"Sakura" is the 45th single by Japanese boy band Arashi. It was released on February 25, 2015 under their record label J Storm. "Sakura" was used as the theme song for the television drama Ouroborous, starring actors Toma Ikuta and Shun Oguri. The single was released in two editions: a first press/limited edition and a regular edition. The first press/limited edition contains the B-side "Rise and Shine" and the music video and making-of for "Sakura" while the regular edition contains two B-sides. The single sold 465,381 copies in its first week[2] and topped the weekly Oricon Singles Chart.[3] With over 520,000 copies sold, the single was certified Double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ).[4] The single placed 11th on Oricon's 2015 yearly singles ranking.[5]

"Sakura"
Regular edition cover
Single by Arashi
B-side
  • "Rise and Shine"
  • "Onaji Sora no Shita de"
  • "More and More"
ReleasedFebruary 25, 2015 (2015-02-25)
Recorded2015
Genre
LabelJ Storm
Songwriter(s)eltvo
Arashi singles chronology
"Daremo Shiranai"
(2014)
"Sakura"
(2015)
"Aozora no Shita, Kimi no Tonari"
(2015)

Single information

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The first press/limited edition contains the music video and making-of for "Sakura", the B-side "Rise and Shine" and its instrumental, and a 16-page lyrics booklet while the regular edition contains the B-sides "Onaji Sora no Shita de" and "more and more", and the instrumentals for all three tracks. The album jacket covers for both versions are different.

"Sakura" was used as the theme song for the television drama Ouroborous, starring actors Toma Ikuta and Shun Oguri. This marks the first time Arashi has provided a theme song for a drama that did not star one of its members.[6]

Track listing

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Regular edition
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Sakura"eltvoeltvoHirofumi Sasaki4:40
2."Onaji Sora no Shita de" (同じ空の下で)Trevor IngramIngramIngram4:35
3."more and more"HYDRANT
  • Daniel Sherman
  • Katerina Bramley
  • Robert Hanna
Taku Yoshioka4:03
4."Sakura (instrumental)"   4:40
5."Onaji Sora no Shita de" (instrumental)   4:35
6."More and More" (instrumental)   3:59
Total length:26:35
Limited edition CD
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."Sakura"eltvoeltvoSasaki4:39
2."Rise and Shine"
  • 100+
  • mfmsiQ
  • John World
  • Erik Lidbom
  • youwhich
Tomoki Ishizuka4:33
3."Rise and Shine" (instrumental)   4:29
Total length:13:42
Limited edition DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Sakura (video clip + making-of)" (Sakura(ビデオ・クリップ+メイキング)) 

Chart performance

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The single debuted at number one on the Oricon daily singles chart selling 239,867[7] copies upon its release and selling 465,381 copies by the end of the week, topping the Oricon and Billboard Japan weekly singles charts.[8] The single sold 30,490 copies in its second week[9] and stayed in the top ten for three consecutive weeks.[10] With 521,067 copies sold, the single placed 11th on Oricon's 2015 yearly singles ranking and third on Billboard Japan's top singles year-end list.[11]

Charts and certifications

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Release history

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Country Release date Label Format Catalog
Japan February 25, 2015 J Storm CD+DVD JACA-5451-5452
CD JACA-5453
South Korea March 18, 2015 S.M. Entertainment CD SMKJT0505
Taiwan March 20, 2015 Avex Asia CD+DVD JAJSG27064/A
CD JAJSG27064

References

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  1. ^ "Arashi tugs at the patriotic heartstrings on 'Japonism'". The Japan Times. November 15, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
  2. ^ "【オリコン】嵐、史上初の歌手&俳優で同時3冠" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  3. ^ "週間 CDシングルランキング 2015年03月09日付" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  4. ^ "月次認定作品 認定年月:2015年 2月" (in Japanese). RIAJ. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  5. ^ "年間 CDシングルランキング 2015年度" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  6. ^ "嵐、今年第1弾シングルは生田主演『ウロボロス』主題歌" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  7. ^ "デイリー CDシングルランキング2015年02月24日付" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  8. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot 100" (in Japanese). Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  9. ^ "週間 CDシングルランキング 2015年03月16日付" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  10. ^ "週間 CDシングルランキング 2015年03月23日付" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  11. ^ "Billboard Japan Top Single Sales Year End" (in Japanese). Billboard. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
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