The opening theme Arogatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba by Naotaro Moriyama for the ongoing TV anime series Somali and the Forest Spirit is garnering much attention right now. The “TV version” of the songーthat’s the version edited for the anime seriesーwas released digitally in Japan yesterday.

To promote the song, a campaign is being held for fans of the anime series to sign up and receive some original Somali and the Forest Spirit prints.

To apply, you need to purchase and download the TV version of the song from iTunes Japan or Recochoku. 5 prints will be given to everyone that downloads the song, and they’re different depending on which of the two music platforms you download from.

Episode 3 of the anime series aired on January 24. Both the series and the opening theme have received much love and praise, with the latter having won over the hearts of Japanese fans on social media, who have described it as making them tear up and being a perfect fit for the anime

Arogatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba (TV version) is now available on all major download and streaming platforms, including Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Recochoku, LINE MUSIC, and elsewhere.

The CD cover for the digital release of Naotaro Moriyama’s song Arigatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba (TV Version) has been unveiled. The song is used as the opening theme for the onoing TV anime series Somali and the Forest Spirit which began airing on January 9.

The anime edit version of the track is set for digital release on January 24.

The cover design is the same as the teaser visual release for the anime series, featuring the Somali and Golem  meeting each other for the first time. The song is the first by Naotaro Moriyama’s to be written for an anime series.

The song received a flood of love on Japanese social media when it first hit the air, with fans commenting how it brought them to tears for how beautiful it is.

Arigatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba will be made available across all major download and streaming platforms on January 24 including iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music, LINE MUSIC, Recochoku, and so on.

The new blockbuster hit from internationally-acclaimed animator and film director Makoto Shinkai Weathering with You dropped back in July and has since amassed over 10 billion yen (approximately US$101 million) in the box office.

A music video for the movie edit of the film’s main Shukusai by RADWIMPS featuring Toko Miura has just been released on the band’s official YouTube page. The gorgeous video is inspired by the film’s story, with the change in sunny weather simultaneously uplifting peoples’ feelings.

The video features a lone Toko Miura in a cave with the sunlight shining down. The life that exists down in the cave begins to bloom at the sound and echo of Miura’s bright and clear voice.

RADWIMPS, who are responsible for the film’s entire soundtrack, have announced that they will release a new album entitled Weathering with You complete version on November 27, 2019. The album will include all 5 main themes, including both the full versions and versions edited down for the film.

©️2019 “Weathering with You” Production Committee

It has been announced that Japanese singer-songwriter Naotarō Moriyama’s new song Arigatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba (“It Should Be Me Thanking You”) will be used as the opening theme for the upcoming TV anime series Somali and the Forest Spirit which is set to air in January 2020.

This marks Moriyama’s first time writing a song for an anime series. The ending theme Kokoro Somali is performed by Inori Minase. Both are original songs that touch on the world of the series.

The opening theme can be heard in the newest promotional video for the anime series below.

The anime’s official website has also been updated with new character illustrations and more.

Ryo Yoshimata

The anime’s music is composed by Ryo Yoshimata, who has worked on many famous drama series and movies in Japan, and is produced by Akira Yamaoka, a huge name in the games industry for his work including that in the Silent Hill franchise. The anime’s art director is French creator Vincent Nghiem.

Naotarō Moriyama

Naotarō Moriyama commented the following in regards to writing the opening theme: “I read the manga, and tried to write Arigatou wa Kocchi no Kotoba while singing as if I was part of the story’s scenery while going back and forth between the valley of fantasy and nostalgia. It touches on Somali and Golem’s journey. The recording process was very lively too. Coming into contact with this series has let me peek into a world I never knew before, and so I give my thanks to it.”

©Yako Gureishi/NSP 2015

A new 90-second trailer has just been released for Weathering with You, the next animated film by internationally acclaimed Japanese director Makoto Shinkai (Your Name., The Garden of Words).

The film’s soundtrack is being left to rock band RADWIMPS, and in the new trailer, we get to hear two main theme songs: Ai ni Dekiru Koto wa Mada Aru Kai as well as the new Grand Escape (Movie edit) which features Japanese actress Toko Miura. Check it out below.

As Makoto Shinkai himself spoke about, the trailer features an array of sounds, from the howling wind and patter of the rain to the summery music of RADWIMPS and clear, beautiful and mysterious voice of Toko Miura.

Grand Escape (Movie edit) feat. Toko Miura came about after RADWIMPS vocalist Yojiro Noda expressed his desire to have a female vocalist sing in place of him. The song sees Toko Miura take over as the main vocalist of the track in which the world finally gets to hear the power of expression in her voice.

The trailer details additional members to the voice cast. This includes lauded actor and a spearhead of the Japanese film industry Shun Oguri who is set to appear in the upcoming Godzilla vs. Kong film in 2020. He will play the role of Keisuke Suga, a writer who meets the protagonist Hodaka Morishima while they are both on a ferry to Tokyo.

Actress and model Tsubasa Honda, who is noted for the diversity of her work, will voice Natsume, a college student who works in the same company as Suga and has a fiery curiosity for gathering information to write about. Legendary actress Chieko Baisho will voice the elderly lady Tomi who makes a request of the two main characters Hodaka and Hina.

The other just-announced cast also includes Sakura Kiryu as Nagisa Amano, an elementary school student and younger brother of Hina; Sei Hiraizumi as Yasui, an old police detective who pays a visit to Suga’s office after an incident in the city; and Yuuki Kaji as Takai, another detective and Yasui’s accomplice who appears before Hodaka and the others as part of the investigation.

The above-pictured new key visual was also released alongside the trailer. It pictures the moment when the rain finally lets up and the sun starts to shine through the clouds. The beautiful image is inherently Makoto Shinkai-esque.

The film’s soundtrack by RADWIMPS will drop on July 19, the same date the film itself is set for release. It will feature five main theme songs with vocals including the two in the trailer as well as 27 instrumental tracks.

©️2019 “Weathering with You” Production Committee

It was revealed last month that Japanese rock band RADWIMPS will perform the soundtrack for the upcoming animated film Weathering with You which is being written and directed by Makoto Shinkai. RADWIMPS teaming up with Shinkai caused an uproar of excitement within the anime community.

It has now been announced that RADWIMPS are set to collaborate with female actress Toko Miura on the soundtrack.

The idea to have Miura on board began with RADWIMPS vocalist Yojiro Noda wanted to have somebody else sing instead of him, specifically a female singer. Over a period of one year the band held auditions to find the perfect female voice that best fits with the film. After listening to many applicants, the voice to grab the hearts of both RADWIMPS and film director Makoto Shinkai was that by young female actress Toko Miura who has received high praise for throughout her filmography, including that in the 2015 Japanese drama comedy One Huff and Puff Journey, as well as drama series, but with this decision in place she is now sure to garner huge attention for her singing ability.

Noda commended the mysterious power Miura’s voice which he said brings on the sun no matter the weather.

Further details on the film’s soundtrack, which is set for release on the same day as the film, have also been announced. It will feature five main theme songs with vocals including Ai ni Dekiru Koto wa Mada Aru Kai which can be heard in the film’s promo, as well as 27 instrumental tracks.

The story of Weathering with You follows Hodaka Morishima, a high school student who leaves his home on an island to move to Tokyo. He finds a job as a writer but when he starts working he finds that it rains every single day. He meets a mysterious young girl named Hina Amano who is able to manipulate the weather to stop the rain and clear the sky.

Ever since Shinkai sent RADWIMPS the film’s script back in summer 2017 he and the band have had regular secret meetings to bring their next collaboration to fruition following the success of the band’s work on the director’s own Your Name. (2016).

Speaking about the band’s work with Toko Miura, Yojiro Noda comments: “When it was decided that we would write the music for Weathering with You, I was allowed to give some of my own suggestions. The first thing was that I wanted to have a song in there sung by someone other than myself, a female voice. The reason for that was because I wanted to have a different perspective from [Your Name], and because I wanted the song to have a bigger sense of presence, something with the female [voice] has, which would encapsulate the film. So we decided to hold auditions which lasted around a year.”

He continues: “The moment Miura let out her voice, it had this overwhelming and strange power which I feel could bring on the sun no matter the weather. Though it was raw and didn’t have any editing on it yet, it was a great thing for this film to bring her on board to sing the song. I look forward to hearing what she will sing next after this film.”

The film’s director Shinkai Makoto also spoke of Miura: “An actor or actress’s voice sounds more like something from the real world as it is. It carries something that exceeds the person’s emotions a little. That’s the impression I had with Toko Miura’s voice. ‘Let’s make the instant Toko’s voice shines the instant that the movie shines’ Those are the kind of things I spoke about with RADWIMPS when creating the film. I hope that you all look for that instant in the cinema.”

Toko Miura herself also commented: “When I first had the pleasure to meet the Weathering with You team, I really felt how much time and love they had all put into the film. I’m so happy from the bottom of my heart that they have entrusted those same feelings to my voice. The recording was carried out slowly and carefully under Noda’s directions over two months. When the finished music arrived, I listened to it, sang, sent it back, repeat. It was like sending letters back and forth to each other, it was a lot of fun. It’s a kind song that watches over the two [protagonists] in the film and occasionally cheers them on. I look forward to the day everyone gets to hear it and watch the film.”

Weathering with You will be released on July 19, 2019.