Tag Archives: Videos
“Seimei” Short Music Video Now Available!
News The short music video for “Seimei” previewed in its recent commercial has now been uploaded to YouTube! Its single “Seimei/Still Alive” is now under one week away.
The animation contained within is almost certainly provided by the same studio that produced the vignette for Koshi Inaba’s solo music video “Hane” back in 2016, which can be viewed subtitled here.
B’z New Single
「Seimei/Still Alive」
Tracklisting
1. Seimei
2. Still Alive
3. Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru
4. Fukiarenasai
Bonus DVD: 「Still Alive」 Music Video
Pre-order CD-Only Edition:
Pre-order CD+DVD Edition:
Pre-order “B’z x UCC” CD Package Edition:
NOTE: CDJapan offers release-day delivery, YesAsia offers free international shipping, and Amazon.jp typically offers lower price with later delivery
The Origin of the Name “B’z”
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One of the more curious oddities in B’z lore and its accompanying fandom is the origin of the name “B’z“. A great many explanations have been proffered over the years (including both competing and supporting explanations by Tak and Koshi themselves in various interviews after being asked the question innumerable times). As many now no doubt know, “B’z” is pronounced the same as “bees” and occasionally as “bi-zu” (ビーズ) as a phonetic replacement by fans in Japan though the band use the former.
In 2012, as part of the B’z LIVE-GYM 2012 -Into Free- tour that saw the band play both coasts of the U.S. and Canada, a camera crew from WOWOW followed the action and recounted it in the documentary Only Two. The title of which originates from Tak, who stated when asked about the founding of the band:
“In the beginning, I wanted to found a band with four members, but… [after meeting Koshi] I thought, ‘Only two is enough.'”
Later, when asked if he had a clear vision of the path B’z would follow, he added:
“I had a clear vision from the start: I wanted to form a band that could succeed in making hit songs, you know. That’s why I started a band with just two. In general, every member of a band is egotistic. I didn’t think it’d be well organized with so many opinions.”
As for the name they later took as their own, the most prominent explanation over the years became that B’z wanted to be an “A to Z” sort of band, a band from which you could expect any sort of music. This was shortened to “A~Z” and then “A’z“, but the poor connotations quickly made it an unfavorable candidate, which led to “B’z”. Tak also mentioned in a 1989 interview that the idea of having a “Z” at the end was the result of a casual remark by a staff member whilst they were recording their earliest demos. Another article quoted Tak as saying he liked the idea of using a “Z” in the name and thought having a “B” would be appropriately masculine, with the number of associated B” rock artists out there. Thus, adding the two together formed “B’z“. Another related rationale that emerged in the press was that the band wanted to be inclusive of their favorite rock artists, and thus the name “B’z” included “B” for The Beatles and “Z” for Led Zeppelin.
As it turns out, there’s an element of truth to most of the popular explanations out there. From the aforementioned documentary, in their own words, here is an English-subtitled account of the band explaining the way the name came about:
“Seimei” Commercial Now Airing
News The first “Seimei”-themed version of the “Seimei/Still Alive” single hit airwaves today during Detective Conan and has been preserved below for those that wish to see it. The single will be released on June 14th and also includes the Detective Conan theme “Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru“.
[Retrospective] 2007: First Asian Artists Inducted to Hollywood’s RockWalk
Feature All sample videos contained in this article are publicly sourced and are reproduced here only for accessibility.
Following the immense success that was the rebooted 2006 LIVE-GYM—one that would set the tone for all B’z shows that followed—and its accompanying album, expectations were high in 2007. It was already presumed the band would have big plans for 2008 given it was their twentieth anniversary year, but what would precede it was still relatively unknown at the time. Fans speculated that the previous year’s live premiere of the English verison of “HOME” would possibly see a release in some form, but it was not there that the year began.
Instead, the first sighting of B’z activity was the announcement of their first international tie-in. The PlayStation 2 racing video game Burnout Dominator was released worldwide in March and featured an all-new B’z song in every territory entitled “FRICTION“. The song was included as a means of promoting the game primarily in Japan, but it would later be included the next year in the sequel game Burnout Paradise that was likewise released globally. The song was also published worldwide on iTunes at the same time as part of the soundtrack.
“Seimei” First Teaser Video Now Available!
News The first teaser for one half of the upcoming single is now being showcased on the official B’z website! “Seimei” is glimpsed briefly, along with a hint of what may be a short music video that should end up on television as an ad and possibly in extended form on YouTube. “Seimei/Still Alive” will be released on June 14th, 2017 and includes both title songs alongside “Fukiarenasai” and “Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru“.
Second “Still Alive” Commercial Now On-Air
News The second variant of the “Still Alive” commercial for the upcoming “Seimei/Still Alive” double A-side single is now airing on Japanese television. The four track single will be released on June 14th and also includes digital singles “Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru” and “Fukiarenasai“.
