Hello, Arama! Japan readers and welcome to this week’s installment of #1 Song Review! Last week saw Arashi defeat AI and RADIO FISH to take the top spot. This week, we have a returnee from last week facing off against 2 newcomers. Find out what various staff members thought of the songs that topped the physical and digital charts this week and share your thoughts on them too!

On April 6, Natsume Mito will release her new single, “I’ll do my best.” The song is written, composed, and arranged by Yasutaka Nakata, as is the other song on the single, “Moshimo Cooking.” “Moshimo Cooking” is being used to promote the soup “MISO KAWAII.” This is the same soup that was the subject of an elaborate commercial that was recently reported on.

“I’ll do my best” will be released as a CD only Regular Edition and a CD+Goods Limited Edition. The Limited Edition will come in a special 7 inch box with goods such as calendars and posters.

Today, the music video for “I’ll do my best” was released. It features Natsume as cutout in a stop motion animated world. Check it out after the jump, along with more information on the single!

Inori Minase has taken home the prestigious “Best Actress” award at the 10th annual Seiyu Awards. 2015 was a great year for Imori, she was one of the leads in the critically acclaimed film “The Anthem of the Heart“, and has a lead role in the popular anime series “School-Live!” 

In “The Anthem of the Heart” Inori plays the role of Jun Naruse, a girl who desperately wants to reveal her true feelings but ends up always hurting people with her words. After accepting a questionable deal with an egg fairy, he seals her words away so she can never speak again and never hurt people with her words. Her life changes when she enters high school and encounters friendship and music in a new light. Inori plays main character Yuki Takeya in “School-Live!”. Yuki is usually a bright and cheerful girl, but suffers a mental breakdown due to a zombie outbreak. Yuki creates a fantasy world for herself believing that her teachers and classmates are okay, and nothing out of the ordinary happened. Slowly she comes to terms with the reality of the situation.

While accepting the award Inori gave a sincere speech thanking the industry and her fans. An excerpt of it can be read under the cut!

The future of Studio Ghibli has been uncertain for the past few years, but producer and Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki has continually assured fans that the beloved animation studio will continue to exist while taking on projects that differ from what they have taken on in the past.

This time, Studio Ghibli has brought to life centuries-old black-and-white drawings of animals frolicking in the wild for energy company Marubeni Shin Denryoku.

The 30-second animation takes design cues from the picture scrolls widely considered to be the earliest examples of manga in Japanese history called Choju Jinbutsu Giga, or Scrolls of Frolicking Animals.

Check out the short below the cut!

Wolf pack band MAN WITH A MISSION has released a new version of their MV for “Memories”, featuring footage of their visit to Hoshino Resort, a ski station where they spend a nice time snowboarding with fans and holding a concert. This MV comes two months after its first MV and one month after the release of their new album, “The World’s On Fire”, in which “Memories” is featured as its tenth track.

This song is being used as promotional song for this year’s JR SKISKI activities, which features actresses Maika Yamamoto and Yuna Taira and DISH// singer Takumi Kitamura. JR SKISKI has also had GReeeeN, SEKAI NO OWARI and back number as featured artists these past three years. Watch the full MV just below!

LADYBABY, the idol/metal outfit known for having Ladybeard (the crossdressing persona of Australian pro wrestler Rick Magarey) as a member, will release their 3rd single “Renge Chance／C’est si bon Kibun” on April 13. Just yesterday, the group released two music videos for the single. Needless to say, the music videos are still as intense as ever.

On April 20, SALU will release his new album, “Good Morning.” There will be many collaborations on this album. Mika Nakashima, Salyu, and Takuya Kuroda will be featured guests on the album. An array of producers will also be working on “Good Morning.” The previously released tofubeats-produced “Tomorrowland” will be on the album. Kenmochi Hidefumi, the producer of Suiyoubi no Campanella, is the producer of “Lily.” Scha Dara Parr’s SHINCO will produce “Time Capsule”, while mabanua will produce “In My Face.” People who purchase “Good Morning” at Tower Records while receive a bonus remix of the album track “Hello Darling” done by LUCKY TAPES’ Takahashi Kai. Check out the album’s cover and tracklist after the jump!

On March 23, Creephyp will release their new single, “Hakka.” The song serves as the CM song for Yozemi cram schools. Also contained on the single are 2 songs from Creehyp’s indie era. These songs were originally on CDs that have long sold out. Creephyp recently released the music video for “Hakka.” Check it out after the jump, along with more information on the single!