A trend goes wild

What's the latest work trend in Japan? It isn't teleworking or Zoom Happy Hour. No, according to trend research company Nexer, as reported in their press release today, the latest trend is playing "Get Wild" while leaving the office at the end of the day.

The double platinum single by TM Network released in 1987 and the ending theme for the anime "City Hunter" was ranked as the 8th most popular anime song in a survey of 130,000 people (reported in a TV special on TV Aasahi, September 6th, 2020).

As if often the case with such trends based on popular culture, the starting point was social media. In a post which has 287,000 likes and 118,00 retweets at the time of writing, hairdresser and anime fan shotac (@shotac_) posted the following on September 10th, 2020:

"My friend told me how he plays "Get Wild" the moment he opens the door to leave work, so I tried it. I'm serious, it totally makes you feel like you've done a great job that day, and you even end up fantasizing that your office building's exploding behind you. I recommend it!"

Before long, Get Wild退勤 (clocking out to "Get Wild") was showing up on the list of trending hashtags and reached the number one spot, as opinions poured in from people who enjoyed the anime series in the 80s, TM Network fans, those who discovered City Hunter on the occasion of the French live-action adaptation in 2019, and even those who were discovering it for the first time.

On September 11th, the City Hunter's official Twitter account joined the excitement, reporting on the sudden popularity of the song and posting a few famous frames from the manga:

Inspired by the opening lyrics: "My tires burn into the asphalt," some people began pushing the pedal to the metal as they played the song in their car, which prompted Bridgestone to voice its concern:

"Burning your tires into the asphalt too much? Are everyone's tires OK?"

By September 12th, the trend had become so influential that the song was ranked #2 on iTunes Music Single Top 200:


Survey results

Nexer interviewed 500 people (250 men and 250 women) between September 16th to 18th asking them the following question: "Would you like to try clocking out to Get Wild?"

Almost half (48.8%) responded "Yes."

Here's a sample of some of the responses:

Yes

  • "It makes me excited and it's a fun song." (Man, 30s)
  • "Even if I'm tired at the end of my workday, I think it would give me energy." (Woman, 40s)
  • "If I could finish my work with a good feeling, I think I'd be able to do a good job the next day." (Woman, 20s)
  • "It would be fun to imagine my office building blowing up behind me as I go home." (Man, 30s)

No

  • "I think it would make me too excited, so I think a more relaxing song would be better." (Woman, 40s)
  • "I know the song but I'm not of that generation. Also, I don't think it's the kind of song I want to listen to when I'm tired." (Woman, 30s)
  • "I work a night shift so it's not good listening just before going to bed." (Man, 60s)
  • "I don't know the song." (Woman, 20s)

Have you tried it yet? No, you say? What are you waiting for? Get wild and tough and give it a shot!


By - Ben K.

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