Kite (Arashi song)

"Kite"
Single by Arashi
from the album This Is Arashi
B-side	"Journey to Harmony" "Sounds of Joy" "Bokura no Hibi"
Released	July 29, 2020 (2020-07-29)
Length	4:43
Label	J Storm
Songwriter(s)	Kenshi Yonezu
Arashi singles chronology
"In the Summer" (2020) "Kite" (2020) "Whenever You Call" (2020)

"Kite" (カイト) is the 58th single by Japanese boy band Arashi. It was released on July 29, 2020, through J Storm. The release was announced on their Johnny's official page,^[1] as well as on their social media profiles.^[2]

Background

The song "Kite" served as the theme song for NHK's coverage of the 2020 Summer Olympics, including the special program "2020 Stadium" (2020スタジアム) hosted by the group.^[3] It was first performed in 70th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, December 31, 2019.^[4]

"Journey to Harmony", the other song included in the single, was performed as a celebratory song for the enthronement of the new Emperor, in November 2019.^[5] It is the third part of a 13-minute composition called "Ray of water".

Content and promotion

"Kite" was released on July 29, 2020. The single was made available for pre-order on June 15, 2020. The limited edition comes in two versions, both held in an LP sized jacket and containing a DVD or Blu-ray with the music video and making-of video for "Kite", and a 16-page lyrics booklet.^[6] A fan-club limited edition containing a 56-page book titled "2020 Arashi and Tokyo Sky" was also available for pre-order from June 15, 2020 to June 21, 2020, but sold out on the first day.^[7] All three versions' covers were painted by member Satoshi Ohno.^[8]

Arashi performed "Kite" on Music Station on July 24, 2020.^[9]

Chart performance

"Kite" debuted at number 86 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart on December 30, 2019, and rose to number 25 on January 13, 2020.^[10][11]

On July 28, 2020, the single debuted at number one on the Oricon Daily Singles Chart, selling 680,797 copies on its first day.^[12] "Kite" debuted at number one on the Oricon Singles Chart, with 910,000 copies sold in its first week. It became Arashi's 47th consecutive and 54th overall number-one single, extending their record of the most number-one singles in Japan. It also marked Arashi's largest opening sales week, surpassing their previous record of 756,000 copies with "Calling / Breathless" (2013).^[13] On August 29, the single sold additional 138,007 copies, becoming the group's first single to sell a million copies by selling 1,111,451 copies.

Track listing

Regular edition^[6]

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Arrangement	Length
1.	"Kite"	Kenshi Yonezu	Yonezu	Yonezu Yuta Bandoh	4:43
2.	"Journey to Harmony"	Yoshikazu Okada	Yoko Kanno	Kanno	5:29
3.	"Sounds of Joy"	Funk Uchino	Susumu Kawaguchi Andreas Ohrn Henrik Smith Kota Sahara	Tomoki Ishizuka	4:17
4.	"Bokura no Hibi" (僕らの日々, "Our Days")	Nai-T	Nai-T	Hirofumi Sasaki	4:13
5.	"Kite" (karaoke)
6.	"Sounds of Joy" (karaoke)
7.	"Bokura no Hibi" (karaoke)

Limited edition CD^[6]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Kite"

Limited edition DVD/Blu-ray^[6]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Kite" (music video and making of)

Charts

Chart (2020)	Peak position
Japan (Japan Hot 100)[14]	1
Japan (Oricon)[15]	1

References

1. ニューシングル「カイト」2020年7月29日（水）発売決定！！. j-storm.co.jp (in Japanese). June 15, 2020. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
2. @arashi5official (June 14, 2020). 嵐のニューシングル「カイト」が2020年7月29日(水)に発売決定！#嵐 #ARASHI (Tweet). Archived from the original on June 15, 2020 – via Twitter.
3. 『2020スタジアム』嵐が会見で大会への思いを語る！. sports.nhk.or.jp (in Japanese). July 19, 2019. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
4. 嵐、7・29米津玄師提供曲「カイト」発売 昨年の紅白で初披露から7ヶ月越し. sakigake.jp (in Japanese). June 15, 2020. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
5. 【天皇陛下式典】嵐の奉祝曲の発売や楽曲配信はいつ？署名運動でCD化は実現？. suntoranosuke.com (in Japanese). November 10, 2019. Archived from the original on March 8, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
6. "2020.07.29 RELEASE / SINGLE カイト". j-storm.co.jp (in Japanese). 2020. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
7. 嵐、数量限定の新曲「カイト」が予約初日に“完売”！ 「ファン舐めてるの？」「転売される」と批判まみれ (in Japanese). Cyzo Woman. June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
8. 嵐ニューシングルは米津玄師の提供曲「カイト」、ジャケに大野智描き下ろし絵画 (in Japanese). Natalie Music. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
9. 嵐、今夜MステSPで新曲「IN THE SUMMER」初披露 TV初歌唱の瑛人は「脚がガクガク…」 (in Japanese). Oricon. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
10. "Billboard Japan Hot 100 (December 30, 2019)". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved July 30, 2020.
11. "Billboard Japan Hot 100 (January 13, 2020)". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved July 30, 2020.
12. "Oricon Daily Singles Ranking (July 28, 2020)" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
13. 嵐、最新シングルが自己最高初週売上で初登場1位に 歴代1位の「通算1位獲得数」を54作に自己更新【オリコンランキング】 [Arashi's latest single debuts at number one with their highest first week sales; extends record of "most number-one singles" with 54] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
14. "Billboard Japan Hot 100 2020/8/10". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved August 19, 2020.
15. Oricon Weekly Single Ranking – 2020-08-10 Oricon News. Retrieved August 19, 2020.