Hana wa Dare no Mono?

"Hana wa Dare no Mono?" (Japanese: 花は誰のもの？, lit. 'Who Does the Flower Belong To?') is the eighth single by Japanese idol group STU48, released on April 13, 2022. The lead performer for the title song rotates between Yumiko Takino, Chiho Ishida, and Mai Nakamura in an unusual "triangle center" system. A short film featuring the performers of the title song was released on YouTube as part of the single's promotion.

"Hana wa Dare no Mono?"
Theater edition cover
Single by STU48
B-side
  • "Fune kara Orita Bokutachi wa…" (Type-A)
  • "Ponytail o Hodoita Kimi o Mita" (Type-B)
  • "Sure, jā ne" (Theater)
ReleasedApril 13, 2022 (2022-04-13)
GenreJ-pop
LabelKing Records
Composer(s)Masaharu Tsuruku[1]
Lyricist(s)Yasushi Akimoto
Producer(s)Yasushi Akimoto
STU48 singles chronology
"Hetaretachi yo"
(2021)		 "Hana wa Dare no Mono?"
(2022)
Music video
"Hana wa Dare no Mono?" on YouTube
"Hana wa Dare no Mono?" (dance-lyrics MV) on YouTube

Production and release

"Hana wa Dare no Mono?" is the first single released after the departure of former STU48 captain Nana Okada in March 2022. The single was first announced on February 11[2] and the title was revealed in mid-March.[3] It was released in five editions: regular and limited editions of Types A and B and a Theater edition. The limited editions included digital ballots to vote for the group's Setouchi PR Unit.[4]

According to songwriter and AKB48 Group producer Yasushi Akimoto, the title song lyrics were inspired by the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and the threat of nuclear war, and he assigned the song to STU48 as they are primarily active in Hiroshima, the first city in history to have been devastated by a nuclear bomb.[1] It utilizes an unusual "triangle center" system, where the center (lead performer) position would rotate between Yumiko Takino, Chiho Ishida, and Mai Nakamura for each performance. This has been compared to the "three arrows" parable, attributed to the feudal lord Mōri Motonari, who was based in Aki Province.[5]

Short film
Hikari wa Kimi ni, Ano Hibi ni
video icon Full film
video icon Trailer

A 31-minute short film or "drama music video", titled Hikari wa Kimi ni, Ano Hibi ni (光は君に、あの日々に。, lit. 'The Light for You, in Those Days') and directed by Junichi Kanai, was released on March 31 on the group's YouTube channel, with English subtitles, as part of the single's promotion.[6] The filming took place at the Kirara Beach and other locations in Yamaguchi. All performers of the title song appear in the drama, and Hiroshima-born singer Hitomi Shimatani portrayed the choir club teacher. The music video for the title song depicts scenes from the film.[7][8]

Plot

Yumiko, Chiho, and Mai are good friends who were members of the choir club in middle school. They have a falling out when they enter high school because Yumiko opts to enter the photography club instead of continuing in the choir club as the three had promised. Despite that, Yumiko takes to watching the choir club practice from the photography club room. In their third year, an important choir contest that the club have been practicing for has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So that their training would not go to waste, Yumiko offers the photography club's help to document the choir club's performance at a beach near the school. She also reveals that she did not join the choir club due to sudden hearing loss and had planned to join them if her hearing improved. Chiho and Mai agree and the three reconcile. Years later, they meet at the same beach and reminisce over the photos still stored in Yumiko's camera.

Reception

"Hana wa Dare no Mono" sold about 157,500 copies in its release week according to Oricon[9] and placed second in both the Oricon Singles[9] and Billboard Japan Hot 100 charts.[10] The song also placed on the top three of the Weekly Usen Hit J-Pop Ranking chart in July, three months after its release.[11] The dance-lyrics music video, published in May, reached 3 million views in October.[12] The group also made its first appearances on the prime-time shows Music Station on TV Asahi[12] in August and Music Blood on Nippon TV in September to perform the song, which was considered unusual for a music release already past its promotional period.[13] A re-release titled the "Extra Edition" was announced for release on November 2, and as of October 7, the single has sold over 440,000 copies, surpassing the group's previous best-selling 2020 single "Mubō na Yume wa Sameru Koto ga Nai".[12]

Sports Nippon partly attributed the song's public recognition to its first line, Moshi kono sekai kara kokkyō ga kietara (もしこの世界から国境が消えたら, If borders disappear from this world), which is often misheard as Moshi kono sekai kara Tōkyō ga kietara (もしこの世界から東京が消えたら, If Tokyo disappears from this world) and drove unfamiliar listeners to find more information about the song.[1][11]

Charts
2022 year-end chart performance for "Hana wa Dare no Mono"
Chart (2022) Position
Japan (Oricon)[14] 28

References
  1. もしこの世界から○○が消えたら…STU48「花は誰のもの？」発売2カ月でじわり浸透 空耳が後押し [STU48's "Hana wa Dare no Mono?" is slowly gaining popularity two months after its release, boosted by the misheard lyrics]. スポニチ Sponichi Annex (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-07-05.
  2. "ＳＴＵが８枚目シングルを４・13発売、初の「トライアングルセンター」方式導入 - ＡＫＢ４８ : 日刊スポーツ". nikkansports.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-07-06.
  3. "STU48 8thシングル「花は誰のもの？」を主題歌とした"ドラマミュージックビデオ"のプレミア公開決定！！". STU48 OFFICIAL WEB SITE｜STU48 FAN CLUB (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-07-06.
  4. "「STU48瀬戸内PR部隊Season２」投票企画 投票フォームのお知らせ | STU48 KING RECORDS official website". stu.kingrecords.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2022-05-20. Retrieved 2022-07-23.
  5. Inc, Natasha. "STU48「花は誰のもの？」インタビュー｜初の試み"トライアングルセンター"、"3本の矢"が結束して次のフェーズへ - 音楽ナタリー 特集・インタビュー". 音楽ナタリー (Interview) (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-06-12. {{cite interview}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  6. STU48 ドラマミュージックビデオ「光は君に、あの日々に。」 主題歌：「花は誰のもの？」, retrieved 2022-07-14
  7. Inc, Natasha. "STU48ドラマミュージックビデオ公開、瀧野由美子「初めてMVで本気で泣きました」（動画あり / コメントあり）". 音楽ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-07-04. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  8. "STU48 on Instagram: "STU48 Drama MV "Hikari wa Kimi ni, Ano Hibi ni." Released Commemoration INSTAGRAM LIVE 🌟member🌟 Riko Kudo(MC) Kokoa Kai @cocoa_k1128 Sayaka Takao @stu48_sayan"". Instagram. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  9. オリコン週間 シングルランキング 2022年04月11日～2022年04月17日 [Oricon Weekly Single Ranking April 11, 2022 – April 17, 2022] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on April 20, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  10. "Billboard Japan Hot 100 2022/04/25". Billboard Japan. April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  11. "ＳＴＵ４８「花は誰のもの？」が"再注目" ＵＳＥＮランキング３位＆再生回数１００万回突破 – 東京スポーツ新聞社". 東スポＷeb (in Japanese). 13 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-26.
  12. "STU48、話題の8thシングル『花は誰のもの？』が史上最高の累計出荷枚数 約44万枚突破が決定 | ENTAME next - アイドル情報総合ニュースサイト". entamenext.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-10-08.
  13. "STU48話題の平和を願うメッセージソング「花は誰のもの？」ダンスリリックビデオが300万再生突破 | ENTAME next - アイドル情報総合ニュースサイト". entamenext.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-10-08.
  14. 年間 シングルランキング 2022年度 [Annual Single Ranking 2022] (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on December 22, 2022. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
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