Today, as we start the beginning of the new era, I decided I wanted to start a new project. Ultimately that means me writing more. Like many other people, especially people living in the United States, I am frightened, anxious, and want to do something. While I’m going to try to be more active politically and financially, however I can, I also want to use my writing.

Throughout the past nine, ten years of my life, when things are difficult I’ve turned to Japanese idol music. In many ways it’s been a crutch that has helped me get through loss, loneliness, anxiety and a thousand other things that I have dealt with. So, through the next four difficult years, my goal is to write about a song a day that I find meaningful, has impacted me in one way or another, or I just simply like. Honestly, I think this will mostly be that last category. Yet, for everything Jpop is, a lot of the time it’s cheery, upbeat, and has made me feel better, so if you like this music maybe give my song a day a listen and maybe it will help you too.

I’ve liked Keyakizaka46’s debut song since it came out, but for the past few months I’ve been listening to Silent Majority so often that it became my #3 song of 2016. While it has a great melody and its arrangement is wonderful, the lyrics more than anything have stuck with me. If you’ve listened to the song and you don’t know enough Japanese to understand the lyrics (my Japanese skill is really basic), check out this translation courtesy of the Studio48 team:

http://stage48.net/studio48/silentmajority.html

“The people ahead turn to face you
and tell you to keep in line
They preach these rules,
but their eyes are dead

You have the freedom to be the way you are
Don’t be controlled by adults
If people give up like that from the start
Then why were we even born in the first place
Having dreams means at times you’ll be faced with loneliness
You have to walk an empty path
You won’t get there even if the world is all the same
Are you really okay with Yes
Silent Majority”

Now more than ever I think people are realizing that we can’t be silent, that we can’t sit down, and I think Silent Majority does a great job of expressing that need to speak out, even if it’s against a crowd or the status quo. More than just being a song that expresses the need for self expression or chasing your dreams, Silent Majority is about the actual reality of needing to stand up.

“The president of some country once said (he lied)
Those who don’t raise their voices are agreeing

Choosing is important
Don’t leave it to others
If you don’t take action,
they won’t hear your No”

Here’s where Silent Majority goes from “being different is OK” to “we need to stand up and be heard,” and why Silent Majority has been on my mind for weeks now. While the core of its message, being different is OK, is not a stranger to idol music, the reality of Silent Majority is one of protest, of standing up and saying no, which I think is a powerful message and one I didn’t expect from Keyakizaka46. It’s OK to stand up, it’s OK to say no.