A Far Cry From Home

Victor Entertainment declined to comment when asked how much Jero is making from his recording contract and appearances. (An official from the company said: "Music is about dreams, and if numbers on pay come out, that overwrites dreams.") People with knowledge of the Japanese music industry say the singer is probably on contract, with a relatively modest salary that would increase substantially if he has a number of breakout hits.

The Japanese have a famously fickle appetite for pop-culture fads. This is the country of Hello Kitty and manga, pachinko and loose socks on leggy teenage girls. Whether Jero will come and go like loose socks is unclear -- but Kitanaka, the music critic, believes Jero has a solid chance for a long career, thanks to the quality of his voice and the sincerity he projects onstage.

At the Big Hop shopping center, Jero belted out ballads from his soon-to-be-released album, which will cover some of the best-known enka classics.

He was dressed in his usual hip-hop garb, but didn't attempt a single dance step. Instead, with quiet sincerity and shy little waves, he crooned about cold rain, too much booze and a long-gone woman.

Between songs, after bowing deeply, Jero assured his devoted mall audience that he sometime drinks, but never to excess, and that he does not fight.

When the songs were over, several hundred people -- most of them women, many of them on the far side of 60 -- queued up to buy his CD, tell him he is wonderful and give him a little hug.

Special correspondent Akiko Yamamoto contributed to this report.