The singer’s previous song, Yakusokutte Warukunai na, was written during a difficult period in which the artist found it difficult to keep going. It quickly trended for its straightforward and relatable lyrics filled with raw emotion.

Kondo’s newest work is a heartbreaking song that features a sad piano melody and describes the seemingly pathetic and embarrassing feelings of wanting to see an ex even after a breakup. The jacket art was created by illustrator asuka and was inspired by the temperature of a sensitive and delicate heart.

Additionally, Natsuko Kondo has announced two shows for her yearly birthday event. The first will be held on the day of her birthday, July 29, at Shibuya LUSH in Tokyo, followed by a performance at Club Gessekai in Hyogo on August 6. All four consecutive tracks that Kondo has released will be performed during each concert.

[Comment from Natsuko Kondo]

“To be honest, the emotion in this song is so raw, I didn’t want to share it with anyone. I packed in everything I wanted to say–things like “I like you, I’m sorry for liking you, I miss you, I’m so stupid.” I’m sure that these painful experiences will be something I treasure someday, so I’d be happy if people who have had their hearts broken could listen to this song and find some peace.”

Sony Music Labels is now accepting orders for Alba Sera birthday goods! The talent from VERSEⁿ, a VTuber project in collaboration with Helixes, is celebrating her special day with tons of new merch. Items will be available until May 8 on the VERSEⁿ official BOOTH shop.

Birthday Merchandise

Full Birthday Goods Set (Including Bonus)

Sticker Set

Acrylic Keychain

Canvas Art

Alba Sera
A girl who sticks to her beliefs even in loneliness.
She is quite hard on herself and not very good at socializing, but she does care about others and has a lovely side of a little girl. She sings her heart out strongly through her doubts and conflicts. 

Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/sera_alb
Character Design: Kane / https://twitter.com/Kaneblob
 

Video streaming service dTV will broadcast the final performance of Sakurazaka46’s first tour on October 31, 2021, at 5:30 PM. dTV members will get ¥1,000 off the general admission price of ¥3,500. For those who aren’t able to watch the live broadcast, a repeat broadcast will begin at 10:30 PM on October 31. 

Sakurazaka46 made their major debut on December 9, 2020, with the single Nobody’s fault. The group performed on Debut Countdown Live!! the day prior, and their incredible performance was aired in movie theaters across the country. 

In April 2021, Sakurazaka46 released their second single, BAN. At July’s W-KEYAKI FES. 2021, they performed in front of a live audience for the first time. Their third single will be released on October 13, and the group will perform the new tracks during this concert. Their new music video was unveiled to audiences during this tour. 

Using dTV, fans can watch the concert on their smartphone, tablet, computer, or television. 

Up-and-coming seven-member J-pop group 7ORDER is scheduled to embark on a massive winter tour across Japan! The first performance will take place in Tokyo on November 27, 2021, and the final show will be held at Yoyogi National Stadium on February 26 and 27, 2022. The 7ORDER LIVE TOUR 2021-2022 ‘Date with…….’ tour will be coming to thirteen locations nationwide. 

The group clearly isn’t interested in taking a break any time soon, with their most recent tour wrapping in September. The 7ORDER Musha Shugyo TOUR ~NICE “TWO” MEET YOU~ eight-city tour was a massive success, with over 20,000 tickets sold. 

Check the tour dates below to see if 7ORDER is coming to your city soon!

The Creative Center, the design division of the Sony Group, is collaborating with a number of science fiction authors to use sci-fi prototyping to find out what Tokyo will look like in the future. 

Inspired by the three keywords ‘2050,’ ‘Tokyo,’ and ‘love,’ Sony designers have created four design prototypes, each with a theme: wellbeing, Habitat, Sense and Life. Science fiction authors Taiyo Fujii, Miyuki Ono, Haruka Mugihara, and Itsuki Tsukui each created a sci-fi short story to accompany these creations.

These prototypes will be available to see at the Sony Park Exhibition at Ginza Sony Park starting on August 31. 

Sci-fi prototyping is a technique using science fiction to envision the future, then using it as a starting point to consider what society can do now to impact that possible future. 

The current global pandemic has made it more difficult than ever before to envision what the future will look like. Audiences around the globe are more interested than ever before in seeing what the world will be like in 30 years, and this technique might be able to put some minds at ease. 

Would you like to take a look at what the future might hold? 

Japanese music journalist Toshi Kanazawa released Vol.6 of his ‘J-DIGS: Light Mellow City Essence’ music playlist series last Wednesday. It comes as the final installment to the series which began in July last year.

The 20-track playlist includes jazz fusion instruments, pop tunes by jazz singers, and others, all of which are compiled with urban city music vibes. The playlist is now available on major streaming and download services including Spotify.

Kanazawa’s J-DIGS project began as a way to promote the rich catalogue of Japanese record label Nippon Columbia which was established 110 years ago. The project now has its own YouTube channel, so if you love music from Japan, be sure to check it out below.

Additionally, a Chee Shimizu playlist taken from his 2013 book Obscure Sound is also available to listen to on music platforms with genres ranging from psychedelic to spiritual, experimental, cosmic, tropical, groovy, and more.

Sony Marketing released its new PEANUTS Friends Collection on Wednesday in collaboration with the beloved American comic strip Peanuts known for its iconic cast of characters like Snoopy and Charlie Brown. The colleciton includes wireless headphones, wireless speakers, and Walksman®.

A look at just some of the items in the PEANUTS Friends Collection

WF-XB700 Wireless Stereo Earphones | ¥16,500 (Tax Included)

The WF-XB700 wireless stereo earphones comes in 36 different patterns from a choice of six designs including Snoopy A, Snoopy B, Snoopy C, Woodstock, Charlie Brown, and Snoopy’s Footprints.

There are also two case designs as pictured above featuring Woodstock and Snoopy/Charlie Brown and Snoopy.

The WF-XB700 offer crystal clear, high-quality audio wirelessly and are durable against water droplets like rain and sweat.

WF-XB700 Wireless Stereo Headset | ¥22,000 (Tax Included)

This headset features Snoopy on the left ear and Charlie Brown on the right. They offer immersive, high-quality sound and can be folded up to make them compact for carrying.

SRS-XB23 Wireless Portable Speakers | ¥15,400 (Tax Included)

Listen to your music wherever you go whether in the bathtub, kitchen, are at the beach, outdoors, and more with these wireless portable speakers. Available in two designs: Snoopy & Woodstock/Snoopy & Charlie Brown.

Walkman® NW-A50 Series| ¥27,500 (Tax Included)

This stylish collection of Walkmans® will make you forget about listening to music on your phone. What’s even better is that buyers can have letters, Japanese characters, and numbers (up to 23) engraved on them to create a personalised device whether for yourself or as a birthday present for someone.

Walkman® S Series | ¥15,400 (Tax Included)

A slimmer version of the Walkman® if you’re looking for something more compact. Up to 16 letters can be engraved on this one.

Located on the first floor of Shibuya MODI, “Sony Square Shibuya Project,” a hub for delivering the latest information regarding Sony, is going to hold a new exhibition from September 2nd based around AI and robotics.

Sony were the first to bring attention to the possibility of fusing AI with robotics as demonstrated with AIBO, a series of robotic pets designed and manufactured by Sony to be used in the household.

Since then, they have gone on to develop even more advanced AI robots and continue to create a huge range of new robotic experiences. They have even begun work on creating AI systems that can self-learn and develop their own frameworks.

To celebrate the past and present achievements of Sony’s activities, they are holding an “AI×Robotics Exhibition” in Sony Square Shibuya Project to showcase their work and the possibilities that lie ahead in the future. They will also be holding a workshop for their educational robot programming kit “KOOV.”

Works on Display:

“AIBO” – An ‘entertainment robot’ whose behaviour can change depending on its surroundings and environment. This autonomous robot gained much attention for its ability to think and move by itself thanks to its capacity to learn, feel, grow and maintain an instinct as a result of its sense of touch, hearing, sight and balance.

“QRIO” – A bipedal humanoid robot that can walk on two legs, QRIO was developed to seek the possibility for a robot to walk upright like a human. Along with its movement capabilities, it can also communicate with people very well.

“Xperia Smart Products” – You will have the opportunity to test the latest Xperia smart products from Sony that offer a new way to communicate. Among the list of products is the “Xperia Ear,” an earpiece that enables you to communicate with people handsfree, search for information and more, as well as the “Xperia Touch,” a projection device that allows you to project an interactive touchscreen onto any surface and is also controllable via voice command.

Experience first-hand the latest technology at Shibuya MODI.

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“Ask Japanese”, a channel on “WAO-RYU! TV” – an internet show aimed at foreigners – have posted a brand new video entry. The theme of the topic this time is titled “MUST-LISTEN Japanese music? Ask foreigners in Japan about their artist recommendations”.

The latest video features German talent “Cathy Cat” heading around town asking foreigners about their favourite artists. From artists well-known in Japan to others you might not expect a foreigner to know, lots of different names popped up in their answers. Check out the interview below to see what artists appeared came up. Who do you think they mentioned?

▶Video: 日本の音楽、何か知っていますか？　外国人に聞いてみました！ (translation: We Ask Foreigners What Japanese Artists They Know)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYGEJVZMh3k

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