PIKOTARO Reboots Music Activities with New Digital Single: "PEEK-A-BOO"

PIKOTARO, best known for his megahit earworm song "PPAP", is back! "PPAP (Pen Pineapple Apple Pen)" became a global sensation when it was uploaded to YouTube in 2016 and picked up by Justin Bieber along with media such as CNN and the BBC, making it the first song by a Japanese artist in 26 years to enter the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Now, this unique star from Japan is preparing to relaunch his music activity and take the world by storm all over again!

June 28 marks PIKOTARO's release of a new digital single and music video titled "PEEK-A-BOO feat. Masato Suzuki & Cateen (Hayato Sumino) with Azabu Gakuen OB+Orchestra". This release is a collaboration with Cateen (Hayato Sumino), a classical pianist who was discovered by producer Daimaou Kosaka on TV Asahi’s music TV series "Untitled Concert" and whose YouTube channel now has over 1.2 million subscribers, along with famous Japanese classical musician Masato Suzuki and the Azabu Gakuen OB +Orchestra.

"PEEK-A-BOO" is the follow-up to "PPAP". Aiming to “Make the world smile with PEEK-A-BOO”, this is PIKOTARO’s next step towards his dream of winning the Nobel Peace Prize. The music video features a typically PIKOTARO twist, with a multitude of smartphones and tablets showing videos of each of the collaborators running simultaneously in perfect sync. Check out PIKOTARO’s hilarious facial expressions across three screens, alongside Cateen’s incredible piano performance and the full-scale orchestra conducted by Masato Suzuki!

The music video for "PEEK-A-BOO" can be found below!

Download & Streaming Links:
https://avex.lnk.to/PIKO_PEEK-A-BOO

PIKOTARO Profile
The August 2016 YouTube video for PIKOTARO’s "PPAP (Pen Pineapple Apple Pen)" was shared by Justin Bieber and other celebrities in Japan and around the world, quickly spawning a tsunami of fan-made videos and being featured by major global media such as CNN and the BBC, becoming a worldwide smash hit. The video became the No.1 most-watched music video on YouTube globally for three consecutive weeks, an incredible achievement that made PIKOTARO Japan’s most famous export.

The short and long versions of "PPAP" on YouTube have reached around 600 million combined views. The song reached No.77 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the first entry by a Japanese artist in 26 years. It was certified by Guinness World Records as the “Shortest song to enter the Billboard Hot 100”. 

Masato Suzuki Profile
Born in Holland, Masato Suzuki graduated from the Royal Conservatoire The Hague in The Netherlands. He is the Principal Conductor of the Bach Collegium Japan (BCJ) and a conductor/creative partner of the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra. In addition to being a conductor and a player of keyboard instruments, this multi-faceted creator is also active as a composer, director and producer.

Hayato Sumino Profile
Hayato Sumino was born in 1995. In 2018, while studying at the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo, he won the Grand Prix of the PTNA Piano Competition. In 2021, he was a semifinalist at the International Chopin Piano Competition. He has performed with many orchestras both in Japan and abroad, including the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra and the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. In 2022, his overseas activity included performances in Paris and Singapore and tours of Taiwan and South Korea, receiving acclaim from local audiences. Under the name Cateen, his YouTube channel has accumulated over 1.2 million subscribers and 150 million views.

PIKOTARO Links
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pikotaro_ppap
Instagram: https://instagram.com/pikotaro_ppap_official
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pikotaro2016ppap
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/PIKOTARO
 
Masato Suzuki Links 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/eugenesuzuki
Instagram: https://instagram.com/masatosuzukimusic
 
Hayato Sumino (Cateen) Links
Twitter: https://twitter.com/880hz　
Instagram: https://instagram.com/cateen8810
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cateen_hayatosumino/featured