''Flash'' (stylized as FLASH) is Japanese singer-songwriter

Crystal Kay is a Japanese singer, songwriter, actress and radio host. After releasing her first single, "Eternal Memories" (1999), Crystal Kay gained fame for her third studio album, '' Almost Seventeen'' (2002), which debuted at number 2 on the Japanese ...

's second

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

, and her first release in 2010. It was released throughout Japan on June 16, 2010.

Background and promotion

Initial promotion and ringtone releases

Information on the album release was first revealed on February 9, 2010 when a new song "Flash" was announced on Kay's official website. It was used in commercials featuring

Joe Odagiri , better known by his stage name , is a Japanese actor and musician. Personal life Joe Odagiri was born in Tsuyama, Okayama prefecture. Though he was accepted by Kochi University, he turned it down for an opportunity to study in the United States ...

for

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IXY 10S digital cameras from February 19 onwards. The song was produced by the LA based production team of jACK. ringtone of the song was made available to download on Recochoku's Chaku-Uta on February 24. "Flash" will be used as the main promotional track for the album's release. One month later another new song "Victoria" was used as the commercial song for

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's Barista's Choice Black campaign from March. The song was also released as a ringtone on Recochoku's Chaku-Uta on May 19. On April 2, 2010 the album was officially confirmed and given a release date of June 16. "Flash" will also be released on the same day as Kay's first concert DVD "Crystal Kay Live In NHK Hall: 10th Anniversary Tour CK10." The album features a cover of "

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" by Michael Jackson as a tribute, as well as a song which Kay wrote herself. The limited DVD edition of "Flash" includes a live performance of "

Girlfriend A girlfriend is a female friend, acquaintance or partner, usually a female companion with whom one is platonically, romantically, or sexually involved. In a romantic context, this normally signifies a committed relationship where the indi ...

" with

BoA Kwon Bo-ah (; born November 5, 1986), known professionally as BoA, is a South Korean singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer and actress. One of the most successful and influential Korean entertainers, she has been dubbed the " Queen of K- ...

''Flash'' music video

In May 2010 open dance auditions for "Flash Dancers" took place, to which around 500 people applied. The eighteen chosen applicants were featured in the music video for "Flash" alongside Kay. The music video for the song first aired on June 4. It was directed by

Wataru Takeishi is a prolific Japanese music video director. Takeishi has created videos for Japanese superstars such as Ayumi Hamasaki and Every Little Thing. Most Expensive Music Videos Three videos that Takeishi directed appear on the list of most expensiv ...

. and choreographed by Nazuki. The video begins outside of an unused warehouse. After tearing caution tape, various people start to enter the building. The dancers are then seen performing solo, until they eventually come together in a large lit room and dance to the choreography with Kay until the video's ending. The lead dancer and Kay's interest in the "Flash" music video was Park Namyong, a dancer for

Rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

, who has also choreographed for the likes of Korean boy-band 2PM. In between the dancing and choreographed scenes, various facial and body shots of Kay are shown in black and white.

Track listing

Charts

"Flash" debuted at number 29 on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

Weekly Chart after peaking at number 13 on the Daily Chart, and sold 3,197 that week. It charted for four weeks in total.

References

External links

Official album release site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flash (Ep) Crystal Kay EPs 2010 EPs Japanese-language EPs