Yukimatsu's Boiler Room Set Hits 20M Views Ahead of Prodigy Tour
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Yukimatsu's November 2024 Boiler Room set in Tokyo is closing in on 20 million views, making it one of the most popular videos on the dance livestream platform.
- The 47-year-old Osaka native is currently touring Europe and will support the Prodigy on their UK open-air gigs later this summer, fresh off Dublin and Barcelona dates.
- Yukimatsu was diagnosed with a brain tumour a decade ago after an epileptic seizure led friends to find him collapsed at home; he underwent two craniotomies, chemo and radiation, and says a recent checkup confirmed 'there is no longer a tumour.'
- He made his Coachella debut in April, opening with 10 minutes that jumped from Beastie Boys' Sabotage to Metrist, Taylor Swift's You Need to Calm Down and Aphex Twin's Come to Daddy.
- Yukimatsu wears a 'no war' pendant and names Jamie xx's Treat Each Other Right as a song 'all the people in the world should engrave in their heart,' tying his DJing to pacifism amid what he calls 'relentless conflict.'
- His big break came five years into his career when DJ Nobu invited him to perform at Future Terror in Tokyo.
Why it matters: His Boiler Room set closing in on 20 million views marks Yukimatsu's transition from underground favourite to global breakout, with the Prodigy support slot his biggest UK exposure yet. His overt anti-war stance — a 'no war' pendant and pacifist set picks — is unusually direct for a Japanese artist, where musicians speaking on politics face heavy criticism.
