Japan's Foreign Residents Name Their Top Karaoke Songs
A survey of foreign residents in Japan has revealed their top five Japanese songs to sing at karaoke, with the number one song being one of Hikaru Utada's earliest hits.
Yolo Japan, a company that helps foreigners find jobs in Japan, surveyed 369 foreigners living in Japan who were from 62 different countries, including the Philippines, Brazil, the US, Indonesia and Nepal.
When asked what their favorite Japanese songs to sing at karaoke were, the most popular answer was "First Love" by Hikaru Utada. This song was originally released in 1999, but became popular again after Netflix released a drama called First Love in 2022, which was inspired by Utada's song.
The second most popular song was the 2020 song "Dried Flowers" by Yuuri. One reason for its popularity with foreigners might be that Yuuri also recorded an English version of the song.
In third place was the classic 1961 song "Ue wo Muite Aruko" by Kyu Sakamoto. In 1963, this was the first song in a non-European language to reach number one on the American Billboard chart, and stayed there for three weeks. Although its title means "I look up as I walk," it was released abroad as "Sukiyaki" — because that was a Japanese word English speakers knew!
In fourth place was the 1999 song "We Are!" by Hiroshi Kitadani. This was the original theme song for the animated series One Piece, which, like the manga it is based on, is popular around the world.
In fifth place was Miki Matsubara's 1979 hit song "Mayonaka no Door — Stay With Me." According to Billboard, the song became popular again after an Indonesian YouTuber called Raynich covered it. That resulted in the original song becoming a global favorite on streaming platforms like Spotify, where it was number one for a week in December 2020!
