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Jerome Charles White, Jr. (born September 4, 1981), better known by his stage name , is an American enka singer〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Jero Profile )〕 of African-American and Japanese descent. He is the first black enka singer in Japanese music history. == Biography == Jero began singing Enka actively at the age of six and continued to study the Japanese language all throughout high school and college.〔() Jero: Japan's First African-American Enka Singer, February 12, 2009〕 He also studied Japanese for some time at the Kansai Gaidai University school of foreign languages.〔() Jero, Enka's First African-American Star, February 12, 2009〕 Jero majored in information science at University of Pittsburgh and graduated in 2003, and moved to Japan in the same year. Two months after arriving in Japan, he entered the NHK Nodo Jiman competition broadcast on TV. Jero first began pursuing his dream to become an Enka artist because of the influence of his Japanese grandmother Takiko, who had met his grandfather, an African-American serviceman, at a dance during World War II.〔(Japanese enka star to perform at DC festival ), Associated Press, March 28, 2009〕 They married, had a daughter, Harumi - now a department store sales clerk - and eventually moved to his grandfather's hometown, Pittsburgh. His parents divorced when he was young, and he was reared amid a strong sense of Japanese culture.〔(Festival Feature: A Japanese Idol From Pittsburgh ), Washington Post, March 28, 2009〕 His grandmother, originally from Yokohama, Japan, first introduced Jero to Enka and it was under her guidance that he grew to love the genre as a child.〔() The Next Page: Our man in Japan -- Jero, February 12, 2009〕 Jero, who majored in information technology at the University of Pittsburgh, did not initially imagine himself in a career as an Enka singer.〔() Jero: Japan’s First Black Enka Singer, February 12, 2009〕 Rather, after he permanently moved to Japan, his main forms of employment were as an English teacher at NOVA and as a computer engineer.〔 He only began to actively work towards becoming an Enka singer because he had promised his grandmother that one day he would someday perform at the annual Kohaku Uta Gassen song show.〔 As a result, he actively participated in numerous singing contests while he continued to work as a computer engineer and eventually achieved real success after only two months since he had arrived in Japan.〔() Victor Entertainment Profile February 21, 2008〕 His grandmother never was able to see her grandson achieve Enka fame, she died in 2005, three years before he became famous.〔() Jero Bridges Cultural Divides as Japan's First Black Enka Singer, February 12, 2009〕 His first single, , was released in Japan on February 20, 2008. It entered the Oricon charts at number 4.〔(Japan Times ) February 27, 2008〕 Umi Yuki, references the Sea of Japan, but Jero has admitted that the only ocean he has ever really seen was in California.〔() 黒人演歌歌手ジェロ ２, February 21, 2008〕 From May 21, 2008, Jero appeared in a Japanese TV commercial for Kirin "Fire" coffee, the first time he had appeared in a TV commercial.〔("砂糖“ジェロ”…演歌界の新星が「ファイア」ＣＭで初演技" Sankei Shimbun News, May 8, 2008 )〕〔(Mix master: Jero breathes new life into enka )〕 In October 2008, he was interviewed on CNN International's ''TalkAsia''.〔("Jero: Old tricks, new idol" (October 7, 2008). ) Retrieved on October 18, 2008.〕 He won Best New Artist Award in 50th Japan Record Awards on December 30, 2008.〔(Pop group 'Exile' wins Japan Record Award grand prize ) - The Mainichi Daily News〕 Jero was selected to appear on the 59th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, NHK New Year's Eve musical spectacular, on December 31, 2008.〔(NHK紅白歌合戦：出場歌手 ) (NHK page listing artists scheduled to appear) Retrieved on December 9, 2008〕 In his participation, he fulfilled a pledge he made to his dying grandmother to appear on the yearly competition.〔(Mix Master: Jero breathes new life into Enka )〕 Jero appeared wearing a black and white shirt bearing the image of his grandmother.〔(Jero's official blog featuring a picture of the black and white costume ). Retrieved on January 4, 2009.〕 He also appeared on the following year's show. Jero made his first major U.S. appearance on March 28, 2009 during the opening ceremony of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.〔〔 Jero's first official U.S. appearance was a live concert to over 500 fans at the University of Pittsburgh, his alma mater, on August 27, 2008.〔(ジェロさん、母校でコンサート 米国出身の黒人演歌歌手 ). Retrieved on June 15, 2009.〕〔(Pitt Graduate Becoming Japan's Latest Music Sensation ). Retrieved on June 15, 2009.〕 Jero completed his first official US concert tour by singing to a sold-out house at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on March 28, 2010,〔() Retrieved on January 12, 2010.〕 and at the Aratani Japan America Theatre in Los Angeles on March 31, 2010.〔() Retrieved on April 3, 2010〕 In addition, he also appeared in the 30th Anniversary Gala Celebration of the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Los Angeles on March 30, 2010.〔(Faithful to More than Just the Music, Rafu Shimpo, April 1, 2010. ) Retrieved on April 3, 2010〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jero」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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