is Japanese idol group

AKB48 AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol musical girl group named after the Akihabara area in Tokyo, where the group's theater is located. AKB48 has sold more records than any other female musical act in Japanese history. AK ...

's third single, and the first major single released through DefSTAR Records, on 25 October 2006. Regarded as the

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

of AKB48, the song has continued to be AKB48's most recognizable tune among the public. It was also the theme song for the AKB48 TV show ''

AKBingo! ''AKBingo!'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese television variety show featuring Japanese idol girl group AKB48. The show aired weekly on Nippon Television. In each episode, members of AKB48 and occasionally their sister groups participate in ...

'' until 2016''.''

Promotion

With support from DefStar Records, the song has played a major role in causing the public to take notice of AKB48, as it has been frequently used as an introductory song when AKB48 appears on TV programs as guests, including the

58th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen The , referred to from here on as "Kōhaku," aired on December 31, 2007, on NHK Hall in Japan. The music show on New Year's Eve is broadcast on both television and radio, and divides the most popular music artists of the year into competing teams ...

. It is also the theme song of their own TV late night show, ''

'', which has been broadcast since 2008. The girls took a trip down to Tateyama, Chiba to film the video clip, with the main dance scenes set at the cliff of the Sunosaki Lighthouse. Each first pressing CD included a DVD, including Aitakatta's video clip and , as well as following premiums. * Original Trading Cards (one of 3 different designs) * Limited-time online-only video ConnecteD CD edition (recorded special private video originally distributed as online-only) * The ultimate right of application (any one of followings:Application must be received by 22 November 2006)) **Award A: 100 pairs (200 persons) **Award K: 50 pairs (100 persons) **Award B: 300 persons

Reception

The single charted for six weeks in the top 200, with the highest rank at #12 in 2006, coming back in the top 200 in 2010 and charting since the second week of September 2010. "Aitakatta" sold 25,544 copies, during the first 6 weeks charted on Oricon.

Personnel

The title track involved 20 members selected from Team A and Team K. * Center:

Atsuko Maeda is a Japanese actress and singer. She is a former member of the idol girl group AKB48, and was one of the most prominent members in the group at the time, regarded as the group's "absolute ace", "immovable center", and the "Face of AKB." After ...

*Team A -

Tomomi Itano is a Japanese recording artist, songwriter, dancer, model, and actress. She is a former member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48. She was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture. In 2011 she debuted solo with a single titled " Dear J", which wa ...

Haruna Kojima is a Japanese entrepreneur, actress, model, and former singer. From 2005 to 2017, she was a member of idol group AKB48 under Team A. In 2018, she founded her own brand, "Her lip to". Career Kojima was born in Urawa-ku, Saitama, Saitama Pref ...

Minami Minegishi is a Japanese singer and actress, represented by :ja:プロダクション尾木, Production Ogi. She was a member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48, and its subunit no3b. She is noted for having the longest tenure among the group's origina ...

, Rina Nakanishi, Risa Narita, Tomomi Ōe,

Mai Oshima is a singer and a former member of the Japanese all-girl pop group AKB48. Biography In December 2005, Oshima became one of the 24 inaugural members of AKB48's Team A. Over the course of her career, she participated in most of AKB48's A-side sing ...

Mariko Shinoda is a Japanese singer, actress, fashion model, and former member of the Japanese idol group AKB48, in which she was the captain of Team A. Career In October 2005, she auditioned for AKB48's first generation roster but failed the audition. Shor ...

Minami Takahashi is a Japanese idol, singer, tarento and a former member of the Japanese girl idol group AKB48. She is in Team A of AKB48. She became the first of AKB48 and its sister groups. In an interview with Nippon Television in June 2010, AKB48 produc ...

, Hana Tojima *Team K -

Sayaka Akimoto is a Japanese actress and singer. She was a member of Japanese idol An is a type of entertainer marketed for image, attractiveness, and personality in Japanese popular culture, Japanese pop culture. Idols are primarily singers with training ...

Tomomi Kasai is a Japanese singer, actress and a former member of the idol group AKB48, belonging to Team A. She had a recurring role on ''Kamen Rider W'' as Elizabeth, alongside group member Tomomi Itano. Together, they make up the sub-unit Queen & Elizab ...

Kana Kobayashi is a Japanese idol who is a former member of AKB48 AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol musical girl group named after the Akihabara area in Tokyo, where the group's theater is located. AKB48 has sold more records tha ...

Natsumi Matsubara The Japanese idol girl group AKB48 has many members who have left the group for various reasons such as focusing on solo careers. Some members have left to help launch AKB48's sister groups. The member lineup often changes as when girls get olde ...

Sae Miyazawa is a Japanese actress, television personality and former singer, signed under the entertainment agency Horipro. She is best known for her affiliations with AKB48 and its various sister- and subgroups. Between 2006 and 2016, she was a part of the ...

Kayo Noro is a Japanese singer and entertainer who is represented by the talent agency, Ohta Production. She is a former member of idol groups AKB48 AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol musical girl group named after the Akiha ...

Erena Ono , is a former member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48. She was in "Team K" and her talent agency was Ohta Production. She was also part of AKB48 subgroups "Honegumi from AKB48", "AKBIdoling !! " and "ICE from AKB48". Career Ono was born i ...

Yuko Oshima is a Japanese actress and former member of idol girl group AKB48, of which she was the captain of Team K. She was also a member of the AKB48 subunit Not Yet. In addition to the singles that involved the rock-paper-scissors tournaments, she sa ...

Ayaka Umeda is a Japanese former idol and singer from the girl group NMB48, in which she is the co-captain of Team BII. She was also a member of the AKB48 and its subunit DiVA. Biography 2004–2007: Early career, debut, injury In 2004–2005, Umeda to ...

Usage in media

This song was featured on Season 2, Episode 1 of James May's Cars of the People, as

James May James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963) is an English television presenter and journalist. He is best known as a co-presenter, alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond, of the motoring programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' fr ...

was driving a 1980

Mazda 323 The , also marketed prominently as the Mazda 323, Mazda Protegé and Mazda Allegro, is a small family car that was manufactured by Mazda between 1963 and 2003. The Familia line was replaced by the Mazda3/Axela for 2004. It was marketed as the '' ...

around

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

. The song was also supposed to earn a spot in the 2011 dance video game '' Just Dance Wii'', but it was removed for unknown reasons.

Track listing

Charts

Sales and certifications

BNK48 version

The Thai idol group

BNK48 BNK48 (read ''B.N.K. Forty-eight'') is a Thai Teen idol, idol Musical ensemble, girl group and the third international sister group of Japan's AKB48, following Indonesia's JKT48 and China's SNH48 (''Former''). After holding its first audition i ...

, a sister group of AKB48, covered the song and named it "Yak Cha Dai Phop Thoe" (; ; "Wanted to Meet You").

Production

The single was produced by a team led by Pongchuk Pissathanporn () from La-Ong-Fong band. The Thai lyrics were written by Natapol Srijomkwan () from Groove Riders band together with Pongchuk Pissathanporn and Tanupop Notayanont () from La-Ong-Fong band. The cover art of the single, produced by The Uni_form Design Studio, was revealed on 17 July 2017, depicting the sixteen ''senbatsu'' members with folded paper representing elements from the songs, as buses from "Ōgoe Diamond" and

paper plane A paper plane (also known as a paper airplane or paper dart in American English, or paper aeroplane in British English) is a toy aircraft, usually a glider, made out of a single folded sheet of paper or paperboard. It typically takes the for ...

s from "365 Nichi no Kamihikōki", including elements from the Thai culture, as

barb Barb or the BARBs or ''variation'' may refer to: People * Barb (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname * Barb, a term used by fans of Nicki Minaj to refer to themselves * The Barbs, a band Places * Barb, ...

mobiles, and those from the Japanese culture, as

paper crane The ''orizuru'' (折鶴 ''ori-'' "folded," ''tsuru'' " crane"), origami crane or paper crane, is a design that is considered to be the most classic of all Japanese origami.Jccc Origami Crane Project – Materials For Teachers & Students. MEANIN ...

s. The music video for "Yak Cha Dai Phop Thoe" was directed by Wanweaw Hongvivatana () and Weawwan Hongvivatana (), twin directors from GDH 559. The video was notably not marketed as the official music video.

Promotion

The three songs in the single were first performed at the group's debut event on 2 June 2017. Sixteen members of the group were then selected as '' senbatsu'' to promote the single, consisting of Can, Cherprang, Jaa, Jan, Jennis, Kaew, Kaimook, Miori, Music, Namhom, Namneung, Noey, Orn, Pun, Satchan, and Tarwaan. Music serves as the centre for "Aitakatta" and "Ōgoe Diamond", whereas Jennis is the centre for "365 Nichi no Kamihikōki". A change was made to this set of ''senbatsu'' for the event Japan Expo in Thailand 2017, held in Bangkok on 1 and 3 September 2017, after Jan, Kaew, Orn, and Namneung were demoted to undergirls after being found in violation of undisclosed rules (reportedly truancy), and were replaced by Jane, Mobile, Pupe, and Rina Izuta. To support the single, the group held its first handshake event in Bangkok on 27 August 2017, attracting almost 4,000 fans. The music video for the song "Yak Cha Dai Phop Thoe" was released on 29 November 2017 after announcing that the song would be used for the soundtrack of the television series, '' Project S the Series'' ("Shoot! I Love You" Part).

Release and sales

The single was officially released on 8 August 2017. Physical CDs were available for purchase from 7 to 19 July 2017 only, during which it sold a total of 13,500 copies. Critic Nutthapong Chaiwanitphon () observed that the total sales for the BNK48 single has been low.

Track listing

* Bold indicates centres.

MNL48 version

The Filipino idol group

MNL48 MNL48 (read as ''M.N.L. Forty-eight'') is a Filipino idol girl group based in Manila, Philippines, and formed in 2018, they are the fourth international sister group of AKB48, after Indonesia's JKT48, China's SNH48 (''former''), and Thailand' ...

, a sister group of

, covered the song and named it "Gustong Makita" (Want to meet you). It is their first single released on September 28, 2018.

Tracklisting

* Bold indicates centers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aitakatta AKB48 songs BNK48 songs MNL48 songs 2006 songs 2006 singles 2017 singles 2018 singles Songs with lyrics by Yasushi Akimoto Defstar Records singles