Arashi -- Kite

Whatever the fate of the Tokyo Olympics scheduled for late July to early August, the torch ceremony did take place earlier today at ancient Olympia, and so the torch run has begun.

One of the other scenes that I remember from last year's Kohaku Utagassen was Arashi（嵐）performing right in the middle of the newly-built Olympic stadium in Tokyo. It was a good opportunity to show off the new building and also for the aidoru quintet to show off their latest song, which has yet to be released as their latest single despite the New Year's Eve showcase.

"Kite", and indeed it is the English noun for that kid's piece of fabric in the sky, was written and composed by singer-songwriter Kenshi Yonezu（米津玄師）who had his own debut for the 2018 Kohaku. Compared to other Olympic theme songs, it looks like Yonezu and NHK went for something more elegiac to befit the majesty behind an Olympics, and it's the official song for the national network's broadcast of the 2020 Games.

To be honest, it hasn't quite moved me like Misia's "Hatenaku Tsuzuku Story"（果てなく続くストーリー） for the 2002 Winter Games or got my blood pumping like Maki Ohguro's（大黒摩季）"Atsukunare"（熱くなれ）at the 1996 Summer Games, so I will treat "Kite" as an Olympic song that could grow on me as we near the time. Let's hope that the health condition of humanity will improve by show time.