King & Prince Ren Nagase and Rikako Yagi appear in Universal Music's "#Our Winter Song Campaign" commercial begins airing

■“During the summer song campaign, member Kaito Takahashi was indebted to me, and secretly I was aiming for the winter song campaign (lol)” (Ren Nagase)

Universal Music’s new commercial “#Bokura no Fuyukyoku Campaign Encounter – Winter Beginning Edition” co-starring King & Prince’s Ren Nagase and Rikako Yagi will be aired nationwide from December 2nd.

The commercial begins with a scene where two men and women, played by Nagase and Yagi, meet on a snowy winter day. Nagase suddenly bursts into tears as he listens to music that has a lot to do with him. Yagi, who happened to be next to Nagase, notices Nagase and stares at him. Meanwhile, Nagase looks up at the snow that is starting to fall and notices Yagi next to him. The two of them stare at each other, their eyes colliding. The story depicts an encounter that somehow gives the feeling of the beginning of love.

Take your time and enjoy the beautiful images that feel like the beginning of a movie.

This commercial uses Hikaru Utada’s “First Love” and SEKAI NO OWARI’s “silent.” The second and third commercials are scheduled to be released in the future.

In “#Our Winter Song Campaign,” a playlist of songs selected by Nagase and Yagi and a playlist of various winter songs from Universal Music will be released on various music distribution services. Check out the special website for campaign details.

■Interview with Ren Nagase and Rikako Yagi
Q. Please tell us how you felt when you heard that you would be appearing in this role, and what you thought after filming so far.
Nagase:During the summer song campaign, member Kaito Takahashi (the official spelling for “taka” is “Hadashidaka”) was indebted to me, and the content of the commercial seemed fun, so I was jealous, but in my heart, I was thinking of playing a winter song. I was aiming for a campaign. lol.
Then, I received an offer to spend the winter at Nagase, which made me very happy. I was very happy to be taken care of by the group in summer and winter. Since we were filming in winter, there was a scene where we had to make it snow, and there was so much snow that it hit Yagi-san’s face a little, which made me laugh a little.
I was blinking so hard that I thought it was hitting me in the face. lol.
Yagi:I was simply so happy. I’m the type of person who likes to play music all the time, both when I go out and at home, and listen to it with earphones and headphones, so I was really happy to hear about this kind of music.
As Mr. Nagase mentioned, we were filming with snow falling, and the foam was made to look like snow, and once I made eye contact with Mr. Nagase, a huge amount of snow fell on my face. I thought Nagase-san might find it interesting.
Q. There are a total of 7 songs featured in this commercial, but have the two of you ever listened to them?
Nagase:There are all of them. All of them are wonderful songs that represent winter, and they are truly wonderful songs that naturally play throughout the city during winter, so I was happy to be able to film a commercial with this song.
Yagi:Of course I’ve heard them all. In particular, Hikaru Utada’s “First Love” appeared in a work based on “First Love”, so I was very happy to be featured in the commercial this time. I’m looking forward to it.
Q. Please tell me about an episode related to winter.
Nagase:A few winters ago, I ate samgyeopsal at my house. Samgyeopsal had a really strong smell. I ate it without realizing it, thought it smelled really bad, and cleaned it up.The next day, when I came home from work and opened the door, the smell of samgyeopsal still hadn’t gone away. Huh? Are you having a samgyeopsal party today too? The smell was still clinging to me, and since it was winter, the windows weren’t open, so I remember the house smelling like samgyeopsal for about a week.
Yagi:I also had a takoyaki party at my house with a friend from college around Christmas the year before last, and I could definitely smell it.
Q. How do you both want to spend this winter? Also, there was a date scene, but if it were you, what would you like to do on a winter date?
Nagase:I want to stay at home. For Christmas, I would like to have a date where we go out to eat, come back, eat cake together, and spend a relaxing and warm time at home.
Yagi:I like going to see beautiful things, so I would like to go see the illuminations in Tokyo.
I’m from Shiga and just moved to Tokyo, and there are many beautiful illuminations in Tokyo, so it would be nice to go see them together or take a short drive to see illuminations in the distance. That’s what I think.
Q. We asked the two of you to create a playlist this time. What themes and thoughts did you have in mind when choosing the songs?
Nagase:I like calm songs, so I created a playlist with the theme of calming winter songs. I thought that winter itself had a lot of songs with a relatively calm atmosphere, so I thought I’d create something based on that, and decided on this theme.
Yagi:I packed it with my favorite songs that I listen to on a regular basis. There are some up-tempo songs and some soft songs, so it’s pretty varied, but since this commercial is a bit about love, I’ve selected a lot of love songs that can be listened to in a variety of situations. I did.
Q. Do you have any particular favorite or memorable songs on this playlist?
Nagase:I really like back number. Back number’s winter songs are especially wonderful.
I learned about Back Number through their “Christmas Song,” which was the theme song for a drama, and after listening to a lot of songs, I came across the song “Heroine,” which became my favorite song. The lyrics are also about winter and mention snow, so I included the word “heroine” this time as well.
Personally, it’s one of my favorite songs on Back Number, so much so that it ranks first and second place, so it’s a very memorable song.
Yagi:I chose Yumi Matsutoya’s “I want to protect you.”
Actually, it’s a song I came across recently. . At first, I heard the song covered by another artist and thought it was a great song, but then I learned that the original song was written by Yumi Matsutoya.
The lyrics can be interpreted as not only romantic love but also the love of various families, and the lyrics are about not just loving someone, but wanting to protect them precisely because you love them.The lyrics are really warm and I love this song very much. I put it in.
Q. Is there a song in this playlist that makes you feel like “winter has arrived!” when you listen to it?
Nagase:It’s a song called “Color” by King & Prince. It was the theme song for a drama that member Kaito Takahashi appeared in, and the drama was also aired during the winter season, so both the song and the music video are very warm, but somehow have a winter-like feel to them. It’s a song by my group, and I often listen to it naturally, so when I listen to this song, it reminds me of those days when I felt like winter had arrived.
Yagi:After all, it’s “First Love.” Most of the filming locations for “First Love,” in which I appeared, were in Hokkaido, and there were a lot of snowy scenes. There was a time when I filmed this song in a snow pile that was taller than me, so even now when I listen to this song, that scene in Hokkaido comes to mind.
Q. Please give a message to the people who watched the commercial.
Nagase:There are songs for each season, and the way you hear them and the feelings you feel at that time are different.Winter songs are a little special to me, and there are many songs that make me feel very relaxed and calm. That’s what I think.
I’ve included a lot of songs that touch my heart, so I hope you’ll give it a listen.
Yagi:I’m sure everyone, as we approach winter, and each person’s situation is different, whether it’s a happy one or a slightly sad one, there are all kinds of winter songs that you can find that suit you. I think there’s a song. I hope that wonderful songs can be a part of your winter daily life, so I hope you enjoy listening to a lot of music this winter.