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Stranger (EP)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Stranger"
Normal and digital special edition cover
Single by JO1
from the album Kizuna
LanguageJapanese
A-side"Real"
ReleasedAugust 18, 2021 (2021-08-18)
Recorded2021
Genre
Length
  • 13:30 (Limited edition A)
  • 13:42 (Limited edition B)
  • 13:45 (Normal edition)
  • 20:29 (Special edition)
LabelLapone Entertainment
Producer(s)
  • Jung Ho-hyun
  • Score
  • Megatone
  • Teito
  • Lee Min-young (Eastwest)
  • Yeul (1by1)
  • KZ
  • Honeysweet
  • Gloryface
  • Yuka
JO1 singles chronology
"Challenger"
(2021) 		"Stranger"
(2021) 		"Wandering"
(2021)
Music video
"Real" on YouTube

Stranger (stylized in all caps) is an extended play (EP) marketed as the fourth single of Japanese boy band JO1. It also served as the second single for their second studio album, Kizuna (2022). The EP single includes six songs primarily from the EDM, futurepop, and city pop genres, and was released by Lapone Entertainment in three physical editions and one digital edition on August 18, 2021. It features contributions from Japanese lyricists and South Korean producers, including Yhanael [ja], Jung Ho-hyun, Score, Megatone, KZ, Full8loom among others.

Prior to the release, the two B-side tracks were made available as a digital single. "Dreaming Night" was released on June 25 as the opening song Love Phantom [ja], while "Freedom" was released on July 7 for Yves Saint Laurent Beauté's fragrance web commercial video. Both tracks charted on Billboard Japan Hot 100. Stranger became the group's fourth single that reached number on the Oricon Singles Chart and their fastest single to sell over 400,000 copies, according to Billboard Japan. It was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ), while the lead track "Real" peaked atop the Billboard Japan Hot 100. Its music video was named Best Dance Video at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards Japan.

Background and release

[edit]

On June 8, 2021, JO1 made his third appearance as the headliner for Tokyo Girls Collection.[4] During the 2021 Sanrio Character Awards' result presentation part of the event, the group performed two songs from their first studio album, The Star (2020): "Shine a Light" and "Yancha Girl Yancha Boy".[5] For the latter, they collaborated with Cinnamoroll.[4][5] After the performance, leader Sho Yonashiro announced the group's fourth EP single, Stranger, would be released on August 18, 2021.[5] Continuing the idea of their previous single, where they were "stepping into the unknown world", this single's concept was described as "encountering the world and discovering a new self".[6] The cover images were revealed on June 21.[7] On the release day, JO1 hosted a commemorative live broadcast in which they announced that their first live concert, Open the Door, would take place at Makuhari Messe in Chiba city from November 19 to 21, 2021.[8]

Stranger includes a total of six songs and was released in three different physical editions, with "Real" serving as the lead track. Each edition contains four tracks with three common tracks: "Real", "Icarus" and "Blooming Again".[6] The special tracks for the limited edition A and B, "Freedom" and "Dreaming Night", were released as digital singles on July 7 and June 25, respectively,[9][10] while "Icarus" was pre-released on August 11 with its performance video.[11] The limited edition A comes with a DVD bundle featuring a variety segment titled Beautiful Stranger. The limited edition B and the normal edition come with a photo booklet and a CD-only, respectively.[6] A special edition EP containing all songs was also released for digital download and streaming.

Lead track

[edit]

The lead track "Real" is an EDM song from the futurepop genre.[1][2] Jung Ho-hyun (e.one), who was in charge of lyrics, composing, and arrangement, has collaborated with groups such as Wanna One and Exo.[2] The lyrics were said to reflect JO1's growth and evolution.[1] Yoo Seung-hyun choreographed the move in which the members hugging each other to symbolize JO1 meeting their "new" selves for the first time.[12][1] The music video similarly conveyed the message through the use of mirrors and water.[13]

The song was pre-released on July 30, 2021, alongside the music video.[13] It was used as the theme song for the 18th edition of Fuji TV's annual summer event, The Odaiba, which took place from August 14 to September 5, 2021.[14] It later peaked at number one on the Billboard Japan Hot 100.[15] Ryohei Shingu [ja] directed the music video,[16] which was named Best Dance Video at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards Japan.[17][18]

Promotion

[edit]

The promotion for Stranger started with the first performance of the B-side track "Dreaming Night", which was the opening song of MBS's drama Love Phantom [ja], at the KCON:TACT 4U on June 25, 2021.[9] The group also performed the song on their namesake TV show Toresugi JO1 2 on July 16.[19] The song peaked at number 85 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 in its second week.[20] On July 7, JO1 performed another B-side track, "Freedom", at the launching of Yves Saint Laurent Beauté's fragrance online ad video featuring the song.[10] A performance video for the song was released on the group's official YouTube channel on the same day.[21] The song debuted at number 82 on Billboard Japan Hot 100.[22]

To further promote the single, JO1 was named "artist of the month" for Tokyo FM's nationwide weekly program Monthly Artist File: The Voice in August 2021.[23] They also released a performance video for "Icarus",[24] which serves as the "answer song" to "Monstar" from The Star (2020).[11] Both performance video of "Icarus" and "Freedom" were directed by Hidejin Kato.[25] JO1 later released a self-produced music video for "Stay".[26]

On August 13, JO1 debuted "Real" on the morning show Mezamashi 8.[27] The performance served as a teaser for their live performance at The Odaiba the next day, where they performed three more songs from the single as well as their past lead track, "Born to Be Wild".[28][29] They also performed "Real" on CDTV Live Live and their namesake show Playlist JO1.[30][31] On September 23, JO1 participated in the joint live concert KCON World Premiere: The Triangle with fellow Produce 101 Japan subsequent groups such as OWV and Enjin. They performed all songs from Stranger between the two shows.[32]

Commercial performance

[edit]

Stranger debuted at number one on the Oricon Daily Singles Chart and eventually topped the weekly chart with over 280,000 copies sold, continuing the group's streak since their debut single Protostar.[33][8] Due to this run, JO1 became the fifth male group and ninth overall in Oricon charts history to have four consecutive singles with first-week sales of over 200,000 copies since their debut.[34] JO1 saw an increase in sales, with Stranger outselling the last two singles in its second week on the Oricon Charts.[35] The single was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan for shipments of over 250,000 physical units.[36] By the end of 2021, the single had sold 366,212 copies, placing it twenty-first on the Oricon annual chart.[37]

On Billboard Japan, Stranger debuted at number one on the Top Singles Sales chart[38] and became JO1's fastest single to sell over 400,000 copies (in two weeks).[39] The single eventually became the twenty-first best selling single of 2021.[40]

Track listing

[edit]

"Real", "Icarus" and "Blooming Again" are common track 1, 3 and 4, respectively, for limited edition A, limited edition B and normal edition.

Track listing of Stranger – Limited edition A
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Real"
Jung Ho-hyunJung Ho-hyun3:14
2."Freedom"
  • Score (13)
  • Megatone (13)
  • Onestar
  • Luke (13)
  • Yhanael
  • Score
  • Megatone
  • Onestar
  • Score
  • Megatone
3:16
3."Icarus"
  • Skinner Box
  • Minami
  • Teito (KCKT)
  • Skinner Box
Teito3:16
4."Blooming Again"
  • Choi Hyun-joon
  • Mion Yano
Lee Min-young (Eastwest)
  • Lee
  • Yeul (1by1)
3:44
Total length:13:30
Track listing of Stranger – Limited edition B
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
2."Dreaming Night"
  • KZ
  • Stainboys
  • Chungyoon (Joombas)
  • KZ
  • Honeysweat
  • Puyo
  • KZ
  • Honeysweat
3:28
Total length:13:42
Track listing of Stranger – Normal edition
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
2."Stay"Jinli (Full8loom)
  • Gloryface (Full8loom)
  • Jinli
  • Yuka (Full8loom)
  • Gloryface
  • Yuka
3:31
Total length:13:45
Track listing of Stranger – Special edition (digital)
No.TitleLength
1."Real"3:14
2."Freedom"3:16
3."Dreaming Night"3:28
4."Stay"3:31
5."Icarus"3:16
6."Blooming Again"3:44
Total length:20:29
Track listing of Stranger – Limited edition A (DVD)
No.TitleLength
1."Beautiful Stranger"1:01:02

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

[edit]
Certifications and sales for Stranger
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[36] Platinum 250,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit]
Release dates and formats for Stranger
Region Date Label Format(s) Edition Catalog
Japan August 18, 2021 Lapone Entertainment
Limited A YRCS-90196
  • CD
  • photo booklet
 Limited B YRCS-90197
  • CD
 Normal YRCS-90198
Various
Special —

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "JO1、メンバーがハグし合うダンスが注目の「REAL」を初パフォーマンス！ 佐藤景瑚のバースデーサプライズも". The Television (in Japanese). July 31, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "JO1沼はなぜ深いのか？最新SG「STRANGER」リード曲を軸に作品面から迫る". The First Times (in Japanese). August 17, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  3. ^ "勢いが止まらないJO1、新シングルで見せた新境地 與那城奨「今まで見たことがないJO1を」". Okinawa Times (in Japanese). August 20, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "サンリオキャラ大賞発表会でJO1がシナモロール、井上苑子はキティと歌う！ラップバトルに荘子itが曲提供". natalie.mu (in Japanese). May 27, 2021. Archived from the original on June 9, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c "JO1、シナモロールと「やんちゃ」コラボパフォーマンス＜2021年サンリオキャラクター大賞＞". Modelpress (in Japanese). June 9, 2021. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "JO1の4thシングルは「STRANGER」、コンセプトは"見慣れない世界と出会い新たな自分を発見"". natalie.mu (in Japanese). June 8, 2021. Archived from the original on June 8, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  7. ^ "JO1、4thシングル「STRANGER」センターは川西拓実 新アーティスト写真が解禁". Oricon (in Japanese). June 21, 2021. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "JO1、1stライブは11月に3日間5公演 デビュー以来初の有観客ライブ". Oricon (in Japanese). August 18, 2021. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "JO1、初のドラマ主題歌「Dreaming Night」 『KCON:TACT 4 U』で初パフォーマンス". Oricon (in Japanese). June 24, 2021. Archived from the original on July 1, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  10. ^ a b "JO1、日本人初YSLフレグランスWEB CMに出演 新曲「Freedom」テーマソングに". Modelpress (in Japanese). June 28, 2021. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "JO1、4thシングル「STRANGER」収録「ICARUS」のパフォーマンスビデオ公開 「MONSTAR」のアンサーソングに". Oricon (in Japanese). August 11, 2021. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  12. ^ "Creator Voice". 別冊カドカワScene 08 (in Japanese). Japan: Kadokawa. July 28, 2021. p. 56.
  13. ^ a b "JO1、新曲「REAL」MV解禁 特徴は"ハグダンス" 24時間以内100万再生でメンバー制作MV公開". Oricon (in Japanese). July 30, 2021. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
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  19. ^ "「トレスギJO1」でJO1が「Dreaming Night」TV初披露、"おやすみ"振り付けを「ぜひやってみて」". natalie.mu (in Japanese). July 8, 2021. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  20. ^ "Japan Hot 100 7 July 2021". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 7, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  21. ^ "JO1、「Freedom」PERFORMANCE VIDEOが公開 先行配信もスタート". Oricon (in Japanese). July 7, 2021. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  22. ^ "Japan Hot 100 17 July 2021". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 14, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  23. ^ "『Monthly Artist File-THE VOICE-』JO1が2021年8月パーソナリティ！4THシングル『STRANGER』の制作エピソードを語り尽くす！". PR Times (in Japanese). July 25, 2021. Archived from the original on August 19, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  24. ^ "JO1が表現する翼に注目「ICARUS」パフォーマンスビデオ公開". natalie.mu (in Japanese). August 11, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  25. ^ "JO1「Freedom」「ICARUS」". P.I.C.S (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  26. ^ "JO1が海で大はしゃぎ！メンバープロデュースの「STAY」ミュージックビデオ公開". natalie.mu (in Japanese). August 21, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  27. ^ "JO1、8/13「めざましテレビ」「めざまし8」に連続生出演！「ICARUS」パフォーマンスビデオ公開中". Navicon (in Japanese). August 12, 2021. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  28. ^ "『めざましライブ』第1弾出演アーティスト発表 JO1、山崎育三郎、金爆ら". Oricon (in Japanese). August 2, 2021. Archived from the original on August 2, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  29. ^ フジテレビュー!!編集部 (August 23, 2021). "JO1イチ"爽やかなメンバー"は川西拓実！「めざましライブ」でリアルな一面明かす". Fuji TV View (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 26, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  30. ^ "Kis-My-Ft2、SixTONES、JO1ら11組 『CDTVライブ!』夏フェス第1夜に出演". Oricon (in Japanese). August 9, 2021. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  31. ^ "JO1、関西初冠番組『プレイリストJO1』8・18放送 霜降りとコラボするなら「ギャンブルで得た音で…」". Oricon (in Japanese). August 5, 2021. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  32. ^ "「遠く離れてても空でつながってる」JO1、OWV、円神が集い有観客ライブの喜び噛み締めた「KCON」". natalie.mu (in Japanese). September 26, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
  33. ^ デイリーシングルランキング 2021年08月17日付 [Oricon Daily Single Ranking 17/08/2021]. Oricon. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
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  35. ^ Stranger first two weeks physical sales:
  36. ^ a b "Japanese single certifications – JO1 – Stranger" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Select 2021年8月 on the drop-down menu
  37. ^ a b "【オリコン年間ランキング2021】Snow Man、唯一のミリオン達成で「シングル」年間1位". Oricon. November 29, 2021. p. 2. Archived from the original on December 23, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  38. ^ "Top Singles Sales". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). August 25, 2021. Archived from the original on August 25, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
  39. ^ "Hey! Say! JUMP『群青ランナウェイ』初週23.4万枚でシングル・セールス首位". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). August 30, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  40. ^ a b "Billboard Japan Top Singles Sales Year End 2021". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
  41. ^ 2021年08月16日～2021年08月22日 週間 デジタルアルバムランキング [Oricon Weekly Single Ranking 16/08/2021 - 22/08/2021]. Oricon. Archived from the original on August 25, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  42. ^ 2021年08月16日～2021年08月22日 オリコン週間 合算シングルランキング [Oricon Weekly Combined Single Ranking 16/08/2021 - 22/08/2021]. Oricon. Archived from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  43. ^ "【ビルボード】JO1『STRANGER』36.8万枚でシングル・セールス首位、自身最高の初週売上". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). August 23, 2021. Archived from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  44. ^ 月間 シングルランキング 2021年08月度 [Oricon Monthly Single Ranking 2021/08]. Oricon. Archived from the original on September 8, 2021. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  45. ^ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree' (Annual Combined Singles Ranking 2021)]. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved December 18, 2021.
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