New(ish) J-pop Music and Dance

In March I wrote a post sharing some J-pop music and dance videos. You can see it here: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/03/newish-j-pop-music-and-dance.html

Since it's been a while, I thought I'd do another post today. So here's a selection of Japanese music and dance. As with the other post, I've called it ""New(ish)" because some videos are a bit older. :) 

[JPOP IN PUBLIC] YOASOBI- IDOL- Dance Cover by Archery Star

First up, some J-pop in Public! This is a dance cover of Idol by Japanese pop duo YOASOBI. The duo is made up of musician and record producer Ayase and singer-songwriter Lilas Ikuta. Idol was released in April 2023.

The cover is performed by Australian based dance group Archery Star and was uploaded in March. The dancers are Joy, Irene, TianQi, Rose and Evey. 

 

 

Watch the music video for Idol here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRtdQ81jPUQ

 

And for another dance by Archery Star, check out this post:

Dance in Public Videos- One Take Edition! (includes their cover of XG's PUPPET SHOW): https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/01/dance-in-public-videos-one-take-edition.html

[JPOP IN PUBLIC] PSYCHIC FEVER- 'Just Like Dat' by RISIN' 

Nexit is some more J-pop in Public. (Or J-R'n'B/hip hop in Public!) This is a dance cover of the single Just Like Dat, by Japanese boy band PSYCHIC FEVER from EXILE TRIBE and featuring JP THE WAVY. It was released in January.

The cover is performed by French dance group RISIN' and the video premiered in April. The dancers are LEA as KOKORO, MICHEL as TSURUGI, ALEXIA as REN, MARIE as RYOGA, SADA as JIMMY, SOLENE as WEESA and WAWA as RYUSHIN.

 

The PSYCHC FEVER boys also recently collaborated with RISIN' for a performance video! It was uploaded on 22nd July:

 

Visit my last New(ish) J-pop and Music Dance post to see the music video for Just Like Dat: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/03/newish-j-pop-music-and-dance.html

 

And for more dances by RISIN', visit this post:

Includes their cover of  XG's PUPPET SHOW, plus links to more dance covers: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2023/12/dance-in-public-more-xg-dances.html

 

Side note: J-pop in Public (dance covers of Japanese songs performed in public places) seem to be getting more popular now, which is cool. It was really K-pop in Public (Korean dance covers) which started the trend. 

When it comes to the two music industries, it seems like J-pop is becoming more accessible to foreigners these days. I think that K-pop in general has been geared towards international audiences for a long time, but J-pop has been more "insular". Of course it's their choice but I am glad to see Japanese music opening up to foreign audiences more. :)

It used to be that you had to use the site YesAsia to buy Japanese CDs and DVDs, and J-pop wasn't often on iTunes or other digital platforms outside of Japan (or maybe Asia in general).

Here's an interesting article about the differences between K-pop and J-pop: https://koreanxwear.com/en/blogs/blog-k-pop-en/kpop-jpop

ONE OR EIGHT- KAWASAKI

Now for some music! This is KAWASAKI by ONE OR EIGHT. They are an 8-member pre-debut global Japanese boy band and have been called the male equivalent of Japanese global girl group XG. Their name is inspired by the Japanese saying "Ichi ka bachi ka", which translates as "All or nothing" in English. 

The members are MIZUKI (full name Kanai Mizuki), NEO (Yoshii Neo), REIA (Omiya Reia), RYOTA (Imai Ryota), SOUMA (Lizuka Souma), YUGA (Shibutani Yuga), TSUBASA (Isozaki Tsubasa) and TAKERU (Ito Takeru).*

The group was formed during 2022 and 2023, through the WARPs DIG reality show as part of the year long training programme WARPS ROOTS (under record label Avex). Iy aimed to find the next generation of WARPs talent. Japanese/Chinese boy band WARPs Up (formerly known as just WARPs) debuted in late 2019, but I don't think they're currently active. 

ONE OR EIGHT will be making their debut later this month with the single Don't Tell Nobody (set to be released on 16th August).

KAWASAKI is a pre-debut song released in June but I don't think it's an official single. It's all in  English, apart from "Kawasaki", which I presume refers to the motorbikes! This is a performance video which was uploaded to YouTube in June.

Note: Avex videos are blocked from being played on 3rd party sites, but you can view it fine on YouTube. :)

 

For more on ONE OR EIGHT visit these links:

Kprofile: https://kprofiles.com/one-or-eight-members-profile/

Official FB page: https://www.facebook.com/oneoreight.official/

Official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oneoreight_

Official YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ONEOREIGHT_

 

MIREI feat. RINZO- Negai Negai - Ano Koro No Kimie

Finally, here is Negai Negai - Ano Koro No Kimie, the latest single by Japanese solo singer MIREI (full name Touyama Mierei/Mireo Touyama). It was produced by RINZO, who in addition to being a producer, is also a composer, keyboardist and DJ.

Negai Negai is a new interpretation of MIREI's single Wish- ~To you from back then~, which was released back in July 2017. The new version came out on 12th July (2024). It's also on MIREI's new special EP NEGAI which was released on 19th July, in conjunction with her current Asia tour (see below).

This is the lyric video. If you can't speak/read Japanese (like myself), it won't be much help to you! lol. But I've found an English translation for the original version, which I'll link to below. :) 

 

Watch the music video for the original Negai here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_IkBXSyC_4

And here are the lyrics with an English translation (for the original version): http://cheesyscans.blogspot.com/2017/12/toyama-mirei-negai-ano-koro-no-kimi-e.html

 

MIREI is currently celebrating 10 years in the music business, having released her first Japanese single in 2014. At the moment she is on her 2024 Asia tour, which took place in several Chinese cities and finished up in Tokyo on Monday (5th August). Visit her website for the latest news: https://mireinyc.com/

 

And for more music from MIREI, check out this post:

Music video for Lolita Bonita (2023), plus links to more music: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/01/weekly-music-video_17.html

 

Hope you enjoyed the post! Do you have any current favourite Japanese songs or J-pop in Public covers?

Want more dance? Check out my most recent posts: 

Dance in Public-V-pop and P-pop Videos: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/06/dance-in-public-v-pop-and-p-pop-videos.html

K-pop in Public Dances- LE SSERAFIM: https://starsparklex.blogspot.com/2024/07/k-pop-in-public-dances-le-sserafim.html

 

*These are Japanese names with the surname/family name written first.