Ryūsei (Eir Aoi song)

"Ryūsei" (流星, Meteor) is a song by Japanese pop singer Eir Aoi. It was released digitally on April 22, 2018,[1] and received a physical release together with the song "Yakusoku" on June 13, 2018, as her fourteenth single.[2] It reached number 8 on Oricon and number 10 on Japan Hot 100. It was used as the opening theme song of anime series Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online.[3] The single also mark her return from her hiatus, and also mark as her first double A-side single.[4][5]

"Ryūsei"
The regular edition cover
Single by Eir Aoi
from the album Fragment
A-side"Yakusoku" (double A-side)
Released
  • April 22, 2018 (2018-04-22) (digital)
  • June 13, 2018
Recorded2017
StudioSony Music Studio
(Tokyo, Japan)
GenreJ-pop
Length4:13
LabelSacra Music
Composer(s)Kohei Tsunami
Lyricist(s)Eir Aoi, Kohei Tsunami
Eir Aoi singles chronology
"Tsubasa"
(2016)
"Ryūsei" / "Yakusoku"
(2018)
"Iris"
(2018)
Alternative cover
The limited anime edition cover
Music video
流星 on YouTube

Release and reception

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On 8 February 2018, it was announced that she would resume her activities after her hiatus with the release of the music video "Yakusoku" (約束, Promise) on YouTube.[4][5] This was confirmed on 7 March 2018 that her next release would be the opening theme to anime Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online, titled "Ryūsei" (流星, Meteor).[3] The song was released digitally on April 22, 2018,[1] and received a physical release together with the song "Yakusoku" on June 13, 2018, as her fourteenth single on three edition; Regular edition, Limited edition and Limited anime edition.[2] The single reached number 8 on Oricon, 10 on Japan Hot 100, and 1 on Japan Hot Animation with spent 10, 20 and 13 weeks respectively.[6][7] In June 2018, "Ryūsei" was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for 100,000 full-track ringtone digital music downloads (Chaku Uta Full).[8] The song placed in 6th on Newtype Anime Awards for 2018 best theme song,[9] The song was featured in her fourth album "Fragment".[10]

Music video

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The music video for "Ryūsei" was directed by Takashi Tadokoro.[11] The video features a girl with school uniform that was writing in her notebook on some school. After she finish writing, she torn a page that she was writing before and start to cry (it is revealed that she is writing a word "meteor", indicating that she want to see a meteor). Some scene featuring the girl running from her school to some place where the meteor and star can be seen. The video also feature Eir Aoi singing in the music studio. The video end when the girl finally can see a meteor on sky with the view of the city, smiling as the meteor faded away.

Track listing

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Regular edition

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CD
No.TitleLength
1."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor)4:13
2."Yakusoku" (約束 Promise)4:47
3."Hitokakera no Yuuki" (ヒトカケラの勇気 A Piece of Courage)3:52
4."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor) (Instrumental)4:11

Limited edition

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CD
No.TitleLength
1."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor)4:13
2."Yakusoku" (約束 Promise)4:47
3."Hitokakera no Yuuki" (ヒトカケラの勇気 A Piece of Courage)3:52
4."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor) (Instrumental)4:11
DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Ryūsei" (music video)4:11
2."Yakusoku" (music video)4:45

Limited anime edition

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CD
No.TitleLength
1."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor)4:13
2."Yakusoku" (約束 Promise)4:47
3."Hitokakera no Yuuki" (ヒトカケラの勇気 A Piece of Courage)3:52
4."Ryūsei" (流星 Meteor) (Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online OP ver)1:29
DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Ryūsei" (Sword Art Online Alternative Gun Gale Online opening version without credit)1:30

Personnel

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Singer and bands
  • Eir Aoi – vocals, lyrics ("Ryūsei", "Yakusoku")
  • Kohei Tsunami, Ryosuke Shigenaga, Katsuhiko Kurosu – lyrics
  • Kohei Tsunami – bass, arranger, other instruments
  • Takumi Sone – guitar
Production

Charts

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Year Chart Peak position
(shared with Yakusoku)
2018 Oricon[6] 10
Japan Hot 100[7] 8
Japan Hot Animation [7] 1

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[8] Gold 100,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Region Date Label Format Catalog
Japan 13 June 2018 Sacra Music CD VVCL-1255
CD+DVD VVCL-1252
CD+DVD VVCL-1256

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Result
2018 Newtype Anime Awards Best Theme Song 6th place[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b "藍井エイル、新ビジュアルを公開! さらに新曲「流星」、4月22日(日)配信決定!" (in Japanese). Sony Music Entertainment Japan. April 6, 2018. Archived from the original on April 8, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "藍井エイル、14thシングル「流星 / 約束」6月13日(水)に発売決定!" (in Japanese). Sony Music Entertainment Japan. March 26, 2018. Archived from the original on March 28, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Eir Aoi Performs Opening Theme for Sword Art Online: Alternative Gun Gale Online Anime". Anime News Network. March 7, 2018. Archived from the original on March 8, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Singer Eir Aoi Returns From Hiatus". Anime News Network. February 8, 2018. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  5. ^ a b ">藍井エイル、活動再開のお知らせ" (in Japanese). Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Archived from the original on February 7, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "流星/約束" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  7. ^ a b c "流星 - Chart Insight" (in Japanese). Billboard Japan. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  8. ^ a b "Japanese digital single certifications – 流星" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Select 2018年6月 on the drop-down menu
  9. ^ a b Loo, Egan (October 7, 2018). "Idolm@ster SideM, Bungo Stray Dogs film win Top Newtype Anime Awards". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  10. ^ "FRAGMENT" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  11. ^ "SPACE SHOWER Music Video Search". SPACE SHOWER Networks Inc. Retrieved June 21, 2020. (in Japanese)