Tag: koyama keiichiro

NEWS – “Topgun/ Love Story” Single Review

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Top Gun/ Love Story is Double A-side single released on June 12th, 2019 with a pure love ballad paired together with a passionate, upbeat song about longing after an elite, hard to get woman. On release day, it just scrapped by their 4 member comeback single Chankapana in number of copies sold, making it their best selling single as 4 members. Love Story/ Top Gun sold 121,842 copies and Chankapana sold 121,097 on the first day of sales.

The Songs

Love Story

First let me give a bit of background of this song:
Johnny’s and Associates (NEWS’s management) released a dating simulator game app in March 2018 in collaboration with Gree, a game application developer here in Japan called 「NEWSに恋して」, or “Fall in love with NEWS”. For the 1 year anniversary of the app launch in March 2019, they released a series of commercials, which featured Love Story in it, and was the first time us fans had heard it… or so we thought. NEWS fans were surprised that they actually recognized the tune. It had originally been part of the series of New Year’s concerts “EPCOTIA – encore-” that NEWS held at the beginning of the year where NEWS had the fans hum the melody at one point, recorded it, and then put that recording into the single as a surprise for the fans. When I mean surprised, we really were surprised! During NEWS concerts, to transition between different parts of the show NEWS has the fans do all kinds of things to keep us distracted, such as a quiz game, stomping and clapping to the rhythm of something related to the show theme, etc. So this time they had us do the same thing to help everyone “escape from inside a blackhole”, but to the tune of Love Story. So the fans didn’t suspect a thing!

So, Love Story is actually a love song from NEWS to their fans, but it can be interpreted as a love song in general as well. I love how its a ballad, but has a really nice beat and seriously gets stuck in my head. 12/10 would love another song like this again!

Top Gun「トップガン」

Top Guns is a fun, upbeat song with lots of brass and string sounds and old-school disco-esque guitar, making it have a 70’s sort to feel to it. The first few times I heard this song though I wasn’t impressed with it as I had only heard it as the ending song of the drama …… Even after I saw it during the WORLDISTA tour, I wasn’t a fan of it until I heard the studio version of it. I am a fan of brass sounds combined with other modern elements so as soon as I heard the sounds on the studio version I fell in love with it, and the music video just made me love it even more. My favorite part of the song has to be when Massu raps towards the end in a kind of rap-dubstep breakdown.

The Music Videos

Love Story

The music video for Love Story had 5 different versions; 1 for each member and 1 combined video. Each video was made in 1 cut (with the combined one taking cuts from the individual ones) and the theme was a “date” with them. I like cute, but this really took it to another level but it was very tasteful. It was very well shot and reminded me to Tegomassu’s video “Moshimo Kono Sekai kara ○○ ga nakunatara”. I liked Koyama’s look the the most in this video with his hair and the necklace he wore. It was still sickly sweet and I did squeal at some points, so if you are looking for something overly sweet then this the video for you!

Top Gun「トップガン」

The Top Gun music is a piece of art. I love so much about it I don’t even know where to start. The aesthetic of the boys laying in the flower and the transitions between the dance scenes and the “portrait” flower scenes are phenomenal. Massu’s costumes were really a vital part of the video with the red, black and white combined with the white background. I have to point out that only Massu would make them wear Christian Lou Boutin slightly heeled dress shoes to dance and make it work fantastically. This music video really made me fall in love with the song and has to be one of my favorite NEWS music videos to date, only second to Kaguya. I could watch this video over and over again, that’s how much I love it.

The Verdict

Overall I rank this single as one of my top NEWS singles as 4 members, right next to Ikiro and Kaguya. I like how they have 2 different sounding songs on one single, plus the surprise with Love Story and recording the fans at the concert. Because they released a double A-side single, they will probably only release 1 more single or no more singles before their new album “Story” comes out (production is in process and confirmed by the label) probably sometime in Spring 2020. I highly recommend this single to anyone getting into NEWS, as both singles show different sides of NEWS.

What did you guys think of this single? Did you like Love Story or Top Gun better? Let me know in the comments below!

Translation: “U R not alone” – NEWS

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Translation for “U R not alone” by NEWS, on the NEVERLAND album.
Lyrics and music by GReeeeN.

拝啓あの日の僕へ
今はココで立っています
誰かに笑われた夢を
今もココで見続けてます

To the me of that day,
I am standing here now.
The dream that people laughed at,
I am still continuing to reach for.

時に見失いそうになって
時に全てをあきらめて
あせって望んでは傷ついた
僕の中の弱虫笑ってた
それでも(Hey)　どこかで明日を
諦めてないから今日もまた
傷だらけ(Hey)　のこの足で
なんとか立っている

Sometimes I almost lost sight of it,
Sometimes I gave up completely,
In my flustered desire, I kept getting hurt,
and the weakling inside me laughed.
Even so (hey!) I still haven’t given up that tomorrow,
so with these broken legs (hey) I will somehow keep standing.

例えばこの声が届くならば誰でもいい
聞こえますか　胸張ってさあ叫ぶんだ
全部詰め込んだこの宣誓を
僕は誓うよ　一切引かないし　一切負けない
自分で決めた道のうえ　全てをかけて
笑えるように　やり抜くぞ

For example, if this voice could reach, would anyone listen?
I stick out my chest and shout,
and pack everything into this oath
I vow to never back down and never surrender.
I will risk everything for the path I chose.
To accomplish it so I can be able to smile.

あの頃の僕は負けそうに
なると誰かのせいにして逃げて
諦めた言い訳はそりゃ楽で
そうして僕はまた自分に負ける
それでも(Hey)　戦っている
そんな他人(ひと)はきっと他所(ほか)にいる
それでいいの？(Hey)　目指す場所へ
行くと決めたんだろう？

Back in those days when I was about to loose,
I blamed someone else for it and escaped.
It was easier to give excuses and give up,
And thus I kept on loosing to myself.
Even so (hey!) I am still fighting on.
There are surely other people who are like that too.
Is that really okay though? (hey!)
You decided to go that place you aimed for, didn’t you?

確かな答えは　何処にもないから
探すんだ　恐れないでその足で迷っていい
何度も諦めるかって言えばいい
今までの超えた日々が僕らにはあるじゃないか
だからこそココに吹いてる
向かい風にホラ立ち向かう

There is no correct answer anywhere
So you have to search for it. It’s okay to be afraid and get lost on the way
It’s okay to say “I’ll give up” many times
Haven’t we already gone through everyday until now?
Because of this, we will face the headwind that’s blowing here.

あの日つまずいて
しゃがみこんでしまうほどの痛みさえ
わきだして　かけだして
助走に変えて　いけるように

On that day that I stumbled
The pain that left me doubled over on all fours
Spring up, start running
Change it into an approach run in order to live

ああどうか　力を貸してくれないか
昨日までの僕よ　共に乗り越えてきたじゃないか
僕は誓うよ　一切引かないし　一切負けない
生まれた日から今日までの　僕が見てる
明日もそう
少しずつ前へ　not alone

Ah, could you please assist me somehow,
The me up until yesterday? We overcame this together, didn’t we?
I vow to never stand down and never surrender
The me from the day I was born until now is watching
Tomorrow as well
Moving forward bit by bit, not alone

Translators note:

“U R not alone” sung by NEWS from their Neverland album was one of the hardest things that I have translated from Japanese to English because I really wanted to give justice to this song. I don’t think I fully did because of my own language skills and I feel like English doesn’t even come close to being able to convey the meaning of the song, but I wanted to give the fans who can’t understand Japanese just a bit of an idea of the deep meaning the song has. I will always be grateful to  have heard this song live and have heard the rawness of NEWS’s voices when they sang it. It is so relatable to me, and to everyone I think, as everyone struggles with things in their life and want to give up at some point. It made me cry so hard in Sapporo and I had to hold back crying when I saw it in Nagoya with my boyfriend (as I would have been totally embarrassing, right?).

The beginning of the song when it says:

” To the me of that day,
I am standing here now.
The dream that people laughed at,
I am still continuing to reach for.”

I really feel that it’s so true. Sometimes I felt like my dream of moving to Japan and creating a life here was laughed at sometimes, but I’m still here and continuing to live that dream. The oath in the song about not backing down or surrendering is something that after I heard this song, I vowed to myself that I will give everything I have and never give up, even if I am doubled over in pain and want to give up. I hope that everyone that listens to this song will feel the same way and receive that power, just like it did for me.

I am still actively learning Japanese and I am not a professional translator, so if I translated something wrong or want an explanation on why I translated it the way I did, please comment below! 

Album Review: NEWS – WHITE

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NEWS-WHITE

NEWS “WHITE”, released on February 28th 2015, is NEW’s most recent album released a year and a half after their previous one. This time they used the theme of “white”, which has always been their “group color”. They also experimented with new sounds and new concepts, such as implementing a short film in the album. It topped the weekly charts, beating Acid Black Cherry.

The Songs

MR.WHITE

This is the title song of their album and also what their short film was based off of. I heard it on Koyama’s radio show K-chan news in the middle of February and I loved it the first time I heard it! This is a different type of sound compared to what NEWS has done in the past, with a “funk” vibe to it. I love the combination of the beat with the horns. The vocals are amazing and the key really suits their voices. When singing on music programs to promote the album, they always sung this song and you could see how confident they were with the concept through their performance.

KAGUYA

KAGUYA was NEWS’s most recent single that was released in January. It has a very “modern meets old” feel to it and is an “epic love song” that showed a more sensual side to NEWS. For a full review of this single, please click here to read my post about it.

NYARO

NYARO was originally released about a year ago, but only as a Bra commercial tie-up song for the brand Walcol. The fans have never heard the full version of this song, so it was great to finally hear it. It’s a very NEWS like “summery” song. It has a country feel to it with fiddle like sounds and country like guitar. Paired with the kind of dance beat in the background, I think it makes a new and interesting combination. The echo of “Nyaro” in the background in the chorus makes it such a fun and catchy song that get’s stuck in your head.

SEVEN COLORS

SEVEN COLORS was the theme song for the 2013 and 2014 FIFA Club World Cup and is personally my favorite of the three soccer songs that they have released. Since both times were in Morroco, it has a dance-electronic beat combined with African drums.  I like the uptempo-ness of the song combined and the variety of sounds.

Weather NEWS

Weather NEWS is probably the most news-like song out of this whole album to me. It’s a call and response song, very much like “4-Fan” was in their 2013 “NEWS” album. The whole concept of having a call and response song is such a fun concept to me and makes me feel involved in the concert and with the other fans as well. For the music, it’s a very simple song with simple lyrics, and it was a very nice surprise to have Shige do the rap part and not Massu, who had seemed to take on the rap parts since Yapami had left the group.

Super Sonic

NEWS normally has one “hard dance” song on their album, and Super Sonic was this album’s dance song. What makes it different than the other dance songs that they have done more of an electronic and dubstep feel to it, which seems to be a theme in Asian pop in general recently. When I first heard it, it sounded reminiscent of an Arashi song from their “Digitialian” album. It’s like a combination of a rock song and a dance song combined together and is probably my favorite dance song of theirs to date.

Black-Jack –Inter- and “BYAKUYA”

I combined these two together because one leads into another. Black Jack is an interlude or kind of intermission into the other part of the album, but more specifically into BYAKUYA. It’s a dubstep type song that you would probably hear in a club and somehow merges well together with the fantasy like sounds in BYAKUYA.

Now speaking of fantasy, BYAKUYA is an all out fantasy song, a cross between a pirate theme song, like out of Pirates of the Caribbean, and something out of Harry Potter or “Nightmare Before Christmas”. If you think about it, it also sounds like something that KAT-TUN would do, an epic song that has lots of “visuals”. There is so much going on in this song that you have to listen to it a few times to really hear everything. The first time I heard this song I felt a combination of “What is this epicness?” and “What did I just listen to?” because there was so much going on.

ONE –for the win-

One -for the win- was the 2014 FIFA World Cup theme song that member Tegoshi was also the main caster for.  This song has a more Latin feel to it, which really surprised me the first time I heard the song. This song is one of the songs that gets stuck in my head so easily because the chorus says all the names of the countries that participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

White Love Story

Out of all of the songs on the album, this has to be the song that struck me the most. It is such a light and fluffy love song, but more specifically a wedding song. The lyrics are so sweet and the harmonization combined with the piano and the lyrics make me tear up every time I hear this song. This song personally showed me an evolution in NEWS, a maturity from the typical love song to something that was deeper in a sense. The lyrics talk about a man treasuring a woman so much and wanting to make her happy and protect her from now on. At one point the lyrics say “You are my Heroine”, it might seem sickly sweet to some people, but I think that it’s a beautiful song and a beautiful melody, which makes it on my top songs on this album.

Ai Kotoba 「愛言葉」

Ai Kotoba is the song that NEWS wrote themselves for their 10 Year Anniversary Event. NEWS has gone through a lot in the past 10 years, going from 9-8-6 and then to 4 members, so this was was a song dedicated to the fans and them coming this far as 4 members. It’s a very sweet song with a simple melody, but a deep meaning. It’s  a special song for the members, as well as the fans. When I heard it in the countdown this past year, I was crying so hard.

Solo Songs

Koyama Keiichiro – Romeo 2015 「ロメオ２０１５」

This was a song that Koyama and former NEWS member Nishikido Ryo did as a duet together in a concert a long time ago and Koyama decided to revamp it as his solo for this tour. It has a latin flair, but it is quite simple if you listen carefully. It is sexy in a subtle way and the vocals aren’t too harsh and it suits Koyama’s voice very nicely.

Masuda Takahisa – Skye Beautiful

The first time I heard this song I didn’t know what to think of it and I didn’t like it that much. I was very confused at the rhythm changes, going from soft and “mysterious” to hard dance club like music. I had to listen a second time before I actually understood the tempo changes and how it all flowed together, and then it became one of my top songs on the album.

Tegoshi Yuya – Anata 「あなた」

Coming from his solo last album/ tour “Lovin U”, this was a bit of a disappointment to me when I first listened to it. It was very simple love ballad compared to the previous two solo songs, really focusing on the voice more than anything. It was quite boring for a while, but once I listened to it a few times and felt the lyrics and the piano, I began to like it more.

Kato Shigeaki – Escort

Escort is my favorite of all of the solo songs this tour, just for the beat of the song combined with the lyrics. Shige wrote the lyrics of the song again this time, and I think he was trying to spin off of his previous solo “Dreamcatcher” with “flowery” lyrics again. I like the piano and “funk” kind of vibe to the song and it flows very nicely, although some of the English lyrics make me giggle every time I listen to it.

Overall impressions

This album was a new direction for NEWS, they experimented with some new styles of music, but you could still very much feel classic “NEWS” throughout. It showed a more mature side of NEWS in a way, an evolution almost. In particular, Byakuya and Black Jack –Intern- and Kaguya were a bit out of the ordinary for NEWS, but it gave them a more mature feel. My favorite songs were White Love Story and NYARO, along with Weather NEWS, which were the most “NEWS” like songs on the album, in my opinion.

I hope you enjoyed this review! What do you all think of NEWS “White” album? Please let me know what you think in the comments below and press the like button if you enjoyed this post.

Johnny’s Talk: Why do I love Johnny’s?

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Recently, I have been asked by some readers how and why I became interested in Johnny’s and I decided to write down some of my thoughts.

Tegomass no Mahou - Kobe, December 2011

Tegomass no Mahou – Kobe, December 2011

Starting in December, I have reached the point in my life where I am transitioning from school to a full time job and it isn’t the easiest transition. During this transition though, I have been really taking the time to think about why I love the things that I do and prioritizing my time accordingly. As most of you know, Johnny’s is something that I have loved since I was in my first year of University and I have just grown to love it even more over the years and since I have moved to Japan. Why do I love Johnny’s so much? Why do I dedicate so much time to something seemingly just taking my money? I will be explaining some reasons why I love Johnny’s in this post.

Johnny’s makes me smile. Plain and simple as that. Every time I listen to Johnny’s music (which is everyday) I smile. It gives me energy to start my day and calms me down when I am having a bad day. It’s just me and the music at that time. I also have many memories connected to the music and when a particular song comes on; memories of that time in my life flood back and make me smile. Now this can be true of almost any music, but Johnny’s is the music that I have relate the most to.

It’s not just the music that makes me smile, but seeing the boys that I support on TV, doing various projects, working their hardest and seeing them do amazing things makes me happy too. It makes me want to strive and work harder because I see them doing their best in a cut-throat environment and they still smile through it all, but at the same time are close to the fans. They aren’t perfect and can show their more vulnerable side and we know they are human.

Johnny’s gives me someone to support and grow with. After many years of loving Johnny’s, I have settled into whom in the agency I like the most and support the most. For me, that is mostly NEWS, with some other groups that I go and support; mostly the “You and J” groups, which consists of Kanjani8, NEWS, and KAT-TUN. Most of my favorite Johnny’s are not much older than me, normally between 25 and just over 30 years old. Throughout the years, I feel like I have grown with them and seen them accomplish more and more as we all grew towards our dreams. I know it sounds cheezy, but these boys (or I should say men) do amazing things and it makes me want to do amazing things as well. When I see their concerts and performances I am blown away by the quality and the hard work that is put into it. They might not be the most talented people in the entire industry, but you can tell that they work hard, and that is what matters to me. They don’t grow and fit one mold of Johnny’s; they all break off and do what they love to do. Take my favorite group NEWS for example: Koyama is a newscaster, and is an anchor for the news program News Every. Tegoshi loves soccer and is doing work directly related to it, even becoming a main caster for the FIFA World Cup in 2014. Massu loves fashion and now has his own column in a fashion magazine and designs the NEWS tour costumes. Shige wasn’t amazing at literature when he was younger, but he has already written 3 novels and many short stories and is Johnny’s first novel author. Once again, seeing them do amazing things makes me want to do amazing things as well and push myself harder. The best part is that there is a group for everyone to enjoy and there is such a variety of talent in Johnny’s.

Johnny’s lets me be a part of a fandom of amazing fans and being a part of something bigger than just me. Fandom is an amazing thing. I wouldn’t be the person today if it wasn’t for the people that I met through the Johnny’s fandom. Some of my closest friends I have made through this fandom and the experiences of traveling and meeting people from all around the world, are priceless. Fandom isn’t perfect by any means, but it is a mesh pot of amazing people from all around the world coming together that love the same thing. This isn’t just on the internet, but when I go to concerts and I look at the crowd waving their penlights in unison in support of that group, it moves me and I realize I am not alone in what I love. Concerts are one of my greatest joys to attend because I get to interact with fellow fans and I get to see the Johnny’s that I support in person and show my support, even if only I am 1 in thousands.

Tegomassu no Seishun - Fukuoka

Tegomassu no Seishun – Fukuoka, April 2014

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Kanjani8  Jyuusai – Osaka,  August 2014

Last, but not least, Johnny’s gave me a dream. Anime and Manga started me off on my love for Japan, but it wasn’t real to me after a while. When I found Johnny’s, I found a whole new culture and it opened the world to me. I never thought I would want to live in Japan before I entered University, but when I found Johnny’s I wanted to understand what they said, and I wanted to learn more about the Japanese culture. I dived head first into learning Japanese and studied business, and I eventually moved to Japan, then I wrote my business graduate school thesis on the business of Johnny’s. They gave me the motivation to move overseas, away from my family, to open my mind and push myself out of my comfort zone. I realized recently that the thing that I love the most is making people happy and giving them hope in a world that doesn’t do that well. Johnny’s does that for me and lets me find that about myself. From here on out I will be searching for exactly how I want to do it, but I know entertainment and Johnny’s is something that does that for me, along with Japanese Fashion and Music in general. I want to harness what Johnny’s does and let people understand that Johnny’s is more than just pretty boys dancing and singing.

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I hope you all enjoyed this insight into some of my thoughts recently! Why do you like Johnny’s? What makes you happy? Have you found your dream and what is it? Please comment below to let me what you think!

Japanese Entertainment: The Relationship Between Japanese Idols And Their Fans

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While I was writing my thesis for my MBA today, which is on the topic of Johnny’s and Associates and the Japanese music industry, the topic of the relationship between a Japanese Idol and their fans popped into my head. Actually, it had been in my head for a while now ever since an article by the Yomiyuri Newspaper about Koyama Keiichiro, a member of my favorite Idol group NEWS,  was released about a week and a half ago. Koyama became a news caster for “News Every” in Spring of 2010 and this January he became a main caster for four out of five weekdays, when the program runs. This article was about the human connection and how through news casting he has been able to connect more with many people, and his fans, more than before. Though he says it’s rare for idol groups to have that deep of a connection, I still think this reflects the relationship between idol groups and their fans.

What exactly is the relationship between Japanese idols and their fans? You can describe it in different ways but I like to simply describe it as like one of a girlfriend and boyfriend, or best friends, but also like parent and child.

The appeal of the Japanese idol is simple, they aren’t perfect. These idols are produced by an management company that trains them from when they are kids to sing and dance and act and be an all around entertainer. From when they enter into the company they are put into the spotlight. They aren’t told or trained to be perfect though and in fact, they are put on variety shows and other television shows where they are made to do wacky things and their personality really shows through. Of course there are parts of this that are artificially produced and controlled, like not having a boyfriend or girlfriend (in public at least) and being clean cut and not having a bad-boy or bad-girl image, but for the most part they are the boy or girl next door. They seem like a normal person that just walked off the street, not a celebrity that is far from reach.

Another aspect of this is that the fans have a say in what the Idol does. Since the fans are spending money on entertainment, the idol and the management company must give them just that. So, the management company and the idols listens closely to the fans to see what they want, and they give it to them. They also sometimes put on events specifically where the fans get to decide themselves what they want, like choosing the set-list for a concert or in AKB48’s case, the fans can vote on who they want to be the “center”, the person who is the focus of the whole routine. This way, the fans feel like they had a hand in the idol growing and the fans grow a long with them, or see them grow up like a parent. I see a lot of mothers and their daughters go to concerts together and support the idol together; the daughter sees the idol as supporting them like a girlfriend would a boyfriend and the mother sees it as supporting the idol like they would their own child.  When idol fans grow up and have their own family and children, another younger idol group has debuted and then their daughter gets into them and the cycle continues.

I also think that Idols give fans a dream, something to shoot for. While the idols grow up and reach their goals, the fans are inspired by them trying so hard, so they work hard for their dream while supporting the idol too. I have met many people that say that being a fan of an idol group has changed their life and made them have a dream and find something that they love or helped them at a hard time in their life. It might be dramatic to say this, but I feel the same way as well. If I hadn’t found my love for Japanese Idols, I wouldn’t have realized my love for Japanese entertainment and I wouldn’t have wanted to move to Japan and live here. So in a way, they help create dreams and the Idols cheer us on as well.

So in a nutshell, this is the relationship. The Idol gives entertainment and gives the fans something to support, the appeal being that they aren’t perfect and they can support the idol growing up and the fans take pride in being apart of that. The Fans spend money on the idol and they get the feeling of satisfaction and pride at being apart of something. They each give and receive something and its unique and pure in a way. Sure there is business behind it and brilliant marketing, but this relationship is something unique to Japan I think.

What do you think about the relationship between Japanese idols and their fans? Have they inspired you in someway? Let me know what you think about this topic below! I think it would be an interesting discussion!

Top 5 Spring-Like Songs of 2014

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Spring is already in full swing here in Japan. The Cherry Blossoms bloomed, their petals have already fallen, and summer is beginning to peak on the horizon as the temperature continues to rise by the day. I find myself inspired by music that has a seasonal feel, so today I wanted to write a post on my top 5 favorite songs of this Spring before the season changes! They are in no particular order, just how I feel like presenting them! Also, I am a big fan of J-pop, so all of these songs are Japanese songs.

 

#1: SAKURA, I love you? – Nishino Kana （西野カナ）

Though this is a sad love song about not being able to get over some one, the beat and the sound of the song is very Spring-like to me. I can listen to this song over and over again and feel myself walking through a row of Cherry Blossom trees. Even when its not spring I like listening to this song to make me feel like I am back in Cherry Blossom season. The music video is beautiful and every time I go to Karaoke I have to sing this song with the music video playing in the background.

#2 “Sakura Girl”「サクラガール」- NEWS

This song has a lot of the same sounds as Nishino Kana’s song above. I think it is the synthesizer that makes the beat of the song very spring-like to me. It’s a sad love song about a fleeting love, just like the short time a cherry blossom tree blooms for. I love the harmony and the chorus of “La, La, Love, Sakura”. Just like the above song too, I can just imagine walking through a row of cherry blossom trees and can feel the emotion of not being with someone anymore who you loved dearly.

#3 “Sayonara ni Sayonara”「サヨナラにさよなら」-  Tegomass テゴマス

This is a slower song compared to the other two songs, but the softness and sweetness of the song and the lyrics make me think of a love that starts in the Spring and the promise of never saying goodbye. The Piano and the music video also give it a spring-like feel as well! This song was also released Spring of 2013 so I have the image of this song being a spring song in my head. This song is also my favorite Tegomass song, next to Kiss “Kaerimichi no Love song”「キッス帰り道のラブソング」。

#4 “Haru Meki”「ハルメキ」 – Tegomass テゴマス

Another Tegomass song! Somehow I relate Tegomass with Spring recently and I think it’s because in 2013 they had Spring single releases and this year they had a Spring tour. This song is a song off of their new album “Tegomass no Seishun” . The title means “Spring Like” or the “Coming of Spring” and the lyrics are all about how everything is becoming like spring and the flowers are blooming. I love this song because its very upbeat and is a different type of spring song than is mentioned above, because it isn’t a love song.

#5  “Hana ni Omoi wo”「花に想いを」 – Tegomass テゴマス

The final pick is also a Tegomass song. This was the B-side track from their “Neko Chuudoku” single and I had no idea it was the B-side until I heard them perform this song in the concert tour I went to. The Harmonica and the the country-like feel to this song really makes me feel like I am in the country side in America with a bunch of flowers around me. It’s a different feeling than the first few songs, because America and Japan have different perceptions of spring. Spring is about flowers blooming, but in Asia it’s specifically the Cherry blossoms and plum blossoms that it revolves around. In Americ,a its about flowers blooming in general and Easter. This song really makes me smile while I am listening to it walking somewhere recently, and I can really feel that spring is here!

 

I hope you all enjoyed this post! Please comment below and tell me your favorite songs of this Spring and why! I look forward to hearing them!

NEWS LIVE TOUR 2013~10 Year Anniversary Event, Tokyo Dome, September 7th, 2013 Report

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Hi Everyone! I am back with a report about the 10 year anniversary event in Tokyo dome! Since there have already been a lot of reports already released, mine will be short and to the point with some things that I personally noticed and enjoyed during the concert! So, lets get started!

-The show started about 5-7 minutes late because people were still flooding into their seats in the arena. Eventually everyone started to get anxious and started to do the NEWS call even louder and finally NEWS came on.

– The setlist was basically the same as Tokyo and Kobe, but with a few changes. The added a single medley where they did all of their singles they hadn’t done yet in the concert, as well as they had both marching bands from both the Kobe and Tokyo concerts come and perform with them.

-There was kinda of a Parade thing with the marching bands with NEWS on the floor of Tokyo dome and when the bands originally appeared on stage they did a kinda dueling band drum line show down and I knew right then that it was both bands from both the Kobe and Tokyo shows.

– During Tegoshi’s solo he had a live rock band backing him up and they continued to back up through the next song, Liar. The intro to Liar with the band reminded me of the beginning of the band segments of a KJ8 concert and it was super cool!

-Tegoshi also messed up in the beginning of his solo starting out with the 2nd verse instead of the 1st one and told everyone to stop and to restart and apologized cutely.

– For the event part of the concert, it happened during the MC and they did a variety of things. First they showed old footage of each of the members and then they came out in their real debut costumes for NEWS Nippon. Shige’s pants were so tight they wouldn’t zip up properly and he had to go and change during the 2nd part of the event.They also at one point showed a morphing of how each of the members have changed from debut to now through pictures. Everyone when Koyoama’s pictures came on started shouting “charai”

– Also during the Event, NEWS told us they gave us a present, which were the wrist bands that were handed out at the doors when we came inside the Dome. They gave away other things during it too to specific seat numbers. Massu gave away a signed copy of his solo winkup, Tamiya Plamodel Spray paint in each of the members’s colors, and a bracelet he was just wearing. Tegoshi gave away a soccer ball he used on tour and the Mini 4WD he made during the Album DVD. Koyama gave away his whole suit that he wore for a year on Mirai theater and Shige gave away 2 photos, 1 he took and 1 of himself that he signed. They also gave away signed concert goods but they had the seat numbers posted at the end of the show and didn’t announce it in person, probably for time sake.

-The last present they gave us fans was a song that they wrote together called “Ai Kotoba”, which I think will officially be replacing Share from now on. It can be viewed on September 15th for 24 hours on the Johnnys Entertainment website (the record label) not the Johnnys and Associates website. There will also be special shop photos from the event on sale at the 4 Johnnys shops nation wide from September 15th until the end of the month.

-During the ending speeches I cried because Massu started crying as soon as he started his speech. As you all may know, Massu is my favorite member and I look up to him a lot so it was like I was crying in happiness with him and in disbelief with him that NEWS was able to stand in Tokyo Dome again. He said some of the same things he always says, like he couldn’t believe that so many people have the same plans to come to see them at the same time kinda thing and we all chuckled at that while crying with him. When he was going off stage, Koyama hugged him and it was the cutest thing ever. Koyama almost started crying during his speech but was like “No, I am the leader, I can’t cry!” Jokingly and changed the conversation to being really happy and playing around with the audience saying that since he was the leader of NEWS, he was also the leader of the NEWS fans and told us not to cheat on them with other groups jokingly! Koyama also said again that he wanted NEWS to be the ones that us fans come to in hard times to forget those hard things for a while and then tomorrow work hard again. I love that about NEWS so much and I feel that power from them always, even not during concert season. I don’t remember Shige or Tegoshi’s speeches very well, unfortunately.

– During the time between when they left the stage and the encore, us fans did a surprise for NEWS! Also when we came in, we received a glow stick with our wristbands and we were supposed to keep that a secret from NEWS. So we turned off our regular penlights and cracked the glow sticks and we surprised NEWS with glow sticks in all of their colors when they came out for the encore! The dome looked amazing all lit up in the member colors and they were so surprised! I ended up getting Shige’s at first, but my friend is a Shige fan so I traded her for the pink one! While walking back to the hotel, a girl stopped me and asked if I wanted to trade glow sticks because I was holding a Massu Uchiwa with a pink glow stick and she traded me for a yellow stick! Thank you to that very nice fan! NEWS fans are just amazing, Foreign or Japanese!

-The final encore song they did Koi Matsuri again and it was so much fun! It is my favorite song of this tour hands down! Even during the regular concert it was my favorite song to do in concert and I hope that they continue to have that song in concert from now on, as well as 4+Fan.

Thank you NEWS for an amazing experience. I will always be your fan, even when I become older and become more of an adult. You guys give me energy and the power to do what I love and become an amazing adult. Thank you, NEWS. Happy 10 Year anniversary!

I hope you guys enjoyed my short report! If you have any questions, as always, please comment below!

NEWS LIVE TOUR 2013 Kobe and Osaka Report

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Hi Everyone! Here is my long awaited Fan report from the NEWS LIVE TOUR 2013. I was able to do to Kobe on August 9th and all 3 Osaka shows on the 23rd and 24th of August. I will be doing a combined report and explaining some of the differences I saw between Kobe and Osaka, which is big venue vs. small venue. This is in no particular order, just my thought about what I remember about the concert.

August 9th, 2013; Hotomoto Field, Kobe

This show I ended up being 2nd row from the main stage in the arena. Unfortunately, though they were good seats, NEWS didn’t do a lot of the show on the front stage, but mostly on the center stage that was behind me. I am too short so I had to look on the screen a lot unless they did stuff on the main stage. Luckily, all of them did come around my area a good number of times, so I was able to see them all up close! Since they were on the stage I didn’t get to touch their hands or anything, but it was an amazing experience! All of them are still the same looking in person as on screen or pictures.

Things I noticed:

-There was only 1 encore but it lasted for a REALLY long time and they ended up doing 3 or 4 songs + the fireworks. I think I remember they did Koi Matsuri, Happy Birthday, 4+Fan, and Quntastic.

-There were 2 sets of fireworks during the encore! 1 time during Koi Matsuri encore and then a little while afterwards they did some special fireworks that spelled out NEWS that they shot off on the side of the stadium.

MC was hilarious —>
-The MC started with a letter from “J” again and it asked them to act out something for the aucience. The audience was the “Onee-sama” and the boys have been waiting for 30 minutes for their “Onee-sama”, what would they say? They each did like 2 versions of it, a silly one and a “real” one. They had the audience vote on the best one by clapping and Shige won with him saying “your late, lets go” in a S way.
-Tegoshi was so hyper that Shige asked he had drank  before the show.
-There was a Tegomssu moment when Tegoshi was asked what he would do if he saw his girlfriend with another guy.  KoyaMassu acted it out with Massu being the girl and Tegoshi stealing him away again. It was at an inline skating rink and Koyama just skated away at the end. LOL!
-Shige Tego Massu were on the stage after Koyama left to get ready for his solo and they had the venue do a penlight wave before returning to the concert!
-At the end, all of them copied Tegoshi and did the “koneko chan” thing, but then massu said “baka neko chan” instead! Koyama and Massu also copied Shige’s ending of his ending speech when he said “Now, I will do the highlight of the MC” and said his line from earlier during the MC
-During the last Koi Matsuri during the Encore, Tegoshi was right in from of me and almost for caught up in the fireworks. His face was priceless! Apparently Koyama did the same thing on the other end of the stage!
-There were 3 VTR’s: One before Koyama’s Solo featuring him, the one for Compass beginning that each venue changed where they went, and then before the dance segment. The one before LIAR and the other dancing songs was a really sexy.
-They had a live marching band again this year  and think I remember they performed Kobou Yell, Taiyou no Namida, and NEWS Nippon with them.
-There was a Jazzy version of Summer Time and 2人/130000000の奇跡. I particularly enjoyed this because it gave the feel of the unplugged live songs they had done back during the LIVE LIVE LIVE era.
-Massu solo = INCREDIBLE. The choreography was amazing and I liked how after the solo the other members had their own dance segment before going into Shock Me.
-During Shige’s Solo, Shige had himself on the screen too during his solo, split screen with him on the stage and then a video version on the other half of the screen for about half of the song. Screen Shige and Stage Shige sang different parts of the song.
-Tegoshi played guitar on main stage for his solo, but the rest did their solos on the center stage.
-Shige did revenge for last year’s fail at holding the the chankapana note in last years’ s Kobe MC and kept holding a long note for a while during the encore with saying Arigatou.
 August 23rd and 24th; Osaka Jou Hall, Osaka. 
This time, Osaka Jou Hall was a pretty small venue compared to Kobe. I didn’t have the best seats for all the shows, but I could still see really well!
– Most of the show was performed on the center stage again, but they moved around to the side stages quite a lot.
– They cut out all the band songs and they put in another VTR instead. Each venue had their own VTR and Osaka’s was about Osaka food and them bullying Koyama to reenact place around Osaka such as the tower, USJ, and the Gilco Man with the members having a poker face after he did it. That was super funny! Then Koyama gets frustrated and tells them to listen to him and then says that Pokopon was to cute and then they talk about changing it to a more “Wild” version because the movements were too cute. Then they vow to not do it cute anymore and proceeded to do an intro to a “Wild” version of Pokopon, but then they popped out doing the regular version of the song! it was pretty funny because of the contrast from what they just said.
During some of the ending speeches:
-NEWS said that Osaka was the most fired up venue out of all of them so far.
-Massu mentioned how at the beginning he didn’t want to do Shock Me right after his solo because it was really hard on him to do all that dancing all together, but now he is glad they decided to do it because everyone was really fired up during both of the songs here in Osaka. He also cutely mentioned how in a part of the concert he was near the sitting kids section and he saw 2 kids asleep and he wondered what part of the concert they fell asleep in because NEWS seriously thinks about the audience reaction to the whole setlist, like “oh this part they will be silent and just listen. This part they will be really excited and fired up” and such.
-Koyama talked about how he wanted each of the fans to come to a NEWS concert and forget all their worries about school, work,  etc. and then be rejuvenated for tomorrow to work hard. He said doing live shows is hard, but they actually feel really refreshed after meeting the fans as well as they do their work for us fans.
– During 1 of the MC’s they talked about how Tegoshi was almost late for the first show on the 24th and arrived just 30 min or less before the concert started and they were about to just go on and do the first song without him and they proceeded to set up and do a version of World Quest (the first song) with him apologizing kneeling on the floor while the rest did the song. They also told the story about how Tegoshi was woken up by his manager by him banging on the apartment door and trying to basically break in because they worried and Shige was on the phone with the manager at the time. They even called Tegoshi’s mother, apparently. Tegoshi didn’t pick up the phone because his phone was on sleep mode (I think its the do not disturb mode) and it didn’t ring.
– They also talked about in one of the MC’s about how Shige doesn’t greet happily/ energetically anymore in the morning when they first meet and that its almost like no one is in the dressing room when Shige and Massu are there first in the mornings. They then proceeded to reenact their real morning greetings and Koyama and Tegoshi end up doing the the “po po po” thing. Shige then exclaimed “That’s REALLY what they do! No lie!” kinda thing.
-Massu ran off to the restroom during the beginning one of the MC’s and then the rest of the members talked about how he did it during the Tegomassu cons a lot apparently. When he came back on the stage, he kinda lurked in the shadows awkwardly until the spotlight came back on him and it was quite funny.
-Massu had a routine right before his solo song. Towards the end of Greedier all of them would go to the center stage and  Massu would be the last and be handed a towel to wipe his face, then he would chug some water, and then switch his mike to a headset where he would do the last part of greedier with that mike on. Massu drinks a LOT during the concert.  I even noticed it a while back at the Tegomassu concert I went to. Massu has always been bad on stamina and he had mentioned it before.
– There was a lot of dancing in this tour. More so than the other tours.
– On the 23rd show, Shige accidentally got on the wrong cart at one point and realized his mistake and quickly went back to his own!
– On the 23rd Concert, during the 2nd encore Koyama announced that there was heavy rain outside and to be careful going home. After that the staff told us all to wait for about 30 min to leave until the storm let up and we were able to get NEWS to come back out again for a special 3rd encore because we were all stuck there and we all did Koi Matsuri again.
– At one point Tegoshi was bullying Shige and then Shige proceeded to strike back by biting Tegoshi and tackling him to the ground at the same time during the Happy Birthday encore.
– At the end of the concert Shige held the long Arigatou note again and the other members proceeded to harmonize along with him.
– During Be Funky one of the Jr’s liked to bully Koyama and poke him and push him to the ground and such. Massu at the end pretended to be one of the Jr’s and Shige introduced him as one of them eventually! NEWS seems to be close to the Jr’s that they worked with on this tour.
– On the 23rd MC they were all doing gags and Massu started it out by doing many of them and Shige just stood there saying “…. scary….” the whole time he was doing it. Finally we got Tegoshi to do one and he did one about the types of Shinkansens and at the end he just sits down. he did it again at the end of the show and all of them went and sat on top of him and it ended up in a dog pile mess with Shige somehow being on the bottom and shouting ” OUCH OUCH”.
I hope you all enjoyed this post! I am sorry its kinda all over the place, but I wanted to get all of my thoughts out there and couldn’t think of a good way of organizing them other than this. Thanks for reading! If I remember anything else, I will add more later!

Review: NEWS – “NEWS” Album

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NEWS is back! This time, with their first totally original album since they became”New” NEWS. In 2012, they released a BEST album that contained all of their old songs, but this album is the first album since they become 4 members to have all new songs with just the 4 of them. The album is self titled as「NEWS」and features 12 songs (13 on the regular edition). 3 of these song were released as singles  in the past year: チャンカパーナ(Chankapana)、WORLD QUEST, and ポコポンペコーリャ(Pokoponpekorya). The album also features the WING Kirei Bra commercial song 「渚のお姉サマー」Nagisa no Onee-sama, which was not released as a single, as well as the B Side of Chankapana, Full Swing.

Album Editions

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Album Editions Pictured Left to Right: Limited Edition A, Limited Edition B and Regular Edition

This album comes in 3 editions:

Limited Edition A: CD +DVD Combo

This Edition has 12 Songs, along with a DVD titled “LIFE OF NEWS”, which contains footage of the members going around Tokyo together and doing each other’s hobbies that they like to do on their typical day off.

Limited Edition B: CD + CD Combo

This Edition has 12 songs on the first CD (same as the regular edition and the edition above) and then 4 Songs on the 2nd CD which contains the member’s solo songs.

Regular Edition: CD

This Edition contains 13 Songs, which are the normal 12 songs from the other Editions + 1 extra song called “CRY”

Thoughts on the Songs

1. Compass

This is  an intro to the album in english, basically telling the fans that NEWS wants to spread NEWS to all directions in Japan, and the world, and telling the fans the direction that want to go in and that NEWS is finally back! I had never heard something like this except on Yamapi’s Super Good Super Bad album where he had an intro like this as well. The first time I heard this song I giggled (and I STILL do) because it was in english and the way it was said was kinda funny to me, but all in all I really like the message they are trying to convey behind this; “we are new NEWS and we want to reach as far as we can. We are back”.

2. WORLD QUEST

This was the FIFA 2012 Club World Cup song that was released back in December 2012 as a Double A side single with ポコポンペコーリャ(Pokoponpekorya). At first, I really didn’t like this song to be honest. It was nice to listen to a few times, but I got bored with it easily, unlike Chankapana. After listening to it in the flow of the album though, my thought on the song changed a bit and I began to like it more! In the flow of the album, I like how it’s first because it fits as an opening song after Compass; a powerful intro into the album! I think if it were elsewhere in the album, it would be awkwardly placed.

3. 4+FAN

This title is read as “For Fan”. This song was meant to be a call and response song for NEWS, like a lot of the other Johnnys groups have. NEWS asked to have one created and this was the result! It is a fun upbeat song with simple, but impactful lyrics from NEWS to the fans expressing their gratitude to the fans. This is going to be a fun song in concert because of the call and response component! If you didn’t notice, towards the beginning of the song it spells out NEWS in the build up to the chorus! I think it is s a perfect call and response song for NEWS and suits them very well!

4.「渚のお姉サマー」(Nagisa no Onee-sama)

This was the WING Kirei Bra commercial song and was only released on the album, not as a single. The title of the song is basically a whole bunch of plays on words and directly means “Woman of the Seashore”, but Onee-sama means “Older sister” in Japanese, but is often also used as a term for a woman older than you, but not necessarily in your family. Sama is an honorific ending to a name, but in this case its a play on words サマー (sama) in katakana and its referring to the english word “Summer”, thus a summer-like song! This is one of my favorite songs on the album because I think it is like a new version of their previous song “SUMMER TIME” and I think it fits NEWS’s style very well from the lyrics of the song to the style of music! The song is basically about a younger guy  looking at an older woman and falling in love with her during the summer on the seashore and trying to appeal to her! It’s a fun, upbeat song with a very summer like feel!

5. 「ポコポンペコーリャ」(Pokoponpekorya)

This was the other Double A side to the WORLD QUEST single and wasn’t pushed as much. I personally like this song better than WORLD QUEST because I love cute-like songs and I thought it suited NEWS very well! The title of the song basically means to be hungry and is all about food and eating! The music almost reminds me of Ireland or Scotland because of the bag-pipe like sounds in the background. The lyrics and the music of the song are very cute-like, so if you don’t like cute-like songs, this song is definitely not for you.

6. 「恋祭り」(Koi Matsuri)

“Koi Matsuri” translates into “Love Festival” and just as the title implies, it is about love at a summer festival. Koi Matsuri has to be my favorite song on this album hands down for a few reasons: First, I love the fusion of old style Japanese festival music with the taiko drums and other instruments with current pop sounds . I love when songs fuse together 2 different types of sounds to make something that people wouldn’t have thought of before! Second, the pace of the song changes abruptly, speeding up and slowing down at many different times and it keeps you on your toes, kinda like fireworks at a Japanese summer fireworks festival! When I first saw the title of the song, I thought it was going to be a slow love song, but I was pleasantly surprised with this song and loved it from when Koyama played it on his radio show “Kei-chan NEWS”.

7. Greedier

This is 1 of 2 slow songs on the album, not including the member solos. This is a soft R&B style love ballad and I love the light acoustic guitar and the soft, almost lullaby-like way they sing the song. The whistling at the beginning of the song and during some parts of the song, along with the sound of waves too periodically is also a very nice touch! I am not normally a fan of slow songs, but this song really made me smile and somehow made me fall in love with it!

8. ベサメ･ムーチョ～狂おしいボレロ～ ( Besame Mucho~ Mad Bolero)

This song has a classic boy band feel to it and in some interviews NEWS said this was supposed to be similar to a long time NEWS fan favorite, I ZA NA I ZU KI. This has a very spanish kinda feel to it, as the title might imply a bit! I am not totally aware of what the meaning of the title of this song is, but I really like the lyrics so far (as I have not translated them yet or looked at this particular song’s lyrics in depth quite yet) and from what I gather it seems to be a sensual song. I like the beat of the song, not too slow to be a ballad but not too fast to be a really fast song.

9. チャンカパーナ(Chankapana)

Chankapana is one of my favorite NEWS singles of all time. This was their first single as 4 members and I think they came back with a bang! This song was supposed to be a message to the fans that they are very important to NEWS, and Chankapana is a made up word that means – 愛しい人, or beloved person. This is a very upbeat song that I thought was perfect for representing new NEWS!

10. Dance in the Dark

NEWS almost always has 1 dance song on their album and this time is no different! Dance songs like Bambina, Dancing in the Secret, and Ai no Matador are always fan favorites, and I think this one is sure to become a fan favorite as well! My favorite aspect of this song is how the vocals are very “husky” as compared to a lot of the other songs on the album that are more “sweet” and is an especially stark contrast to “Greedier” which has a very soft, almost lullaby -like vocals. The vocals in the song weren’t really auto tuned at all (except for a few small parts) and I liked that because you can focus on the nice husky vocals instead.  I can see this performed with fire and be very sensual on stage because the lyrics themselves are very sensual and I have heard many people saying that they think this is “Bambina part 2” because the lyrics imply very similar things! (LOL!)

11. HIGHER GROUND

This is the only really Rock-like song on the album and its more of an upbeat “Pop-rock” type song. Its an inspiring song about moving forward and I think that is one of the biggest themes of this album: Gratefulness to the fans, as well as being stronger and pushing forward. I think its a great song to be towards the end of the album.

12. 「フルスイング」(Full Swing)

This song is fitting to be last on the album (besides the regular edition, of course, which has 13 songs) and this was actually a B side on the Chankapana single. It was so popular in the concerts last year and so moving to both the fans and NEWS, that NEWS decided it should be on the album as well. I am so glad they decided to put this on the album because I think it fits with the overall theme of new NEWS and the album as well. The song is basically NEWS’s feelings about the departure of the other 2 members and them kinda pushing forward after being at a standstill for so long wrapped up into one song. I really like how this was the last song on the limited editions of the album because it really shows how far NEWS has come and its such a meaningful song to both NEWS and the fans.

(Only on the Regular Edition) 13. CRY

This is their 2nd of 2 slow songs on the album, and its not even THAT slow to be honest. I really like the beat of the song and the lyrics are also very inspiring. I think this was a good way to wrap up the album because if it ended with a really upbeat song I don’t think it would have fit into the flow of the album. If I had to pick a song that would end the tour coming up (before the encore) , I think that this song would be perfect for it!

14. Beautiful Rain – by Koyama Keiichiro

This is Koyama’s solo song on the album and it is an R&B love song. The first time I heard this song it reminded me of Nakamaru from KAT-TUN’s solo songs and I could see Koyama dancing to this song this year, unlike last year where he had a ballad and just stood at a mic and performed it. I think this song has strong vocals, but when Koyama goes higher at points I can’t help to think that its too high for his range a bit or if thats supposed to be the vocal style for the song. I want to think that it is the latter though because it seems to be similar for other R&B type of songs. I think this is a really sweet song and I really like this song better than his solo song from Chankapana last year because I find this eaiser to listen to more than last year’s slow song.

15. Dreamcatcher – by Kato Shigeaki

Shige does a complete 180 degree turn from his Vampire song from last year with a Jazzy R&B “lullaby for adults” as he describes in interviews. The vocals in this song are perfect for him with his falsetto and then going deeper at a small rap part in the middle. I think Shige did an amazing job on this song and his voice suits the style perfectly. I like the little bit crazy lyrics, and with the combination of his vocals its a very sensual lullaby and I especially like the touch at the end with him saying “Oyasumi”, or goodnight, which he said he got that idea from his radio show where he always says oyasumi at the end of it.

16. Remedy – by Masuda Takahisa

This is hands down my favorite solo song out of all of them and not just because Massu is my favorite member of NEWS (and in Johnnys….). Its an hard dance song and the vocals are just so well done! I love the beat and maybe its because I am attracted to faster songs that this is my favorite solo song. Massu tends to always do solo songs that he can dance to and I think its maybe because he doesn’t get to do it as much in Tegomass (as its a very different style than dance music) and limited in NEWS. The lyrics basically mean that “you are my poison and my remedy for it too” which I think is a very interesting concept. I also like how the chorus is really easy to remember!

17. Lovin’U – by Tegoshi Yuya

This is a pop-rock ballad and it sounds like something that would be a Tegomass single or apart of a Tegomass album, so I was very surprised when I first heard it. The song is written in the perspective of a girl and its about the guy that she loves choosing work over her and she has always supported him, but now she decides that they need to break up and move on, though she still loves him. I was surprised at how soft the vocals of the song were, especially for a song that Tegoshi alone sings, but when I thought about it I realized it was in the perspective of a girl so thats why he decided to go for more soft vocals.

Final Thoughts about the Songs

I thought that overall, this was a very solid album, if not the most solid album that NEWS had released. Everyone was at the top of their game vocal wise and the songs were chosen very well for the combination of their 4 voices. I love each and every song on this album and that is very rare for a Johnnys group for me. This album must have been in the works for a very long time because I can tell it was very well thought out. I have had this album on repeat since I received it and I still haven’t gotten tired of it at all. The thing I was most surprised about was the huge improvement in Shige’s vocals on this album, as well as how Tegoshi’s voice wasn’t at the center of attention. I was so impressed with Shige and his solo song, as well as how strong his vocals were on this album. I can tell he worked very hard overall and his confidence has rises big time and it was conveyed through this album. This album is my favorite NEWS album, with Pacific and then LIVE after that.

NEWS, welcome back! Us fans have been waiting and you certainly delivered above and beyond my expectations!