As the fifteenth post of the blog and having kept regular posts up for about a month now, I wanted to devote this post to discussing Japanese and Korean instrumentals that have had a profound impact on my music tastes. I hope you as J-Pop and K-Pop fans share the same or at least similar views.
1. "Sakuya2" by Peritune- this is a beautiful niche track. I started listening to this track around the 2019-2020 era when I was still in community college. Though 2019 is not a long time ago, this track is very nostalgic for me because it reminds me of the time when I traveled to Japan for the first time. It reminds me of the end of my trip experiencing Kyoto's serene atmosphere (Sakuya2, Spotify, Peritune).
2."Sakuya3" by Peritune- another relaxing niche track by Peritune. This track, in my opinion, has heightened emotions in it compared to "Sakuya2" due to the instruments used (the addition of the shakuhachi and violin to Sakuya2 which only has the koto and flute) and due to the tempo. It over all has a very "Japanese" sound to it that I enjoy (Sakuya 3, Spotify, Peritune).
3. "Korean Cafe Music-Instrumental Rap" by Chillhop Cafe and Lofi Chillhop- it is a neat tune and it gives me feelings of what Seoul would be like to visit or live in. The part from 0:38 to the end was just purely a sublime musical experience. I highly recommend this tune for study music (Korean Cafe Music- Instrumental Rap, Spotify, Chillhop Cafe and Lofi Chillhop).
4. "My Star" instrumental by "by me" (username of Spotify user)- a moving Korean instrumental piece. I just had to include it because it is a piano piece and I love the piano and I love having played the piano in high school. It is my favorite instrument tied with the guitar. It is magnificent to hear one of my favorite instruments combined with one of my favorite cultures (Korean) (My Star, Spotify, "by me").
Japanese and Korean instrumental tracks can be pleasant to listen to when taking a break. I hope you enjoyed listening to the tracks in this post.
Anison is a genre that is full of powerful vocals, high quality, and dramatic emotions, yet is still in many ways underrated. In this article, we will explore three Anison artists/groups and I will chip in with my personal ratings of the song based on the song's Dramatic Effect (meaning heightened emotional effect), Vocal Performance (the quality of the artist(s)' vocals) and Epic Factor (the heroic feeling from the song); the ratings are all out of 10 by the way. This is not a ranking of songs list like earlier this week, so 1 does not mean I liked it better than the others. Note that not all of the singers on this list only sing Anison music.
1. "Ignite" by Eir Aoi
Eir Aoi is an Anison singer that I know of even before making this list, which is why I am so glad to include her song on it. When looking at the song I consider the best parts to be 0:54 and 3:35 because of the pacing of the singing and the dramatic transitional feels in these moments. The rest of the song after 3:35 is also quite satisfying to people who are fans of dramatic sounding music like me because I feel that any type of song needs a strong closing and Eir Aoi did a fantastic job in this case with her singing. From 1:38 -2:15, the song felt softer which was good because it brought out the dramatic parts (Eir Aoi Official Youtube Channel, Youtube, 2021).
Dramatic Effect: 10
Vocal Performance: 10
Epic Factor: 9.5
2. "Shangri-La" by angela
First of all I want to say I really enjoyed the build up to the singing in the first 0:25-0:30 seconds. As for the rest of the song, I thought it was spectacular. The singing quality was great and felt quite dramatic and epic because of the fast pace of the song, the artist's vocal skills and the background music. It feels like a very re-watchable video (not that other videos are not). Therefore I rate it highly along with Eir Aoi's song, it is just that I felt Angela's music video had stronger background music giving it a slightly higher rating (angela Official Channel, Youtube, 2019).
I could not post the embedded video on this blog post, but here is the link to the official song: Shangri-La
Dramatic Effect: 10
Vocal Performance: 10
Epic Factor: 10
3. "Brave Shine" by Aimer
You might be wondering why I chose to make a list of songs that I love instead of putting some songs I have mixed views of, but I simply just had to with Aimer's "Brave Shine" as well as the other two songs on this list. The song is very fitting with the theme of the music video. Aimer's strong vocals brought the couple's struggle against the darkness in the video to life. Due to this fact, the song felt very epic and dramatic in many ways. Unsurprisingly, I rate it along with "Shangri-La" and "Unite" due to the inclusion of these elements in the song (Aimer Official Youtube Channel, Youtube, 2016).
Dramatic Effect: 10
Vocal Performance: 9.8
Epic Factor: 10
Hope you all enjoyed this post and stay tuned for the next one!
This week we will take a different focus of viewing J-Pop/rock. This time, the focus is on J-Pop or J-Rock songs that have been used in anime intros. Below is my top ten ranking of best anime intros with the reasons why. I have included a shortened list of the ten at the bottom in case you do not want to read through the whole thing. I was sure not to include it at the top though so that it would not spoil the list in case you do want to read through everything.
Without further ado, here is the list:
10."Again" by Yui Yoshioka- Fullmetal Alchemist:Brotherhood
At number ten, we have Yui's short version music video of "Again", the intro to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. (I couldn't post the anime intro due to copyright) (YUI OFFICIAL Youtube Channel, Youtube, 2012). Although, I have never watched Fullmetal Alchemist, I know very much about Yui's song for a while. It is a great song to listen to and one of my favorites of Japanese music but the reason it ranks at number 10 (which is still good) is that I do not know that much about the anime intro apart from knowing a lot about YUI and her music.
Her singing in the short music video is both phenomenal and fast. Due to this fact, I would have pictured the first Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood intro to be a bit different such as perhaps taking place in the sky instead of on the ground (FullMetal Alchemist Brotherhood Opening 1- "Again" by YUI).
Nonetheless, I thought the intro video to FullMetal Alchemist Brotherhood itself and Yui's song to be very high quality. One of the major reasons I posted it on this list is both because of the quality of the intro, to add more diversity to the list (as opposed to only talking anime intros from my favorite two anime) and because it makes me want to get more into the plot of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.
9."Dtechnolife"by Uverworld- Bleach Intro 2
At number nine, we have the second intro to Bleach with the song, "Dtechnolife", by Uverworld (vizmedia, Youtube, 2023). Bleach was one of my favorite animes growing up and I find the intro music and the arc the opening represents to be very fitting. In the anime intro, we see a lot going on. Two of my favorite moments include Ichigo's clash with Kenpachi at 0:39 and Toshiro's running to escape the arrows of Ishida (0:50).
Speaking of the Uverworld music video, it has a lot going for it as a J-Rock song (UVERworld Official Youtube Channel, Youtube, 2015). The location that the band is in (which seems like an abandoned home) is emotionally gripping as well as the lead singer TAKUYA∞ being in chains through part of the video (1:24). The little girl who I cannot find the name of online also seems central to the story of the video and the song. All of these musical ingredients combined make this J-Rock anime song an awesome anime intro for other fans and me.
8."Haruka Kanata"by Asian Kung Fu Generation- Naruto Intro 2
At number eight, we have "Haruka Kanata" by Asian Kung Fu Generation (ASIAN KUNG FU GENERATION Official YouTube Channel, Youtube, 2012). This time it is the second intro to the original Naruto series. What can I say, just like the last two entries on this list, "Haruka Kanata" stands out as a unique and motivating song fitting for the Naruto anime. The build up starting at 0:55 was particularly epic and exciting to listen to. We hear the build up again at 2:10 and once we get to a bit after the three minute point to the end, it is just purely emotionally charged that makes it so good to listen to that I have no more words to describe it.
The same build up can be summed up in the official second intro of Naruto too because we see Sasuke, Gaara and Naruto at 0:44 and Naruto again at 1:14 with his hand seal (Crunchyroll Deutschland, YouTube, 2018). This intro is simply epic beyond words and the animators and Asian Kung Fu Generation did a great job with this intro.
7. "Colors" by FLOW- Code Geass Intro 2
At number seven, we have "Colors" by Flow (Crunchyroll, Youtube, 2016). This first intro to the Code Geass anime was very energetic and fierce in terms of singing. Though I cannot list any lyrics due to copyright restrictions, watching the first 20 seconds of the intro felt like a very immersive experience. Like "Haruka Kanata", it has its build up in the beginning and tells a story in the middle (0:44). What earns it the seventh spot on this list is that the song and anime intro had a great fade out ending in my opinion (not that the previous three did not).
6. "Namikaze Satelite" by Snowkel- Naruto Intro 7
At number six, we have "Namikaze Satelite" by Snowkel . What I particularly like most about the seventh into to "Naruto" is how carefree and lighthearted it is in both the animation style in the intro and overall vibes from the song itself (Crunchyroll Deutschland, Youtube, 2018).
The seventh intro to "Naruto" was quite relaxing to listen to and I felt that the song emphasized the importance of friendship which is why I feel it deserves to be ranked number six.
5."Wind" by Yamazaru- Naruto Shippuden Intro 17
At number five, we have "Wind" by Yamazaru (Crunchyroll, Youtube, 2018). This song is used as the seventeenth intro to "Naruto:Shippuden". The reason I rank both the song and intro so high is that it emphasizes Naruto's strength, resilience and growth throughout his years of training.
The ending to the 17th intro is particularly emotional for me due to how motivating it feels which is why is part of the top five of my personal favorites.
4. "Daybreak's Bell" by L'Arc en Ciel- Gundam 00 Intro 1
At number four we have "Daybreak's Bell" by L'Arc en Ciel (L'Arc-en-Ciel, YouTube, 2022). Here we have another diverse entry because this intro is the first intro to the "Gundam 00" anime. Like with "Again" by YUI, I had to use a different video than the anime intro because I could not find an official channel that had the anime intro.
The reason I like this intro so much is because I like anime about robots and flying and I thought that the lead singer,Hyde, made the intro exciting through his vocal skills which lands this intro in the final four.
3. "After Dark" by Asian Kung Fu Generation- Bleach Intro 7
At number three, we have "After Dark" by Asian Kung Fu Generation (vizmedia, YouTube 2023 & ASIAN KUNG FU GENERATION Official YouTube Channel, Youtube, 2012).
The second song used in Bleach on this list; this time it is used for the seventh Bleach intro. The anime intro and the official music video both present us with high emotional stakes that center around the idea of heroism. For Ichigo Kurosaki, it is his inner battles and struggling with what is potentially ahead for him. For the unnamed hero in the music video, it is about the heroic act of saving the falling person at the end. (2:58) Asian Kung Fu Generation added so much story both the anime intro and music video through their cohesive singing and instruments which causes this intro to fall into the top 3.
2. "Sakuramitsutsuki" by SPYAIR- Gintama Intro 13
At number two, we have "Sakuramitsutsuki" by SPYAIR (Crunchyroll, YouTube, 2019). Being that this is a post about anime music used in intros, I have never watched "Gintama" personally, but I found this 13th intro of Gintama to be highly moving and inspiring.
The song title, the singing style and lyrics (which I cannot list due to copyright) used in the intro felt very impactful on me in a profound way. Not only was the intro and song impactful, but it was very mesmerizing thus making it deserving of second place on my list.
1."Line" by Sukimaswitch- Naruto Shippuden Intro 18
1. Finally, the part of the post you have all been waiting for, we have number one which is "Line" by Sukima Switch (Crunchyroll, Youtube, 2018).
Both the song and the intro are uplifting in many ways and seem to be encouraging about following and completing one's personal goals in life and never give up which is the vibe that I get whenever I watch this video. The song and video is also deeply melancholic and I happen to love listening to such songs because they serve to motivate me to follow my goals in life and I believe they motivate others too. These are the reasons that "Line" by Sukimaswitch/ Naruto Shippuden Intro 18 is my number one favorite anime into of all time.
I hope you enjoyed my list and below is the promised shortened list in case you want to read through it faster:
10. "Again" by YUI, The first intro to "Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood" 9. "Dtechnolife" by Uverworld, Bleach Intro 2 8. "Haruka Kanata" by Asian Kung Fu Generation, Naruto Intro 2 7. "Colors" by Flow, Code Geass Intro 1 6. "Namikaze Satellite" by Snowkel, Naruto Intro 7 5. "Wind" by Yamazaru, Naruto: Shippuden Intro 17 4. "Daybreak's Bell" by L'Arc en Ciel, Gundam 00 Intro 1 3. "After Dark" by Asian Kung Fu Generation, Bleach Intro 7 2. "Sakuramitsutsuki" by SPYAIR, Gintama Intro 13 1. "Line" by Sukimaswitch, Naruto Shippuden Intro 18
As you may have all guessed, this post wraps up our three part series of questioning what would happen if K-Pop and J-Pop increased its relationship with western music than it already has. To recap, we looked at the recent instances of K-Pop and J-Pop artists covering western songs. After that, we went further back in time to view how K-Pop has always had some connections with hip hop and other genres; and how J-Pop as City Pop was more western influenced in the past than it is now. The number of covers discussed in Part One and in this blog are among the numerous amount of covers that K-Pop and J-Pop artists have done.
When I watch modern K-Pop videos, I get the feeling that the performers do much more than singing. They engage in dancing and wear special costumes related to the music video. Therefore, it seems with respect to American singers, that K-Pop performers are adding more content to their songs and music videos to make them more appealing to the rest of the world. It seems based off of this that it is safe to say that K-Pop artists will continue to be innovative in providing the best quality music for their fans and that may mean incorporating music styles and dances from other western genres into K-Pop than just hip hop or pop. Therefore, fusing more western elements into their music would help the artists rather than cause their sales to be lower.
When it comes to modern J-Pop, I tend to get much more eastern vibes in the music compared to K-Pop. The beats, instruments and music styles feel nearly 100% Japanese whereas the music in modern K-Pop feels like more of a mix. Knowing that J-Pop has a somewhat different target audience than K-Pop, I feel that it will be a while before J-Pop artists will want to integrate more styles of music from western artists than K-Pop.
Let me know below in the comments whether you agree or disagree with my views and don't forget to post your opinion.
K-Pop and J-Pop had much of their early beginnings in the late 20th century. K-Pop arose in the early 1990s with a lot of hip hop and western influence. City Pop was a form of J-Pop that arose in the 70's and 80's with a strong western influence including pop, jazz and disco. "Nan Arayo" by Seo Taiji and Boys was known as on of the earliest K-Pop songs that is an example K-Pop music with hip hop and western influence (Seo Taiji and Boys, Seo Taiji and Boys, 1992). It again demonstrates that K-Pop has already had a wide amount of western influence as discussed in the previous post. At the same time it leaves the open-ended analysis of what the future of K-Pop is with regards to its relationship to the West through musical influence. J-Pop was originally more influenced by Western music in the 1970s and 1980s than it is today. This is evident in the City Pop genre of J-Pop which was prominent in Japan up until the early 90's.
"Love Space" by Tatsuro Yamashita is an excellent example of a Japanese City Pop song. There are clear western influences in the chorus vocals and the disco feel of the song. This song is quite groovy and I wish I would have heard it long before I did in 2023 because it is a very positive song. Even if I cannot fully understand the song without translating that lyrics, I feel that the vibe of the song can be applied to many life situations and it is a very nostalgic fitting song for the fans of the genre. I do not have an official link to his song on Youtube due to copyright, so I cannot post his music video here (Tatsuro Yamashita, Spacy, 1977).
"Remember Summer Days" by Anri is another City Pop favorite of mine and was discovered by me at the same time as "Love Space" due to it being featured in a long City Pop video on Youtube that was probably taken down due to copyright. It demonstrates western influence through the beats and it also feels very disco. The music video that Artzie Music posted of Anri's song with Tokyo Tower and the city in the background adds to the summer vibe of the song. The sun in the background and air feel like it is moving on a hot and humid summer day when it probably really is not. All of these effects together with the song make it feel like the artist is presenting melancholic feelings about her life in Japan and meaning to share it with a broader audience beyond the Japanese market in some sense (Artzie Music, Youtube, 2014).
"Street Dancer" by Hiromi Iwasaki is another fine song that is another example of western influence in Japanese City Pop. The song has a lower energy and slower pace to it that "Love Space" and "Remember Summer Days" which is great because it adds to the diversity of the City Pop genre through the song's tempo (not that the other two songs don't add diversity). Lastly, it is also one of the longest songs I have talked about so far which contrasts with Rose's (BLACKPINK) cover of "Eyes Closed" by Halsey. Both Iwasaki's song and Rose's cover add a lot of diversity to J-Pop and K-Pop through the western type of music that influenced both songs (one being a complete cover) (Hiromi Iwasaki Official Youtube Channel, Youtube, 2018).
The reason for the brief mention of an earlier K-Pop song and not listing any more examples of early K-Pop is because I feel that K-Pop still maintains the stronger western influence today compared to modern J-Pop. Understanding modern J-Pop's historical connection with western music helps understand what J-Pop used to be and what it can potentially become in the future. The City Pop songs of this time period had heavier similarities with western music than they do now, but that demonstrates experience with using genres from the U.S. and other western countries as inspiration for Japanese songs.
This time the topic is similar, but is now expanded into a fun version that looks at the potential that both genres have for the entertainment future compared to what has been available to us fans by the artists so far in the 21st century.
Last week, I discussed Tzuyu from TWICE's music highlighting that she did a cover of an Ava Max song and a Taylor Swift song. Covers of western music and K-Pop singing with a western twist are not limited to only Girls Generation and Tzuyu, but many other K-Pop/J-Pop artists have done covers of western songs. K-Pop groups such as A.C.E. performing a cover of Lewis Capaldi's "Someone You Loved" and individual artists like Rose from BLACKPINK singing a cover of "Eyes Closed" by Halsey. Additionally, a J-Pop band such as Goose House performing a cover of "Take Me Home Country Roads" by John Denver.
"Someone You Loved Cover"
There are a lot of things I have to say about this video and cover. In one way I can relate to the message of the song because of the loss of something that mattered to me. Donghun, Jun and Chan had strong masculine voices that fit with the lyrics, at the same time their voices and talent make the song appealing to someone who may not be a fan of either A.C.E., Lewis Capaldi or K-pop. The cover was so great that it nearly caused me to tear up or at least want to because it was so well sung. Lastly, since this is trio of a group of 5 doing a song of one artist, I liked their idea of alternating vocals instead of unison singing. With respect to the original singer and to the idea of unision singing, this was a creative idea that added to the emotional impact of the song (Official A.C.E., Youtube, 2019).
"Eyes Closed" Cover
Rose's voice was enhanced in this cover of Halsey's song, "Eyes Closed" because it was the first time I listed to a solo member of BLACKPINK sing. In contrast to the trio of 5 from A.C.E., this music video cover was great in its own way. It had a great lead in and had fitting vocals for the song type. It was enjoyable to listen to and it was interesting that the cover was shorter than the original version, but the shortening in this cover takes a unique turn to focus on singing ability (BLACKPINK, Youtube, 2018).
"Country Roads" Cover
John Denver was one of my favorite singers growing up. I remember when I was seven that my dad used to have a CD of his in the car. When I used to listen to it before school started, I would ask my mom to replay songs such as "Rocky Mountain High" and "Country Roads". Therefore, it was awesome to sing a Japanese group sing one of my favorite childhood songs growing up in one of my favorite languages. This music video can be enjoyed by anyone! (Goose House, Youtube, 2013)
All of these covers are great examples of eastern music meeting western music, but the idea gets even larger than that. Imagine not only famous K-Pop/J-Pop artists creating covers of popular western artists, but imagine them integrating western music into the genre completely.
The covers in this list serve as an example of what is already happening in modern history of K-Pop/J-Pop singers performing covers of western songs. An interesting answer to my own question would be that it seems like K-Pop is already heavily influenced by western music through a lot of the dancing and style of singing in their albums. J-Pop however is still maintaining its appeal to its own market which is Japan. It can be easily heard through the instruments and tones that J-Pop songs have. I happen to like it a lot, but imagine if western music was more integrated into J-Pop, it would change the production of the music as well as the goal of the marketing to match that of the K-Pop music industry. That would be something new, yet surprising. Coming soon, I will take time to discuss the past influences of western music on Japanese City Pop from the 1970's and 80's to listen to what happened in the past and imagine what would happen if there were modern or future attempts to integrate western music into Japanese Pop.
Don't forget to tell me what you thought of the ideas presented and whether or not you agree with them.
Below are my top five picks of the best moments featuring one of our/my favorite K-Pop stars, Tzuyu Chou:
5. Tzuyu competes in an archery competition against Irene from Red Velvet in a fun, lighthearted video. Both displayed impressive skills, though Tzuyu scored more points (TV-People, 2018, Youtube).
4. In addition to showcasing her archery skills, Tzuyu tries the gym, giving us hilarious moments of both her successes and her burnout (TWICE, 2024, Youtube).
3.Tzuyu shows that she is human and can relate to her fans (TWICE, 2024, Youtube).
2. Tzuyu shows off her powerful pitching skills while enjoying a baseball game (TWICE, 2024, Youtube).
1. More behind-the-scenes moments offer insights into Tzuyu's interactions with her fellow TWICE members (TWICE, 2023, JYP Entertainment).
Do you agree with the list above? If not, feel free to share how you would rank the best Tzuyu moments in the comments below.
