Co-founder of iconic Yoshi's in Oakland dies at age 82
Co-founder of the legendary Yoshis in Oakland died at age 82: his life and legacy
Friend and co-owner of Yoshis at Jack London Square in Oakland and longtime patrons talk about the impact of its legendary co-found Kaz Kajimura. He died Sunday. He was 82-years- old.
OAKLAND, Calif. - One of the people behind an iconic live music venue died over the weekend: Kaz Kajimura, co-founder of Yoshi's at Jack London Square in Oakland, was 82 years old.
His friend, Hal Campos, who's also co-owner of Yoshi's, said Kaz brought culture and music to many people.
Campos said Kaz was like a father to him.
He described Kaz as being a hard worker who loved music and he used it to bring people together.
On Tuesday night, Grammy award-winner Dee Dee Bridgewater performed at Yoshi's.
She is among the many legendary artists who've graced this stage, thanks to Kajimura.
The local legend died Sunday night after battling dementia, according to Campos.
"He dedicated his life, 50 years of jazz music in the San Francisco Bay Area. And that's incredible," said Campos.
He described Kaz as a dreamer.
He had graduated from college in Tokyo and came to the United States at the age of 22.
Kaz earned a master's degree in journalism at UC Berkeley and a MBA at Stanford.
"He's the true American dream," said Campos.
In 1972, Kaz opened Yoshi's in Berkeley with partners Hugh "Hiro" Hori and Yoshie Akiba, and they went on to expand.
Kaz opened the current location in Oakland in 1997 and a second location in San Francisco that closed in 2014.
"Yoshi's was his passion. It was the passion of his life," said Campos. "Every woodwork you see was built by him, including our tables. He made the tables himself, one by one."
The entrepreneur offered Japanese cuisine with music.
Through a spokesperson, Yoshie Akiba said the three co-founders shared a love of music, and combined that with Japanese food.
"Kaz was a very hard worker and a big part of Yoshi’s success," Akiba said. "We have more than 60 years of history together and I will miss him very much."
Patron Aminah Robinson-Briscoe said, "I've been coming here for many many years, just the legacy of Yoshi's has been a part of our family."
Kaz navigated Yoshi's through tough times, including the COVID shutdown. It was closed for more than a year.
East Bay native Pete Escovedo and his band were the first artists to return to Yoshi's stage when it opened again.
Now, long time patrons expressed concerns about the future of the venue.
"When people pass, things change, new owners. Then we lose the culture and the soul of the place," said Courtney Slocum, a regular patron at Yoshi's.
Campos said he plans to carry on Kaz's legacy.
He's working to continue to attract people to this venue in Oakland and eventually reopen the San Francisco location.
"His legacy is that music brings people together and it's so true," said Campos.
He plans to hold a celebration of life for Kaz Kajimura at Yoshi's on July 14.
The event is free but tickets are sold out.
Amber Lee is a reporter with KTVU. Email Amber at Amber.Lee@Fox.com or text/leave a message at 510-599-3922. Follow her on Facebook @AmberKTVU, Instagram @AmberKTVU or Twitter @AmberKTVU