Release Date: 28 September, Monday
Release Time: 00:00 (Local Store Turn)
Type: Single
Language: Japanese
Genre: EDM, Dance
Ten years after “AGEHA” became the song that defined them, GENERATIONS built a new track specifically to stand next to it – not replace it, not repeat it, but prove they can still go toe-to-toe with their own legacy. That’s “VIBE“.
Out digitally on 28 September ahead of a CD single release on 28 October, and it’s GENERATIONS’ first CD single in four years, the EDM-driven dance track comes from member Alan Shirahama, working alongside rising songwriter TET$V and Kanata Okajima, a producer with a long list of J-pop hits behind him. The result is fast, propulsive, and built around a hook designed to lodge itself in your head immediately. It arrives right before the group’s 15th anniversary year begins this November, and part of that milestone includes a deliberate “confrontation” with the group’s own back catalogue, and “VIBE” leans directly into that by consciously echoing “AGEHA“, the song most associated with the group’s legacy.
The music video keeps every member in live-action, but builds its backgrounds and environments using generative AI, creating a world that simply wasn’t possible when “AGEHA” was filmed a decade ago. The video leans into the group’s dance strength early on, before shifting into the MV-specific choreography, with two vocalists in particular throwing themselves into the performance, member Ryuto Kazuhara‘s sliding sequence among the standout moments.
Alan Shirahama, who co-wrote and arranged the track, laid out exactly what went into it:
“‘VIBE’ really makes the most of what GENERATIONS is capable of. In the 2010s, LDH was always tied to this kind of sound. It’s something only GENERATIONS, and only LDH, can really pull off, and over time I think it’s stopped being ‘the sound of that era’ and become something closer to a sound that’s genuinely ours, one with lasting value. But we didn’t just want to repeat it, we packed in things that still feel fresh inside that same DNA.
Our 15th anniversary year starts this November, and opening the song with the line ‘this is where the good part starts’ is both a declaration and a challenge to ourselves. It’s not an aggressive track either, there’s a sense of ease that comes from having grown up, but we also built in moments where the audience can shout along with us live. We wanted this to be a killer track for shows and festivals. This is a song that could only exist because every member trusts the skill and potential we’ve all built up across our careers.”
The response since release has been loud as fans wasted no time reacting. On release day, all six members also joined a LINE livestream to mark the occasion, trading stories about VIBE-themed topics. The stream pulled in over 1 million total views, a clear signal of how much attention this release is drawing.
With their 15th anniversary year set to begin this November, GENERATIONS isn’t just looking back, they’re staking a claim on where their sound goes next. “VIBE” is the first real marker of that, and the beginning of a bigger year still to come.
About GENERATIONS
GENERATIONS debuted in November 2012 with single “BRAVE IT OUT.” The six-member dance and vocal group, Alan Shirahama, Ryota Katayose, Ryuto Kazuhara, Hayato Komori, Reo Sano and Yuta Nakatsuka, has since completed two world tours, their first-ever dome tour in 2018, and in 2019, the group’s first nationwide five-dome tour, drawing a combined 460,000 attendees. That same year, GENERATIONS made their first appearance on NHK’s “Kohaku Uta Gassen,” going on to appear three years running, alongside numerous festival appearances across Japan. Beyond group activities, individual members have built careers spanning drama, film, variety and DJ work. The group has also hosted a long-running radio show, “GENERATIONS no GENETALK,” across the JFN network since 2013.
