"Chiisana Koi no Uta" (Japanese: 小さな恋のうた, lit. A Small Love Song) is a song written and performed by the Japanese punk band Mongol800. It is featured on their second studio album Message which was released on September 16, 2001, in Japan. The song's lyrics is about the love between a boy and a girl who has grown up on a small island.
The song is a popular karaoke song in Japan ranking first in DAM karaoke ranking. It is the second song of the 2000s to accumulate 100 million streams after "Hanabi" by Mr. Children. It become famous for its easy to understand lyrics and repetitive chord progression.
The song inspired the production of a live-action movie by the same name released in May 2019 by Toei.
Chiisana Koi no Uta is the third track of the band's second album Message released on September 16, 2001.[1] The album becomes the first indie album to reach 1 million sales on Oricon.[2]
The lyrics of the songs were written bassist and vocalist Kiyosaku Uezo, and while the other band members composed the music.[3] The main key is B major, the time signature is 4⁄4 and the tempo is 116 Bpm (232 Bpm in double time).[4] The song is known for its simple and repeating chord progression which makes "Chiisana Koi no Uta" easy to learn.[5][6]
In an interview with Rina Sako from Natalie in 2019, Uezo said that he did not know the song's key when he wrote the song commenting that "Chiisana Koi no Uta" starts with a lower key but with a higher chorus.[7] He also said that he did not use the personal pronouns "Boku" (僕, lit. I) and Kimi (君, lit. You) while writing the song's lyrics as Okinawans have a tendency not to use personal language when speaking adding that at that time he thought that "Anata" (あなた, lit. You[a]) is more fitting.[7]
According to Hasumi Aku from Utaten the song's lyrics are about the love between a boy and a girl who have grown up on a small island and known each other since early childhood until the girl had to leave the island. The song which is written from the boy's view describes their love story and shows his feelings for her which will never change.[8] In a 2019 interview, actor Gordon Maeda who played the role of Shinji Fukumura in the movie said that he initially thought of "Chiisana Koi no Uta" to be a love song but after reading and studying its lyrics he realized that the song expresses the feelings and connections of the band's members for Okinawa.[9]
Cover versions
The song was covered by Japanese artists several times. The most commercially successful version was recorded in 2009 by Yui Aragaki and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) in the ringtone category.[10] For her cover version, Aragaki invited 3,000 middle and high schoolers to sing along.[11]
Amatsuki's cover of the song released in May 2016 became a popular hit on YouTube accumulating over 100 million views on YouTube making it the first ever cover song to reach 100 million views in Japan.[12] Actress Minami Hamabe covered the song in 2018 and was used in a Line Music campaign. Her cover version charted in the Billboard Japan charts in 2019 when the movie of the same name was released. It peaked at no. 32.[12]
During a special event in the Gunma Prefecture held on June 2, 2024, the song was played simultaneously by 1.000 musicians. The line-up consisted of 200 vocalists and bassists, 500 guitarists, and 100 drummers from all over Japan who were invited to perform the song.[18][19]
Following is a list of artists who have covered "Chiisana Koi no Uta":
The chords of the song were published in an elementary school book for 3rd graders.[40] "Chiisana Koi no Uta" was used as one of the themes in the second volume of the Sutopi Toraberā Hanami (ストピトラベラー花美), a music novel series written by Rinako Shibano for pre-schoolers. The book was published on December 19, 2023.[41][42]
Commercial performance
Since its release in 2001, the song has become very popular as a karaoke song in Japan.[43] "Chiisana Koi no Uta" ranked at the top in the Japanese karaoke charts for ten years straight.[44] In the DAM ranking compiled by Daiichi Kosho Company, the song ranked first in the category of the most-sung songs by a male artist as well as ranking second for the most popular karaoke song on DAM Heisei Karaoke Ranking behind "Hanabi" by Mr. Chicken.[12][45] The song placed in the top 30 for Oricon's Year End Karaoke charts for eight years straight.[46] It ranked third in 2013, 7th in 2014, 10th in 2016, 8th in 2017, 4th in 2018, and 9th in 2019 on the Oricon Karaoke Chart.[47][48] According to music critic Tomonori Shiba [ja], the song remained popular even after the commercial success of the band's album Message had died down commenting that the song “got out of hand” and “stands for itself.”[44] Shiba wrote that the song's popularity lies in a simple melody and the straightforward lyrics. The songs' lyrics features sentences that are easy to understand.[49]
The song ranked 25th and 38th place in the Oricon Digital Songs and Streaming charts, respectively.[50] According to JASRAC "Chiisana Koi no Uta" generated the fourth-highest revenue in ringtone sales in Japan in 2002.[51] In July 2022, the song was one of the featured songs in FNS Song Festival by Fuji TV.[52]
In December 2021, Billboard Japan reported that the song accumulated 100 million streams and became the second song of the 2000s – after "Hanabi" by Mr. Children – to reach this milestone.[12] According to Oricon, The song was the third most-listened song of the 2000s on Spotify in Japan, behind "Zenryoku Shōnen [ja]" by Sukima Switch and "Hanabi" by Mr. Children.[53]
Charts
Weekly Charts
Weekly chart performance for "Chiisana Koi no Uta"
In May 2018, it was announced that an eponymous live-action feature film based on the song was in production.[13] The movie premiered on May 24, 2019, in Japanese cinemas. The theme song which is a cover song of "Chiisana Koi no Uta" as well was performed by the Chiisana Koi no Uta Band.[45] The members of Mongol800 received a role in the movie as well.[55][56] The film was directed by Kojiro Hashimoto [ja], while Kenya Hirata [ja] was in charge of the scripts and published a novel of the same name for the film, the film was played by Hayato Sano [ja] as Ryota Maeshiro. It was published by Kodansha on March 15, 2019. It was distributed by Toei.[57][58]
^Takaharu Abe (April 4, 2024). "Vol. 4 横山優也（Kotori）が語る軽音楽部の魅力". Natalie.mu (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 15, 2024. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
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