is a song from the 2009 Japanese

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series ''

Bakemonogatari is a Japanese light novel series written by Nisio Isin and illustrated by Vofan. The plot centers on Koyomi Araragi, a third-year high school student who survives a vampire attack and finds himself helping girls involved with a var ...

'' (the animated adaptation of the first book from the ''

Monogatari is a Literary genre, literary form in traditional Japanese literature – an extended prose narrative tale comparable to epic (genre), epic literature. ''Monogatari'' is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates ...

'' series by

Nisio Isin , often stylized as NISIOISIN to emphasize the palindrome, is a pseudonymous Japanese novelist, manga author, and screenplay writer. Nisio debuted in 2002 with the novel ''The Beheading Cycle'' (the first in his '' Zaregoto'' series), which ea ...

) and performed by

Kana Hanazawa is a Japanese actress and singer. A prolific voice performer in anime, she has amassed several film and television credits since her debut in 2003. She won the Seiyu Awards, Seiyu Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2015, and won the Newtype A ...

as her character, Nadeko Sengoku. Composed by

Satoru Kōsaki is a Japanese music composer and arranger. He is best known for his work on anime, including '' Lucky Star'', '' The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'', ''Monogatari'', ''Beastars'' and '' The Apothecary Diaries''. He worked at Namco, where he prima ...

with lyrics written by Meg Rock, "Renai Circulation" serves as both Nadeko's character

image song In Japan, an image song or character song is a song on a tie-in single or album (often called an image album or character album) for an anime, video game, drama, manga, or other commercial product that is sometimes sung by the voice actor or a ...

as well as the opening theme song in episode 10 of ''Bakemonogatari'', which first premiered on September 11, 2009, to represent the "Nadeko Snake" story arc. "Renai Circulation" was released on digital services and as a limited edition CD bonus with vol. 4 of the DVD and Blu-ray home releases of ''Bakemonogatari'' on January 27, 2010. It was later given a wider physical release and compiled on the series'

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ( ...

, ' on December 21, 2011. "Renai Circulation" received praise for its "cute" melody as well as Hanazawa's vocals. After the initial release of "Renai Circulation", in 2010, the song inspired a trend of cover dances and mash-ups on

Niconico , known before 2012 as , is a Japanese video sharing service based in Tokyo, Japan. "Niconico" or "nikoniko" is the Japanese sound symbolism, Japanese ideophone for smiling. As of 2021, Niconico is the 34th most-visited website in Japan, accordi ...

. In the late 2010s, the popularity of the song resurfaced again, this time globally, through

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

Background and release

"Renai Circulation" is a song from the 2009 anime series ''

'' (the animated adaptation of the first book in the ''

'' series by

) and serves as the character

for the character Nadeko Sengoku. It first appeared as the opening theme song of episode 10, "Nadeko Snake, Part 2", which was originally broadcast on September 11, 2009 on

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV (channel 9), branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent station, independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city and parts ...

, to coincide with "Nadeko Snake", a story arc featuring Nadeko as the main character. The vocals were performed by Nadeko's

voice actress Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

. "Renai Circulation" was given a limited physical release as a CD bonus in vol. 4 of the DVD and

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

limited edition home releases of ''Bakemonogatari''. The home releases were originally scheduled to be on sale on December 29, 2009, but they were postponed until finally releasing on January 27, 2010. "Renai Circulation" was also released on digital services on the same day. On December 21, 2011, "Renai Circulation" saw a wider physical release on the

Composition and lyrics

"Renai Circulation" is composed by

with lyrics written by Meg Rock. Kōsaki felt it would be interesting to feature Hanazawa rapping in a gentle manner, inspired by music and Japanese hip-hop artist Kaseki Cider. Similar to Hanazawa's song "Melody", "Renai Circulation" is focused on a narrative with rap elements against a "funky tune." described the song as a "light pop tune" that makes use of Hanazawa's vocals.

Anime News Network Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and ot ...

described the song as a "starry-eyed love song" that reveals Nadeko's "conflict and character." ''Kai-You'' described the lyrics as depicting Nadeko's feelings for the main character of the ''Monogatari'' series, Koyomi Araragi, with Hanazawa portraying Nadeko's "maiden heart" with a "clear, whisper vocal" against a light brass section, single-note guitar, and a glockenspiel. The chorus opens with the Japanese onomatopoeia , which means "fluffy" and is used to describe "cute, upbeat, or insubstantial things." The song also contains a wordplay about Nadeko's name and in the line Since the release of "Renai Circulation", Nadeko's subsequent character songs have made references to the former. "Mousou Express" was released for the 2013 anime series ''Monogatari: Second Season'', which adapted ''Otorimonogatari'' and was used as the opening theme song to the "Nadeko Medusa" story arc. The song depicted Nadeko's descent into madness about her unrequited feelings for Koyomi Araragi and was seen as a response to "Renai Circulation." "Caramel Ribbon Cursetard", a duet between Nadeko and Yotsugi Ononoki (voiced by

Saori Hayami is a Japanese voice actress and singer affiliated with I'm Enterprise. As a singer, she is signed to Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Hayami won the 10th Seiyu Awards for Best Supporting Actress. Biography Hayami became interested in voice ...

) released for the 2024 anime adaptation of ''Nademonogatari'', is also presented with rapping verses, with the lyrics having Nadeko face her past self in "Renai Circulation" and "Mousou Express."

Reception

Famitsu , formerly , is a line of Japanese Video game journalism, video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly f ...

'' stated that "Renai Cirulation" suited Nadeko's cute image "perfectly." They also describe Hanazawa to have an "airy" and "cute" singing voice that they found "charming."

described the song as "cutesy as all get-out" and that it framed Nadeko as "cute and dramatically vacuous", making her a cliché character. ''Kai You'' stated that the rapping in the song was not skilled compared to hip hop songs, but it benefited in making the song "cute" due to how it portrayed Nadeko's clumsy character. In 2019, "Renai Circulation" won the Character Song Award at the Heisei Anisong Grand Prix for the decade of 2000 to 2009.

Live performances

In 2015, Hanazawa performed "Renai Circulation" as an encore song for her "Live 2015 Blue Avenue" concert tour. After "Renai Circulation" went viral on

in China, Hanazawa was invited to perform the song as a special guest at the 2019 BTV Universal New Year's Eve Snow and Ice Song Festival in Beijing, China. She later performed the song again in 2019 during a concert in Shanghai. In May, Hanazawa performed the song at ''Monogatari'' Fes: 10th Anniversary Story, a talk event celebrating the 10-year anniversary of the ''Monogatari'' anime adaptation. In 2022, Hanazawa performed "Renai Circulation" on her "Live 2022 Blossom" concert tour. She also performed it at

Animelo Summer Live ''Animelo Summer Live'', abbreviated as , is the biggest annual anime song music festival in Japan hosted by Dwango and Nippon Cultural Broadcasting. Animelo Summer Live has been held every summer since 2005. Description Animelo performers are ...

2022. In October, Hanazawa performed the song at the Dream Entertainment Live, an event celebrating the 55th anniversary of

All Night Nippon is a Japanese radio program broadcast by Nippon Broadcasting System and other radio stations. DJs The day of the week below are for the evening preceding in Japan, i.e. day in UTC. * Mondays – Thursdays, 13:00 UTC – 15:00 UTC wi ...

. In 2023, she performed the song at the Tencent Music Entertainment Awards as part of a medley of her other anime songs.

Cultural impact

After the song's initial release, in 2010, "Renai Circulation" became popular among anime fans, inspiring cover dances with original choreography and song mash-ups on

. Nadeko won first place in a ''Bakemonogatari'' character poll held by anime merchandise retailer Toranoana, with some voters citing "Renai Circulation" as the reason. In 2022, Hanazawa stated that the success of "Renai Circulation" led her to receiving more offers to perform character songs as well as a singing career. She also stated that the song has helped her "get to know ervoice." In 2018, "Renai Circulation" went viral on

in China. On December 18, 2019, Chinese electronics company

Xiaomi Xiaomi (; ) is a Chinese multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Beijing, China. It is best known for consumer electronics software electric vehicles. It is the second-largest manufacturer of smartphones in the worl ...

posted a parody version of the song video on

Bilibili Bilibili (stylized in all lowercase), nicknamed B Site, is a Chinese online video sharing website based in Shanghai where users can submit, view, and add overlaid commentary on videos. Bilibili hosts videos on various themes, including ...

about their Q3 financial report using processed voice clips from their CEO,

Lei Jun Lei Jun (born 16 December 1969) is a Chinese billionaire entrepreneur, computer engineer, and nonpartisan congressman. He is known for being the founder, chairman, and CEO of the consumer electronics company Xiaomi. He also serves as the chai ...

. In 2021, "Renai Circulation" spread outside of Asia on TikTok as well through a 2012 English-language cover version by American singer Lizz Robinett. Robinett's version inspired cover dances on the app and became an

Internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

. Her version of the song also saw popularity with Japanese users who were unfamiliar with the song. "Renai Circulation" was described by

Natalie Natalie may refer to: Places * Natalie, Michigan, an unincorporated community People * Natalie (given name) * Natalie (singer) (born 1979), Mexican-American R&B singer/songwriter * (born 1999), better known as Natalie Zenn, Indonesian act ...

as an example of a

J-pop J-pop (often stylized in all caps; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in trad ...

song finding a global audience. The song "Tokyo Mauve" by Polkadot Stingray was inspired by Hanazawa, with the composition resembling "Renai Circulation." In 2022, "Renai Circulation" was used as an ending theme song to the child-rearing program ' on

NHK Educational TV , abbreviated on-screen as NHK E, is the second television service of NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation). It is a sister service of NHK General TV, showing programs of a more educational, documentaries, cultural, children's or intellectual n ...

Cover versions

In 2010, Japanese singer recorded a cover version for ''Anime Dance Best Gig'', a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

featuring covers of popular anime songs. Kotone also performed the song during a concert celebrating her 24th birthday in 2014. In 2012, American singer Lizz Robinett recorded an English-language cover, which later spread outside of Asia on TikTok. Robinett's version ranked no. 1 in the ''

Billboard Japan ''Billboard Japan'' is a sister organization of the U.S.-based music magazine '' Billboard''. It is operated by the Japanese Osaka-based company Hanshin Contents Link (a subsidiary of Hanshin Electric Railway), holding an exclusive licence fr ...

'' TikTok Weekly Top 20 in the week of March 22, 2021. In 2013, Japanese singer

Nagi Yanagi , stylized as , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from Osaka Prefecture who is signed to NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan. After becoming interested with music in her childhood, she began singing and writing original songs. In 2006, she began ...

recorded a cover version as a first press bonus for her album ''Euaru''. In 2020, a Chinese-language cover version was recorded and performed on the

reality competition Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

program '' Youth With You''. In 2022, a cover version performed by Hotaru Shiragiku (voiced by Satomi Amano) became available as a playable song in the mobile game '' The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls: Starlight Stage''. The Resonanz Children's Choir performed the song live with the Jakarta Concert Orchestra, during an Anime Symphony concert.

Notes

References

{{Monogatari 2009 songs Animated series theme songs Anime songs Songs in Japanese Internet memes introduced in 2010 Internet memes introduced from Japan Monogatari (series)