Sakanaction's 'Yoru no Odoriko' Revival Keeps Going — 14-Year-Old Track Holds the Upper Reaches of the Billboard JAPAN Hot 100 After a Global Meme Breakout
- Jun 13
- 2 min read
The revival of Sakanaction's 'Yoru no Odoriko,' originally released in 2012, is proving remarkably durable. On the latest Billboard JAPAN Hot 100 published June 10, the song held a top position in its 17th charting week, and it recently gave the band its first No. 1 on Oricon's weekly streaming ranking — an exceptional chart run for a 14-year-old track.
The trigger was an overseas meme. A short clip of a boy dancing on the bow of a boat during Pacu Jalur, a traditional Indonesian boat race, was paired with 'Yoru no Odoriko' and went viral via Korea before spreading rapidly across TikTok and YouTube Shorts in Japan from mid-April. Frontman Ichiro Yamaguchi performing the meme dance on his own YouTube channel gave the wave another push.
Weekly streams have topped 7.91 million plays, with cumulative plays passing 29 million. Other catalog songs, including 'Shin Takarajima,' have entered the fast-rising rankings as well — a clear illustration of how one viral track can lift an artist's entire catalog.
For production and distribution practitioners, it is a textbook case showing that even a decade-old song can win entirely new listeners the moment it connects with short-video culture — and that rights holders openly 'riding the meme' helps sustain the spread.
Also Watch: Shin Takarajima
The catalog reappraisal extends to 'Shin Takarajima,' the band's signature song known for its own dance meme. Its meticulously styled music video is drawing renewed attention, and live footage has been made available for a limited time.
ZEN's editorial team is watching not just the initial spike but the 17-week persistence. With the 'SAKANAQUARIUM 2026' arena tour starting in September, the question is how wide the viral-to-catalog-to-live pipeline can become.
Sources: Billboard JAPAN (https://www.billboard-japan.com/d_news/detail/161651) / ORICON NEWS (https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2455644/full/)
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