Happy TIFriday! I’m working on this on vacation. So you’re welcome, however many people read this?

Fudanjuku

Fudanjuku is a pretty niche group. Not as a bad thing, but they’re basically a great group if you want your female idols to dress up like guys and perform like that. If that doesn’t interest you in the least, I doubt you’ll be a big Fudanjuku fan. If you love that idea, there’s a pretty good chance you may enjoy Fudanjuku.

Fudanjuku actually started as a regular idol unit, Nakano Fujoshi Sisters, back in 2006. Fudanjuku was created as the “male” counterpart to the feminine Nakano Fujoshi Sisters. However, since then they’ve really run with the Fudanjuku side, and Nakano Fujo Sisters (as it’s now called) has gone on hiatus. Still, this is a pretty prominent part of their history as a group.

Currently Fudanjuku has put out 11 singles and 3 albums, some of these as “collaborations” with Nakano Fujo Sisters. Currently the group has 8 members, all with image colors and male names. They generally do fine with sales (often reaching just under #10 on the oricon weekly charts) but they aren’t quite a super popular group. However, I’d say this stems from them being much more of a niche act. Very specific people might love Fudanjuku, but the very concept could turn people away.

That said, if this thought interests you you really ought to check them out. Personally, even though I find the concept intriguing, I have yet to become a big Fudanjuku fan. Maybe it’s because I tend to gravitate towards feminine idols, perhaps I just haven’t really gelled with the music, For whatever reason, they aren’t my thing. However, they have improved a ton in production values and presence since I first became aware of them in 2009, and if it sounds like they might be your thing you should definitely pay attention.

Blue Chee’s

A little history lesson for you guys; back in the late 90s Akimoto Yasushi decided to create an idol group after hitting success with Onyanko Club. This group was called Checkicco, and they did decently, but they were disbanded because their sales paled in comparison to Morning Musume. At this time, a band was formed with some of the members called Chee’s. It was more of a band than anything, with members playing instruments while singing. The band was disbanded. Blue Chee’s is the group, ten years later, formed by the original members. Even though they’re older and one is a mom, they have started to play as a band again. Their first reunion live was in December 2010, and since they’ve released a few singles and recently put out their first full-length album as Blue Chee’s.

They’ve since performed at TIF and at Naka Kon in Kansas. However, despite their history and despite performing internationally, there is really not that much about them on YouTube. There are a few filmed performances from Naka Kon and a song that was put on YouTube, ‘Ramen Tabetai na.” This is a shame, because I REALLY like Ramen Tabetai na and I’m very intrigued by the group. Something about women who are coming back 10 years after disbandment is really appealing and great.

So ultimately, it might be a bit hard to become a fan of Blue Chee’s right now. However, given their history, I have high hopes that Blue Chee’s will go somewhere and gain some success, which will inevitably make things easier for international fans. So while I can’t really say I’m a fan YET, I will say I’m intrigued and hope that Blue Chee’s continues on!

Fruity

If you like the fact that Juice=Juice chooses to have image fruits over image colors, Fruity has got you covered! They’re a ten member idol group that hails from Hokkaidou; I don’t see too many idol groups from Hokkaidou, so it’s nice to see them here. They were formed in 2011, and have been really active in their native Hokkaidou as well as putting out CD releases; they’ve put out 11 singles and two albums! So they’re a very active idol group.

There is another big interesting system with Fruity, and that’s the voting system. They have an election over the course of several months, where fans can vote for their favorite members though various things (being a member of the fan club, people who purchase CDs, people who buy goods, people who go to live events, etc.) and gain many votes. Then they rank the members through this. This seems a bit cruel to me, considering every single member gets ranked, which means that girls like poor Mizuki, who has been last place 5/8 times, know how unpopular they are.

Unfortunately, this is another group where finding information about them is a bit tricky. I can’t seem to find any PVs, and most of the videos seem to be fan cam recordings of events they did. So this seems like a type of group that would be amazing if you’re in Hokkaidou, but is a lot more difficult to watch from a distance.

They seem like a fine group, and one I would care about if I was in Sapporo. They are cute and have a good energy, and I like some of the songs I’ve heard. Unfortunately, following them from a distance is a lot of work.

predia

Predia the name refers to essentially “a rough, unpolished diamond” (hence pre meaning before and dia for diamond). After watching some Predia stuff, this feels like a fairly accurate name. Formed in 2010, this is an 11 member idol group that has a lot more of a sexy, adult vibe than most of the idol groups at TIF. So far they’ve put out five singles, an album and a mini-album, but watching a performance for their latest single, “Hey Now,” they still feel like they’re much less polished than, say, KPop groups that go for a similar image or even the Jpop groups that do this similar thing.

Watching PVs, they seem a lot more polished there, but that’s not really a big surprise. Still, for being an unpolished group, their PVs are pretty solid and they have some decent music, mostly focusing on electronic, dance-focused music (though they themselves aren’t dance focused). Their 4th single, Crazy Cat’s opening reminds me of Morning Musume’s song Wolf Boy, and in general they give off strong Girls Generation vibes.

That said, if you really like that more mature feel but you kind of wish you could view that group from the start, then predia might be a decent choice for you. They have a fairly decent presence on Youtube, including videos from the girls and PVs, so following them isn’t going to be too difficult. Personally, if I want a cool group, I tend to prefer more polished acts, at least more polished than this, but predia has some good music, decent PVs, and if you prefer a more mature image to your idols they certainly wouldn’t be the worst choice.

BabyRaids

This is another group with an interesting origin! Babyraids is a five member group that was formed in 2012 by Idoling!!! member Kikuchi Ami, who isn’t in the group but is kind of the producer/mentor of the group. The name of the group stems from the fact that they’re trying to “raid” the idol industry, since the idol industry is so competitive right now. They aim to perform at the Budokan within two years of their debut, which is a pretty big goal.

So far they’ve put out five singles, the latest being Konomi no Ue de wa December. They definitely have a rock influence to their music and to their appearance; these aren’t cutesy idols. However, they never seem to go as far as being like BiS or Alice Juban; they aren’t serious or scary. In this way, I think I could really enjoy Babyraids. I like rock music a lot, but I don’t particularly gel with the image of Alice Project groups or BiS. This feels like a nice middle-ground group for people who want their idols with a bit of a rock edge, but don’t want to go too far with that. Their music also sounds like real rock, not just pop with guitars. So if you enjoy rock music, you might like Babyraids.

While it’s the first single, I very much enjoy the self-titled single “Babyraids.” The girls are all energetic and seem to be enjoying themselves, and the song is catchy and fun. I think that Babyraids is going places; they’re already making a name for themselves as a group, and I’m very impressed by the quality level of this group. I’m convinced and I’m a fan now, and you guys should absolutely check them out.