Makenaide

Makenaide (負けないで, lit. "Don't Give Up"^?) is the 6th single by J-pop band Zard. It was the first single to reach number 1 on the Oricon weekly charts. According to the song's composer Tetsurō Oda, she was singing "strangely" but it proved to be good.^[1] It sold over 1.64 million copies and became the highest-selling song for Zard.^[2] When she died, it was elected as the best song by Zard on the Oricon polls.^[3] It was a song that greatly appealed to the Japanese public. Released at a time that is now seen as the beginning of Japan's post economic bubble era when the Nikkei 225 Index had shrunk in value by a third in only three years, "Makenaide" (Don't Give Up) became known as the theme song of the country's Lost Decade." While Sakai commented on the television show Music Station that it would be a song to encourage men taking examinations, many people said this song helped them cope with difficult issues such as school bullying. What is notable about "Makenaide" is that Zard fans’ favorite phrase, "Run through Until the End" was originally "Do Not Give Up until the End". "Makenaide" has been used as a theme song for the Nippon Television program 24-hour TV, an annual charity program hosted live by celebrities for a whole day. Sakai said that she was honored and looked forward to watching 24-hour TV. The song was also adopted by high school baseball in Japan.^[4]

Track list

1. Makenaide
2. Stray Love
3. Makenaide (Original karaoke)
4. Stray Love (Original karaoke)

Cover

The song was covered by Emiri Katō as the ending song to episode 12 of the anime adaptation of Lucky Star, in a tribute to the late Izumi Sakai.

References

1. ^ (Japanese) "『ZARD/坂井泉水さんを偲ぶ会』に織田哲郎、大黒摩希ら「残念」". Oricon. 2007-06-26. http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/music/45869/. Retrieved 2008-12-06. 
2. ^ (Japanese) "ZARD坂井泉水さん、不慮の事故で死去". Oricon. 2007-05-28. http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/music/44979/. Retrieved 2008-12-06. 
3. ^ (Japanese) "心に残るZARDの名曲、1位は「負けないで」". Oricon. 2007-06-26. http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/music/45838/. Retrieved 2008-12-06. 
4. ^ (Japanese) "ZARD特集『ZARDの好きなシングルを一挙紹介！』". Oricon. 2007-06-25. http://www.oricon.co.jp/music/special/070625_01.html. Retrieved 2008-12-06.