“TT (Japanese Ver.)” is one of Twice’s Japanese debut songs. This song was released on June 21st, 2017, as a single. It was also released as the only lead single from their Japanese debut album titled #Twice. This whole debut album was recorded from 2015 until 2017 by featuring some of Twice’s lead singles that have been released since their Korean debut. The label of this album is Warner Music Japan, while the producer of this album is Park Jinyoung, the CEO of JYP Entertainment. The release day of this album was a week after the release of “TT (Japanese Ver.),” which was on June 28th, 2017. As written before, “TT (Japanese Ver.)” is the only lead single from #Twice. In the tracklisting of #Twice, “TT (Japanese Ver.)” is put as the third track between two sidetracks, which are “Cheer Up (Japanese Ver.)” and “Knock Knock (Japanese Ver.).” To promote this single as well as this Japanese debut album, Warner Music Japan released a music video for “TT (Japanese Ver.).” The record label also released a spoiler movie more than a month before the official release of the single. Check out the “TT (Japanese Ver.)” music video here.
A spoiler movie was also prepared by Warner Music Japan to promote the single and the album. You can check out the spoiler movie here.
Public Response About the Iconic Choreography and Spotify Streaming Records
This song was a huge success. A week after the single’s release, the iconic “TT” finger choreography was trending in Japan. That finger choreography alongside the frowning face had become popular among Japanese teenagers at that time. During Twice’s promotion for #Twice in Japan, there were a lot of Japanese public figures and teenagers trying to imitate the “TT” finger and the frowning face. Until August 25th, 2021, this song has become Twice’s most-streamed Japanese track on Spotify. It has been heard more than 25 million times on Spotify.
Background of “TT (Japanese Ver.)”: Twice’s Japanese Debut Story
February 8th: The Launching Day of the Japanese Official Accounts and the Spreading of Ads
Twice’s Japanese debut story started in early February 2017. In that month, Twice unveiled their official website and social media accounts. Those websites and social media accounts were all in Japanese. It was made specifically to give information to Japanese fans about the group. On February 8th, Twice’s debut news kept spreading among the Japanese. There were a lot of large photos, billboards, and ads of Twice showing in many public places, especially in Tokyo. Those public places like shopping districts, high buildings, and subway stations were showing many Twice ads at that time.
February 24th: The Release of What’s Twice?, the Official Announcement From the Record Label, and Japanese Television Programs
Two weeks later, Twice released their fourth extended play (EP) album titled What’s Twice? This fourth EP album was the first compilation album that was released in Japan. The record label for this EP album was Warner Music Japan, and this EP release was on February 24th, 2017. The release of this EP was done on purpose to mark the very first Twice Japanese debut announcement. I probably can say that this EP album served as a promotional tool for Twice’s Japanese debut. From this EP album release, it was officially announced that Twice would make their Japanese debut on June 28th, 2017. Through this announcement, it was also revealed that this debut album would be a compilation album. This compilation album would be titled #Twice and consist of 10 tracks. From these 10 tracks, there would be five Japanese songs and five Korean songs. The songs included on the #Twice album were compiled from their previous Korean comebacks. There are five Twice Korean albums that are featured on #Twice such as The Story Begins, Page Two, Twicecoaster: Lane 1, Signal, and Twicecoaster: Lane 2. On that same day, there were five Japanese morning programs announcing to their viewers about Twice’s debut. Those Japanese programs also invited Twice’s members to talk about their preparations for the Japanese debut.
May 31st: The Release of the Tracklist and Album Preview
After a while, about three months later on May 31st, Warner Music Japan released further details about #Twice. They revealed a tracklisting and a preview of the #Twice physical album. The record label also informed that there would be three versions of #Twice, which were Standard Edition, First Press Limited Edition A, and First Press Limited Edition B. You can see the Standard Edition cover for #Twice here.
June 7th – 28th: The Release of Short Videos and a Spoiler Video, the Campaign Announcement, and the Release Day
A week later, on June 7th, Warner Music Japan shared a short video of when Twice recorded one of their sidetracks for #Twice, which was the Japanese version of “Like Ooh-Ahh.” The record label also released a spoiler video on the following day, on June 8th. The spoiler video is filled with a medley of their five Japanese tracks on #Twice. About a week later, on June 14th, another sidetrack on #Twice, “Signal (Japanese Ver.), was also released digitally on various music sites. The record label also unveiled a short version of the “Signal” music video. On that day also, Twice announced that they would collaborate with a department store, namely Shibuya 109 Store. It was announced that Twice would join the Shibuya 109 store campaign called Shibuya 109 Summer Sale. A week later, on June 21st, the Japanese version of “TT” was officially released through various digital music sites. The physical release of “TT (Japanese Ver.)” and the #Twice album was done on June 28th, a week after the digital release of “TT.” June 28th was also the digital release day of the lead single “TT (Japanese Ver.)” and other Japanese sidetracks on Korean music sites.
Story of “TT (Japanese Ver.)”: A Track About a Girl’s Pounding Heart
Sam Lewis and Fujibayashi Shoko wrote the lyrics for “TT (Japanese Ver.).” The composing work for this song was done by a South Korean music production company called Black Eyed Pilseung. Rado, a member of Black Eyed Pilseung, also arranged this song. The lyrics of “TT (Japanese Ver.)” tell of a girl’s feelings when she falls in love with someone for the first time. She feels like her heart is pounding when she meets that person that she fell in love with. The composers of this song were inspired by electronic music, so they put those electronic music elements into the Japanese version of “TT.”
MV of “TT (Japanese Ver.)”: A Colorful MV With More Than 100 Million YouTube Views
As a lead single from #Twice, surely there’s a music video made for the Japanese version of “TT.” The music video of the Japanese version of “TT” was released on June 21st, the same day as the digital release day of this song. Jimmy from BS Pictures directed this music video. BS Pictures has directed many other music videos for JYP Entertainment’s artists such as 2PM and GOT7. The “TT (Japanese Ver.)” music video has a colorful concept. In the music video, the members are watching themselves on billboard ads. They’re watching the ads from two opened cars while eating snacks. Inside the billboard, it is shown that the members are performing this song inside an empty swimming pool. Because this is the first Japanese music video released by Twice, in my opinion, this music video relates to their Japanese debut. From those cars, the members look happy watching the ads because they have made their Japanese debut successfully. The music video also features the original choreography of “TT,” including the “TT” finger choreography and their frowning faces. Until August 25th, 2021, the music video has gained more than 100 million views on YouTube.
“TT (Japanese Ver.)” Performance: Performed on Japanese Music Programs and at Concerts
2017 – 2018: Music Station, Touchdown in Japan, Candy Pop Showcase Live Tour, and BDZ Arena Tour
On June 30th, 2017, Twice performed the Japanese version of “TT” for the first time in a Japanese music program called Music Station. After that, Twice performed this song again during their Japanese debut showcase on July 2nd, 2017. This debut showcase was titled Touchdown in Japan and was held in Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, Tokyo, Japan. In 2018, Twice performed this song at their Twice Showcase Live Tour called Candy Pop. The Candy Pop live tour was held in six cities in Japan, namely Seto, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Osaka, Tokyo, and Saitama. This live tour started on January 19th and ended on February 1st, 2018. They performed this song again at their first Arena Tour titled BDZ. BDZ Arena Tour was done in four Japanese cities, which were Chiba, Nagoya, Kobe, and Tokyo. The Arena Tour dates were from September 29th to October 17th, 2018. You can see their performance in 2017 by clicking this fan-made video here.
2019 – 2021: Song Battle on Music Station, #Dreamday Dome Tour, NHK Year-End Stage, and Twice in Wonderland
They performed this song again in 2019 in a song battle called Red and White Song Battle on Music Station on January 7th. They performed again in their 2019 Dome Tour titled #Dreamday. But, for the Dreamday performance, they used a remixed version of “TT (Japanese Version).” Osaka, Tokyo, and Nagoya became the cities for the Dreamday shows. The shows were held from March 20th until April 6th, 2019. They performed this song again with the Japanese version of “Fancy” at the end of 2019 at NHK Red and White Live Performance. This live performance was a special performance for Christmas and the new year. On March 6th, 2021, they sang this song in an online concert titled Twice in Wonderland. Through this online concert, Twice’s members partnered with NTT Docomo by holding an augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) concert. You can see one of their performances in 2019 by clicking these fan-made videos here.
The “TT (Japanese Ver.)” Achievements: YouTube Japan Top Trend MV, 9th on Line Music Year-End Chart, and 2x Certified Gold by RIAJ
The music video of “TT (Japanese Ver.)” was listed by YouTube Japan on the Top Trend Music Video in 2017. On that list, YouTube ranked this music video as the 4th top trending Japanese music video. This song also charted so many times, especially on Japanese music charts. You can see the table below for the song’s peak positions on every chart. This song was also certified by the Japanese recording industry twice. You can see the table below for the song’s certifications.
