At the end of June this year, there was also the new band REV, launched by VER fans LLION Records, who had previously held a debut conference with great fanfare.
The band’s debut single, the title song was composed by Tetsuro Oda, and the lyrics were co-written by female lead vocalist Nagayama Yoko and Nagato Daiko’s wife, lyricist Aran Tomoko. Nagayama Yoko was still an idol a few months ago.
, it is obviously unrealistic to develop the ability to write lyrics independently in a short period of training.
Of course, even for singer-songwriters, the model of co-creating with other musicians in the early stages of their debut is not uncommon in the industry.
The title song of the debut single was written by Tetsuro Oda, who has high quality assurance, and Tomoko Aran, who is a high-level lyricist. As for the B-side song, which is equivalent to a gift, Yoko Nagayama and her bandmates were responsible for the lyrics and music respectively.
's creation.
Previously they held a debut press conference with great fanfare, but now they are making their official debut, with BURNING behind them, and the publicity campaign is also very big. This debut single was used as the theme of TBS TV's Sunday night 9 o'clock TV series
The TV series "Qu" is a prime time period for TBS TV station.
In addition, Yoko Nagayama has also launched her own titled radio program during the quasi-prime time of TBS Broadcasting Station, which has always been among the best in terms of listening ratings.
"Let's Dance" became a hit, and Tetsuro Oda, who was responsible for composing the music, also became famous. In order to support this new band, Nagayama Yoko's radio program specially arranged for Oda Tetsuro to be a guest.
As for large-scale promotional advertisements and opportunities to appear in TV shows, let alone these. Not to mention that Nagayama Yoko has been out of fashion for a long time. Even in her most popular stage as an idol, the resources that BURNING invested in her were not as good as they are now.
There are so many transitions into being a band.
However, it is a combination of a beautiful lead singer and a male musician, the debut single was used as the theme song of a prime-time TV series, and the lead singer is responsible for composing lyrics... ZARD's debut method and configuration model seem to be quite recognized.
This is the case in the entertainment industry. Successful experiences will inevitably be constantly learned and improved.
When Iwahashi Shinichi got the sales list for the last week of the month and saw REV's debut single at the ninth spot on the singles chart, he was a little surprised, but he immediately felt that it was reasonable.
It is indeed a remarkable achievement for a new band to rank ninth as soon as it debuts. Considering the resource support of BURNING behind it, as well as the music of Tetsuro Oda, a popular composer, and the current craze for bands, it is indeed normal.
As for Yoko Nagayama's popularity during her idol days, let alone that it was close to nothing when she transitioned. The transformation from an idol to a band has changed so much that it turns out that even if there are still a few supporters from her idol days, they will not switch to support a single style.
She has changed greatly.
REV was able to enter the top ten of the singles chart as soon as they debuted. This is not a low start.
Shinichi Iwahashi looked at the singles list and couldn't help but wonder about the stamina of this band. Of course, this curiosity was not only because of the configuration of this band, it was clear that once it became popular, it would follow GENZO
Play against each other.
Most importantly, what Iwahashi Shinichi is curious about is whether the public's subsequent acceptance of a band that uses songs written by composers other than the band is high or low.
Just like other companies learn from GENZO's strategy of promoting singers, Iwahashi Shinichi also pays attention to other companies' methods.
In the last week of the month, the top spot on the album chart is DREAM’s new album. At the same time, this album has won the weekly top spot for two consecutive weeks, with cumulative sales exceeding 500,000 copies.
With this attitude, it is only a matter of time before sales exceed one million copies.
When the sales figures come out this week, Sony is going to prepare a celebration party for the new album of DREAM Color T-E. It’s a small celebration of 500,000 copies, but when the one million copies are released, there will be an even bigger celebration.
On the album chart, in addition to DREAM's T-E, which is firmly ranked first, there is also ZARD, which released its album in early June. After selling out for a full month, it is still ranked sixth on the album chart, with cumulative sales reaching 30
Twenty thousand.
ZARD is currently preparing for the theme tour that will start in July. When the concert starts, the album sales are still guaranteed. Concerts in Japan are very developed, and there are venues suitable for concerts in places as big as sesame seeds and mung beans. Throughout the year,
There is never a shortage of concerts for the audience to attend, and there is no shortage of venues for singers to perform unless they are obsessed with meaningful large venues.
Before the concert, Kamaike Sachiko, who was active in fashion magazines as a model and was popular among urban women, not only appeared on the cover of a music magazine with the band members, but also appeared on the cover of the fashion magazine "Touch RE" as the band's lead singer.
cover.
This fashion magazine for white-collar women ranks among the best in terms of circulation. This time, it specially opened a dedicated page for Kamai Sachiko. While the band is becoming popular, Kamai Sachiko herself is also very popular as a singer.
With the momentum of ZARD, it is not easy to be able to compete with them, whether they are latecomers or debutants at the same time.
…
At the end of June, my brother-in-law Hiroyuki Narita was the matchmaker and introduced the advertising representative of Pocari Sweat to Shinichi Iwahashi.
Since GENZO and Shinichi Iwahashi have become famous, in the new year, Narita Hiroyuki, the brother-in-law, has more frequent contact with Iwahashi Shinichi. Not only is the personal communication between brother-in-law and brother-in-law, with the help of Narita Hiroyuki,
GENZO and Dentsu are also on the line, and they occasionally entertain Dentsu's contacts.
It's easier to do things if you have a backer, and this applies everywhere.
At the beginning of the year, all members of ZARD appeared in a Fujifilm commercial that was well received. Kamaike Sachiko's fresh temperament also won the public's love. Dentsu routinely collects the popularity of the season's celebrity artists from the audience in each quarter, and their opinions on the celebrity artists.
Advertising value is assessed.
At the beginning of the year, after Fujifilm's commercial aired, Kamaike Sachiko entered the top ten female celebrities, and the value of one commercial rose to 35 million yen.
The more her net worth doubled, the more she became favored by advertisers. However, for the sake of long-term considerations, except for Fujifilm's commercial at the beginning of the year, Kamaike Yukiko did not appear in any more advertisements.
Although ZARD's agent was appointed by Xingchen Office, when the contract was first signed, Xingchen Office made an agreement with GENZO that almost all work would be arranged by GENZO, while Xingchen Office would only be responsible for providing assistance and resources.
This year, ZARD has become popular, and job offers are pouring in, especially for advertising shoots. With more money and less work, it is false that the agency is not interested.
However, this year, we have in-depth cooperation with GENZO and jointly established a sub-label. As a closer partner, we can't do short-sighted things. Even if we are tempted, we will leave it to Shinichi Iwahashi's arrangements.
After all, this band is currently the only GENZO band for which Shinichi Iwahashi is solely responsible for all production. According to Shinichi Iwahashi, including appearing in advertisements and what types of advertisements they will appear in are also part of his production plan.
This time, Pocari Sweat wanted to invite Kamai Sachiko to star in their commercial.
Kamaike Yukiko was a good athlete in her school days. She has a rather athletic body, fresh and natural temperament, and is very healthy. It is a perfect match for such a person to star in a Pocari Sweat commercial.
If such an opportunity comes to you, of course you must seize it.
Not only that, but you also have to take the opportunity to negotiate terms, and it can't just be about appearing in an advertisement. When the band is not popular, they have to take the initiative to give up advertising fees, and even pay back song usage fees so that advertising companies can use their songs.
Today, it's just the opposite.
Pocari Sweat, a national product that has been well-received all year round, starring in their advertisements is also an opportunity to increase favorability. The more this kind of product is, the more stars with good image and good reputation will be hired.
Of course, the most important thing is that it has been a while since the last commercial for Fujifilm, and if ZARD releases records according to the frequency of two singles and one album a year, there is still one single that has not been released this year.
The timing of Pocari Water's advertising change is mid-October, which is a good time to take advantage of it.
Shinichi Iwahashi’s request was for ZARD’s single to be used as the promotional song for the commercial. At the beginning of the year, the promotional model of Fujifilm Band’s appearance + the band’s song was very effective, so this time it will be copied.
TV stations are cutting back on the funding for their audio programs. July has just begun, and it is announced that Fuji TV's "Night Blast Studio" will end in October, and TBS TV's "THEBESTTEN" will be changed to a monthly press release.
In addition, TV Tokyo and NTV also announced the end of their respective programs.
With the number of recordings reduced, how to promote it is a question that every company must consider. As soon as Shin Iwahashi tasted the sweetness of "acting and singing by himself", he wanted to continue.
Shinichi Iwahashi was not in a hurry to let the band put on the airs of Daimono Band. When discussing with the advertising representative of Pocari Sweat, he proposed that if the new single after ZARD is used as the advertising song, then GENZO will not be charged for the use of the song.
.
Compared with the effectiveness of advertising, such a small fee is nothing.
Moreover, for long-term considerations, Iwahashi Shinichi also wants to maintain a good relationship with this kind of product that constantly changes advertising spokespersons and promotional songs. Today, the star of the show is Sachiko Kamaike, who is already very popular. Tomorrow, maybe he will recommend a singer who is not yet popular.
past.
Popular singers depend on their popularity, and those who are not yet popular depend on the ability of the record company.
Iwahashi Shinichi called the manager of the record company and met with his brother-in-law, the advertising representative of Pocari Sweat. They ate, drank, and went through all the usual receptions about Sachiko Kamaiike's appearance in the advertisement, and
The issue of ZARD's single being used as a promotional song is pretty much the same.
In particular, having Hiroyuki Narita, a Dentsu MAN, in charge, knowing that these two people are serious brother-in-law and brother-in-law, also adds a lot to Shinichi Iwahashi.
After entertaining the guests, the record company manager who came with him arranged a taxi to take the big shots up one by one. Shinichi Iwahashi returned home, washed up, and checked his phone messages as usual when he heard one from Momoko Kikuchi.
"I have something I want to give to Iwahashi-san... I'm not teasing you this time."
In the phone message, Momoko Kikuchi's voice sounded lively and cute.
…
On the singles chart for the last week of June, No. 3 is Akina Nakamori’s new single.
After Akina Nakamori ruined her record of consecutive No. 1 singles last year, on the one hand, record companies no longer have the pressure to maintain records and are more casual in choosing release dates. On the other hand, it is natural for a song to decline after its peak period of popularity.
What's more, there are also attacks from latecomers and new popular changes in the music industry.
Of the idols of the same period, regardless of gender, who can still achieve this level of success, Akina Nakamori is the one who deserves to be the first.
"Before I debuted as an idol, the most popular idols in school were Seiko-san and Akina-san. Unexpectedly, Akina-san is still the top idol until now."
Momoko Kikuchi praised Akina Nakamori to Shinichi Iwahashi. At the same time, she also revealed a small part of her school days.
The day after he received her phone message, Shinichi Iwahashi went to Osaka for a business trip. After returning, the two of them agreed to meet at a cafe in Ginza this evening.
"Iwahashi-san and I are about the same age. When we were students, were we of the Seiko sect or the Akina sect?" Momoko Kikuchi inquired.
Iwahashi Shinichi answered her, "When I was a student, I was neither of them." He paused, "Now, I am a die-hard Akina fan."
Momoko Kikuchi laughed so hard at his statement that she covered her face with her hands and said, "That's awesome." This reaction made it seem like someone like Shinichi Iwahashi shouldn't be someone's fan.
"In that case," she calmed down after laughing, "what I gave to Iwahashi-san today will be exactly what you wanted."
Iwahashi Shinichi looked puzzled.
Momoko Kikuchi offers her gift with both hands, which is Akina Nakamori's new single.
Is this what she wants to give?
Shinichi Iwahashi was unexpected, but he still picked it up. On the back of the single, there was an autograph by Akina Nakamori... The one that was sent to his mailbox was not signed yet.
Momoko Kikuchi pursed her lips and told him that this was a promotional single assigned to her by the agency.
"Isn't this single the theme song of the TV series I'm starring in? So..." Momoko Kikuchi explained to him.
Iwahashi Shin nodded to express his understanding. After a pause, "The TV series will be broadcast on the evening of the 4th."
"It's tomorrow." Momoko Kikuchi remembers it most clearly.
Iwahashi Shinichi smiled, "Yeah, tomorrow." He put the single on the table, "Thank you Kikuchi-san for the gift. Akina Pie is very happy to receive such a gift."
"I'm borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha." Momoko Kikuchi smiled. In her heart, she was actually half-convinced that Shinichi Iwahashi was a fan of Akina Nakamori.
After she said this, she looked at Shinichi Iwahashi picking up the cup and lowering his eyelids to drink tea.
Iwahashi Shinichi noticed her eyes and raised his head, "What's wrong?"
Momoko Kikuchi shook her head subconsciously. She shook her head, but showed an embarrassed expression. She smiled and said, "Actually, there is something I want to give to Iwahashi-san."
"Is it so rich?" Shinichi Iwahashi joked with her, "Then I've made a lot of money."
Momoko Kikuchi smiled, "Maybe that's not the case..." She said and handed over another record. Shinichi Iwahashi glanced at it, and on the cover of the record was Momoko Kikuchi's name.
"Kikuchi-san's record?"
Momoko Kikuchi said "Yeah", "It's a collection released by the original record company."
