Time Flies (Nogizaka46 album)

A promotional poster of the greatest hits album, depicts girls who show only the lower body walking and running with different costumes.

On October 10, 2021, 3:00 PM JST, Nogizaka46's YouTube channel Nogizaka Streaming Now started live streaming of Nogizaka46 Minutes, appeared Nogizaka46 members Manatsu Akimoto, Hinako Kitano, Minami Umezawa, and Haruka Kaki at Nogizaka area, which is the origin of the group's name, going to Nogizaka Station. They put up a promotional poster on the station's billboard to announce their tenth-anniversary greatest hits album, scheduled for release on December 15. To promote the album, the members announced a campaign to put up posters on billboards in all 38 stations with the ending word "-zaka" (坂) in Japan.[12][13][14] Later the title Time Flies was announced on October 23.[15]

The album's promotional poster shows six girls who show only the lower body walking and running with different costumes: from left to right student uniform, the group's purple tracksuit, "Kimi no Na wa Kibō" navy school uniform, "Kizuitara Kataomoi" purple dress, "Sayonara no Imi" red dress from 67th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, "Influencer" violet outfit from 59th Japan Record Awards, and the group's "Kimi ni Shikarareta" current uniform, subtitled with the text "乃木坂46 10th Anniversary BEST ALBUM 12.15 Wed on sale", that shows 10-year reminiscence of the group.[13][14]

To commemorate the release of Time Flies, the members will be releasing the Nogizaka46 playlists, which were selected the group's song by each member and hashtagged #わたしの乃木坂ベスト (Watashi no Nogizaka Besuto, "My Nogizaka Best") from November 8 to December 14, the day before the release date.[16] On December 10, the purple lights–Nogizaka46's official color–lit up on Tokyo Tower for commemoration the album. The southern deck of the tower also showed the letter "46ベスト" (46 Best).[17]

The Sony Music Shop limited 10-anniversary member custom cover edition cover artworks of Time Flies for 37 members were revealed from October 27 to 31, 2021. They depict a member wearing the group's performance costume chosen by herself, who stands between blurred other two costumes.[18]

All cover artworks of Time Flies except the Sony Music Shop limited cover were unveiled on November 8, showing lots of mannequins that wear Nogizaka46's performance costume and uniform taken at Nogizaka Station in the nighttime with dim light, which was based from their debut studio album Tōmei na Iro. For the complete limited, and first press limited edition, the mannequins were arranged in a row at the station's platform, while in the regular edition, the mannequins were not arranged near the paid area.[19] These artworks were shot around mid-October by Yoshiharu Ōta, and handle the production by Takumi Kawamoto, Wataru Yoshida, and Noboru Wada, who worked with the first studio album.[20]

"Saigo no Tight Hug" serves as a lead single of Time Flies.[21] It was released on November 5, 2021, to digital music and streaming platforms. The song was written by Yasushi Akimoto, and composed by Katsuhiko Sugiyama. Erika Ikuta, who will be graduating from the group on December 31, serves as a center position of the song.[7] The accompanying music video, directed by Kazuma Ikeda, was released on November 16.[22]

Mai Shinuchi's graduation song "Anata kara no Sotsugyō" was unveiled on November 18, after her graduation from the group announcement.[8] Other tracks were announced on the same day, including Ikuta's graduation song "Toki no Wadachi", and under members' track "Hard to Say".[11][23] All tracks' music videos were teased on December 9.[24]

Nogizaka46 performed "Saigo no Tight Hug" for the first time at YTV's Best Hits Kayosai on November 11, 2021, alongside "Gomen ne Fingers Crossed".[25] They will perform "Saigo no Tight Hug" at TBS's CDTV Live! Live! on November 15, which film at Tokyo National Museum, where is currently holding the group's exhibition, titled Shunkashūtō / Four Season Nogizaka46, alongside the special medley, titled Shunkashūtō Medley, consisting of "Harujion ga Sakukoro", "Jikochū de Ikō!", "Ima, Hanashitai Dareka ga Iru", and "Kaerimichi wa Tōmawari Shitaku Naru".[26] The group performed the special medley, consisting of the songs released in 10 years: "Guruguru Curtain", "Girls' Rule", "Synchronicity", "Hadashi de Summer", and "Saigo no Tight Hug" on Nippon TV's Best Artist 2021 on November 17,[27] as well as Shibuya Note on November 27.[28] The group performed "Saigo no Tight Hug" at Fuji TV's FNS Music Festival on December 8, alongside Ikuta and Yuki Saito's collaboration "Sotsugyō".[29]

Nogizaka46 members Erika Ikuta, Hina Higuchi, Shiori Kubo, Sakura Endō, and Haruka Kaki appeared on MTV's MTV Unplugged on December 11. The setlist was composed by Ikuta herself in an acoustic version, including "Hashire! Bicycle", "Gomen ne Fingers Crossed", and "Saigo no Tight Hug".[30] The group will perform "Influencer", "Synchronicity", and "Saigo no Tight Hug" at MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2021: The Live, which received MTV Pop the World Award.[31]