Making a Billboard chart is a big deal! Considering how many songs come out every week, it takes a really great song and usually a well known artist with a bit of a following to push a song up the ranks.
Today, I also published an article where you can listen to Japan’s best selling songs. These two lists have completely different songs which is quite interesting! But as I explained there, just cause a song is very popular and gets lost of listens and streams, lots of views on Youtube, doesn’t mean people are going out to buy the song/single to enjoy it long term, and vice versa. Some people would rather buy albums than stream songs.
In my opinion, I would say the best sellers is what appeals most to the older population of Japan. In general, Japan does really love music, and one reason why they have the 2nd biggest music markets is because fans still love to buy albums, merch, and other physical items. The older generation may love groups like B’Z, Mr. Children, and Arashi, and since they don’t know how to stream, they will buy their albums, thus why they are best sellers.
But Billboards count streams and views, thus this list will reflect what younger people will listen to, be obsessed with for a few weeks, but then get tired and move on to the next hottest song. So these songs can go viral and reach the top of the charts for a few weeks, but can just as easily be replaced by another song. Usually an anime or movie can also help push these songs up the ranks while the show is airing, but it may not have the same longevity as the best selling songs.
Regardless, both lists can give you a lot of insight into what Japan is obsessed with, though the songs on this list are more likely to be heard by international fans too.
This song contains hits that are still on charts, so any song with a + by it’s length is still trending and I will update it occasionally. I’ve also created a Youtube playlist with these songs and other songs that have been on the billboard for at least 100 weeks!
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, shall we?
Most Weeks at Number 1
“Koi” By Gen Hoshino
Release Year: 2016
Weeks at #1: 11
“Zankyo Sanka” by Aimer
Release Year: 2021
Weeks at #1: 9
“Homura” by LiSA
Release Year: 2020
Weeks at #1: 8
“Lemon” by Kenshi Yonezu
Release Year: 2018
Weeks at #1: 7
Weeks on Charts: 220+
“Pretender” by Official Hige Dandism
Release Year: 2019
Weeks at #1: 7
Weeks on Chart: 159+
“I Love…” by Official Hige Dandism
Release Year: 2020
Weeks at #1: 7
Weeks on Chart: 121+
“Yoru ni Kakeru” (Racing in the Night) by Yoasobi
Release Year: 2020
Weeks at #1: 6
“Christmas Song” by Back Number
Release Year: 2015
Weeks at #1: 3
Other Songs with Longest Time On Billboard Charts
These are songs that may or may not have hit #1, but have been on the billboard charts for at least 120 weeks. If you’re curious about other songs that have ranked high or stayed long, check out my Youtube playlist.
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