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.
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 // Aug 31 – Sep 6 // Sep 7 – Sep 13 // Sep 14 – Sep 20 // Sep 21 – Sep 27 // Sep 28 – Oct 4 // Oct 5 – Oct 11 // Oct 12 – Oct 18 // Oct 19 – Oct 25 // Oct 26 – Nov 1 // Nov 2 – Nov 8 // Nov 9 – Nov 15 // Nov 16 – Nov 22 // Nov 23 – Nov 29 // Nov 30 – Dec 6
THIS WEEK: December 7 – 13
BE:FIRST – Lighting Up The Town
A wintry mid-tempo. It’s pretty forgettable.
Hey! Say! JUMP – Scale It Up (song of the week!)
Okay, I’m cheating a bit by including a b-side on this week’s list, and cheating even more because it was first released last month. However, it’s newly available to stream and co-composed by one of my favorite talents Christofer Erixon (writer of Kis-My-Ft2’s Gravity among many other classics).
Plus, I need something to be my song of the week in this very dull week of releases!
Naniwa Danshi – Never Romantic
It’s exactly what you’d expect a Naniwa Danshi song to sound like, but not a good example of one.
≠ME – Ki ~yunkawa jinsei
Hyperactive and high-pitched.
Penguin Research – Flashback
I’ve always liked this singer’s voice. The chorus is strong, too.
PG – Midnight Fever
This new song comes in two versions but both sound pretty similar. It’s a fun dance track for the younger set.
ROIROM – My Princess
Plonky beat + sleighbells. Not a great combo.
T.N.T – Mirai E
It’s hard to keep up with what exactly XY/T.N.T has morphed into, but I guess it’s pretty much the Tegoshi show now. This might as well just have been a solo track.
UNiFY – VivaHoli
A bit too silly for me, but it has its moments.