In connection with my desire to fully keep up with the J-pop industry, I’m planning to do a weekly round-up of any new releases that have caught my ear. Some of these may have been covered on the blog already, but my hope is that this will become a one-stop shop for anyone interested in what’s new in J-pop.

With that in mind, here’s where you come in: I’m one person with one set of musical preferences, so please embed any other new J-pop tracks you’ve enjoyed in the comments so we can get a fuller spectrum each week.

*And just like I do with my reviews, I’ll wait until full versions of songs are available before posting them in this round-up. This will mostly apply to Starto groups, who still limit the majority of their YouTube uploads to shorter, edited versions.

2023-2024 Index

2025 Index: Dec 29 – Jan 11 // Jan 12 – Jan 18 // Jan 19 – Jan 25 // Jan 26 – Feb 1 // Feb 2 – Feb 8 // Feb 9 – Feb 15 // Feb 16 – Feb 22 // Feb 23 – Mar 1 // Mar 2 – Mar 8 // Mar 9 – Mar 15 // Mar 16 – Mar 22 // Mar 23 – Mar 29 // Mar 30 – Apr 5 // Apr 6 – Apr 12 // Apr 13 – Apr 19 // Apr 20 – Apr 26 // Apr 27 – May 3 // May 4 – May 10 // May 11 – May 16 // May 17 – May 24 // May 25 – May 31 // Jun 1 – Jun 7 // Jun 8 – Jun 14 // Jun 15 – Jun 21 // Jun 22 – Jun 28 // Jun 29 – Jul 5 // Jul 6 – Jul 12 // Jul 13 – Jul 19 // Jul 20 – Jul 26 // Jul 27 – Aug 2 // Aug 3 – Aug 9 // Aug 10 – Aug 16 // Aug 17 – Aug 23 // Aug 24 – Aug 30

THIS WEEK: August 31 – September 6

ano – Kill Love

Apart from her instantly recognizable vocals, this is the kind of hyper-paced indie rock we’re hearing all over the place these days.

Aqua Timez – Sora Ippai Ni Kanaderu Inori

A languid ballad.

Bangers – Sherbet

This is actually very pleasant with strong vocals. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but I can see myself going back to it often.

Bi-ray – Butterfly (Narrative version MV)

Everything about this is so random. Yoshiki’s approach to managing (or not managing) his artists is also so random. The song is still decent, though.

Fujii Kaze – Prema

The new album’s out and judging from the previews it’s not the big sonic shift I was expecting. This song’s got a pretty nice groove I guess.

ILLIT – Toki Yo Tomare (song of the week!)

I wrote about this here. I liked it.

Juice=Juice – More! Mi Amore

This is charmingly old-school but ultimately not for me.

King Gnu – So Bad

Decent chorus, lackluster verses.

Koichi Domoto – The Beginning Of The World (song of the week!)

This has the kind of theatrical drama I expect from Koichi. Not sure how often I’d listen to it, but I appreciate the bombast.

ME:I – Royal Energy

This is definitely one of their better songs. It’s nothing revolutionary, but it’s a nice bop.

NEO JAPONISM – Never Fade Away

A much more sentimental song from them.

OrβIT – Panorama

Fun, upbeat boy group pop/rock.

Ryubi Miyase – Gravity

I wrote about this last week but now it has a music video.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra vs. Koshi Inaba – Action

Not really my thing, but fans of this sound will love it.

WATWING – Keep It Going On

I’ll always love a bit of new jack swing. I wish this had a bit more oomph, but it’s enjoyable.