Gera Gera Po
"Gera Gera Po" | ||||
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Single by King Cream Soda | ||||
from the album Bye Bye Geragerapo | ||||
Released | April 30, 2014 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:11 | |||
Label | FRAME | |||
Songwriter(s) | Mototaka Segawa | |||
King Cream Soda singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Gera Gera Po" ("ゲラゲラポーのうた", lit. "The Hahaha Song"), also known as "Gera Gera Po Song", is the debut single by the Japanese music group King Cream Soda, consisting of Maiko, Gerapper, and ZZROCK.[a] The song was used as the opening to the 2014 TV-series Yo-kai Watch up until the series' 36th episode, which aired on August 12, 2016. The Japanese version was written by Move's Mototaka Segawa and was performed by King Cream Soda; the English version was written by Mark Risley and David H. Steinberg and was performed by Peter Michail and Kathryn Lynn.
Multiple remixes and renditions of "Gera Gera Po" has been released by King Cream Soda and Level-5, the creators of the Yo-kai Watch franchise, such as "The Festival Band's Gera Gera Po"[2] and "Gera Gera Po Dance Train".[3] "Gera Gera Po" was also included in King Cream Soda's 2015 album Bye Bye Geragerapo.[4]
"Gera Gera Po" peaked at number 4 on Oricon's Singles Chart[5] and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan.[6]
Background and release
"Gera Gera Po" was performed by King Cream Soda,[5] and was their debut single.
In the song's chorus, the words "Gera Gera Po" are repeated multiple times, which composer and arranger Kikuya stated was so that listeners could "easily get on the [song's] rhythm". Kikuya originally thought that "Gera Gera Po" wouldn't be popular among children due to it being creepy, stating that he "thought the kids would be scared and wouldn't listen to the song". Kikuya would later cite the creepiness as a reason for why the song became popular among children, thinking that Yo-kai Watch's "cute" characters mixed well with the creepy melody.[1]
"Gera Gera Po" was used as the opening theme of the 2014 anime TV-series Yo-kai Watch,[7] where it was used until the series' 36th episode. The single was released on DVD on April 30, 2014[8] and was rereleased as an exercise song by the Japanese publishing company Takarajimasha in December 2014.[9] "Gera Gera Po" was later included in King Cream Soda's compilation album, Bye Bye Geragerapo, which released on July 22, 2015.[4]
Music video and choreography
The song's music video was choreographed by Lucky Ikeda.[9] The song's main dance requires performers to cross their arms in front of their chest in rhythm to the "gera gera", and then pointing their index fingers up at the "po". The dance was choreographed to be simple so that viewers and listeners could easily imitate it.[1]
Reception
"Gera Gera Po" peaked on the Oricon weekly singles chart at number 4 in the week of May 12, 2014. In total, the song made 52 appearances on the weekly charts.[5] In October 2014, the song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan, indicating over 100 thousand sales.[6] "Gera Gera Po" was ranked as the 50th best-selling single in Japan of 2014 by Oricon, who reported 136 thousand sales.[10] The song also appeared on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, where it peaked at number 9.[11] Due to its "unique" choreography and "catchy" rhythm, the song was hugely popular among children.[1]
Destructoid's Chris Carter described "Gera Gera Po" as an "always lovable" song;[12] Sato of Siliconera thought that it wouldn't have been "strange" for "Gera Gera Po" to replace "Kimigayo" as the national anthem of Japan, due to its popularity.[13]
Personnel
Credits adapted from YouTube.[14]
- Tomoki Kikuya – composer, arrangement
- Mototaka Segawa – Japanese songwriter
- Mark Risley – English songwriter
- David H. Steinberg – English songwriter
- King Cream Soda – Japanese vocals
- Peter Michail – English vocals
- Kathryn Lynn – English vocals
- Will Anderson – English voice director, mixing
Charts
Chart (2014) | Peak position |
---|---|
Japan (Oricon)[5] | 4 |
Japan (Japan Hot 100)[11] | 9 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Japan (RIAJ)[6] | Gold | 100,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Notes
- ^ 3 years after the relase of "Gera Gera Po", Maiko left King Cream Soda and was replaced with Sayaka Komuro.
References
- ^ a b c d "【サタデープラス】「妖怪ウォッチ」主題歌作曲・菊谷知樹さんに聞くアニメのいろは". Sports Hochi (in Japanese). Hochi Shimbun. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ "祭り囃子でゲラゲラポー/初恋峠でゲラゲラポー(初回生産盤/DVD付)" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ "ゲラッポ・ダンストレイン(DVD付)" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ a b "バイバイゲラゲラポー(DVD付)" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ a b c d "ゲラゲラポーのうた" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ a b c "The Record vol. 659" (PDF) (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. October 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ Yasuda, Toshiaki (April 26, 2019). "「妖怪ウォッチ4」、「ゲラゲラポーのうた」が流れるオープニング映像を公開". GAME Watch (in Japanese). Impress Corporation. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ "ゲラゲラポーのうた(DVD付)" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ a b Takarajimasha Co., Ltd. (December 26, 2014). "妖怪ウォッチ「ゲラゲラポーのうた」が"ダンササイズ"になってDVD発売!". PR Times (in Japanese). Vector. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ "2014年 年間音楽&映像ランキング発表". Oricon Music (in Japanese). Oricon. December 20, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ a b "Japan Hot 100: The Week of July 12, 2014". Billboard. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ Carter, Chris (April 27, 2019). "Yo-Kai Watch 4 brings back the always lovable 'Gera Gera Po' theme". Destructoid. Enthusiast Gaming. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ Sato (May 11, 2017). "The Rise And Fall Of The Yo-kai Watch Boom That Took Japan By Storm". Siliconera. Enthusiast Gaming. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ "GERA GERA PO SONG (ENGLISH VER.) | YO-KAI WATCH OP Song" (video). YouTube. Yo-kai Watch Official Channel. September 26, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2021.