Kiss & Cry
The second A-side, "Kiss & Cry", was revealed when the Freedom anime and Nissin Cup Noodle TV commercials featuring it as its theme was released on April 20. The ringtone was released the same day and quickly rose to a top five ranking of Chaku-Uta download charts, and soon the song was downloaded over 300,000 times within the span of a month. It was not until a month later, on May 21, that "Kiss & Cry" debuted on the radio in Japan. "Kiss & Cry" became a digital single on June 30, four months after Flavor of Life was released, and her second digital single to be released in Japan. It reached a peak #1 position on iTunes Japan rankings thus far. Photo shooting for the single's promotion began on June 26, 2007, as Utada stated in her blog. The full download version of "Kiss & Cry" went on to be certified Gold by the end of June for at least 100,000+ units downloaded. While it didn't quite achieve substantial sales in comparison with the phenomenal success of "Flavor of Life", "Kiss & Cry", which is her second airplay single (third if the two "Flavor of Life" versions are counted separately) in Japan for 2007, has become a top 20 smash in several Japanese radio airplay rankings, and achieved its highest peak at FM Osaka 851 (#8). Digital sales for the track would rebound its rankings back into the top 10, 5, or 3 of several Japanese online download stores and services with the first week of the physical single release.
"Kiss & Cry" was originally temporarily named 'Dancing Leah' by Hikaru, due to her fascination with the rising songstress, Leah Dizon. "Kiss & Cry" features a strong beat in the verses that melds into synthetic elements in the bridge and chorus. The bridge of the song samples the melody from the verse of "Hotel Lobby", the seventh track off her 2004 English language debut, Exodus.
Airplay for "Kiss & Cry" was strong on a few stations, but failed to chart on many others. Apparently, there was an inability for some stations to air the song because of the mention of Nissin Cup Noodles in the lyrics, which has also limited the television performances of "Kiss & Cry" to one on Music Station August 31.
Read more about this topic: Beautiful World/Kiss & Cry
Famous quotes containing the words kiss and/or cry:
“Your faith an’ trouth yese never get
Nor our trew Love shall never twain
Till ye come within my bower
And kiss me both cheek and chin.
My mouth it is full cold, Margret,
It has the smell now of the ground;
An’ if I kiss thy com’ly mouth
Thy life days will not be long.”
—Unknown. Clerk Saunders (l. 109–116)
“Day by day we hear the cry of AFRICA FOR THE AFRICANS. This cry has become a positive, determined one. It is a cry that is raised simultaneously the world over because of the universal oppression that affects the Negro.”
—Marcus Garvey (1887–1940)