Blue Bird (EP)

Blue Bird
EP by Shouta Aoi
Released	June 26, 2013 (2013-06-26)
Genre	J-pop
Label	B-green
Producer	Elements Garden
Shouta Aoi chronology
Eve (2008) Blue Bird (2013) Unlimited (2015)

Blue Bird (ブルーバード, Buru Bado) is the debut extended play of Japanese singer Shouta Aoi and the first physical release under his new stage name from when he entered voice acting. The album was released on June 26, 2013 and compiles songs from Aoi's work with Broccoli. The album was produced by Elements Garden.

Background and release

Blue Bird is the debut mini album of Shouta Aoi and the first album release under his new stage name from when he entered voice acting.^[1] The album was released under Broccoli's music label, B-green, on June 26, 2013.

Aoi selected the name Blue Bird for his album, which was meant to picture "flying" and "sending feelings" over to his fans and people who supported him over the years.^[2] He opted for a "simple" and "elegant" shot for the album's cover, which features him against a black background with lighting against him.^[2] The image itself was meant as a direct contrast to Aoi's typically "soft" image.^[2]

Composition

Aoi worked with Elements Garden while recording the album's title track, "Blue Bird", mentioning that it was difficult for him to record.^[2] "Blue Bird" was the image of a "bluebird of happiness" and was a song meant for the fans who supported him.^[2] The lyrics for the album's tracks took longer than the song's composition.^[2]

The album compiles songs he worked on for Broccoli's drama CD series, as well as some original songs. "Ai no Sasameki Goto" was the theme song for the drama CD series Sangokushi Lovers and was the first song he released as Shouta Aoi.^[3] "Gekka no Hana" was the theme song for the drama CD series Ikemen Ooku.^[2]

Reception

The album debuted at #20 in the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart and charted for 4 weeks.^[1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Elements Garden

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Arrangement	Length
1.	"Blue Bird" (ブルーバード)	Noriyasu Agematsu (Elements Garden)	Noriyasu Agematsu (Elements Garden)	Junpei Fujita (Elements Garden)	4:32
2.	"Gekka no Hana" (月下の華 lit. Moonlight Flower)	Ayane Katsuki	Junpei Fujita (Elements Garden)	Junpei Fujita (Elements Garden)	4:46
3.	"Ai no Sasameki Goto" (愛のささめきごと lit. Love Whispers)	Rucca	Masato Nakayama (Elements Garden)	Masato Nakayama (Elements Garden)	4:17
4.	"Shot a Love!"	Rucca	Daisuke Kikuta (Elements Garden)	Daisuke Kikuta (Elements Garden)	4:59
5.	"Kimi no Tonari de" (君のとなりで lit. By Your Side)	Rucca	Hitoshi Fujima (Elements Garden)	Hitoshi Fujima (Elements Garden)	4:54

Charts

Chart (2013)	Peak position
Oricon Weekly Albums Chart[1]	20

References

1. "ブルーバード". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
2. "『うたの☆プリンスさまっ♪』にて美風 藍役として出演する、蒼井翔太さん初のミニアルバム「ブルーバード」がついにリリース。アルバムに込められたその想いを伺ってきました！". Animate (in Japanese). June 10, 2013. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
3. "【連載コラム】『蒼井翔太の人間模様♪』 第3回". koepota (in Japanese). June 24, 2011. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2019.