The First Take Explained

The First Take
Channel Url:UC9zY_E8mcAo_Oq772LEZq8Q
Channel Display Name:The First Take
Years Active:2019–present
Genre:Music
Subscribers:10 million
Views:4,69 billion
Creator:Sony Music Entertainment Japan
Language:Japanese
Silver Button:yes
Gold Year:2020
Diamond Year:2024
Stats Update:August 18, 2024

The First Take (stylized as THE F1RST TAKE) is a Japanese YouTube channel that invites singers to perform a song recorded in one take in a white studio. The First Take is a trademark of Sony Music Entertainment Japan.[1]

Concept

Videos on The First Take are filmed in a studio, alternating between medium and close-up shots of only the performing singer and a microphone, set to a background that is usually white. The footage is recorded in 4K resolution with high quality audio.[2] According to creative director Keisuke Shimizu, singers are asked to treat the filming as a live performance,[3] The Japan Times writer Patrick St. Michel notes that The First Take's success demonstrates a shift in musical preferences in the public, suggesting that "slick, manicured pop is out and authenticity — or at least the veneer of authenticity — is in."[4]

History

On November 15, 2019, the channel published its first video featuring "Narratage" by Adieu.[4] On December 6, Lisa's performance of "Gurenge" went viral and gained more views than the song's original music video, and is credited with popularizing the channel.[5] Several recordings on the channel are available digitally; notably, Dish//'s performance of "Neko" peaked at 11th on the Billboard Japan Hot 100[6] and also placed 28th on the Year-End chart.[7] As of August 2024, 549 episodes and almost 300 individuals or groups have appeared on the channel; five videos have more than 100 million views: "Gurenge" by Lisa, "Neko" by Dish//, "Dry Flower" by Yuuri, and "Yoru ni Kakeru", "Gunjō" by Yoasobi.[2]

As a response to a state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several videos in 2020 were filmed inside the singer's home/private studio and titled "The Home Take".[3] In June 2020, South Korean boy band Stray Kids performed "Slump" (Japanese version) on the channel, becoming the first foreign and Korean artists to appear, and was the first video to be shot remotely.[8] The group appeared again to perform "" in October 2021, marking the first non-Japanese song to perform on the channel.[9]

In February 2022, singer-songwriter Ai performed her song "Aldebaran", becoming the first solo American artist to appear on the channel.[10] The first American group to appear on the channel was Pentatonix in January 2021.[11] On April 1, the channel published its first recording featuring non-human characters, Sesame Street muppets Elmo, Julia, and Cookie Monster, who performed "Ue o Muite Aruko" with Hinatazaka46 members Shiho Katō, Hinano Kamimura, and Mikuni Takahashi.[12] In June, English singer Harry Styles appeared on the 225th episode, performing "Boyfriends".[13] Styles was one of the few Western artists to appear on the channel.[14] In September 2022, Canadian singer Avril Lavigne performed "Complicated" on the channel.[15] In October 2022, singer-songwriter Sury Su performed her song "Liao (The Phoenix)", becoming the first solo Chinese artist to appear on the channel.[16]

In January 2023, Hololive Production member Hoshimachi Suisei, performing her song "Stellar Stellar", became the first virtual YouTuber to perform on the channel.[17]

On August 18th, 2024, the channel exceeds 10 million subscribers, become the first Japanese music YouTube channel to do so.

List of performances

style="background-color:yellow"
Indicates performances by non-Japanese artists (including collaboration with Japanese artists)

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

! scope="col"
DateArtist(s)Song(s)
392January 3Kanjani Eight"Zukkoke Otoko Michi", "Tomoyo"
393January 5SixTones"Kokkara"
394January 8Hiroshi Kitadani"We Are!"
395January 10Sakurazaka46"Samidare yo"
396January 12Nami Tamaki"Believe"
397January 17SixTones"Kimi ga Inai"
398January 19Måneskin"I Wanna Be Your Slave"
399January 24Kanjani Eight"Osaka Romanesque"
400January 26Gao"Ending"
401January 31Måneskin"Honey (Are U Coming?)"
402February 2T.M.Revolution"White Breath"
403February 7Cö Shu Nie"Yume o Misete"
404February 9Spyair"Genjō Destruction"
405February 14Takanori Nishikawa"Freedom"
406February 16Omoinotake"Ikuokukonen"
407February 19Bad Hop"Champion Road"
408"Kawasaki Drift"
409February 21Spyair"Orange"
410February 23Angela Aki"Tegami (Haikei Jūgo no Kimi e)"
411February 28Yusuke"Himawari (Ōenka)"
412March 1Nokko"Friends"
413March 4Phil Lam"Mountains and Valleys"
414March 6Angela Aki, Natsumi Kon, Sakurako Ohara"Kono Sekai no Achikochi ni"
415March 8Creepy Nuts"Bling-Bang-Bang-Born"
416March 11Loren Allred, Nobuo Uematsu ConTiki"No Promises to Keep"
417March 13Nokko"Ningyo"
418March 15Zerobaseone"In Bloom" (Japanese version)
419March 20Phil Lam, Cath Wong, Mischa Ip"Art and Science"
420March 22Riize"Get a Guitar"
421March 27Airi Suzuki featuring Sorane, Taku Takahashi (M-Flo)"Koi ni Ochitara"
422March 29Loren Allred"Never Enough"
423April 3Riize"Love 119" (Japanese version)
424April 5Creepy Nuts"Biriken"
425April 5A-Lin"A Kind of Sorrow"
426April 12West"Ee Janai ka"
427April 17A-Lin"Best Friend"
428April 19Yuki Chiba"Team Tomodachi"
429April 24West"Heart"
430April 26Hitorie"Unknown Mother Goose"
431May 1Fruits Zipper"Watashi no Ichiban Kawaii Tokoro"
432May 3Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi"Tonbo"
433May 8Hitorie"On the Front Line"
434May 10Ano featuring Lilas Ikuta"Zezezezettai Seiiki"
435May 15Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi"Black Cloak and Red Apple"
436May 17Psychic Fever, JP the Wavy"Just Like Dat"
437May 22Lilas Ikuta featuring Ano"Seishun Ōka"
438May 24Dozan11 AKA Dōzan Miki"Lifetime Respect"
439May 29Lex & Lana"Akarui Heya"
440May 31Wands"Sekai ga Owaru Made wa..."
441June 5Kimaguren"Life"
442June 7Kessoku Band"Guitar, Loneliness and Blue Planet"
443June 12Chō Tokimeki Sendenbu"Saijōkyū ni Kawaii no!"
444June 14ALI featuring Hannya"Professionalism"
445June 19Kessoku Band"Shine as Usual"
446June 21INI"Fanfare"
447June 26Da-ice"I Wonder"
448June 28Noa"Any Angle"
449July 1SB19"Gento"
450July 3INI"I'm a Dreamer"
451July 5Asian Kung-Fu Generation"Haruka Kanata"
452July 8Jeonghan X Wonwoo"Last Night" (acoustic version)
453July 10Noa"My Lovely Killer"
454July 12Ai Otsuka"Planetarium"
455July 15SB19"Mapa"
456July 17Asian Kung-Fu Generation"Rock'n Roll, Morning Light Falls on You"
457July 19Hakushi Hasegawa"Somoku"
458July 22BoyNextDoor"Earth, Wind & Fire" (Japanese version)
459July 24Ai Otsuka"Sakuranbo (Cocktail)"
460July 26RIKONDENSETSULove is more Mellow
461July 28Hakushi HasegawaOutside (Soto)
462August 2neguseNichijyou Kakumei
463August 7RIKONDENSETSUHonjitsuno Osusume
464August 9Aqua TimezNiji
465August 12aespaSupernova
466August 14neguseZutto Sukidara
467August 16BAKUFU-SLUMPRunner
468

The Home Take

The First Take Fes

Inside the First Take

Flash The First Take

!No.!Date!Artist!Song
2024
1August 10adieuSenaka
2 August 12Umeda CypherIdaten S***
3Umeda CypherRodeo13
4August 15MFSCombo
5August 17osageMy Diary
6

References

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Notes and References

  1. Web site: 登録6320136 . J-Piat Pat . June 14, 2022 . ja.
  2. News: Ito . Haruka . News Navigator: What is popular Japanese YouTube music channel 'The First Take'? . Mainichi Daily News . October 9, 2021 . September 30, 2021.
  3. Web site: 普段ならNG箇所を価値あるものに…「THE FIRST TAKE」制作チーム . Sports Hochi . October 9, 2021 . ja . May 9, 2020.
  4. Web site: St. Michel . Patrick . Racking up the views on YouTube with The First Take . The Japan Times . October 9, 2021 . April 24, 2020.
  5. Web site: Komatsu . Mikikazu . LiSA's "Gurenge" Performance for "THE FIRST TAKE" is Featured in Sony's Headphones CM . Crunchyroll . October 9, 2021 . August 24, 2020.
  6. Web site: Hot 100 [2020/06/17 公開] ]. Billboard Japan . October 9, 2021 . ja.
  7. Web site: Hot 100: Year-End 2020 . Billboard Japan . October 9, 2021 . ja.
  8. News: Stray Kids「THE FIRST TAKE」に韓国から出演、「SLUMP -Japanese ver.-」世界初披露 . June 17, 2022 . . June 25, 2020 . ja.
  9. News: Stray Kidsの凄みをまざまざと見せつけられる「Mixtape : OH」。韓国語歌唱で挑む、2度目の『THE FIRST TAKE』 . June 17, 2022 . The First Time . November 11, 2021 . ja.
  10. Web site: AIが今夜「THE FIRST TAKE」初登場、朝ドラ主題歌「アルデバラン」披露|ウーマンエキサイト . June 14, 2022 . ウーマンエキサイト . ja.
  11. 2022-06-20 . Everything You Need to Know About 'THE FIRST TAKE,' Featuring Harry Styles, Stray Kids, YOASOBI & More . 2022-08-18 . Billboard . en-US.
  12. Web site: 日向坂46「THE FIRST TAKE」で「セサミストリート」キャラクターとコラボ(コメントあり) . 2022-05-08 . . Natasha, Inc. . ja.
  13. Paul . Larisha . 2022-06-13 . Watch Harry Styles Perform a Stripped-Back Version of 'Boyfriends' on 'The First Take' . 2022-06-15 . Rolling Stone . en-US.
  14. Dailey . Hannah . 2022-06-13 . Harry Styles Nails His One-Shot Performance of 'Boyfriends' on 'The First Take': Watch . 2022-06-15 . Billboard . en-US.
  15. Web site: Avril Lavigne、"THE FIRST TAKE"に初登場!デビュー曲「Complicated」を一発撮りパフォーマンス!. ja. Avril Lavigne's first appearance in "THE FIRST TAKE"! One shot performance of debut song "Complicated"!. Gekirock. 2022-09-02. 2022-09-02.
  16. News: スー・ルイチー、中国ソロアーティストとして初出演した『THE FIRST TAKE』の感想とプロフィール。彼女の魅力を探る . August 7, 2023 . The First Times . October 11, 2022 . ja.
  17. Web site: Harding . Daryl . Hololive Member Hoshimachi Suisei Is the 1st VTuber to Perform on THE FIRST TAKE . January 21, 2023 . Crunchyroll . January 20, 2023.