One more week we are back with our Weekly Kinpuri! Today we dive into the perfect playlist to take you on a journey to unknown horizons to discover extraordinary landscapes. Maybe a Japan roadtrip?
So far we have soaked up songs that flood the soul with romanticism, songs that shine with their own light and also many others that invite us to put our problems aside for a moment to enjoy their rhythm and abandon ourselves to their beat or dance until our feet hurt. Today’s selection is full of many other musical hits by King & Prince, some of which we will put in the spotlight!
Let’s start with the song that since last year has become a revolution, a dance trend on Tiktok that thousands of people have endlessly repeated on this social network, we are of course talking about “SPOTLIGHT“!
This song, released on 23 May 2024, is part of the regular version of the duo’s 15th single halfmoon/moooove!!, featuring great songwriters BBY NABE and Matt Cab, who would be joined by Ace Hashimoto as the perfect lyricist trio, and arranged by Matt Cab and Taylor Dexter. This song had the perfect ingredients from the start to become a hit on social media and be played countless times on music shows on various television networks. In addition, due to the great success of this song, a playlist consisting of 4 remix versions by different remixers; R.I.K, MATZ, maeshima soshi and Foux, has also been launched on Spotify!
We continue our roadtrip with “Romantic” playing loudly on the radio! Doesn’t it make you want to sing along as you feel the cool wind blowing in through the car window? This song is a coupling track from their 11th single “TSUKIYOMI/ Irodori“, included in the “Dear Tiara edition“. The lyrics were written by miwaflower, who was joined in the composition by Tomoki Ishizuka, who also did the arrangements. An oasis of love is what this song seeks to create, sharing the moment of dreamlike time with our special person.
We can make a brief stop on our way to enjoy the sunset over the sea illuminated by the last rays of the sun, waiting to give way to the moon. Leaning against the car while listening “Moon Lover“, we hear the first notes of a song that invites the listener to “Go wherever you want to go“, conveying a melodic charm and fantasy with its chorus, accompanied by the band-style arrangements. The final notes of this composition are definitely remarkable, ending with an enveloping atmosphere that can remind any romantic scene of a Disney movie, where again the voices of the choir blend with the band and the brass instruments take the main attention. The lyricist of this song is Ami, composer Reiji Yamamoto and arranger Motoki Funayama, joined by Tetsuya Takahashi in charge of the arrangements for the incredible chorus.
The moon is already above us and the stars light up the sky, but our journey continues, just like the next song on this list; “Life goes On” is, in one of the catchiest Kinpuri songs, it was the ending song for the TBS Tuesday drama “Yugure ni, Te wo Tsunagu”/”Hold My Hand at Twilight” starring Ren Nagase as Oto Umino; You can watch this drama currently on: U-NEXT, Amazon Prime Japan and Telasa. “Life goes On“, from their 12th single “Life goes on / We are young” is composed by Joacim Persson, Johan Alkenas, Sean Michael Alexander, who also arranged the song and SQVARE, the lyrics are by Yui Kimura. With its chorus: “Everything will be alright, Yeah! It’s gonna be alright, Let’s live it up” this work represents the bonds of an irreplaceable friendship forged during youth, destined to last a lifetime. A story of two people who support each other, whose presence helps the other not to give up, confident that the best shield to face life is a smile.
Our next stop is “Key of heart“, featured on the 2nd studio album “L&“. This song reveals us a secret: “The key to the door that leads to dreams and hopes is in our heart“. This song with its light but invigorating rhythm encourages the listener and becomes a music work that is close to all those who live in the present. The brainchild of composers Susumu Kawaguchi, Kota Sahara, joined by MKSS in the creation of the lyrics and with Shu Kanematsu joining the first two in the arrangements, we find a magical song that renews the spirit and drives away dark moods. It was also used as the theme song for the live action “Yowamushi Pedal“, starring again our charismatic Ren Nagase, in his facet as an actor, this time on the big screen, being the adaptation of the manga and anime with the same name, written and illustrated by Wataru Watanabe.
half moon/moooove!! jacket from Dear Tiara edition
We are nearing the end of this incredible journey, but there are still a few more songs to enjoy, one of them is “Shake hands“, included in the “Dear Tiara version” of their 15th single “halfmoon / moooove!!!“, we find a song with gospel touch choruses that mark the rhythm of the shuffle with hand claps that give sense to the title of the song, mixed with the musical base of the band. With Daisuke Nakamura as lyricist and composer, along with TAKAROT and Shoma Yamamoto also as composers and arrangements by Taku Yoshioka. It is a piece of music full of magic and positivity.
And although I’m sure none of us want to end this dreamy journey through some of the best songs that Kaito Takahashi and Ren Nagase have in their discography, composed of countless little and big gems that one never gets tired of rediscovering, we have to put an end to our adventure with a song that I’m sure many will like! “Kirakuniyarouyo”/”気楽にやろうよ“. There can’t be a better song to end this week’s Weekly Kinpuri, don’t you feel how the melody takes over every part of your body and makes you want to sing until you’re voiceless? No doubt the composer and lyricist of this song, Katsuhiko Sugiyama, knew what he was doing when he created every note for this incredible piece of music!
Kinpuri chose the best songs to enjoy a roadtrip with Tiaras, now it’s your turn to choose which places you would like to visit with these songs playing as soundtrack, it can be anywhere, the sky is the limit! We look forward to seeing you in the next Weekly Kinpuri!
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