is a song recorded by Japanese singer Shizuka Kudo. It was released as a single by

Pony Canyon , also known by the shorthand form , is a Japanese mass media publishing company founded on October 1, 1966. The company publishes mainly physical home media on compact discs, including music, films and TV shows and video games. It is affiliate ...

on July 17, 1998. Both "Kirara" and its coupling song, "In the Sky", were prominently featured on the CX television series, ''Kamisama, Mō Sukoshi Dake''. Kudo performed the song on the 49th

Kōhaku Uta Gassen , more commonly known simply as ''Kōhaku'', is an annual New Year's Eve television special produced by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. It is broadcast live simultaneously on television and radio, nationally and internationally by the NHK netw ...

, accompanied by

Taro Hakase is a Japanese musician who specialises as a violinist and composer. Biography Career Hakase was involved in a Japanese band called Kryzler & Kompany which formed while he was in college. He played the violin, while Tsuneyoshi Saito played ke ...

on the violin, marking her eighth and last appearance on the show. "Kirara" made its first album appearance on the compilation album, '' Best of Ballade: Current'', for which Kudo also recorded an English version of "In the Sky".

Background

"Kirara" was written by Luna Sea lead vocalist, Ryuichi Kawamura, under the pseudonym ЯK. It is composed in the key of E minor and set to a tempo of 136 beats per minute. Kudo's vocals span from A₃ to D₅. The song is described as an ephemeral ballad. Lyrically, the song describes a narrator bearing her soul to her lover and calling for him to embrace and love her for who she truly is.

Critical reception

Kawamura received acclaim for crafting a subtle melody that "conjures up beauty and tenderness" and "tugs at the heart". Kudo was praised for her well-matched and moving vocal performance.

Cover version

In 2001, Kawamura recorded a self-cover for his second studio album, ''Shin'ai: Only One'', which also included his version of "In the Sky".

Chart performance

The single debuted at number 22 on the

Oricon Singles Chart The Oricon Singles Chart is the Japanese music industry-standard singles popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Chart rankings are based on physical singles' sales. Until 2017, Oricon did not track download sales. In J ...

, selling 15,000 copies in its first week. It rose to number 21 the following week, selling 21,000 more copies. The single continued to climb the charts until it broke the top ten on its fifth charting week, with 43,000 copies sold. It peaked the following week, coming in at number six with a steady 43,000 copies sold, and scoring Kudo her twenty-sixth and last top ten single. "Kirara" stayed in the top ten for three more weeks, until it dropped to number 13 on its tenth week on the chart. The single spent a total of eighteen weeks in the top 100. With reported total sales of 384,000, "Kirara" ranked at number 65 on the year-end Oricon Singles Chart.

Track listing

Charts

Certification

References

{{authority control 1990s ballads 1998 songs 1998 singles Pop ballads Japanese television drama theme songs Television drama theme songs Songs written by Ryuichi Kawamura Shizuka Kudo songs Pony Canyon singles