History AwesomeMusic / InitialD

* "Heartbeat", the song used in the Flash game ''Initial D Drift'' is a thumping head-banger to capture the thrill of the game's racing with more octane at the ready. Fanfic/KhaosOmega has a personal liking of this one.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwy7aZHRpno Dancing Around the World]] by Delta Queens rocks while Takumi is climbing Mount Akina towards his first official street race and everybody is waiting for him. The scene is slow, and the animation is scarce, with static planes of characters thinking about the situation, yet this theme maintains the tension all by itself.
* Vicky Vale's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkGT8MgBUaE Dancing]] herald's Shingo's first appearance, and is instantly recognizable by the deep-voiced man opening the song by stating "Cool vibrations," before laughing.

* [[https://youtu.be/BJ0xBCwkg3E Running in the 90's]] by Max Coveri, one of the most [[MemeticMutation memetic]] songs of the series: Takumi finally catches up with Keisuke for the first time in their race, the [=AE86=] Takumi drives may be from the '80s, but it can certainly do good when [[IncrediblyLamePun running in the '90s]], something Keisuke is about to learn the hard way the moment the song plays.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJGgi_o8Trs Love & Money]] by Za-Za, where Takumi figures out the intricacies on how to drive Koichirou Iketani's Nissan Silvia S13 in just three corners from the top of Mount Akina's course, and scares the ever-loving crap out of him when Takumi starts pushing the car far beyond his comprehension. Worth mentioning is Iketani doesn't faint, unlike the time when he sat next to Takumi in the [=AE86=] after three corners.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv13gl0a-FA Deja Vu]] by Dave Rodgers, arguably the second most referenced song from ''Initial D'', such that even non-fans of the series will know of due to MemeticMutation: after five exhausting rotations of cat-and-mouse between Takumi's [=AE86=] and Wataru Akiyama's [=AE86=] at Shomaru Pass, Takumi finally gets the bead on Wataru by over-taking him just as the song's chorus starts playing. Dave later [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AGvJ2b1B6s revisited the song in 2018]] with improved instrumentation.

* Vicky Vale's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkGT8MgBUaE Dancing]] herald's Shingo's first appearance, and is instant recognizable by the deep-voiced man opening the song up by stating "Cool vibrations," before laughing.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9HTYueVqN4 Adrenaline]] by Ace, The penultimate song in the entire series played when Takumi blind attacks Shinji one last time, complete with a slow motion shot of Takumi's engine as he pushes to overtake. The high BPM and energetic lyrics fitting for one last great race.

%%* "Heartbeat", the song used in the Flash game ''Initial D Drift''. Fanfic/KhaosOmega has a personal liking of this one.
%%Why is it awesome, though?

* [[https://youtu.be/s3rjJBwxWCw Crazy Little Love]] by Nuage, played when Takumi overtakes Shinji for the first time and gives him a good look at his "wings".

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cv0rpMLccPM The Race Is Over]] by Dave Rogers plays during the credits, not only meaning the movie is over in a meta sense, but it also describes Takumi's quest to tie up loose ends before he joins Project D and succeeding in that.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVNCm7uk1S8 If You Wanna Stay]] by Norma Sheffield plays when Takumi sees the opportunity to pass Kai's SW20 by driving into the gutter at the last bridge. Before, Kai was in front because of shortcuts he knew that Takumi didn't, and this song signifies Takumi getting the lead back. They also perfectly timed the part where both the AE86 and the MR2 jump into the air, only for the latter vehicle to land onto the leaves and spin out.

* Then there's ''Heartbeat'', the song used in the flash game Initial D Drift. Fanfic/KhaosOmega has a personal liking of this one.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5aOj4qe28s Go Beat Crazy]] by Fastway: Project D has started their goal of conquering other prefectures outside of Gunma, with the Nichien-Momiji Line in the Tochigi Prefecture one of their first targets. In a race between Toru Suetsugu's Mazda Roadster [=NA6C=], Takumi over-takes Toru with his [=AE86=] via a shortcut technique that goes over the course's deep gutters (by reducing pressure on the inner front tire). Toru is left wide-eyed and ridiculed upon seeing Takumi pull this off, an apt description of just how crazy this race has turned out.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwy7aZHRpno Dancing Around the World]] by Delta Queens rocks while Takumi is climbing Mount Akina towards his first official street race and everybody is waiting for him. The scene is slow, and the animation is scarce, with static planes of characters thinking about the situation, yet this theme maintains the tension all by itself

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoFSQeOAYz4 Rage your Dream]] by M.O.V.E is the first credits theme, and also plays when Shingo fails in his attempt to cause a double crash and slams into the guardrail. Also known "as the song that plays when you crash into something or wreck your engine" in the fandom due to memes.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsbOOPkmEGw Beat of the Rising Sun]] by Dave Rodgers, used at the climax of ''First Stage'' between Takumi and Ryosuke Takahashi's RX-7 FC: in the turn that determines the winner of the race (incidentally where Takeshi Nakazato and Shingo Shogi correctly predicts will happen), Ryosuke's FC, having become over-stressed from going downhill on Mount Akina at record time, slips on the outside, allowing Takumi to take the inside and assured victory.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-s06LVROLfs Space Boy]] by Dave Rodgers, one of the first Eurobeat tracks used in the franchise, [[EstablishingSeriesMoment setting off a pattern]] of ElectronicMusic heard throughout racing segments. Since Takumi Fujiwara has yet to race anyone, Space Boy is inserted as he goes full-speed downhill on Mount Akina's roads in the [=AE86=], showcasing his prodigious drifting skills.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv13gl0a-FA Deja Vu]] by Dave Rodgers, arguably the second most referenced song from ''Initial D'', such that even non-fans of the series will know of due to MemeticMutation: after five exhausting rotations of cat-and-mouse between Takumi's [=AE86=] and Wataru Akiyama's [=AE86=] at Shomaru Pass, Takumi finally gets the bead on Wataru by over-taking him just as the song's chorus starts playing.

* While a few of their songs references the series and the trio making a cameo apperance as roadside audience participants in an episode, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfqrU5ILj20 Out of Kontrol]] has the trio actually participating in an actual street race with the guys taking control of a Mazda RX-7 FD being pursued by Takumi in his iconic AE86 with Yuri riding shotgun.

* [[https://youtu.be/L9TP5HTwXSQ Space Boy]] by Dave Rodgers, one of the first Eurobeat tracks used in the franchise, [[EstablishingSeriesMoment setting off a pattern]] of ElectronicMusic heard throughout racing segments. Since Takumi Fujiwara has yet to race anyone, Space Boy is inserted as he goes full-speed downhill on Mount Akina's roads in the [=AE86=], showcasing his prodigious drifting skills.

* [[https://youtu.be/L9TP5HTwXSQ Space Boy]] by Dave Rodgers, one of the first Eurobeat tracks used in the franchise, [[EstablishingSeriesMoment setting off a pattern]] of ElectronicMusic heard throughout racing segments. Since Takumi Fujiwara has yet to race anyone yet, Space Boy is inserted as he goes full-speed downhill on Mount Akina's roads in the [=AE86=], showcasing his prodigious drifting skills.

* [[https://youtu.be/L9TP5HTwXSQ Space Boy]] by Dave Rodgers, one of the first Eurobeat tracks used in the franchise, [[EstablishingSeriesMoment setting off a pattern]] of ElectronicMusic heard throughout racing segments. Since Takumi Fujiwara has yet race anyone yet, Space Boy is inserted as he goes full-speed downhill on Mount Akina's roads in the [=AE86=], showcasing his prodigious drifting skills.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up6Nxg17opQ The Top]] by Ken Blast, produced by Odyssey Eurobeat, is a really pumping track with well-crafted vocals.