Ae! Group Claims No. 1 on Japan Hot 100 as Seasonal Favorites Return

Ae! Group has secured the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart released Nov. 11 with their latest single, "Emotion." The band-style track, which dropped on Nov. 4 as the title song of their fifth single, achieved an impressive 496,736 physical sales while also securing the No. 2 position in downloads and No. 9 in radio airplay. Fans of Japanese pop music continue to drive physical sales for major domestic releases, helping propel the group to the top.

BE:FIRST followed closely at No. 2 with "NOW U KNOW," the lead track from their fourth album, BE:4U, which dominated downloads with 13,621 units alongside strong video views. Other notable chart debuts included EBiDAN's "Yes! Tokyo" at No. 3 and Rosy Chronicle's "Datte Daikyo Jan" at No. 8. Meanwhile, older catalog hits experienced significant resurgences. Kenshi Yonezu's "Lemon" re-entered the chart at No. 59 after its music video surpassed one billion cumulative YouTube views, and back number's seasonal staple "Christmas Song" returned to the ranking as winter illuminations and holiday markets began across Japan.

"The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data."

For music enthusiasts following international charts, these shifts highlight how both fresh album drops and seasonal nostalgia dictate listener habits in the Japanese market. What to watch next: Keep an eye on upcoming winter single releases and holiday chart impacts through November.