On July 14, TBS will air this year’s edition of its annual mid-year music special, Ongaku no Hi. The show will begin at 2 PM that day and end at 5 AM the following day. Nakai Masahiro and Azumi Shinichiro will host the show for the eighth consecutive year.
The theme of this year’s show is “Ano Hi no Uta (That day of song).” There will be songs for everyone on the show. The show will feature many songs from the Heisei era, given that this is the last summer of the era, but also songs from the Showa era.
Performances will take place in many locations. The annual choral project will span six locations this year: Akasaka, Hokkaido, Fukushima, Hiroshima, Okinawa, and Taiwan.
The first set of performers was annouced today and it includes the likes of Utada Hikaru, EXILE, Perfume, DA PUMP, Daichi Miura, and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. EXILE’s ATSUSHI and TAKAHIRO will sing their choral classic “Michi” with a choir of 400 children. See who else is performing below!
Following a quiet few months, it’s just been announced that popular rock band Mr.Children will be providing the theme song for the upcoming summer drama “Hagetaka”. The drama, which stars Go Ayano, Atsuro Watabe, Erika Sawajiri, and Kaoru Kobayashi, is set during turbulent economic times in Japan and centers around the exploits of Masahiko Washizu (Ayano), a man in charge of a foreign investment fund and the titular ‘vulture’.
The theme song, titled “SINGLES”, has been described as an up-tempo track with a peculiar atmosphere. When asked to comment, singer Kazutoshi Sakurai has said that the song was born from the intersection of the various feelings he experienced while reading over the script, chief among them sorrow, loneliness, and a fierce undercurrent of strength.
There have been no details provided about the song’s release as of yet, so expect further details about that in the future. You will, however, be able to hear “SINGLES” when the drama begins airing on July 19th. A short preview of the track can also be found right after the cut.
Singer/songwriter Kenji Furuya, better known as the frontman and lead singer for the mixture-rock band Dragon Ash, will be releasing a new Double A-side single next month on July 25th. Titled “Playground / Wanderlust”, the latter song has already been selected as the ending theme song for the upcoming live-action film adaptation of popular shoujo manga Nijiiro Days.
Well in advance of the single’s release date, Kenji has uploaded a pair of PVs for “Wanderlust” to his Youtube channel. The first features footage from the film which the track is tied to, while the latter, which was directed by popular Japanese Youtuber RATE-sensei, centers around a fierce battle for victory within an arcade.
You’ll find both of these music videos, a commercial featuring another of Furuya’s new songs, “Where You Are”, and the cover and track list for his upcoming single below.
On June 27, Mukai Taichi will release his new digital EP “LOVE.” On June 12, he performed all five songs on the EP live on SPACE SHOWER TV’s mobile app. Those performances are now available on YouTube for the next two weeks. Check them out below!
Today, TV Tokyo aired this year’s edition of its annual mid-year music special, TV Tokyo Music Festival 2018. The show included performances by the likes of Koda Kumi, V6, Ami Suzuki, hitomi, Porno Graffitti, Hey! Say! JUMP, King & Prince, and KinKi Kids. Check out the full show below!
On June 27, Shota Shimizu will release his new album, “WHITE.” The album is an introverted and emotional work, displaying Shota’s dedication to writing, composing, and arranging, all of which was done by him. Some of the vocals for “WHITE” were recorded at Shota’s home.
The music video for “alone”, Shota’s collaboration with SALU, was recently released. The song deals with each man’s lonliness from his own perspective. Check out the video below, along with more information on Shota’s new album!
At 8 PM JST on June 28, CDTV ’18 Jo Hanki SP Entame Matome Sou Kessan will air. There will be peformances by the likes of DA PUMP, Nogizaka46, and GENERATIONS.
There is a live stream of the show and Arama! Japan will be hosting a chat on Discord so that readers can chat with each other during the show! Links to the show and the chat are after the jump!
On July 4th Makita Mashiro will release her second double A-side single “Toki wo Tsumugu / Kigeki Yakusha“, following up her debut “Tokyo Colorful” from last December.
Makita Mashiro is a newcomer to the Japanese “urban jazz” scene (her own description), fitting very nicely alongside the likes of Maron Hamada. In fact, she works with John Kurosaki, who is the writer of quite a lot of Hamada’s tracks. The contagious energy and snappy, catchy tunes are hard to resist and this single will no doubt put her on the map in the cabaret scene.
You can watch “Toki no Tsumugu”‘s music video below, and as a bonus to newcomers, we have also attached a link to her previous MV for “Tokyo Colorful” too. Keep reading to see single cover and details.
