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
THIS WEEK: April 27 – May 3
(Alexandros) – Coffee Float (ft. hard life)
It’s like the most muted, dull version of 90’s alternative music.
back number – Blue Amber
A sentimental sound.
Chanmina – Work Hard
Fun verses, annoying chorus.
Crimson Crat Clan – Starlight
This has a pulse and I like the addition of talkbox. Ultimately, it’s still pretty generic, though.
HANA – Tiger
This b-side seems to be gaining steam in Japan. It’s not doing much for me, but I imagine fans of this particular girl group sound will enjoy it.
Hikaru Utada – Mine Or Yours
Just way too chill for me.
INI – Potion
Another pots and pans boy group track to throw on the heap. More shouting, too.
IS:SUE – Shining
I’m so sick of this sound and this kind of vocal affectation.
J Soul Brothers III – Ice Breaker
They’re capable of so much more than this.
KJRGL – Cloud_Six (song of the week!)
This a burst of energy. I’d love more singing and less shouting, but beggars can’t be choosers and overall I like this one.
Mrs. Green Apple – Heaven
I went through a brief phase of appreciating their distinct brand of “overwrought” (Magic is still a bop!), but now I just find it obnoxious.
MYERA – Tornado
I swear I’ve heard this song before. I really dislike this sound. It feels like a chore to get through.
Novelbright – Canopus
This has a nice anthemic drive but doesn’t go widescreen enough in my opinion.
Orange Range – Majide Sekai Kaecyau5 Byoumae
This is silly, upbeat fun. I definitely appreciate the energy.
Radwimps – Tamamono
I like the orchestral flourishes and the sprightliness of the chorus.
Sakurazaka46 – Addiction (song of the week!)
I wrote about this already but now it has a music video. It’s not their strongest single, but it’s very solid.
Travis Japan – Would You Like One?
This is one of those songs that’s polished and upbeat but leaves absolutely no mark when it’s finished. They have a worrying amount of these in their discography so far.
This week’s old favorite:
Miyavi – Mirror Mirror (2024)
I’m a little salty that I paid a hefty price to import both of Miyavi’s recent albums only to have them eventually released to streaming. However, I’m happy for you all because now you can enjoy his newest work! This is a previously-unavailable b-side from his 2024 album that I think is particularly great.
The Bias List // K-Pop Reviews & Discussion 
I know you’re not a fan of Hikaru Utada, but I’m happy with this new one. It’s the best song I’ve heard from her since her Bad Mode album (which had some really good ones on it). It should appeal to fans.
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i got inspiration from jude to make my own list of best jpop songs of the century, going from 2000-2020
it definitely needs more songs though (especially for the 2000s cuz im almost full with the 2010s) but yeah, im even putting the best anime openings i know as well
https://docs.google.com/document/d/15T1tMKKdPgd8sD8j8W4KP90aBgjQk3wVjAd4FR1tSAU/edit?usp=sharing
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Cool! I’m still working on mine! I tried to organize my top tier, and it’s roughly this:
It’s a work-in-progress…
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maybe i’ll give you some more songs i have in the doc:
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You should include up to 2025 – if you think about it, 25 years is a pretty significant number 🙂
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ykw now that i think about it thats not a bad idea
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I saw you updated it. I’m making a lot of discoveries here, keep it coming when you have the time!:)
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Looking at yours and mine, we share a great many songs; here are some of my favorites that I didn’t see on yours:
2001: Hikaru Utada – Can You Keep A Secret
2005: Hikaru Utada – Passion; Namie Amuro – WANT ME, WANT ME
2007: ARASHI – Love So Sweet; TVXQ – Love in the Ice; Hikaru Utada’s Flavor of Life & Beautiful World
2008: TVXQ – Doushite Kimi Wo Suki Ni Natte Shimattandaro; Hikaru Utada’s Prisoner of Love
2009: TVXQ – Bolero; Namie Amuro – WILD
2010: NEWS – Dancin’ in the Secret
2011: TVXQ – Why (Keep Your Head Down)
2012: TVXQ – ANDROID
2013: AAA – Koi Oto to Amazora; Nogizaka46 – 月の大きさ; GENERATIONS – HOT SHOT
2014: BoA – MASAYUME CHASING
2015: Predia – 名もなき白い花は消え逝く
2016: FAKY – Candy; Da-iCE – Splash; FAMM’IN – Circle; Hikaru Utada – Michi; Kis-My-Ft2 – Summer Breeze
2017: MONDO GROSSO – Labyrinth; Namie Amuro – Just You and I; SHINee – Kimi No Seide; E-girls – Kitakaze to Taiyou
2018: EXO – Cosmic Railway; TWICE – BDZ; Hikaru Utada – Play a Love Song
2019: GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE – Pierrot, Hey Say JUMP – CALL & PRAY; TWICE – Breakthrough
2020: Ado – Usseewa
2021: KAT-TUN – Roar; Ado – Odo
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i didnt include dancin in the secret, call & pray, cosmic railway or summer breeze in the list since they were b-sides and i only wanted to include singles for the list, i might separate the years for b-sides too if i want
as for some the tvxq songs, i don’t wanna include japanese vers of originally korean tracks so i cant put them in
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I came here just to see if Nick liked the new Utada song (I LOVE it), but I checked out your list and you have lots of great stuff on there. Highlights from your list for me are Born to Be (one of my favorite Ayu songs in terms of production/arrangement), Realize, Shaky Shaky, Je’taime Je’taime, and Flower Power.
I’ve been working on two lists, 2000-2012 and 2013-2025. Still working on the second one, but you might find some stuff you like on the first one:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3a5TcSdqUEBeaIaa7O5y3w
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Kpop has become mainstream trendy in Japan again, and you can really see it here (for the worse, imo). In the 2010s when a few jpop girlies were attempting their best KARA and SNSD impressions, I enjoyed the heck out of it. But I’m really struggling to find enjoyment in the newer generation of kpop, so I could’ve done without its sound gradually leaking into jpop lol.
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