Japanese pop band Arashi to release English single written by Bruno Mars

Boy idol group Arashi will release a new single with English lyrics titled “Whenever You Call,” written and produced by American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, on Sept. 18, the group’s record company said Wednesday.

It will be the first English song released by Arashi, who is scheduled to halt its activities at the end of the year.

Grammy-winning musician Mars wrote the song after listening to the group’s previous songs and watching concert videos, and gave the members vocal lessons as well.

The five band members’ thoughts and feelings on their own group as well as their future are reflected in the lyrics, according to the record company J Storm.

Our new single “Whenever You Call” is out Friday, September 18! A big thank you to Bruno Mars for producing this track for us! Can’t wait for you to hear it! Pre-save “Whenever You Call” now! https://t.co/23ppXFNUy6#WheneverYouCall #嵐 #ARASHI pic.twitter.com/iInZRua9cZ

— ARASHI (@arashi5official) September 9, 2020

The group released short clips in English and Japanese on Twitter to announce the release of the single. The tweet featuring Arashi members thanking Bruno Mars and encouraging fans to listen to the single in English has so far racked up around 48,800 likes and 155,800 views.

“We are big fans of Bruno’s music so this was an honor and we can’t wait to share it with all of you,” said member Jun Matsumoto. One Twitter user, @Selinadidimom, responded with, “I truly believe you are great examples to encourage and comfort many around the world.”

The single will be available through streaming and download services, while a music video will be uploaded on Arashi’s official YouTube channel and distributed by streaming the same day.

Mars won album of the year and other awards at the 2018 Grammy Awards.

For more information, visit Arashi’s homepage (Japanese) at www.j-storm.co.jp/arashi.