The worldwide hit single, “Telephone”, by Lady Gaga & Beyonce, is doing the rounds again on the Internet. Only this time, it’s a Japanese version, featuring two traditional instruments: the koto (Japanese harp) and the shakuhachi (Japanese flute).
The duo behind the cool cover are a couple of little monsters who go by the name of Team Kozan. Not only have they created an awesome rendition of the pop single, they’ve made a cool video clip too; filmed at Suga Shrine in Shinjuku, it mixes up Gaga dance moves with the sights and sounds of traditional Japan. See why the world is raving about it after the jump.
Team Kozan explains their reasons for creating the Japanese-style arrangement and video clip: “Two years ago, after the terrible earthquake, we Japanese received a lot of support and encouragement from Lady Gaga. Now, we want to return the favor by supporting and encouraging Lady Gaga after her recent hip surgery. We hope she returns to performing soon.”
The clip is so eye-catching and original that its popularity is slowly spreading across the world.
Here’s what some Japanese viewers had to say:
-- “This is Japanese-style awesome”
-- “Props to the middle-aged guy; I didn’t see those dance moves coming!”
-- “I like this better than the original!”
-- “I got goosebumps!”
-- “The musical arrangement is great but their performance was mind-blowing!”
Here’s what foreigners thought of the clip:
-- “Love it!” (Vietnam)
-- “This is the best! I like it better than the original!” (USA)
-- “Where can I buy this single?” (USA)
-- “This is amazing! I’ve never heard a Gaga song like this before!” (Taiwan)
-- “This is so interesting to watch! Superior to the original!” (Canada)
The Japanese cover version of “Telephone” is a perfect fusion of East and West, traditional and modern.
© RocketNews24
15 Comments
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Triumvere
A lot of negativity here in the comments; I thought it was great.
Lowly
Hm, it was ok. Not incredible. I don't know why everyone is so blown away, it seems by comments.
I play Japanese music, for me the koto sounds nice on this song, but the shakuhachi is not necessarily a good fit with this music.
Ending with the cat was the best part.
Vernie Jefferies
That's a very impressive version of the song. I can imagine the look on people faces if they played this back in the Edo Period.
Tahoochi
Pretty cool...but is the world really "raving" about it though?
TokyoGas
I guess I am a real homebody as I never heard of the original song.
nath
nice song
smithinjapan
Quite impressed. Well done.
SauloJpn
This is really cool! We need every bit of cool now! Just watched once and posted on every single social media I know!!
pizzatime
They actually tried to make crap (pop, the lowest form of music) into something listenable... Respekt! Feels like they are recycling.
mjtjapan
Wonderfully done
konjo4u
Thank you JT, thank you! I love this.
I love traditional East Asian instruments, used both traditionally and in these theme art works.
Moonraker
I like it but the effusive gushing over uniqueness and originality is too much. From fashion designers to architects, from chefs to musicians, often when they want to be "creative" they simply add some "Japaneseness" to whatever went before; patterns, ingredients, instruments, etc. It is a tried and trusted strategy. Of course, for people not familiar with this, it seems original and even that much overused word, "unique", but when you have seen it over and over it is rather predictable.
scoobydoo
Your kidding. I guess they can play it as background music in Komeri
Maria
Fabulous - love it!
nath
This is a sweet video