Stay Gold (Hikaru Utada song) explained

Stay Gold
Cover:Utada Heart - Station-Stay Gold.jpg
Alt:A red heart on a blue background.
Caption:"Heart Station" / "Stay Gold" cover
Type:single
Artist:Hikaru Utada
Album:Heart Station
Recorded:2007
Genre:Pop
Length:5:15
Label:EMI Music Japan
Producer:
Prev Title:Do You
Prev Year:2007
Next Title:Heart Station
Next Year:2008

"Stay Gold" is a pop song by Japanese American musician Hikaru Utada. Used in a high-profile campaign for Kao Corporation's Asience shampoo commercials in 2007,[1] the song was released as a double A-side single with Utada's song "Heart Station" on February 20, 2008.

Background and development

In February 2007, Utada released "Flavor of Life", the theme song for the drama Hana Yori Dango Returns, which became one of her most commercially successful singles, selling over eight million downloads and becoming the second most digitally successful song of 2007 globally.[2] [3] This was followed by a second single in 2007, featuring the songs "Beautiful World", the theme song for the animated film , and "Kiss & Cry", a song used to promote Nissin Foods' Cup Noodles.[4]

On December 7 to celebrate the start of her 10th year since her debut, her song "Automatic" (1998) was released as a free ringtone for four days. At the same time, it was announced that Utada was working on her fifth Japanese studio album, to be released in spring 2008.[5]

Promotion and release

The song was first announced and used in Asience commercials in October 2007, and released as a ringtone on December 7.[5] [6] After a single month, the song's ringtones had been downloaded more than 250,000 times.[7]

After the song was released to radio stations on January 7, it was heavily played on FM radio stations across Japan. It managed to reach number one on the newly established Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart in mid January, despite having no purchasable release at the time.[7]

In February, Utada was featured in many music and fashion magazines in Japan to promote the single, including issues of Pia, Patipati, CD Data, What's In? and Pop Teen.[8] On February 28, Utada performed the song live on Utaban.[9] It has been part of two of Utada's concert setlists: her international tour and her two date concert series Wild Life in December 2010.[10] [11]

Critical reception

CDJournal reviewers felt the song was simultaneously painful and warm, and praised the song's passionate lyrics and inflected vocals. They described the song's piano as having an "extremely pure" sound, like skipping stones on a surface of water, and felt the lyric "shūshoku mo kimatte, asonde bakkari iranai ne" ("You've got a job, so you can't just play all the time anymore") was particularly gripping.[12] [13] Takayuki Saito of Hot Express described the song as being as minimalist as possible, and noted it was rare of Utada to use feminine lyrics in the way she does in "Stay Gold", and praised the song's "high level of perfection".[14]

Listen.jp reviewer Shigefumi Koike praised how the song showed off Utada's "adventurous spirit" while remaining an easily listenable pop song. He felt that "Stay Gold" displayed an effective use of the acoustic piano, and praised the song's emotion. Koike felt that both "Stay Gold" and "Heart Station" were a "magnificent" display of Utada's "futuristic" abilities as a sound creator, and that both songs showed off the emotive qualities of Utada's vocals and had great "ambient sound arrangements".[15]

Covers

In 2014, Ohashi Trio recorded a cover of "Stay Gold" for Utada Hikaru no Uta, a tribute album celebrating 15 years since Utada's debut.[16]

Personnel

Personnel details were sourced from "Heart Station" / "Stay Gold"'s liner notes booklet.[17]

Chart rankings

Charts (2008)Peak
position
Japan Hot 100 (Billboard)[18] 1
Japan Oricon weekly singles[19]
  • "Heart Station" / "Stay Gold"
3
Japan RIAJ Reco-kyō ringtones Top 100[20] 4

Sales and certifications

Chart Amount
Oricon physical sales[21]
  • "Heart Station" / "Stay Gold"
77,000<--76,762-->
RIAJ ringtone certification[22] 2× Platinum (500,000)
RIAJ cellphone download certification[23] Gold (100,000)
RIAJ physical certification[24]
  • "Heart Station" / "Stay Gold"
Gold (100,000)

Release history

RegionDateFormatDistributing LabelCatalog codes
JapanringtoneEMI Music Japan
[25] radio debut
[26] [27] [28] CD single, digital downloadTOCT-40200
South KoreaDigital downloadUniversal Music Korea
Taiwan[29] CD singleGold Typhoon5099920619220

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 宇多田ヒカル、新曲"Stay Gold"がヘアケアブランド〈アジエンス〉テレビCMソングにてオンエア - TOWER RECORDS ONLINE . 2023-02-10 . tower.jp . Japanese.
  2. Web site: Online music sales grow 40 percent in 2007: IFPI . AFP . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080419130241/http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hV-9sQLhWhX_FALO6lvIBdw86fjw . January 24, 2008 . April 19, 2008 . August 29, 2014.
  3. Web site: ja:宇多田ヒカル、デビュー以来全アルバムがミリオン達成 . Hikaru Utada has her first digitally million album . http://www.barks.jp/news/?id=1000039775 . Barks . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20140829072254/http://www.barks.jp/news/?id=1000039775 . March 13, 2008 . August 29, 2014 . August 29, 2014.
  4. Web site: Beautiful World / Kiss & Cry . Amazon.co.jp . December 23, 2014.
  5. Web site: ja:宇多田ヒカルが「Automatic」無料配信＆新曲発売 . Hikaru Utada releases "Automatic" digitally for free, announces new song . http://natalie.mu/music/news/4485 . Natalie . Japanese . December 7, 2007 . January 2, 2015.
  6. Web site: ja:新曲『Stay Gold』花王ヘアケアブランド「アジエンス」新TVCFタイアップ決定！ . http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . EMI Music Japan . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080229030036/http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . October 4, 2007 . February 29, 2008 . December 31, 2014.
  7. Web site: ja:宇多田ヒカルの新曲「Stay Gold」試聴スタート . Trial listening starts for Hikaru Utada's new song "Stay Gold" . http://natalie.mu/music/news/4845 . Natalie . Japanese . January 7, 2008 . January 2, 2015.
  8. Web site: ja:「HEART STATION / Stay Gold」記事掲載メディア一覧 . http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . EMI Music Japan . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080229030036/http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . February 20, 2008 . February 29, 2008 . December 31, 2014.
  9. . . February 28, 2008 . Japanese.
  10. Web site: ja:宇多田ヒカル、“Utada”全米ツアー＜In The Flesh 2010＞映像＆過去全ライブビデオをiTunesで一挙配信 . http://www.barks.jp/news/?id=1000097035 . EMI Music Japan . Japanese . December 9, 2013 . January 2, 2015.
  11. Web site: 宇多田ヒカル一時休止前ラスト公演で感涙＆Ust新記録樹立 . Natalie . Japanese . December 13, 2010 . December 17, 2010.
  12. Web site: 宇多田ヒカル / HEART STATION / Stay Gold . CDJournal . Japanese . December 30, 2014.
  13. Web site: 宇多田ヒカル / HEART STATION . CDJournal . Japanese . December 30, 2014.
  14. Web site: HEART STATION / Stay Gold . Takayuki Saito . Hot Express . Japanese . January 12, 2015.
  15. Web site: ja:新作レビュー ＨＥＡＲＴ ＳＴＡＴＩＯＮ／Ｓｔａｙ Ｇｏｌｄ . http://listen.jp/store/diskreview_23350.htm . Listen.jp . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080321164901/http://listen.jp/store/diskreview_23350.htm . March 21, 2008 . February 19, 2015.
  16. Web site: 『宇多田ヒカルのうた』全貌明らかに。井上陽水、椎名林檎、浜崎あゆみ、吉井和哉ら参加アーティストコメント . All details revealed for Utada Hikaru no Uta, comments from contributing artists such as Yosui Inoue, Ringo Sheena, Ayumi Hamasaki and Kazuya Yoshii. . Barks . Japanese . December 3, 2014 . December 3, 2014.
  17. Heart Station / Stay Gold . . 2008 . Japanese . EMI Music Japan . Tokyo, Japan.
  18. Japan Billboard Hot 100 . . Japanese . January 15, 2008 . August 28, 2014.
  19. Web site: HEART STATION/Stay Gold . Oricon . Japanese . January 1, 2015.
  20. Web site: レコード協会調べ 12月度有料音楽配信チャート（「着うた（R）」）＜略称：12月度レコ協チャート（「着うた（R）」）＞ . 2008-01-20 . . 2010-09-17 . Japanese.
  21. Web site: オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」 . Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree' . . subscription . January 1, 2015.
  22. Web site: ja:レコード協会調べ 4月度有料音楽配信認定 . Record Association Investigation: April Digital Music Download Certifications . http://www.riaj.or.jp/data/others/chart/w080520_3.html . . Japanese . May 20, 2008 . January 23, 2014.
  23. Web site: レコード協会調べ 3月度有料音楽配信認定 . Record Association Investigation: March Digital Music Download Certifications . . Japanese . April 20, 2008 . December 13, 2013.
  24. Web site: ja:ゴールド等認定作品一覧 2008年2月 . Works Receiving Certifications List (Gold, etc) (February 2008) . http://www.riaj.or.jp/data/others/gold/200802.html . . Japanese . March 10, 2008 . January 24, 2014.
  25. Web site: ja:「Stay Gold」（花王「アジエンス」新CMソング） 2008年1月7日O.Aスタート！ . http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . EMI Music Japan . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080229030036/http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . January 7, 2008 . February 29, 2008 . December 31, 2014.
  26. Web site: HEART STATION / Stay Gold Single, Maxi . Amazon.co.jp . January 1, 2015.
  27. Web site: ja:「Stay Gold」着うたフル・PC配信スタート！ . http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . EMI Music Japan . Japanese . https://web.archive.org/web/20080229030036/http://www.emimusic.jp/hikki/news/news_j.php . February 20, 2007 . February 29, 2008 . December 31, 2014.
  28. Web site: Heart Station . 20 February 2008 . Bugs . Korean . January 1, 2015.
  29. Web site: 宇多田 / HEART STATION/Stay Gold . Books.co.tw . January 1, 2015.

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