"Hare Hare Yukai" (ハレ晴レユカイ, lit. "Sunny Sunny Delight") is the ending theme song to the 2006 anime adaptation of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (the first book in the Haruhi Suzumiya light novel series by Nagaru Tanigawa and several other short stories). The song is performed by the characters of the series: Haruhi Suzumiya (voiced by Aya Hirano), Yuki Nagato (voiced by Minori Chihara), and Mikuru Asahina (voiced by Yuko Goto). It was released as a physical single of the same title on May 10, 2006 by Lantis with the B-side "Welcome Unknown", the ending theme song to the radio show The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: SOS Brigade Radio Division that was also performed by the same actresses. "Hare Hare Yukai" has also appeared as a song in the The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song CD series, of which each character has their own solo version of the song, performed by their respective voice actor in the series.
"Hare Hare Yukai" generated public interest for the dance sequence in the ending animation, which was produced by Kyoto Animation and directed by Yutaka Yamamoto. Known colloquially as the "Haruhi dance", many people replicated the choreography, and it was credited for starting the cover dance video genre on video-sharing websites, particularly Nico Nico Douga and YouTube. The popularity of the song also led to growing interest in the Japanese voice acting industry. The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan.
"Hare Hare Yukai" is the ending theme song from the 2006 anime series The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (the animated adaptation of the first book and several short stories in the Haruhi Suzumiya series by Nagaru Tanigawa). It is composed by Tomokazu Tashiro [ja] and arranged by Takahiro Ando [ja].[1] The lyrics were written by Aki Hata.[1] The vocals are performed by voice actressesAya Hirano, Minori Chihara, and Yuko Goto, who portray the characters Haruhi Suzumiya, Yuki Nagato, and Mikuru Asahina respectively.[2] "Hare Hare Yukai" was released as a physical single of the same title on May 10, 2006 by Lantis.[2] The B-side of the single, "Welcome Unknown", also performed by the same actresses, was used as the ending theme song to The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: SOS Brigade Radio Division, a promotional radio show for The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.[3]
During the broadcast of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Lantis released The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song CD, a series of character song CDs, for each major character of the series: Haruhi Suzumiya,[4] Yuki Nagato,[5] Mikuru Asahina,[6] Tsuruya (voiced by Yuki Matsuoka),[7] Ryoko Asakura (voiced by Natsuko Kuwatani),[8] Kyon's sister (voiced by Sayaka Aoki),[9] Emiri Kimidori (voiced by Yuri Shiratori),[10] Itsuki Koizumi (voiced by Daisuke Ono),[11] and Kyon (voiced by Tomokazu Sugita).[12] Each character CD included a solo version of "Hare Hare Yukai", some with different lyrics and arrangements.
Yutaka Yamamoto (left, pictured in 2014) directed the animation to "Hare Hare Yukai", which featured choreography inspired by Berryz Kobo (right, pictured in 2012).
The ending animation of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, created by Kyoto Animation, featured the main characters dancing, of which the choreography became colloquially known as the "Haruhi dance." The ending animation was directed and storyboarded by Yutaka Yamamoto.[13][14][15] Yamamoto stated that he was inspired by the ending theme song "Fun Fun & Shout" from the 2002 OVA series Haré+Guu Deluxe, which also featured a dance sequence in its animation.[16] Anthropologist Ryotaro Mihara observed that several parts of the choreography featured in the dance took inspiration from dance routines from the Japanese girl group Berryz Kobo.[16]Shoko Ikeda, who worked on the ending animation, stated that she had no dance experience and that she saw a "glimpse of hell" as soon as the word "dance" was mentioned.[13] She said that the only challenge she faced was having to watch idol music videos for reference.[13]
On September 16, 2006, Kyoto Animation announced on their website that due to popular demand, they would release Yamamoto's storyboard of the full choreography on their website later in the month.[17]Aya Hirano, Minori Chihara, and Yuko Goto, the voice actresses of Haruhi, Yuki, and Mikuru, revealed the choreography to the full version of "Hare Hare Yukai" to the public when they performed the song at the 2006 Animelo Summer Live.[17] A fully animated choreography video featuring the TV size version of "Hare Hare Yukai" was included as a bonus extra on vol. 7 of the DVD home release of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, which went on sale on January 26, 2007.[18]
The physical single of "Hare Hare Yukai" was sold out at stores in Akihabara, Japan on the first day of release,[19] with Oricon reporting 34,881 copies sold on its first week.[20] By July 2006, it sold over 100,000 copies and earned a Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan.[21] In the same year, "Hare Hare Yukai" won the Theme Song Award at the 11th Animation Kobe Awards.[22] At Anime Expo 2008, the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation awarded "Hare Hare Yukai" with Best Original Song.[23] In 2019, "Hare Hare Yukai" won the Audience Choice Award at the Heisei Anisong Grand Prix for the decade of 2000 to 2009.[24]
Hirano, Chihara, and Goto first performed "Hare Hare Yukai" at the 2006 Animelo Summer Live.[25] On March 18, 2007, they performed the song again with Tomokazu Sugita (the voice actor of Kyon) and Daisuke Ono (the voice actor of Itsuki Koizumi) at The Extravagance of Haruhi Suzumiya, a live concert event for the cast of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.[26]
On August 25, 2017, Hirano, Chihara, and Goto appeared at the 2017 Animelo Summer Live as surprise guests to perform "Hare Hare Yukai" for the first time in 11 years.[27][28][29] On December 13, 2017, Hirano performed "Hare Hare Yukai" with Aya Yamamoto from NMB48 and Satori Matsumura from Nogizaka46 for the 2017 FNS Music Festival Part 2.[30] In 2018, Hirano, Chihara, and Goto performed "Hare Hare Yukai" at the MBS Anime Festival.[31]
On June 23, 2019, Hirano, Chihara, Goto, Sugita, and Ono appeared at Lantis Festival 2019, a concert event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Lantis, under the name SOS Brigade.[32] On November 12, 2023, Hirano, Chihara, Goto, Sugita, and Ono performed "Hare Hare Yukai" on day 2 of the Kyoto Animation Festival.[33]
Public interest and popularity of "Hare Hare Yukai" surrounded the dance choreography in the ending animation, which was replicated by fans.[34] Fans notably campaigned in Akihabara, Japan, to get "Hare Hare Yukai" top the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart.[35] "Hare Hare Yukai" was credited for creating the cover dance video genre (known as "I tried dancing" (踊ってみた, odottemita)) and culture on video-sharing websites after many people recreated the dance choreography on Nico Nico Douga as early as March 2007.[34][36] This later spread to YouTube and other video-sharing websites.[34] "Hare Hare Yukai", along with Nana Mizuki's 2005 song "Eternal Blaze", was also credited for inspiring the "voice actor boom" in the mid-2000s, where the release of the songs led to more public interest in the Japanese voice acting industry.[37] During a live event for Karaoke Sentai Seiyūger, a radio program featuring voice actors, voice actress Yu Serizawa named "Hare Hare Yukai" as one of the anime songs that "changed her life" and made her interested in pursuing voice acting.[38] In 2007, a flash mob performed "Hare Hare Yukai" in Akihabara; however, it was stopped short by the police.[34]
On April 24, 2020, Hirano posted a video of herself dancing and teaching the choreography of "Hare Hare Yukai" on her social media accounts to motivate others during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, sparking the hashtag "#HareHareYukaiAtHomeWithAllYourMight" (#お家で全力ハレ晴レユカイ).[39] This created a trend of cover dances of "Hare Hare Yukai" posted to the hashtag, participants of which included Tomokazu Sugita[39] and Minoru Shiraishi (the voice actor of Taniguchi).[40] This led "Hare Hare Yukai" to chart at no. 6 on the Billboard Japan Hot Animation in the same week.[41]
^ abハレ晴レユカイの歌詞 [Hare Hare Yukai lyrics]. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^ abハレ晴レユカイ [Hare Hare Yukai]. Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^TVアニメ『涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱』EDテーマ ハレ晴レユカイ [TV anime The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya ending theme: "Hare Hare Yukai"]. Lantis (in Japanese). Archived from the original on November 23, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^『ハルヒ』キャラソン第1弾「涼宮ハルヒ」ジャケ写大公開! [Haruhi character song no. 1 "Haruhi Suzumiya" jacket revealed]. Oricon (in Japanese). June 15, 2006. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^『ハルヒ』キャラソン第2弾「長門有希」ジャケ写公開! [Haruhi character song no. 2 "Yuki Nagato" jacket revealed]. Oricon (in Japanese). June 16, 2006. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^『ハルヒ』キャラソン第3弾「朝比奈みくる」ジャケ写もメイド姿! [Haruhi character song no. 3 "Mikuru Asahina" jacket shows off maid dress]. Oricon (in Japanese). June 17, 2006. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱 キャラクターソングVol.4 鶴屋さん [The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song Vol. 4 Tsuruya]. Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
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^涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱 キャラクターソング Vol.6 キョンの妹 [The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song Vol. 6 Kyon's Sister]. Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱 キャラクターソング Vol.7 喜緑江美里 [The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song Vol. 7 Emiri Kimidori]. Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
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^ abcここがすごいよ『涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱』 [This is where it's amazing! The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya]. Kyoto Animation (in Japanese). June 21, 2006. Archived from the original on July 2, 2006. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^新作アニメと連動アイドル「Wake Up, Girls!」お披露目 [New anime and tie-in idol group Wake Up, Girls! unveiled]. Oricon (in Japanese). June 21, 2006. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^9月20日(水) [Wednesday, September 20]. Kyoto Animation (in Japanese). September 20, 2006. Archived from the original on June 21, 2007. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^ abMihara, Ryotaro (2010). ハルヒin USA: 日本アニメ国際化の研究 [Haruhi in USA: A Case Study of a Japanese Anime in the United States]. Japan: NTT Publishing. p. 126. ISBN9784757142473.
^ ab涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱ファンの皆様へ [To the fans of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya]. Kyoto Animation (in Japanese). September 16, 2006. Archived from the original on November 3, 2006. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱 特設ファンサイト [The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Special Fan Site] (in Japanese). Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^“生”「ハレ晴レユカイ」武道館に登場! ["Hare Hare Yukai" to appear "live" at Budokan]. Oricon (in Japanese). June 21, 2006. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^伝説のライブ“涼宮ハルヒの激奏”で限定販売されたアナログ盤をアソビットで販売! [An analog broadcast of The Extravagance of Haruhi Suzumiya, the legendary concert, has been announced for a limited amount of time!]. ASCII Media Works (in Japanese). March 23, 2007. Archived from the original on September 21, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^SOS団が11年ぶりアニサマ出演、「ハレ晴レユカイ」をサプライズ披露 [The SOS Brigade appears at AniSummer for the first time in 11 years, shows off "Hare Hare Yukai" as a surprise]. Billboard Japan (in Japanese). August 25, 2017. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^SOS団がアニサマで11年ぶり集結 “ハルヒ声優”平野綾「お久しぶりです!」 [The SOS Brigade appears together at AniSummer for the first time in 11 years, "Haruhi voice actress" Aya Hirano: "It's been a long time!"]. Oricon (in Japanese). August 25, 2017. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^SOS団・けもフレ・Aqours…『アニサマ2017』NHK BSで3週連続放送 [The SOS Brigade, Kemono Friends, Aqours... AniSummer 2017 broadcasts on NHK BS for 3 weeks]. Oricon (in Japanese). September 29, 2017. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^平野綾:NMB山本彩&乃木坂松村沙友理と「ハレ晴レユカイ」 [Aya Hirano, performing "Hare Hare Yukai" with Aya Yamamoto from NMB and Satori Matsumura from Nogizaka]. Mantan Web (in Japanese). December 8, 2017. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^『MBSアニメフェス』過去最多の声優登場 『進撃の巨人』『ハルヒ』『おそ松さん』サプライズ参戦 [Many voice actors from the past appear at "MBS Anime Festival", surprise appearances from Attack on Titan, Haruhi, and Mr. Osomatsu]. Oricon (in Japanese). October 6, 2018. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^「涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱」SOS団、ランティス祭りで12年ぶりに全員集結! 平野綾「信じてきたものは間違っていなかった」 [The SOS Brigade from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya gather together for the first time in 20 years at Lantis Festival! Aya Hirano: "I'm not wrong for believing"]. Anime! Anime! (in Japanese). June 24, 2019. Archived from the original on January 3, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^「京アニフェス」DAY2、SOS団が4年ぶりに集合してキレキレのダンスを披露 [KyoAni Fes Day 2, the SOS Brigade gets together and shows ofnimble dance for the first time in 4 years]. Natalie (in Japanese). November 12, 2023. Archived from the original on November 17, 2023. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
^ ab『涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱』のED主題歌、ファンの力で初登場5位! [The ending theme song of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya reaches no. 5 on its first charting with the power of fans!]. Oricon (in Japanese). May 15, 2006. Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^Ito, Taisei. 日本で最初のアニメが誕生した大正時代. 70 Seeds (in Japanese). Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
^人気声優の人生を変えたアニソンは? ミルキィホームズやハルヒ、エヴァなど続々 [What are the anime songs that changed the lives of popular voice actors? From Milky Holmes to Haruhi to Eva, one after another]. Oricon (in Japanese). April 8, 2022. Archived from the original on December 3, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
^ ab杉田智和『涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱』EDダンス披露でファン歓喜 足腰痛めて息切れも全力 [Tomokazu Sugita shows of the dance to the ending of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya to fans' delight, gives his best despite legs and hits hurting and running out of breath]. Oricon (in Japanese). April 26, 2020. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^「涼宮ハルヒ」声優陣による「#お家で全力ハレ晴レユカイ」 白石稔も踊ってみた動画公開!「セクシーでお茶吹いた」 [Continuing from the voice actors from Haruhi Suzumiya, Minoru Shiraishi's cover dance video is revealed! "I spat out my tea in a sexy way"]. Anime! Anime! (in Japanese). April 27, 2020. Archived from the original on July 6, 2024. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
^ ab【ビルボード】LiSA「紅蓮華」がアニメ歴代1位タイに、「#お家で全力ハレ晴レユカイ」で話題のハルヒ名曲がトップ10入り [(Billboard) "Gurenge" by LiSA makes anime history by coming in at no. 1, hit song from Haruhi enters top 10 thanks to #HareHareYukaiAtHomeWithAllYourMight]. Billboard Japan (in Japanese). April 29, 2020. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^【新曲&イベント】11月24日(木)から新曲登場+アニメ曲限定ミニイベント2開催!! [(New song and event) From November 24 (Thurs.), a limited event featuring a new song and an anime song will be held!]. Taito (in Japanese). November 21, 2016. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^8/24(木) 「CHUNITHM STAR」本日稼働開始! [August 24 (Thurs): Operation for Chunithm Star begins today!]. Sega (in Japanese). August 24, 2017. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^「D4DJ Groovy Mix」に“ハレ晴レユカイ”原曲が追加 [D4DJ Groovy Mix adds original version of "Hare Hare Yukai"]. 4gamer (in Japanese). March 5, 2021. Archived from the original on May 19, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^DISH//、超特急、カスタマイズ、音楽業界にpreteen男子が革命を起こす?お台場でライブ敢行 [Dish, Bullet Train, Customize, will preteen boys revolutionize the music industry? Live performance at Odaiba]. Ticket Pia (in Japanese). November 15, 2012. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^『バンドリ! ガールズバンドパーティ!』で新たなカバー楽曲「ハレ晴レユカイ」を公開 [BanG Dream! Girls Band Party! announces new cover song "Hare Hare Yukai"]. GameBiz (in Japanese). March 10, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^りあむたちが“ハレ晴レユカイ”を踊る! 『デレステ』×『涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱』コラボが開催中 [Riamu and others dance to "Hare Hare Yukai"! DereStage and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya collaboration now out]. Dengeki (in Japanese). August 13, 2020. Archived from the original on January 3, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
^"『ロシデレ』第4話ED「ハレ晴レユカイ」動画解禁 声優たちの踊ってみた動画も公開" [Video of 4th ending of Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian, "Hare Hare Yukai", released, cover dance video by voice actors also released]. Oricon (in Japanese). July 25, 2024. Archived from the original on July 26, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.