The first version featuring Capi was released on August 13, 2022, as part of HoneyWorks' albumKokuhaku Jikkō Iinkai Flying Songs: Koishiteru. The second version featuringSaori Hayami, the voice of Chizuru Nakamura in the anime series, was released as a digitalsingle on November 21. Both versions of the song became popular onTikTok, spawning aviral dance challenge andcover versions by various artists. Capi's version peaked atopBillboard Japan's TikTok Weekly Top 20 chart and later ranked first on the year-end TikTok Songs Chart for 2023.
Saori Hayami voiced Chizuru Nakamura inHeroines Run the Show and performed the second version of "Kawaikute Gomen".
Chizuru Nakamura (中村 千鶴,Nakamura Chizuru), also known by her persona Chuu-tan (ちゅーたん), is a character voiced bySaori Hayami that appeared in theanime seriesHeroines Run the Show, which premiered in April 2022 as part of theKokuhaku Jikkō Iinkai: Ren'ai Series multimedia project of the musical groupHoneyWorks.[1][2] In the series, Chizuru is a shy student who is a fan of the idol duoLip×Lip [ja]. She uses her Chuu-tan persona, who has an outgoing personality, while working at amaid café or when she supports Lip×Lip.[2] In July 2022, HoneyWorks announced that they would release thedoujin albumKokuhaku Jikkō Iinkai Flying Songs: Koishiteru atComiket 100 on August 13.[3] "Kawaikute Gomen", featuring Capi (かぴ) as the vocalist, is included as the seventh track and serves as thecharacter song of Chuu-tan.[3][4] The song was later released fordownload andstreaming on August 28.[5][6]
"Kawaikute Gomen" is an "easy-to-understand, upbeatpop song",[7] with a length of 3 minutes and 39 seconds and atempo of 160 beats per minute.[8][9] It was produced inCubase and incorporates various instruments, such as thesynthesizer,glockenspiel,piano,xylophone,harp, drums, guitar, andbass guitar; the recording wasmixed by Satoshi Yoneda, a long-time collaborator of HoneyWorks.[10] Shito, a member of HoneyWorks, wrote the song and stated that it is about "valuing ourselves more" and "being straightforward about things we love."[11][12] The chorus uses repetitive lyrics such asChu![a] andGomen (ごめん;lit.'I'm sorry') to refer to the charms of the song's heroine.[9] According to Mio Komachi ofThe Magazine, the lyrics imply that the character likes herself and does not feel apologetic.[9] Komachi added that "the snappy guitar strumming andobbligato create a rhythm that makes you want to dance."[9]Real Sound [ja] writer Z11 stated that the chorus "exudes a positive attitude with high self-esteem," and described Capi's vocals as "delicate yet strong."[13]
On November 21, 2022, HoneyWorks released "Kawaikute Gomen" as a digitalsingle with vocals from Hayami as the character Chuu-tan.[14] Themusic videos for Capi's and Hayami's versions were released three days prior; they are animated by Kanata and contain illustrations by HoneyWorks support member TMK.[15][11][16] Hayami's version was included in HoneyWorks' sixth albumNee, Suki tte Itai yo: Kokuhaku Jikkō Iinkai Character Song Collection released on March 15, 2023.[17] Hayami performed the song during the second day of theAnimelo Summer Live music festival on August 31, 2024.[18]
Both versions of "Kawaikute Gomen" quickly rose to popularity onTikTok and was used as thebackground music for makeup videos and videos using the "Manga AI" filter.[19] The song became the subject of anInternet challenge thatwent viral in Japan involving people dancing to its lyrics.[19] In late 2022, variousK-pop artists, includingSeventeen,NCT andIve, have also released dance videos using the song.[20] Capi's version was among the most played, liked, and shared songs by TikTok's Japanese userbase in that year.[21] It was used on approximately four million videos and had a cumulative view count of 34.6 billion by April 2023.[22] The song debuted at number eight onBillboard Japan's TikTok Weekly Top 20 chart dated October 12, 2022.[23] It reached number one on the chart dated November 2 and remained at the top for six consecutive weeks.[24][25] Capi's version had charted 58 times by November 2023 and ranked first onBillboard Japan's year-end TikTok Songs Chart for 2023.[4] The song also peaked at number 41 on theBillboard Japan Hot 100 and at number 33 on theOricon Combined Singles Chart.[26][27]
Hayami's version entered at number 18 on the TikTok Weekly Top 20 chart dated February 22, 2023.[28] It reached number 21 onBillboard Japan's Download Songs chart and number 20 onOricon's Digital Singles Chart.[29][30] The song's music video ranked first on Oricon's YouTube Chart 13 weeks after it had first charted.[19] It had over 169 million views on YouTube by October 2025.[11] In September 2025, the song was certified gold for streaming by theRecording Industry Association of Japan.[31]
Capi's version was nominated for "Independent Artist Awards" by TuneCore Japan in the category of "Top UGC Music for 2022".[32] In 2023, it was nominated in the music category of the TikTok First Half Trend Awards.[22] The song also ranked "high" in the music category of the 2023Yahoo! Japan Search Awards.[33] In 2024, it won the Silver Award at theJASRAC Awards for generating the second-highestroyalty distribution among domestic works during the 2023fiscal year.[34][35]
In December 2023, Hayami's version was featured in theSega arcade gameChunithm Luminous as a playable song.[50] The following year, the song was added toBandai Namco Entertainment's mobile gameTaiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Connect in February,[51] and it was released asdownloadable content forTaiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival in March.[52]
Amanga adaptation of the song beganserialization inLine Manga on March 4, 2024.[54] It is illustrated by Ruia Shimakage, who worked on the manga adaptation ofHeroines Run the Show, and contains an original story based on the events depicted in the music video of "Kawaikute Gomen" and later songs.[54][55]Futabasha published the firsttankōbon volume on May 16, 2024.[55] Three volumes have been released as of November 2025.[56]
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