Which song best encourages students during exam time?


Recochoku users voted on which song they thought best cheered on students who were preparing to take exams, and the results of the poll have been announced!

ARASHI won the top spot with their song “Sakura Sake,” a song whose title closely resembles the word for success on exams (sakurasaki). This is the second year in a row …


AKB48, Arashi increase year-end single CD sales for the first time in 5 years


Oricon revealed their “2010 Yearly Market Report” on the 13th, which summarized the total sales for all music units in 2010. While the amount of total CDs and DVDs sold in 2010 actually decreased from the year before, the report does suggest that the immense popularity of idol groups AKB48 and Arashi did have a positive effect on the …


Ikimonogakari’s “Best” album tops charts again after eight weeks away!

Breaking through sales of 1 million copies last week, pop unit Ikimonogakari’s first ‘best’ album, “Ikimonobakari ~Member’s BEST Selection~”, has ranked number 1 again for the week of January 17th, 8 weeks after their last number 1 ranking for the album on November 22nd.

The last such album “comeback” was a year and nine months ago, when the March 2009 release …


“TSUTAYA” announces the result of “CD Rental Ranking Yearly Best 10″

Japan’s largest rental DVD, CD, game and book store, TSUTAYA, has released the result of “CD Rental Ranking Yearly Best 10.” The annual list below ranks the top Japanese CDs from January 1 to December 22, 2010.


Ikimonogakari to hold two day live concert at Yokohama Stadium

Ikimonogakari has announced that they will be holding a two live concert, “Ikimonomatsuri 2011 Donata Summer mo Tanoshimima SHOW!!!~Yokohama Stadium~“, on July 23rd and 24th.  The details on the live concerts will be revealed later, but it’s sure to be a heck of a show.

They also announced that they will hold a tour starting in July which is limited to …


[Update] Performances from the 52nd Japan Record Awards

On December 30th, the 52nd Japan Record Awards were held at the New National Theatre in Tokyo, just as they have been since 2004.

Many top artists showed up to perform their hit songs, and if you missed the live broadcast or if you just want to see it all over again, check out the videos below!


SMAP’s Nakai Masahiro to host year-end CDTV special live

Popular late night music program Countdown TV (CDTV) will live broadcast its annual “CDTV Special! Toshikoshi Premier Live 2010→2011” on December 31st, and SMAP’s Nakai Masahiro will be the host for the program.

CDTV has been holding this premier live since 2001, but this will be the first time that Nakai will be the host.  The live is scheduled to run for …


Ikimonogakari brings “Kimagure Romantic” and “Arigatou” to MUSIC STATION SUPER LIVE 2010

Ikimonogakari placed just behind Arashi on the 2010 Oricon Yearly Album Chart, so you know they had a successful year.

On MUSIC STATION SUPER LIVE 2010, TV Asahi’s year-end music special, the group performed “Kimagure Romantic” and “Arigatou” for the fans!

Check it out below!


Oricon releases their 2010 yearly ranking for “Artist Total Sales”!

Oricon has stamped the end of 2010 with the release of their yearly ranking for “Artist Total Sales“.  The ranking is based on the gross total sales of CDs (both singles and albums), DVDs, and Blu-Ray Discs.

We’ve got the list of the ‘top 5′ artists with the highest record of sales down below!

1. Arashi – ¥17.163 billion/¥17,163,000,000 (approximately $204,321,424)

2. Tohoshinki – ¥9.431 …


Oricon Yearly Album Ranking for 2010 is out!

We reported the “2010 Oricon Yearly Single Ranking” a moment ago, and here are the results for “2010 Oricon Yearly Album Ranking,” Check it out!


Additional exciting details revealed for “MUSIC STATION SUPER LIVE”!

As we reported earlier, MUSIC STATION’s annual year-end event, “MUSIC STATION SUPER LIVE” will be held (and broadcasted live) at Makuhari Messe on Christmas Eve from 7:00 – 11:10PM. The artist line-up was already pretty exciting, but additional details are sure to add to the hype!

SMAP, Yuzu, Ayumi Hamasaki, and Fukuyama Masaharu will perform their masterpieces from …


Performances from NTV’s Best Artist 2010!

NTV’s Best Artist 2010 was held on December 15th at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, and the top Japanese artists were all in attendance.

The end of the year music program began back in 2001, and while no awards are doled out at the show, being invited is the award in itself, because it recognizes the artist as one of the best in Japan.

There were a ton of performances from the artists who were invited, and if you missed the live broadcast for whatever reason, or if you just want to see it all again, check out the videos below!


Ikimonogakari plans a hiatus for 2011

Locking down 2010 as one of the most successful years in their career, the members of Ikimono Gakari feel like they can take a well-deserved break in 2011.

The group’s vocalist, Kiyoe Yoshioka, announced on December 9th through her weekly radio show that the trio would be taking a performing hiatus for the first half of 2011. She also confirmed …


NTV’s year-end program “Best Artist 2010″ announces full lineup

On December 15th at 7 PM, Japan’s NTV network will broadcast live their year end program, “Best Artist 2010″, and they’ve finally announced the full lineup of guests for the special event.

This year the show will feature:


Ikimonogakari to receive their first “million sold” certificate

It’s been announced that J-pop trio, Ikimonogakari, will receive a special certificate from the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for selling 1 million copies of their best album “Ikimono Bakari ~Members BEST Selection~” on December 10th.

Ikimonogakari’s album sold more than 457,000 copies in its first week last month. Oricon data states that up til now, it has sold more than …


Page 6 of 8« First...45678