GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE released their sixth studio album Up & Down on July 14, 2021. To promote the new record, which comes a year and eight months since their last album, the boy band are collaborating with the Japanese karaoke chain JOYSOUND.

The collaboration campaign is taking place at select JOYSOUND branches, including with the company’s latest JOYSOUND MAX GO machines. Fans can participate both at the karaoke booths as well as at home by using the official JOYSOUND app which is available on both iOS and Android.

Those taking part in-person at the karaoke booths will use the free Kyoku Navi JOYSOUND app, which turns their smartphone into a karaoke remote control, to select any of the 13 tracks from the band’s new album Up & Down, which includes five new songs such as HELLO! HALO! (feat.DANCEARTH). You can enter the campaign multiple times by singing each song once per day for a total of 13 submissions eveyrday.

If you’re singing from home, you use the JOYSOUND app and from there you share your performance on Twitter. You must tweet your post with the hashtag #GENERATIONS_JOYSOUND and be following the official JOYSOUND account @JOYSOUND_PR.

Three random people will be select from the submissions to receive a poster signed by all the GENERATIONS members. The band is also set to appear in the ‘SPECIAL FEATURE’ of JOYSOUND’s monthly artist pickup on August 2. An interview in Japanese will also be released on the campaign website where the band talk about the new album release.

Japanese seven-member boy group 7ORDER are promoting the release of their 1st major single Ame ga Hajimaru no Aizu/SUMMER Samazama, which is releasing on July 7, and their live DVD and Blu-ray WE ARE ONE, with a campaign in collaboration with Karaoke Kan.

The campaign is titled ‘7ORDER x Karaoke Kan Let’s Sing This Summer!! Collaboration Campaign supported by LIVE DAM Ai’ and it’s running from June 24 to August 31. To enter the campaign, you need to sing 7ORDER’s songs using one of Karaoke Kan’s DAM rooms at any of their branches in Japan. That will enable fans to enter for a chance to win a free 7ORDER microphone, signed poster, and more. DAM rooms as well as monitors in at Karaoke Kan receptions will feature original 7ORDER videos, and select branches will even have panels plastered up.

The song Ame ga Hajimaru no Aizu from the upcoming single was released early on digital music streaming and download platforms on June 17. The faced-paced uplifting rock song is based on the coincidence that every time a big day comes around for 7ORDER, it rains: it happened on the day they decided to form as a band, during their first concert, and when they signed to a major label. It’s a song to show how the rain isn’t always that bad.

The second track on the single, SUMMER Samazama, was written by NAOTO and HIROKI of ORANGE RANGE. You can hear that when the full single releases on July 7.

To celebrate “Manga no Hi” (translation: Manga Day), which was established by The Japan Cartoonists Association along with 5 publishing companies, DAM karaoke carried out a survey to find out the most requested anime songs.

※The original list contains a selection of top 30 theme songs from anime adapted from manga.

At number one is Motohiro Hata’s “Himawari no Yakusoku”. The song was released in August 2014 and was used as the main theme song for the film “STAND BY ME Doraemon” and explores the gap from childhood to adulthood. The song was listed at second place in DAM’s annual karaoke request rankings last year, being sung by many people.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw1nqhvHY48

In second place is Yoko Takahashi with “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis”. Released in October 1995, it is known as the opening theme song to the anime series “Neon Genesis Evangelion”. The track has been in DAM’s annual rankings for 7 consecutive years since 2009. The song was released more than 20 years ago and continues to be loved by all, showing no signs of disappearing any time soon.

At third place is UNISON SQUARE GARDEN with “Sugar Song and Bitter Step”, which was released in May 2015 and used as the ending theme for the anime “Blood Blockade Battlefront”. Just like the anime, the song is cute and has a catchy melody, with its popularity coming from its original sounding rhythm.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-LdR0WL5Zo

“Manga no Hi” was adapted from Japan’s national holiday “Bunka no Hi” (or “Culture Day”) which is also celebrated on November 3rd. Manga no Hi specifically celebrates the culture of manga. It also shares the same birthday as the legendary postwar manga artist Osamu Tezuka.

It’s safe to say that manga is most certainly an aspect of Japanese culture adored by the world, particularly today. The anime song ranking has proven very interesting, listing songs of anime from the Showa period to anime songs of today.

※This list was calculated based on the number of times a song was sung at Daiichi Kosho’s Karaoke DAM.

“Anime Song” DAM Karaoke Request Ranking

Survey: Carried out between October 1st, 2015 to September 20th, 2016

Conducted by Daiichikosho Co., Ltd. Karaoke DAM

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