Veteran singer/songwriter Kazuyoshi Saito will be releasing his latest single, titled “Are”, next month on February 20th.  His first such release since “Color” back in November, the lead track is currently serving as the theme song for the Keiko Kitagawa-led drama “Ie Uru Onna no Gyakushuu”.

To support the single’s release, the short music video for “Are” was recently uploaded to the singer’s YouTube channel.  This PV was shot, edited, and supervised by Saito himself, making use of his smartphone in order to give viewers a glimpse of his day-to-day life.

You’ll find the Short PV for “Are”, as well as the single’s cover and track list right after the cut.

Just shy of two months after the release of their most recent single, pop-rockers back number have announced that they will be releasing another on February 27th.  Titled “HAPPY BIRTHDAY”, this will be the group’s 20th single together and will include the title track as well as a pair of B-sides.  Of note, the lead song has already been picked up as the theme song for TBS drama “Hajimete Koi wo Shita Hi ni Yomu Hanashi”.

In usual fashion, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” will be issued in two versions, with the Limited Edition to come packaged with a DVD which includes both the music video and making-of footage for the A-side, as well as a digest video containing footage from back number’s recent dome tour.

Read on below to find both the cover and complete track list for “HAPPY BIRTHDAY”.

Natalie recently asked various music writers, editors, and programmers to look back on the music of 2018. Each music industry insider then created a playlist to represent the year. This is part two of Arama! Japan’s three-part condensed version (part 1). This portion features SPICE Ongaku Journal editor Kazama Taiyou, Buzz Rhythm 02 producer Watanabe Yuichiro, Real Sound editor Izumi Natsuoto, FLJ editor-in-chief Ohno Toshiya, Spincoaster editor-in-chief Takazumi Hosaka, and lute producer Okumura Kentaro.

Is love in the air for Kiko Mizuhara? According to reports, yes! Who is the man in question? Former One Direction member Harry Styles! The two recently started following each other on Instagram, sparking the rumor. But there is more fuel to add to this fire! Apparently, Harry has flown to Japan several times over the past few months to spend time with Kiko! It is said that the rumored couple first met in Japan.

But this is all news to Kiko! She took to Twitter recently to deny the rumored romance.

The 11th CD Shop Awards 2019 has released its nominee list for the second half of 2018! Twelve albums were picked that were released between January 1 and December 31. The albums were chosen by 326 CD shop staff from across Japan to highlight releases that caught their discerning ears. Soon, the albums from the first and second halves of 2018 will be narrowed down to a list of final nominees. The winner will be chosen this spring. Check out the albums nominated for the second half of 2018 below!

Towards the end of 2018, we reported that mixture rock band King Gnu would be releasing their major debut album “Sympa” on January 16th.  Now that this date has drawn closer, the group have published the music video for the record’s lead track “Slumberland” to their YouTube channel.

Slumberland’s PV finds King Gnu’s members infiltrating a news studio and taking over the broadcast with the help of a cabal of dolls.  A trailer which previews the remaining songs on the album can also be found on the same channel.

Additionally, it has been announced that King Gnu will be providing the theme song for the upcoming NTV drama “Innocence – Enzai Bengoshi”.  The track, titled “Hakujitsu”, will not be included on “Sympa” and is planned to be released at a later date.

Both the music video for “Slumberland” and Sympa’s teaser movie will follow below.

Earlier this week, pop-punk band WANIMA announced that they will be releasing their fourth single “Good Job!!” on March 6th.  “Good Job!!” will include the first new material from the group since their digital single “Drive”, and will likewise be their first physical release since “Everybody!!” last January.

The single will come with three new songs, including “Again” – which is currently being used as the theme song for drama “Maison de Police” – and “ANSWER”, which was recently picked up as the latest CM track for Morinaga’s “Weider in Jelly” brand energy drinks.  Notably, this will be the first of WANIMA’s releases to be issued in two versions, with the Limited Edition to include a bonus CD containing an acoustic recording of an unreleased song.

Read on below to find not only the track list for “Good Job!!”, but previews of “Again” and ANSWER”.

As previously reported fans of girl group NGT48 started a petition calling for the resignation of the groups theater manager/director Etsuro Imamura.

When the article was published there was just over 2,500 signatures, and the petition ended up closing with a massive 53,971 signatures. Imamura was directly mentioned by Maho Yamaguchi when she was describing her assault, and the circumstances surrounding it.