Log in to your account
Stats
Biography
Having written songs since the age of 12, Justin Nozuka is something of an old hand at songwriting despite his tender age. In fact, some of the songs that featured on “Holly”, his 2007 debut album, were written when he was just 15. Wisely, he never rested on his laurels, and was always looking for a way to improve as a musician and songwriter, and this lead to him attending a song writing workshop in the mid-2000’s. While he was there he struck up a friendship with the Canadian pop singer Damhnait Doyle, who introduced him to a Universal Records talent scout by the name of Allan Reid. This lead Nozuka recording a three track label try-out for Universal with Bill Bell as their producer, and although Universal were interested, Nozuka wanted to be free to express himself the way he wanted to, and turned them down.
He recorded the album independently, and released “Holly” in 2007 on Coalition Entertainment in Canada and Glassnote in the United States. Ever since then, Nozuka has remained one of the most critically acclaimed artists in Canada’s famously thriving indie rock scene, with two other acclaimed albums released in 2010 (“You I Wind Land And Sea”) and 2014 (“Ulysses”) respectively. He even caught the ear of the Wu-Tang Clan’s very own RZA, who took an unreleased song of Nozuka’s called “Gone”, sampled it and turned it into a tribute to his dearly departed Wu-Tang bandmate Ol’ Dirty Bastard in 2011. He’s a musician in the truest sense of the word, one who has been creating music for longer than he hasn’t, and for that, he comes highly recommended.
Live reviews
‘Holly’ Justin Nozuka’s debut album is probably my most listened to CD of all time, and that’s a bold statement to make, because I listen to a lot of music! He opened the show with Supposed to Grow Old, which was done beautiful and with such emotion. It still blows my mind that he wrote that track when he was just 15 years old. The set was split into two halves, and the first and shorter half focused on his older work, and a couple of very well arranged covers, which were a lot of fun, and the second half moved onto the new album. He has a great personality, and interacts flawlessly and confidently with the audience, which is something great to experience.
The Ulysees album is incredible, and I was so excited to hear some of the tracks live. I thought that he’s play a few songs intertwined with his older material (which is still fantastic), but he played the entire album from start to finish, and goodness me it was epic! The album has the blend of folk/rock and soul bang on, and to hear some of the sounds stripped back with just Justin and his guitar, against full band numbers was a really exciting journey for the evening. Justin was gracious, friendly, and interacted really well with the audience. He showed real appreciation and respect of his band members which was lovely to see. I’d definitely recommend you catching one of his shows if you like his music, he’s even better live than on any of his recordings.
yazhow
Canadian-American singer/songwriter Justin Nozuka may not have a huge mainstream following, but the talent that he possesses is comparable to artists that are mainstream; in fact, he deserve much more recognition than he has been given so far. Having come from an artist family, he started at the young age of 12 and has since written beautiful songs that capture the heart.
During his 2007 SXSW performance, he performed with one other instrumentalist and crowd received him very warmly. With guitar in hand, he played “After Tonight,” a love song that any girl would swoon to if sung to her. His voice is very mellow in the best way possible, but more importantly his voice really illustrates the emotions that he puts into his songs. In addition, he also performed a cover of Bill Wither’s “Ain’t No Sunshine,” which he took the time to introduce and talk about how he always makes it a point to perform this particular cover. The cover really showed a different side to his vocal ability, mainly because it showed the variability that he’s capable of. He finished off the short set with “Save Him,” which is absolutely beautiful in the acoustic setting of his live show.
Ellinoinsta
Justin is an incredible talent. The compositions are kinda brilliant, and the quality of his vocals are as good on stage as they are on your iPod. The venue was a little odd for this event, though. While the acoustics were good, Webster is better suited for louder and more outgoing concerts, where people can talk and you can't hear anything over the bass anyway.
In this concert, people were chatting at the back and the rest of the audience awkwardly shushing them - it was uncomfortable. Maybe a seated/cozier venue where you can enjoy calmer melodies is better to truly enjoy how amazing this guy is.
David Ryan Harris was a brilliant opener - definitely recommend seeing them together if possible and am now a fan. Also Justin isn't a big chatter, so he tears through a number of songs with captivating but unusual stage presence, so be prepared to me mesmerized but also feel a little like you're awkwardly intruding in his living room...
Justin Nozuka and his band were absolutely incredible. All of the songs were breathtaking, his voice is so soothing. Glad he has plenty of fans, the only downside to that was I wish I could have heard more of him rather than the people singing off-key behind me lol. I couldn't resist, I recorded almost every single performance, they really rocked the crowd and are enthusiastic performers. They are all so passionate about their music. I bought every album and poster available, even though i already have all of his songs haha. Hope he comes back next year but all of dreams have come true. I got to meet him twice, 3 hugs in total, and his autograph along with his amazing drummer's. I'm extremely blessed to have had those opportunities, the next best thing would be able to sit with Justin and his band and buy them rounds of beer and talk about music hahaha
Sweetheaart_samm
awesome show! i’ve been listening to him sice 7th grade and i’m going on 21 now so i’ve been waiting YEARS to see him live and it was so worth the wait! he had great stage presence, amazingly talented band, and performed a perfect mix of his new and old music. he sounds just as good if not better live! we didn’t have to wait long after his opening act and accompanying group Good Old War for him to come out. he even took some requests from audience members, gave away some of his guitar picks, and gave an encore! to top it all off, after the show he took pictures with fans and signed autographs for free! you usually have to buy a VIP package to get that. 110% reccomend seeing him live!
christamd13
What an amazing show. Awesome small venue and Justin was fantastic both acoustically and with his band which was really tight. He did an accapella version of Lean on me, which was fantastic with the whole audience joining in. The band really rocked and the sound was perfect. Definitely one of the best shows of 2017.
Highly recommended. I can wait for the chance to see him again.
shakazulu1
Justin was absolute perfection. Unadulterated, beautiful vocals and flawless playing. The show was at the House of Blues so an intimate setting that really made the whole thing feel personal. His band and opening act were talented as well. Spotless show from start to finish. I'm still floored and inspired. Thank you Justin for an amazing time!
adibee
Loved loved loved. He's great. His show as great. The opening band was good too. I believe they're called good old war? They're merchandise was super affordable. Both him and the opening band met, took photos as autographed merch. They were all so sweet. Venue was great. Drinks were affordable. Happy I attended.
one6974ap
A talented musician with a voice smooth as honey. Beautiful lyrics sung with such emotion, he means what he sings. So friendly and inviting to his audience who simply adore him. A true artist who proves that you don’t have to put on a big show to entertain your audience....
jasmina.renfro
