The First Take: One Studio, One microphone, One singer, One chance

"The First Take" was launched last year, in November, and because of the simple concept, in only one year, it became a hit on YouTube, currently having around 2,93 million subscribers on their channel.

If you check their Official Youtube Channel, you will find a description that says:

白いスタジオに置かれた、一本のマイク。/ Shiroi sutajio ni okareta, ippon no maiku.
ここでのルールは、ただ一つ。/ Koko de no rūru wa, tada hitotsu.
一発撮りのパフォーマンスをすること。/ Ippatsu-dori no pafōmansu o suru koto.
それ以外は、何をしてもいい。/ Sore igai wa, nani o shite mo ii.
一度きりのテイクで、何をみせてくれるだろうか。/ Ichido kiri no teiku de, nani o misete kureru darou ka?

In English, it sounds something like this:

"A microphone in a white studio. There is only one rule here. You've got one TAKE to perform. Other than that, you are free to do whatever you want. Show us everything you've got for that one moment."

The rules are simple, but it can be quite nerve-wracking for the artists because they only get one round chance to record a song.

Witnessing the artists’ skills and hearing the raw version of the music, are two of the reasons why "The First Take" gathered so much attention not only in Japan but overseas, too.

"The First Take" has featured famous artists such as Super Beaver, Dish//, Yui, Def Tech, LiSA, and many others.

With the popularity of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba still booming, LiSA’s songs are listened to by people across the world, and the video of her singing Gurenge (紅蓮華) on The First Take has hit over 90 million views.

Following LiSA, we have DISH//(Takumi Kitamura) interpretation of the song: Neko (猫), written by the Japanese singer and songwriter, Aimyon, with 80 million views.

LiSA sang Gurenge with a re-arrangement of the piano and once again captured our hearts with her amazing technique.

The First Take not only came up with a new idea but thanks to them, Japanese artists can show the world what they are capable of and deliver us a powerful performance, raw, beautiful, in just one take.

You will also discover many collaborations between the artists, re-arrangements of songs, and professional techniques that will leave you in awe.

Due to the COVID-19, however, the recent one round recordings are taken at the artists’ homes for safety purposes.

Official Website

Below are some of my favorite performances, but you can find many more on their official channel, so check them out to see if any of your favorite artists is featured or to listen to more intense takes by the Japanese artists.