This week popular rock band BUMP OF CHICKEN made their latest song, “Answer”, available for purchase on Japanese digital download services.  “Answer” is currently being used as the opening theme for popular anime Sangatsu no Lion, their second such collaboration with the series following “Fighter” (which is also being used as the show’s ending theme) back in 2014.

In support of this release, the band has chosen to upload the music video for the track’s TV-size variant to their Youtube channel.  This short PV was prepared by animation studio Shaft and features footage from Sangatsu no Lion which has been retooled to better fit the song.

Furthermore, BUMP OF CHICKEN are also releasing their brand new live DVD / Blu-ray “BUMP OF CHICKEN STADIUM TOUR 2016 “BFLY” NISSAN STADIUM 2016/7/16,17” physically this week.  To promote this release, they published another video to Youtube:  the live performance of their song “GO” from the DVD.

You’ll find both the striking short PV for “Answer” and the live music video for “GO” if you read on below.

Alternative rock outfit THE ORAL CIGARETTES have announced that they will be releasing their third full album “UNOFFICIAL” next year on February 1st.  This release will include their previously released songs “DIP-BAP”, “5150”, and “CATCH ME”, as well as seven new tracks for a total of ten.  Further, the record will be issued in two versions, with the Limited Edition set to include a DVD containing live and documentary footage from the group’s November 22nd live at Zepp Tokyo.

Well ahead of this release date, the band have also published the music video for the album’s lead track and opening song “Licorice”.  The PV was directed by Shin Okawa and features the use of a drone in order to capture the panoramic shots of nature that characterize the video’s most striking moments.

You’ll find the music video for “Licorice”, as well as the cover and track list for “UNOFFICIAL” (plus a preview of its DVD) right after the cut.

On January 11, G.RINA will release her new album, “LIVE & LEARN.” The album deals with the everyday lives of women in a casual and realistic manner. “LIVE & LEARN”, much like G.RINA’s last album (2015’s “Lotta Love”), sees her taking influences from black music of the 1980s, disco boogie, and hip hop, resulting in “disco pop.”

G.RINA has released two special trailers so far for “LIVE & LEARN.” The first is for the song “All Around The World”, her collaboration with Toki Asako. The clip mixes footage from various places around the world with footage of the recording of the song. The second special trailer is for “close2u.” This video finds G.RINA hanging around Hong Kong. “All Around The World” is currently available digitally, while “close2u” is released digitally today. Check out both videos below, along with more information on G.RINA’s new album!

The viral sensation that is Hoshino Gen’s “Koi Dance” continues to spread, this time hitting the US Mission in Japan’s offices. A video was released on the US Embassy Tokyo’s official YouTube channel which shows members of the staff in Tokyo, Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Naha performing the popular dance. Included in the video is the American ambassador to Japan, Caroline Kennedy, performing the dance in a Santa costume in an effort to spread holiday cheer. She is the only surviving child of President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. In the day that it’s been out, the video has garnered more than 1.1 million views. Check it out below!

Today, YouTube Japan released its year end feature, “YouTube Rewind”, for 2016. The rankings were split into two categories: Top Trend Domestic Music Videos and Top Trend Videos. The rankings are not merely based on the number of views, but also how much it was shared, the number of comments, the video’s value, and the number of followup videos derived from the original video.

The Top Trend Domestic Music Videos ranking was topped by Piko-Taro’s “PPAP (Pen Pineapple Apple Pen)”, with RADWIMP’s  “Zen Zen Zense (movie ver.)” coming in second, followed by the short version of RADIO FISH’s “Perfect Human.”

The Top Trend Videos ranking was topped by the first trailer for “Kimi no Na wa.”, followed by the Rio Olympics Tokyo Handover Ceremony and Hajime Syacho’s “Haru da ne! Hajime Syacho no Shitsumon Corner (Zoryo ver).”

Check out the top 10 of both rankings below!

American music magazine Rolling Stone has released its list of the 20 best pop albums of 2016. A Japanese act has found its way onto the list, ranking among the likes of Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, and Bruno Mars: Perfume. “COSMIC EXPLORER” ranks at #16 on Rolling Stone’s list. The magazine calls Perfume’s “COSMIC EXPLORER” the group’s peak and “the year’s most expansive and infectious J-Pop album.”

Singer GACKT is set to release a cover of one of Ayumi Hamasaki‘s signature hits ‘SEASONS’! The song is being recorded in celebration of Nestle Nescafe’s ‘Dolce Gosto’ selling 2 million units, GACKT is currently a spokesperson for the brand.

The music video will follow the concept of “memories of music”, and showcase the ups and downs in a relationship many couples face. The ‘Dolce Gusto’ will apparently play a key role in connecting the present and past feelings. GACKT’s version of ‘SEASONS’ has a more heavy and rock oriented arrangement, quite similar to his performance of ‘SEASONS’ from his 2013 Kamui Gakuen concert. A far cry from soft sounding original!

The music video is schedueld to be released on January 1st via Nestle’s official Japanese youtube channel. A BTS video featuring short clips of the video, as well as GACKT singing parts of the song acapella can be seen below!

Digital music service Recochoku was established on July 3, 2001. During its 15 years in service, the company’s main products have been Chaku Uta downloads (ringtones) and Chaku Uta Full downloads (full songs). Times are changing however, and Recochoku has decided to discontinue these products as of December 15.

Recochoku is not ending though; it will continue to sell music that is compatible with smartphones and personal computers, as opposed to Japanese feature phones. The rise of smartphones and the decline of Japanese feature phones is the probable reason behind this. Chaku Uta sales have declined to the point where it is very rare for one to receive a digital certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan. One from 2008 was certified in October of this year, with the next to last certification coming in March 2015 for a song from 2006. In 2014, the RIAJ combined Chaku Uta Full downloads with PC downloads to create a unified digital single certification.

The total number of Chaku Uta and Chaku Uta Full downloads topped 1 billion in 2008, and 1.7 billion by the end of this November.

To celebrate its 15th anniversary and to mark the end of the Chaku Uta / Chaku Uta Full era, Recochoku has released its ranking of its best selling artists and songs. The ranking covers the period of 12/3/02 – 11/30/16. It counts Chaku Uta downloads, Chaku Uta Full downloads, and Chaku Uta Full Plus downloads (ringtone + full song packages).

EXILE tops the artist list, followed by Koda Kumi, with Ayumi Hamasaki rounding out the top 3. GReeeeN’s “Kiseki” tops the song list, followed by Thelma Aoyama’s “Soba ni Iru ne”, with GReeeeN’s “Ai Uta” rounding out the top 3. Check out more of these rankings below!