Are you curious as to what songs and artists have topped the charts each year in Japan? After writing my article on B’Z who is Japan’s (and possibly all of Asia’s) All-Time Best Selling Artist who is relatively unknown in the west, I got a bit curious as to what else has been topping tops but may not get much recognition by international fans.
Unlike the USA where country is the biggest seller but only 30% of the population actually really loves it, Japan is a monoethnic collectivist country, so a popular artist or song will be beloved by a big portion of the population. Mr. Children, for example, has sold over 75 Million records…but Japan only has a population is only 128 Million!
So if you’re curious as to what songs Japan couldn’t get enough of over the last few decades, this is a great list to see what Japan as a whole really loves.
You’ll notice that maybe some anime songs and other Japanese hits you know aren’t on this list. That’s because a song can do well on the Japan’s Billboard, getting many streams and listens, but they may not get as many sales to be the number one on this list. Don’t worry, I made a list for that too!
And if you’re interested in learning more vocabulary and kanji so you can watch anime and dramas, read manga, sing J-pop at karaoke, or play raw Japanese video games, check out my 250+ Kanji for Japanese Media (+Sentences) article and my Japanese Study Guide!
So let’s get to it!
1989: Diamonds
Princess Princess
1990: Odoru Pompokolin
B.B.Queens
1991: Oh Yeah/Love Story wa Totsuzen ni
Kazumasa Oda
1992: Kimi ga Iru Dake de
Kome Kome Club
1993: Yah Yah Yah/Yume no Bannin
Chage and Aska
1994: Innocent World
Mr. Children
1995: Love Love Love/Arashi ga Kuru
Dreams Come True
1996: Namonaki Uta
Mr. Children
1997: Can You Celebrate?
Namie Amuro
1998: Yuuwaku
GLAY
1999: Dango 3 Kyodai
Kentarou Hayami, Aumi Shigemori, Himawari Kids and Dango Gasshoudan
2000: Tsunami
Southern All Stars
2001: Can You Keep A Secret?
Hikaru Utada
2002: H
Ayumi Hamasaki
*Sorry, I can’t find the song on Youtube 🙁
Pingback: Listen To Japan's Billboard Hits Over The Years ⋆ Chromatic Dreamers