The announcement that Hikaru Utada was featuring on a song with Charlie Puth was one surprise. But that song sounding so much like a Hikaru Utada song from top to bottom was another. As I listened to “Home”, it immediately felt like something which could sit on Ultra Blue, Heart Station or Bad Mode. When it came to a specific song that would fit with “Home” my mind went straight to “Keep Tryin’”. But I didn’t even entertain putting the two together to hear how it’d sound, because the music for “Home” is too sombre and melancholy for a mashup to work without it taking you out of the song.
But then another song came to mind — “Flavor of Life”. And I liked that idea enough to want to hear it. So, I just...
Bitch. It worked.
I’d seen comments online from people saying that they don’t think “Home” sounds anything like a Hikaru Utada song and I just don’t understand that. I’ve tried to understand that. But I just don’t get how they are not hearing it. Maybe this mashup will change their minds. Or maybe it won’t. Does it even matter?
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Mashup made in 2026