"'Jumping'" 점핑 is a song performed by South Korean girl group Kara from their debut Japanese album, Girl's Talk and their fourth EP, Jumping. It was released on November 10, 2010 as the second Japanese single. The single was certified as Gold for selling over 100,000 physical copies by the Recording Industry Association of Japan. The song was also certified as Double Platinum for ringtone downloads and Million for single track downloads by the RIAJ. A Korean version was also released and included as the lead title song for the group's fourth mini-album titled Jumping, which was released in South Korea on November 17, 2010.
Background
On September 29, 2010, it was announced that Kara will be releasing their second single entitled "Jumping" on November 10, 2010. It was also said to be a brand-new song that will have an exclusive Japanese single release. "Jumping" was also chosen as the new theme song for Fuji TV's Saturday morning news and information program, Mezamashi Saturday. It was also revealed that the song and concept for "Jumping" was inspired by the anime movie, "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time". The song also served as a promotion for KDDI's "au Santa's Challenge." On December 2010, the single was then certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan for having over 100 000 copies shipped. Furthermore, their free music application "Kara Jumping" ranked #1 for the 'free music category' on Japan's iTunes App store chart, earning over 50 000 downloads within 10 days upon release without any official promotions. It was met with many positive reviews and a representative of production company Danal even commented, "Kara's popularity in Japan exceeds anything imaginable."
Composition
The song was produced by Sweetune and written by Song Soo Yun. It was revealed that the song and concept for "Jumping" was inspired by the anime movie, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.
Track listing
Music videos
The promotional video teaser for "Jumping" was featured on Mezamashi TV on October 25, 2010. The full version was eventually released on October 28, 2010. The video features alternating scenes where they are seen wearing silvery white and dark black outfits. During the filming, it was reported that member Seungyeon cried a lot after being asked by the staff to shed a tear during an individual scene but she ended up sobbing because she became overwhelmed by her emotion.
au Smart Sports version
The 'au Smart Sports version' was also released through Universal Music Japan and Universal Sigma YouTube channels on November 5, 2010. In this version, the group are dressed as cheerleaders and marathon runners, helping to promote the popular Japan carrier KDDI's "au Santa's Challenge".
South Korean version
Following the release of the group's fourth mini-album back in South Korea, a Korean version of the single was used as the title track for the album. The music video is the same as the Japanese version but contains slightly altered scenes including individual scenes where the group members are seen sitting in a black and white bedroom with a cell-phone on their hand.
Chart performance
The single debuted at #5 in the Oricon Daily Singles Chart and eventually rose to #2, behind Arashi's Hatenai Sora. The song quickly climbed up in other charts including mobile downloads. The music video and song also ranked #1 in iTunes Japan The single ranked at #5 in the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart selling around 55,000 copies in its first week. The song was certified platinum by the RIAJ for cellphone digital downloads, and gold for PC downloads.
