Bieber Meets Piko-Taro

Last year, Justin Bieber single-handedly made a superstar out of an obscure middle-aged Japanese comedian when he tweeted about a music video he saw while in Japan to do a series of concerts.

Eugene Hoshiko/AP – Pikotaro
Performing “pen-pineapple-apple-pen” song at a press conference in Tokyo.

The video for “Pen Pineapple Apple Pen,” cited as the shortest song ever to appear on the Billboard Top 100 Singles list, was flagged by Bieber last summer, catapulting its fey, gold lame-sporting singer, Piko-Taro, to instant worldwide fame.

By the beginning of February, the video had been viewed more than 113 million times on YouTube. The two stars have finally made good on their Internet connection by making a Japanese TV commercial together for mobile communications provider Softbank.

The commercial features Bieber walking around a school campus wearing the kind of navy blue school uniform that Japanese junior high school boys wear and runs into Piko-Taro.

The ad has yet to be aired, but Bieber has already written about it on Instagram, and some TV stations in Japan have shown behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the CM. Speaking of Bieber, he has added Mumbai to the Asia leg of his current Purpose World Tour.

The single Indian concert appearance will take place May 10 at the DY Patil Stadium.

Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP – Justin Bieber
“KIIS FM Jingle Ball,” Staples Center, Los Angeles, Calif.

A statement released by the promoter, White Fox India, said, “Justin Bieber will be bringing an extraordinary epic show that India has not witnessed in recent times,” and adding, “He enjoys over 80 percent dedicated fan following in India and we envisage one of the biggest live events of the year.”

According to the Indian Express, negotiations to bring the tour to India lasted for six months.

Arjun Jain, director of White Fox, told the news site, “We are expecting a full house on May 10. This tour will place India on the global map and open up avenues for other artists of a similar stature who may want to consider India as part of their touring roster.”