Make Believe Mailer Vol. 5: Kohaku Hot Take Edition
National broadcaster NHK announced the line-ups for the 66th edition of Kohaku Uta Gassen yesterday, which you can see here in English. Aired every New Year's Eve, Kohaku has always been one of the biggest musical events on the calendar, and as the music scene in Japan continues fragmenting it might be even more important than ever before. It's one TV network's musical show, sure, but for a large chunk of people it very well might be their only brush with a wide variety of popular Japanese pop from over the past year (being stuck in a house with your relatives will do that to you). Getting on Kohaku remains a big deal -- for artists and fans alike, as Japan's Twitter all-Kohaku trends yesterday confirmed -- and seeing who gets selected offers a glance at the state of J-pop today (or at least how the nation wants it to be viewed, alongside a bunch of classic performers who always make the roster).
Best viewed on your most massive flatscreen
So let's have a lighting round about what it all means. Necessary disclaimer -- this works in ignorance of all the juicy industry deals I'm sure play a part in shaping Kohaku every year. Johnny Kitagawa probably has some extreme blackmail on NHK which allows every one of his dippy boy bands to get time on the show, but speculating on that would reduce this to fan fiction. And buddy, it isn't 7th grade anymore:
Kohaku debuts! This year's Kohaku rookies are Yamauchi Keisuke, Miyama Hiroshi, Hoshino Gen, Nogizaka46, Superfly, Ohara Sakurako and Gesu No Kiwami Otome. Joining them are also two "new" acts whose inclusion feels more like lifetime-achievement awards: Bump of Chicken and '80s rock outfit Rebecca.
Oh, wait, forgot one...μ’s, an idol group who hail from the cartoon Love Live! In a shrewd move, the animated group was made real, and now perform songs from the show live to fans of the cartoon. This isn't the first time Kohaku has acknowledged just how strong a sales force anime music is -- they let rock group Linked Horizon play the theme to Attack On Titan a couple years back -- but Love Live! is a much different beast, and is made all the more interesting by.....
...the fact idol music is receding from Kohaku. AKB48 and NMB48 remain, while officially sanctioned AKB rivals Nogizaka46 will debut, but last year, every single AKB sister group appeared. That's been halved (and NMB48 probably should be celebrating at home, too), while Nogizaka46 are the only non-anime outfit with actual momentum.
More telling is the absence of Momoiro Clover Z. Long the top "alternative idol" and having appeared on the show for three years straight, they've always been an idol unit made for general consumption rather than rabid superfans...and they are off the bill. This morning, the group themselves explained that they were "graduating" from Kohaku and, in a classic move, announced their own countdown show. Seems like not many people are clamoring for idols anymore! Though, hey, NHK loves nationalists so.....
Other notable acts not returning: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (who actually responded to the snub on Twitter, saying she will work harder than ever before...and then deleting it), Chris Hart (oh no, they are bored of non-Japanese now), Dreams Come True (who had one of the year's best selling albums...but also have been on 15 times before, so who cares).
Overall, the line-up isn't that interesting in terms of ~what it all means~ not like that one year full of K-pop acts, and the following where they all got blacklisted. Honestly, the more intriguing storyline is how Kohaku holds onto its position in a rapidly changing New Year's broadcasting scene....they got MMA this year, watch out.
Kohaku has Sachkiko Kobayashi singing on...herself...though
Japanese Music Highlights From The Past Week
I feel extra behind on everything this week, but I certainly do know the new release from Maltine Records is a sweet little album for kicking in the holiday season. The usually manic Mikeneko Homeless teams up with Lulu for a nice, Christmas-leaning collection.
There has been a lot of really good music uploaded to Bandcamp recently (from actual Japanese people, not people pretending to be from the Blade Runner timeline [uhh more on that next week]), with one highlight as of late being from juke producer Teddman. That one features an appearance from DJ PayPal, which is a nice bonus.
Vocaloid producers -- can be good! The Neon City -- doing swirly in multiple ways! Twee pop -- going strong!
Life-affirming duo group_inou made a video for the song "Choice" which features footage from their summer, including some tours. I've written a lot about the rising "women in rap" wave, and have brought up names like Halcali, but these two have been just as influential on this new wave (Suiyoubi No Campanella certainly has cited them).
News And Views
Nearly every Johnny's boy band is playing Kohaku this year...but one who won't be is KAT-TUN, and they might not even exist in a year's time after another member announced he's impending departure from the unit (and the talent agency).
Perfume get a luxury brand tie-up with Mercedes Benz, and got animated and turned into uhhh Eva pilots...or Vocaloids? I don't know, but the song sounds like a throwback to GAME, so it has my attention. Related, Hamada Bamyu Bamyu.
I've been thinking all week about the recent announcement that the Soundscan chart won't be published anymore, and I think maybe...it could be a good thing? The immediate reaction is to see this as a way to further muddle up what is actually popular in the country, as Soundscan didn't include all the extra copies that turned groups such as AKB48 into chart mainstays. But a lot of Japanese online reactions have been deeply cynical, so maybe this will just accelerate everyone thinking all music charts are worthless, and we move in some weird new direction.
JK, just gonna prop up fandoms screaming about who is actually better in comments sections.
Some things worth reading -- Meishi Smile shared the English version of his contribution to the Maltine Book. And you should definitely jump on Wizard Nipples, the new e-mail newsletter from Spoonin' Boys. Edition one just went out and it's good! Always up for people thinking critically about Japanese music, especially when they also put on some great online radio. Elsewhere, Ronald Taylor on J Soul Brothers, and Ian Martin on his continued travels, which have been great to read.
Oricon Trail For The Week Of Nov. 16 - Nov. 22
Every week, I'll share the top-charting single from the Oricon Charts, a deeply flawed ranking system that favors groups who get fans to buy multiple copies of the same song, offering a warped view of what anyone actually listens to.
#1 Kinki Kids "Yume O Mireba Kizutsuku Kotomo Aru" (154,522 Copies Sold) I watch a lot of '90s Japanese kids cartoons, and this has often left me convinced that in many regards, there would have been no better time to be a child interested in music. Mainly, the theme songs most children's programming boasted during that decade still go hard today. Like, imagining turning on a weekly anime such as Coji Coji and hearing Denki Groove every time. Recently, Netflix Japan added dozens of '90s episodes of Chibi Maruko-chan, and the opening number is done by Johnny's duo Kinki Kids, whose schtick basically boils down to "we are from Kansai." Yet the song serving as the intro for this cartoon not only sounds nothing like the dreck the agency's boy bands press out today, but is a pretty goofy-fun blend of hip-hop and smooth pop, a genre-hopping that's far from the sleek variation popping up in contemporary K-pop, but a reminder of where the YG's of the world drew inspiration from.
Anyway, this is all a long way of avoiding the duo's latest chart-topping song, a goopy ballad that further makes me think a life before 2000 would have been swell.
Look At Me!
Namie Amuro had a pretty good year, her rivals most certainly did not. I'm on the case.
And in non-music writing, I looked at the urban-centric future of conveyor-belt sushi for The Japan Times.
Next time: LOTS of カタカナ！
Written by Patrick St. Michel (patrickstmichel@gmail.com)
Make Believe Melodies / Twitter / Facebook
Header by Alan Castree (AC Galaga)