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.

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2023-2025 Index

2026 Index: Dec 28 – Jan 3 // Jan 4 – Jan 10 // Jan 11 – Jan 17 // Jan 18 – Jan 24 // Jan 25 – Jan 31 // Feb 1 – Feb 7 // Feb 8 – Feb 14 // Feb 15 – Feb 21 // Feb 22 – Feb 28 // Mar 1 – Mar 7 // Mar 8 – Mar 14 // Mar 15 – Mar 21 // Mar 22 – Mar 28 // Mar 29 – Apr 4 // Apr 5 – Apr 11 // Apr 12 – Apr 18 // Apr 19 – Apr 25 // Apr 26 – May 2

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THIS WEEK: May 3 – May 9

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Che’Nelle – Sense of Wonder

A good old fashioned power ballad.

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Crystal Kay – Only One (ft. Yoonmirae)

An interesting collaboration, for sure. Song isn’t that interesting, though.

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Fantastics – Pump It Up!

The production is way too fussy. Just stick to your groove!

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GRIPHAGE – Vida Mia

That’s quite a group name. This debut is a bit rough around the edges.

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Hikaru Utada – PAPPAPARADISE

It’s got a laidback groove that will work well for streaming. I crave more ambition, though.

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Hinatazaka46 – Kind Of Love

Very sprightly and fun.

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IS:SUE – Quartet (song of the week!)

Fun and frothy and filled with nice melodies suited to the spring.

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LiSA – Yes

A typical ballad of this style.

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METALVERSE – GIZA

This genre of “electronic metal song fronted by a group of idol-like women” is such a Japanese touchstone at this point. This one’s pretty good.

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Monday Dirty Jokes – Fanfare

Okay, this wasn’t the sound I was expecting from their group name. This is quite good. An uplifting, melodic pop/rock track.

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NAQT VANE – Pi-Po

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

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Nogizaka46 – Mouhitotsunotaiyo

Dull ballad.

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OCTPATH – Stay Honest

Drowsy funk. Doesn’t do much for me.

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One Love One Heart – CHOAICHODAI

Ugh. I need them to go back to the music theater rock sound of their debut album.

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The Rampage – MAJI-YABAI

Hmm… not my thing at all.

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ROIROM – Classic Wave (song of the week!)

Oh, I LOVE this! Sleek and funky and ornamented with orchestral elements that make it feel big and theatrical.

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The Super Fruit – Wanna Be

Well… this is certainly a transformation. An unneeded one, imo.

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WATWING – Present

A ballad.

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&TEAM – Bewitched (song of the week!)

This is SO much better than We On Fire and they really need to give it a proper music video.