. The RAPSTAR 2025 application video was highlighted by the show’s official social accounts, according to ABEMA TIMES’s December 24, 2025 feature. The same feature reports the December 23 release of “Rappusuta Ochita” (ラップスタア落ちた).

Venues and collective projects

• club GRINDHOUSE, Akita-machi 2-23, Tokushima. The official venue site dates its opening to 2010. It books several genres, including rock. The Japanese edition found September–October schedules there on September 4, 2026.
• HIGH LOUNGE, Konya-machi, Tokushima. The official 2024 UMB listing names it as the venue for the November 3 Tokushima qualifier.
• Prefectural UMB qualifiers. The organizer’s 2024 list includes Ehime on September 22 at CLUB BIBROS and Tokushima on November 3 at HIGH LOUNGE. The Japanese research did not find Kagawa or Kochi in that year’s list and does not assert that all four prefectures hold a qualifier every year. Its August 30, 2026 check had not found announcements for the four 2026 qualifiers; the national final was announced for December 29 at Shibuya WOMB.
• JUICE, Matsuyama. Disry’s interview documents his regular appearances at the CLUB BIBROS party from 2011. The 2024 UMB venue record is separate evidence for the venue, not proof of JUICE’s current schedule. A recent edition of the party was not directly verified.
• TOONICE, Takamatsu. Eggs dates its opening to 2013. A 13th-anniversary event was listed for July 5, 2026. Its official site carried September schedules when checked on September 4.
• CLUB BIBROS, Matsuyama. The 2024 UMB listing supplies a confirmed venue reference. The Japanese research did not identify an official site establishing its 2026 operating status.
• X-pt., Kochi. Its official site dates its opening to December 2006 and carried operating information at the September 4, 2026 check.
• “Silence (Ehime Cypher).” Initiated by Frankkiss and released in May 2024, this five-person mic relay also features Diva Wisteria, Disry, KT-VOICE and MICHOO (MOVEMENT PRESS).

What this record can and cannot show

The records above connect albums, parties, venues, broadcast battles and local qualifiers across several decades. They establish activity in Shikoku without proving that all four prefectures share one continuously connected scene. Accounts of artists leaving the island are observations about this selection, not a comparative measure of the whole region.

This English edition follows the Japanese article’s September 8, 2026 fact-check. Venue operating information and the UMB lists were checked on September 4. Targeted checks on September 21 revisited the T-STONE and Watson interviews, Disry’s two profiles and hometown reading, Hama cham’s release, and the distinction between the 2024 UMB schedule and completed events. Other changing information retains its original check date.

• The article does not provide a comprehensive history of the 1990s or early 2000s, or a complete list of Shikoku UMB champions.
• Disry’s qualifier years and competition names differ between two published profiles, as detailed above. ID’s precise Sengoku title edition and year remain unconfirmed here.
• Watson’s Asty Tokushima and Akita-machi shows were documented through announcements only in the source edition. A September 8 search of Natalie, Spincoaster, FNMNL and OTOTOY did not locate the post-event primary reports sought.
• A search result pointed to a July 2026 JUICE announcement on venue social media, but the primary post was not verified.
• Watson’s hometown is written as Komatsushima on the basis of his own PRKS9 interview. A Natalie profile’s “Komatsu, Tokushima” wording is not adopted.
• AMO, Evisv, GOORA, Asuka aka CATMAN and KUYA MIGUEL were not included because the original research had not assembled the required primary support for regional ties and achievements. Their absence is not a judgment of their music.

Corrections and proposed additions are welcome through the contact form. Continue with Japan Rap Atlas or read the series criteria. Sources are linked beside the claims they support, primarily in Japanese.