by The FNS Music Festival (Fuji TV) aired on December 3rd and 10th. Among the impressive lineup of artists, what caught my eye were the numerous anime songs that colored 2025.
theme song for this year’s No. 1 hit film, “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Castle Arc Chapter 1: Akaza Returns.” Rira Ikuta also sang “Actor,” the ending theme for the third season of the hugely popular anime “SPY×FAMILY.” Numerous anime songs created a buzz on social media.
Anime songs were once considered a niche music genre, but now they’re accepted by the public as a given. Their popularity isn’t limited to Japan, with YOASOBI’s “Idol” and Creepy Nuts’ “Bling-Bang-Bang-Born” making waves on the US Billboard, and AiScReam’s “Ai♡Scream!”* being hummed around the world via social media.
The reason anime songs have become so popular both domestically and internationally is thought to stem from three “phases” over the past 20 years.
In this article, we classify these songs as anime songs because they are songs (character songs) by limited-time units born from the “Love Live!” series. Phase 1: Spread to Internet Users. The emergence of YouTube and Nico Nico Video played a significant role in the first phase, which began in the late 2000s.
Even before that, there were many opportunities for theme songs from well-known works such as “One Piece” and “Dragon Ball,” famous songs such as “Cruel Angel’s Thesis,” and theme songs by renowned artists such as TM NETWORK and L’Arc-en-Ciel to become known even to people outside of anime fans.
However, one significant change in this first phase was that even “anime songs that go a step further” began to gain recognition through video platforms. Examples include songs like “Hare Hare Yukai,” “Motteke! Sailor Fuku,” and “Renai Circulation,” as well as the theme songs for “Genesis of Aquarion” and “Macross F.”
Even those who remember those days may recall being surprised that people who don’t watch anime at all knew these anime songs and sang them at karaoke, or, conversely, that they knew the songs even though they didn’t see the series.
