Kumi Koda Brings Her Twentieth Anniversary Back Again with Upcoming Rerelease!

Music icon Kumi Koda announced that she will be releasing a brand new track, “puff” across all digital music streaming platforms on June 26th. This will be part one of her twenty year anniversary and will be the latest music release done by Koda since her KODA KUMI LIVE TOUR 2019 re(LIVE) -Black Cherry- live album back in March. This will also be her first single release of 2020.  Koda, who was keeping busy during this time with her exercise series ‘How To Dance’ during the ongoing crisis, commented on the track stating that “puff” is a support song that she wrote for those who work hard and strive for a goal. The title means "shortness of breath," and the lyrics include the idea that "even at home, I want to approach my ideal self."

As we look forward to this amazing release, be sure to check out Koda’s current availability across Apple Music and Spotify along with her music video for “Crazy 4 U” below!

THA BLUE HERB Spins Their Ballad with Latest Music Video!

Ahead of their July 2nd release, rap unit THA BLUE HERB dropped the music video for their track “バラッドを俺等に” (“Ballad wo Watashira ni”) on their official YouTube channel. Set to be apart of their upcoming fifth album, 2020 will be the latest release done by the unit since their single “ING/それから” (“Sorekara”) back in October of 2019. Directed by MarioWorks, the music video is an eight minute epic and has footage from their live show “CAN YOU SEE THE FUTURE?” spliced in at moments with a relaxing beat playing throughout that any listener can become engulfed in. The album will be available in a CD-only standard edition. Pre-order link and music video are posted below.

Standard edition

arlequin Puts a Smile on their Face with Upcoming Album!

Five-member visual-kei band arlequin announced that they will be releasing a new album titled “The Laughing Man” on August 19th. This will be the latest release done by the group since Utopia back in June of 2016 and will be their third album overall. Currently, there is no additional information about the album at this time of reporting except that it will include the recently released digital track “Veludo”.

arlequin had also announced that they will be holding a release tour for the album from September till October. However, dates are tentative due to the ongoing crisis. There are no pre-order links for the album at the time of reporting but you can still check out their latest music video “怒り” (“Okori”) below!

Arashi Sores High with Upcoming Release!

The popular five-member Johnny’s group Arashi announced that they will be releasing a brand new single titled “Kite” on July 29th. Debuting on the NHK Kohaku Uta Gakusen, the track was written and composed by Kenshi Yonezu . It was originally chosen to become the NHK 2020 song and would be featured heavily during the Olympics. The single will release with three editions;  a CD-only standard edition and a CD + DVD and Blu-ray limited edition. While the limited editions will include the music video for “Kite” the standard edition will include two additional tracks along with an instrumental track. 

Check out their latest chart topping hit “Love so sweet :Reborn” along with the pre-order link for all three editions below!

Standard edition

Limited DVD edition

Limited Blu-ray edition

Arashi「Kite」

Limited Edition

CD

01. カイト

DVDおよびBlu-ray

・「カイト」Video Clip＋Making of

Standard Edition

01. カイト

02. Journey to Harmony

03. Untitled Track A

04. Untitled Track B

05. カイト（オリジナル・カラオケ）

06. Untitled Track A（オリジナル・カラオケ）

07. Untitled Track B（オリジナル・カラオケ）

Music Corner 49: KIRA

KIRA is a Japanese reggae-R&B vocalist, composer, and producer from Osaka. She got her start in the music industry singing at Macao Casino as the first Japanese vocalist to participate in the show and made an impression with her husky vocals, unique outfits, relatable lyrics, and African American inspired music style. In 2014, she made her major debut with the single “Nadeshiko Soul” which was written, composed, and produced by herself. The following year, she released her first full length album Listener Killer, that included a special remix of her first single “Nadeshiko Soul” and featured the popular reggae vocalist MINMI. This remix became a huge success and featured as a power play on over 16 radio stations nationwide. From there on, KIRA went on to release her first mini album titled SURVIVE in 2017 and her second studio album Naked in 2018. Naked went on to become number 1 on the iTunes Japan R&B charts. KIRA’s husky powerful vocals, mixture of Japanese and English, inspiring and relatable lyrics, and unique style captivate audiences.

KIRA’s reggae-R&B style fused with her vocals help create many memorable tracks. In her song “Carrier Bag”, you can hear her emotions come out in this powerful song that talks about packing up your dreams and going on a journey. In “SPACEY LOVE”, the upbeat techno-dancehall vibe in the chorus gets you hooked and pumped up. Whenever you hear this track, you can’t help but sing and dance to it. Her major debut song “Nadeshiko Soul”, along with many others such as “Listener Killer-Turn it up!”, “JEALOUSY”, and “Lucky Boy” all have a heavy reggae vibe and KIRA’s voice flows so perfectly. In her track “Bye Bye Boy”, you can hear husky vocals flow perfectly with the composition. The catchy chorus and composition easily get stuck in your head. In her ballads “Ice Cream Harmony” and “Honesty”, you can hear KIRA’s powerful voice on point. Her newest track "Lovin’ You” is a mid-tempo reggae-R&B fusion track that has a catchy chorus and easily relatable lyrics.

Currently KIRA has two stuido albums, one mini album, and seventeen digital singles. All of her albums are currently available for purchase on CDJapan. Several albums and singles are also available on digital platforms such as AppleMusic, Spotify, AmazonMusic, SoundCloud, iTunes, etc. Stay up-to-date with KIRA by following her official website, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube channel!