Takanori Nishikawa, who performs as T.M.Revolution, will appear on NHK's 77th Kohaku Uta Gassen on New Year's Eve, it was announced on Friday. It will be his sixth appearance and his first in 12 years, since 2014.
Nishikawa, 56, will sing "HOT LIMIT," his signature song released in 1998, at the year-end show for the first time. He first appeared on Kohaku in 1997, performing the winter ballad "WHITE BREATH." In 2013 and 2014 he shared the stage with Nana Mizuki, 46, but never performed "HOT LIMIT" on the program.
A revival hit in his 30th year
The song has become one of the year's biggest revival hits as Nishikawa marks 30 years since his debut as T.M.Revolution. A single-take performance recorded for the YouTube channel THE FIRST TAKE in July reached 10 million views in three days, the fastest in the channel's history. By September it had passed 100 million streams on subscription services.
NHK has reason to welcome the song. The program has long been built for younger viewers, but ratings have struggled, and in recent years the broadcaster has aimed at middle-aged and older people who still watch TV, leaning on returning artists such as THE ALFEE two years ago and TUBE last year. "Nishikawa is a perfect fit for people in their 30s and 40s. It's certain to get people talking," a network official said.
Kohaku's selection criteria are the year's achievements, public support and the program's planning and staging. Nishikawa satisfies the first two, and as a performer fond of a spectacle he is expected to throw himself into the staging.
The costume question
"HOT LIMIT" is known for its costume: bare skin wrapped in multiple black belt-like straps. At the time of its release, the outfit and his slim, androgynous looks gave him an eerie appeal. He now often performs the song in the same costume, though his physique has become so muscular that he looks like a different person. Whether he wears it again on New Year's Eve is likely to draw attention in itself.