What annual Japanese New Year’s Eve television music competition airs on December 31?

Kōhaku Uta Gassen is the annual Japanese New Year’s Eve television music competition that airs on December 31.

The program is produced and broadcast by NHK. Its format traditionally divides invited performers into a red team of female artists and a white team of male artists, although the presentation and participant categories have evolved over time. Performers compete through musical stages judged by a panel and, in some editions, audience participation.

The first edition was broadcast in 1951. It soon became one of Japan’s most important year-end television traditions, with viewers watching before midnight and during the final hours of the old year. Major pop stars, veteran singers, groups, and special guests may appear.

The title combines kōhaku, meaning red and white, with uta gassen, meaning song battle. It should not be confused with Japan’s separate Japan Record Awards, which are an awards ceremony rather than the long-running red-versus-white broadcast.