Jonah Yano is the Hiroshima born, Montreal based singer-songwriter, whose journey into music began with recording music using his cellphone in 2016. Having played piano and guitar as a child, it wasn’t until Yano moved from Vancouver to Toronto in 2016 that he began putting his songs online, catching the eyes of Toronto’s thriving local music scene. Spending the next couple of years obsessively songwriting and practicing vocals, and learning technical skills, he collaborated with Toronto duo MONEYPHONE on the 2018 song “On Lock” which became an underground success. Shortly after, Yano released his first solo single “Rolex, the Ocean'' with producer Joseph L'etranger. Once he began writing his full EP, he was introduced to frequent collaborators BADBADNOTGOOD, who are featured on the EP’s title track, “nervous”. Following the “nervous” EP, Yano and BADBADNOTGOOD released a highly praised cover of the Majestic’s “Key to Love (Is Understanding)” along with another well received collaborative track with BADBADNOTGOOD titled “Goodbye Blue”. In July of 2020 Yano released his debut LP titled “souvenir” which features production from Monsune, Jacques Greene, frequent collaborators BADBADNOTGOOD, and lastly his father, Tatsuya Muraoka, who Yano reconciles and reconnects with in the music video or the album’s final track “shoes”. Yano’s work has garnered praise in major music publications like The Fader, Billboard, Complex, and Exclaim and the attention of the late Virgil Abloh, Gilles Peterson, and Benji B along with millions of streams on Spotify and Apple Music.
Following a highly acclaimed 2020 which included the release of the debut LP souvenir, collaborations with BADBADNOTGOOD, a double feature on COLORS, and industry praise from The Fader, Billboard, High Snobiety, NME, KCRW and Exclaim, Yano quietly released a cover of Jessica Pratt’s “This Time Around” and took some time away from releasing music to write and record his forthcoming LP, set to release in January of 2023, titled “Portrait of a Dog”. Yano was recently announced as the opening act for the critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Clairo for the last leg of her North American and entirety of her EU/UK tour dates.
Yano’s sophomore LP, Portrait of a Dog, set to release in January of 2023 on Innovative Leisure, is a 12 track exploration of themes present throughout most of Yano’s catalogue – identity as a part of the Japanese-Canadian diaspora, contemplation of different family dynamics, and the intricacies of interpersonal relationships. Portrait of a Dog is a clear departure from Yano’s previous recordings – having established a clear sonic identity throughout the LP’s 12 tracks to tell a clear and succinct collection of stories guided by clear and intentional instrumentals. The LP is produced entirely in collaboration with BADBADNOTGOOD and features guest work from Slauson Malone, Sea Oleena, with string arrangements by Eliza Niemi, Leland Whitty, and Yano himself.
