Idol Thoughts: The End of the Idol Boom?

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So so sorry for my prolonged absence! Long story short, I’ve been figuring out some things in my professional life for the past few months, which is part of why I’ve been absent from Happy Disco. I’ll be trying to get back on track in the next couple of weeks.

However, another reason I’ve been gone is, frankly, there are sides of the idol fandom that are just not impressing me. For a long time I’ve reviewed things from the 48 Groups, for example, but there has been exactly one 48 song that was released this year that I even remotely like (NMB48’s Ibiza Girl). My 48 interest is waning fast. I don’t want to focus on negatives, because if you like what the 48s are currently doing you can feel free to disagree. However, I do think my feelings are corresponding with a general trend.

It’s hard to say for sure if a group like AKB is dying down. I would personally argue that their peak in terms of recognition and popularity was in 2011 – 2012, before Maeda Atsuko started the slew of front girl graduations. However, their best selling single (according to wikipedia) was 2013’s mediocre Sayonara Crawl. Even though Heavy Rotation is their most well-known song, its sales pale to Koisuru Fortune Cookie and Kokoro no Placard. That said, if you do look at these sales and compare them by corresponding singles (i.e. comparing the numbers from election single to election single, janken single to janken single, etc.) it does look like AKB is finally on a decline of sales, despite their best efforts otherwise (which is most likely what inflated the sales for as long as they were up there).

Other metrics of looking at popularity seem to agree that AKB’s peak is behind it. Conventional wisdom would state that the idol boom is fading. Certainly AKB is the representative idol group of this current idol boom.

That said, I would personally argue that last year and this year are when things are getting more and more interesting. Even as AKB is coming off of its peak, more varied idol groups are doing incredibly well. Morning Musume is having a resurgence of popularity I never expected. Momoiro Clover Z continues to enjoy their popularity as well as bringing more and more groups under the Stardust banner to their own levels of popularity. Babymetal is having international successes. Indie idols are having a lot of really varied, interesting groups and they are starting to enter into a level of maturity, a few years into the idol boom.

Instead of having one idol umbrella completely dominate the idol scene, instead we’re at a point where many idol groups and many idol companies can enjoy the idol boom. This is leading to a much more sustainable idol model where, instead of the fate resting on one group, is spread out to many other groups. If people, like myself, find themselves bored with 48s, there are a lot more groups to find and be interested in. And now that other idol groups are popular in a major way, the casual listener isn’t limited to only 48s.

I do think that some of the groups are going to disappear and the idol boom isn’t going to be quite as big as it is now. However, as things settle down, groups are going to keep proving themselves to be lasting, which is, I think, quite exciting.

Morning Musume ’14 Live in New York Concert Report

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Hey guys! It’s been a while since I’ve posted last, but I just had an amazing weekend. The reason it was so amazing was because I flew to New York City to see Morning Musume ’14 perform at the Best Buy Theater!

from daily.co.jp

It’s been a long time coming, really. The concert was announced on May 5, 2014, exactly five months before the concert was held, and I think I decided on that day that I was going to this. Morning Musume isn’t the top group I’ve been waiting to see, but I did really regret not going to see them when they came to LA in 2009. Even though, in hindsight, the Platinum era is one of my least favorite eras of MM history, I felt like I had missed out. This felt like a big chance for me. Ishida Ayumi is one of my favorite idols, and I’m generally very fond of this era’s music and members. This was an opportunity I couldn’t miss out on.

Fast forward several months, and I flew into New York on Friday afternoon. That day I met up with one of my best friends, Dani, who I’ve mentioned several times on this blog (in fact, she helped come up with the name Happy Disco, so there you go!) Seeing Dani was a major part of why I went on this trip, so it was really fun to hang out with her in person all weekend!

Saturday was Hello!Party night, and that was a lot of fun. I’d link a video of the games, but I’m pretty sure I made a fool of myself with one of them so I’ll leave you to find those. Basically, Hello!Party has been run four times now by Jen and Bryan Veloso as a Hello!Project fan meetup. Attendees get split into teams, and play games inspired by games played on things like Hello!Morning, competing for prizes. In addition, there were chekis taken for a scrapbook, dancing to music provided by Johann from Johpan.com (who I missed out meeting at Idol Matsuri and was happy to see there!), and general fan meetup goodness.

That night I got to meet up with one of my favorite bloggers, The Number 244! Hanging out with him was a highlight of the weekend, as we’ve been twitter buddies for some time. I was very glad to meet someone from the idol blog world on this trip!

Sunday morning I spent in line. I had initially planned on getting up, checking in on the line to see when it got long enough, and then joining when I felt like it was long enough for me to really want to get in. Well, I woke up at 8 AM, checked twitter, and saw that the line was already VERY long. I rushed, got ready, grabbed some food for the line and got to the line at about 8:45 – 8:50 AM. Which means that yes, I stayed in line for over six hours.

That said, the line certainly didn’t feel like it took that long. Even though people got shuffled around in line a few times, it was very fun to meet people and chat with them in line about Hello!Project and idols in general. Some Japanese fans brought extra CDs and photos and handed them out in line, so thank you for the Ayumi photo! I really appreciate that!

Right before the concert (about a half an hour/45 minutes before doors) I got to meet another Twitter buddy by accident, Rebecca . We only knew it was each other because I mentioned Team Syachihoko which is kind of a dead giveaway for my identity. We chatted in line with some other fans before the doors opened.

Idol fans are serious fans. Even as we were told to not run, we definitely speedwalked and tried to get there faster. I bought an additional ticket late in the game which granted me early entry, which ended up being a VERY good idea because of my height and how quickly everyone lined up. We were right after VIP, though. No one really knew where anything was in the theater, so someone asked for merch before we were pointed to it. Even though I had thought that the VIP fans would beeline straight to the stage, it was packed by the time I got there. I secured my Ayumi towel, my t-shirt and, most importantly, my CD and handshake ticket. I nearly forgot my wallet with my excitement, so thank you to whoever handed it to me. That was very nearly a disaster.

I got a spot RIGHT next to the official video cameras and a bunch of Morning Musume staff, which was kind of intimidating at first. This was a great choice for me, though, since it was elevated which meant a much better viewing experience for short me.

Then finally, the concert started. I have to say it was kind of surreal to see the members walk out on stage one by one. I’ve been following these girls for years, and actually seeing them in person is a little weird. One Two Three started, which was a pretty perfect way to start the concert. It’s known as being a very popular song abroad, so we were all very pumped for it.

The setlist itself was really more than I could have hoped for, really. I feel like everything I was told wouldn’t happen did end up happening. Most songs ended up being short versions except for a few, but that enabled them to perform a lot of great songs so I was very OK with that.

As expected, the biggest focus was on the current group’s most recent songs. I was very happy about this, as, like I said, I’m very fond of the current group’s songs. One Two Three, Wagamama Ki no Mama Ai no Joke and What is Love seemed to be particular crowdpleasers, but everything from the recent songs came off almost better live than they were recorded. I had long hated The Matenrou Show, for example, but I came out loving it.

There were a few older songs, though, mostly through their “updated” album. As a MM fan who cares a lot about the golden era I would have preferred to hear the originals. However, being able to hear Renai Revolution 21, The Peace and Love Machine was incredible. The Peace especially, as a huge Ishikawa Rika fan, made me incredibly happy. I was also pleased to hear Shabondama and Kimagure Princess, which were both fun to see the current group do.

The biggest surprise, for me, was the updated version of I Wish and Sayumi’s solo, Lalala no Pipipi. Hello!Project groups tend to perform every song as a whole group while abroad, so I was really surprised to see that they went for a solo performance. I Wish was definitely a highlight, but I cried through a lot of it. It’s a very touching, emotional song to me. Lalala no Pipipi was FUN. Sayumi might not be the best singer, but she’s an excellent performer. She commanded the stage and performed with such gusto that it ended up being one of my favorite performances of the concert.

I have to say I was really impressed with the girls. I’d always assumed that concert DVDs were doctored, vocally, which isn’t a bad thing. However, all the members sounded really good here. Riho’s voice was particularly delightful.

Performance wise, I tended to watch Ayumi more than anyone else. She had a fantastic stage performance and was almost magnetic. I know a lot of people are reevaluating Ayumi after this concert, which I’m very happy about. She deserves it 100%. That said, everyone’s dance was fantastic, which is impressive given the amount of jet lag they were all feeling.

The MCs were very fun, as well. The first big MC was member introductions, and everyone did a great job at appealing in English. The crowd left Zukkii speechless, literally, after giving her an incredibly loud cheer that she didn’t seem to be expecting. She forgot her English, which was pretty adorable. Eripon announced she liked Spiderman, and threw a fake web into the audience, telling the lucky guy who caught it that it was a present from her.

The other highlight MC was the one during the encore, where Sayumi read a letter to the fans. I got a little teary-eyed as she told us about how happy she was and that “You made this happen.” I had an immense feeling of pride towards the international idol fan community. We may have a small community, but we’re passionate. I think everyone else felt similarly.

After the concert ended, it was handshake time! All the people who had tickets sat in the back of the theater and waited to be called up, row by row. Not really thinking where I was sitting mattered, I sat up near the back. Even though I had to wait, it was kind of worth it as the girls tended to play with the audience during free time. Riho mimed doing the wave, which we all eagerly tried to do without any coordination making it not really the wave at all. Maachan shouted back and forth with a couple of people.

Finally, it was my turn. I honestly can’t remember some of the girls as well as others. I had heard before that Hello!Project had short handshakes, but I didn’t really realize it until I went to this. The handshakes were sometimes absurdly short. For example, with Zukkii, I barely got out the word “Kanon” before I was pushed along to the next member. I don’t regret the handshake event, but how ridiculously short it all was was a tad jarring.

The event was held in member order, from lowest in seniority to highest, so Sakura was first. I told her that I really liked the English goods video she did, and she thanked me. She was very sweet.

Kudou and Maachan I thanked and was moved along quickly. My go to thing was thanking the members as I was getting pushed along.

Ayumi I got a couple of extra seconds with, which I was grateful. Immediately she noticed my Ayumi gear and asked me if they were her colors. I told her yes and that I really really liked her. She was happy about that.

Harunan I called Honey, and she responded with Honey back. It was cute.

Zukkii I barely got to say “Kanon” before getting pushed along. Ah well.

Riho is not a member who I have been a huge fan of in the past. That said, I’ve warmed up to her a lot very recently, and at this event she charmed me even more. I moved up to the handshake and called her Rihoriho, one of her nicknames. Her eyes kind of widened and she went “ohhhh, thank you!” It was ridiculously adorable and won me over, so Riho is now my #2 favorite current Morning Musume member.

Eripon and Mizuki I basically just thanked. I wish I could have said more but no time!

Sayumi I congratulated on her graduation and thanked her.

Like I said, it was short, but I’m glad it made some really valuable memories.

That night the Japanese fans were hosting their own party. I wanted to go, but as soon as I sat down, my legs basically stopped working so I just took it easy that night instead of going out and partying.

All in all, it was an incredibly fun and rewarding weekend. The performances were top notch and the handshake was fun, even if it was short. I got to meet friends I’d never met before, and chat with other fans. It was a fantastic experience, and hopefully one I’d like to repeat soon!

Idol Thoughts: Thoughts for Ladies Code and EunB

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Hey everyone,

I know I don’t write about KPop at all, but just wanted to make a quick post about this.

As many of you are I’m sure aware, the members of Korean idol group Ladies Code were in a car accident. Member EunB sadly passed away and other members are in the hospital in critical condition.

it’s hard to know what to say about this, because it’s an utter tragedy. My thoughts are with Ladies Code, their families and their fans.

It’s really easy to start asking questions about how this happened, but I just want to remind people that ultimately this is a tragedy, and while speculation is easy our focus should be on the girls and their fans, not on that.

If you know anyone who is a fan of Ladies Code or even anyone who’s having a hard time with this, try to do your best to comfort them. As Japanese idol fans we all know how easy it is to be affected emotionally by idols. I can’t imagine the feeling of a favorite member of mine passing away. It has to be devastating. So let’s just keep that in mind when discussing this online; EunB was someone’s oshimen (or bias, since Kpop), and so there’s an element of grieving going on.

Even if you’re just a JPop fan like me, let’s do whatever we can to support Kpop fans as they deal with this. This is a really difficult, scary thing.

Again, I just want to reiterate that my thoughts are with EunB, Ladies Code, their family and friends, and all the fans of Ladies Code who are emotionally affected by this. May EunB rest in peace.

Tokyo Idol Festival 2014 – Part 4

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I have long neglected Happy Disco and now TIF is over. I’m still going to finish these before the year is up!

AliceinAlice

AliceinAlice is an idol group formed from the theater company “Alice in Project.” Please note that this is not from Alice Project, and are completely unaffiliated with that. However, since AliceinProject is a theater company, this group promises to have really interesting, theatrical live performances. However, what little I’ve seen of this isn’t really true. The two PVs I’ve seen are trying to be interesting, but aren’t really competently made. Even when they’re competent they’re not particularly good.

Perhaps this is being too harsh. By idol group standards, they actually seem to be doing some interesting things. The short PV preview to Cold Bullet is pretty intense. However, I’m just not feeling them, especially when I feel like they should be able to do much more.


Ange☆Reve

Everyone remember Lovely Doll and Doll Elements? Well this is the newest group in what has become the Arc Jewel idol collective of sorts. Ange*Reve is a five member unit that is brand new. They made their debut in April of 2014, and as such have only been around for a few months so far. They just released their first single, “Yuukan na Koi no Serenade” this August.

This group, which means “Angel*Dream” in French, and are, as expected by that kind of name, going for a cute image. Their debut PV confirms that, focusing on cute imagery and overexposed light.

Even though this group is nothing new, I’m finding myself liking them. Yuukan na Koi no Serenade is a really solid idol song, and these girls are remarkably assured performers for being so new. Their dancing and singing is all passable and all the girls seem really cute. This group is so far nothing revolutionary but a fresh group doing a tried and true thing.

That said, it’s hard to know the future of groups like this, so I’m interested to see where Ange*Reve goes from here!

Weather Girls

Still waiting on that cover of It’s Raining Men, girls!!

Weather Girls is a group of seven girls from Taiwan. They originated as a group that mainly focused on weather forecasting in Taiwan. However, in 2012, they made their debut as an idol group in Japan. Since then they’ve had activities in both Japan and Taiwan, though they focus much more on their idol career in Japan, it seems.

The thing that I find kind of interesting is that they’ve still continued their career as weather forecasters, though I have to admit I don’t know the extent. In 2013 they went through the courses and examinations to become licensed weather forecasters in Japan. All the members have a designated day of the week and an element of the week (though really this is just a type of weather), as well as the standard image color.

While this group’s Oricon numbers aren’t great, they’ve certainly been making a name for themselves. They tend to go for a sexier, more cool approach than many Japanese groups, so if that’s what you’re after you might want to check out Weather Girls. Ultimately, they haven’t really caught my interest. When I want to go for this type of thing, I feel like there are just as good, if not better options with KPop groups or E-Girls. Still, I know a lot of people like them, so you might want to give them a shot!


usa☆usa Girls Club

Ahh, Usa Usa Girls Club. I know every time I write about them I make this comparison, but they are seriously like Sakura Gakuin. They are another group that has the girls graduate when they reach high school. Perhaps more than that, though, they have produced two signifcant idol groups as their subgroups: Rhymeberry (one of my favorite idol acts) and Death Rabbits.

Unfortunately, while Sakura Gakuin boasts some very fine performers and performances, Usa Usa Shoujo Club has never really done it for me. The girls seem fine, but neither the songs nor the performances stand out. Their debuted subgroups are their biggest claim to fame.

That’s not to say they’re bad performers. They just don’t do a lot to stand out. They don’t release much in the way of singles, and tend to be much more live performance focused, which is tough for us foreign fans.

At the end of the day they are a pretty standard group with young members that have produced some very interesting subgroups. And that’s about it.

Ultra Girl

Ultra Girl is a five member unit from Spiral Music; if you’ve followed TIF before then you should know them as the label behind the idol group Power Spot. Ultra Girl has released four singles, the latest being “888 (as in “pachi pachi pachi”) and their fifth single is coming out in September. They’ve been around since 2012, so at this point the five members do have some solid experience, if you prefer to avoid the groups that have just formed.

This group does have a solid social media presence; all the girls themselves have twitter accounts and blogs. This is almost a given for larger groups, but Ultra Girl seems like a decently connected group for being so small.

Beyond that, though, there’s not too much noteworthy. 888 is a cute song, but not all that memorable, and the performances are solid but not great. I don’t know much more of what to say about them, to be honest, other than that they seem cute and I hope for the best for them!

Tokyo Idol Festival 2014 – Part 3

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Hey guys! Sorry I’ve gotten off track with Happy Disco/TIF. In the next few weeks expect several more TIF posts as well as the interviews I haven’t yet posted!

iDOL Street sei (e-Street and w-street)

Sorry iDOL Street fans, I’m condensing these two into one group, just because it’s a lot simpler. Basically, the Street sei are the trainees, kind of like the 48G Kenkyuusei or the Hello!Project Kenshuusei. They are girls who aim to be either put in one of the other groups or to debut as a major group. There are groups of girls based in Sapporo, Tokyo, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Osaka, and while they do activities as individual groups (i.e. Nagoya Chubu) they are ultimately trainees. It looks like they’re sending a special selection of girls from e-street (Sapporo and Tokyo) and w-street (Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka) so it’s hard to assess if you should pay attention. However, it’s safe to assume that the girls who are getting sent are girls that they are pushing, or intend to push. If you are a fan of the other iDOL street groups, Super Girls, Cheeky Parade and GEM, you probably should be following these girls!

AXELL

Like Fudanjuku? Well, have a little sister (little brother?) group called AXELL! This is a five member unit that also dresses as guys. As far as I can tell, AXELL is very very new; they don’t have a proper website yet, and their official blog has only been around since May. They don’t have any singles out yet, either, and the information about them is very sparse.

That said, while Fudanjuku doesn’t do too much for me, I know they’re a popular group. And really, if you dig stuff like Fudanjuku,, you really will probably enjoy AXELL. They’re clearly trying to go for a similar feel. And while there’s not much out there of them, it might be exciting to meet this group early on.

 ani☆yume project

Like anime voice actors? Want to support an idol group comprised of girls wanting to be voice actresses? Well, your specific tastes have been answered! Ani*Yume Project is a group with the goal of making these girls into star voice actresses. There are currently nineteen girls listed on the site.

One cool thing about this group is that, despite being pretty unknown, they still have a fair amount of content out there. On their website (aniyume.jp) you can see all the archives of their online show, Ani*Yume nano, which is updated every day on Nico Nico.

In addition, they have put out several singles, which all have samples on the site. Another cool thing about the group is that each of the members’ profiles have voice samples of their voice acting prowess, presumably for companies to scope them out. It’s pretty cool, and really shows that they are legitimately dedicated to getting these girls voice acting work. That said, there doesn’t seem to be much online about their music or performances. So that might detract you. Still, I think it’s cool they’re focusing on one aspect of these girls’ career, and I hope it works well for them!

amihime

Now this is something a bit unusual! amihime is a solo idol project for T-Palette records, and is trying to do a “2.5d” thing, blending vocaloid with a real idol. amihime is performed by LinQ member Himesaki Aimi, and this project was just kicked off a few months ago. The name amihime supposedly stands for “Android meets Idol, Idol meets evolution” with the “h” standing for “human.”

Since it’s so new it’s hard to see what form this project will take. One performance (which I will link) had Aimi perform and dance while the vocals were vocaloid. Still, it’s definitely an interesting project, and it will be interesting to see what Aimi and T-Palette end up doing with this!

Ayumikurikamaki

This is a group I’m pretty happy to see grow as much as they have! This group started as Kurikamaki, a DJ unit. The year before last they were still basically performing in homemade Youtube/NicoNico videos. Last year they were starting to put out singles. Now they’ve added a new member, Ayumi, and are performing at a variety of festivals including Rock in Japan Festival. Their third single, Jet Kuma Star, comes out this week! It’s a harder rock track with some heavily autotuned vocals and a catchy pop chorus.

Honestly, I’m not sure how much DJing Kurika really does; in all the performances I’ve seen she tends to get away from the DJ setup and perform with the rest of them. Still, it’s a pretty cool premise, and they have a really neat homemade feel that I like, since they basically started the group, and brought Ayumi in on it because she was a close friend. This is a group that I don’t know if I expected to get as far as they have, but I’m pretty happy. They have pretty fun rock-inspired songs, so if any of what I’ve said has interested you you should check them out!

Momoiro Clover Z : An Introduction

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Like many foreign fans of Japanese media, I was thrilled to see the return of Sailor Moon in the form of Sailor Moon Crystal. Another thing that thrilled me was that Japanese idol group Momoiro Clover Z was performing the opening and ending themes. However, while I’m primarily an idol fan first and a Sailor Moon fan second, I understand many people may not know who MomoClo is. So here’s a brief introduction on who the group is.

What are idols? While the definition of idols can vary dramatically, the word is generally used to refer to female performers in their teens and early twenties, who perform pop music. There are many idols that don’t fall into this category at all, and there are many artists that fit that definition but aren’t considered idols.

It’s also a trend that’s swept Japan in recent years; there are hundreds of idol groups in Japan, and many chart toppers are idol groups like AKB48 and Momoiro Clover Z.

Beginnings: Momoiro Clover Z started out as Momoiro Clover (commonly referred to as MomoClo).  They were formed as the idol group from Stardust Promotions, a talent agency. The group started out performing street performances in 2008, and had many members join and leave the group during that time.

They finalized a line-up and put out their first indie single in 2009, with members Takagi Reni, Momota Kanako, Sasaki Ayaka, Tamai Shiori and Hayami Akari (Ariyasu Momoka would join just after their first single). Their early singles had a traditional Japanese theme, and they wore modified yukata for their first two indies singles and their first major single. They branded themselves as “shuumatsu heroines (weekend heroines)” as they performed on weekends while they went to school during the week. They also called themselves “Idols you can meet right now,” as a way to compete with AKB48, who were known as “Idols you can meet” (since AKB48 were becoming popular at the time).

In 2010, Momoiro Clover made their major label debut with Universal Records, with Ikuze! Kaitou Shoujo. This is noticeable for Sailor Moon fans, as it’s really the first single to start experimenting with their sentai image that they would adopt more later. With lyrics about them transforming and a music video where they beat up bad guys, their road to Sailor Moon is pretty clear.

After Ikuze! they moved to King Records, and put out two more singles.

Momoiro Clover Z
In early 2011, fans were disappointed to find out that Hayami Akari intended to leave the group, to pursue a career in acting. While members leaving groups is commonplace in the idol world, MomoClo decided to honor Akari by renaming the group, Momoiro Clover Z. They put out their first album, Battle and Romance, and two singles. One of these singles is Z Densetsu ~Owaranaki Kakumei~.

This single is the first real exploration of the sentai theme that they adopted with Momoiro Clover Z as a name.

Beating all of their goals

MomoClo has been immensely successful. They have performed at the largest venues in Japan; in fact, they performed at the National Olympic Stadium and became the first female idol act to do so.

Their biggest goal was to appear on Kouhaku Uta Gassen, which is a big end of the year broadcast that showcases the biggest names in music in Japan. They have performed on the program twice now.

Moving Forward

It’s hard to say where MomoClo can go from here; they have performed at the biggest arenas, have put out more singles and more albums, and are generally regarded as one of the top idol groups in Japan right now. That said, they have been active for several years now, and it looks like they are, at least for the forseeable future, here to stay.

Basic Info

There are five members in Momoiro Clover Z right now.

Momota Kanako – the current leader of. Her image color is red. One of the ways she gained notice early on was through her jump near the end of Ikuze! Kaitou Shoujo.

Takagi Reni – the former leader of the group. She’s kind of an oddball, and in the past was a bit of a crybaby. She’s the oldest member in the group. Her image color is purple.

Sasaki Ayaka – The youngest of the group, she was a child performer before joining the group. Known as “MomoClo’s idol,” she’s generally the girliest, most idol-y member. Her image color is pink. Her nickname is “A~rin”

Ariyasu Momoka – Generally prides herself on her singing and dancing, Momoka is the shortest member as well. Her image color is green.

Tamai Shiori – Known as “MomoClo’s little sister.” They joke about how much she likes food. A lot. Her image color is yellow! Her nickname is “Shiorin.”

Basic terminology

Mononofu – A MomoClo fan.

Oshimen – the member you support (i.e “A~rin is my oshimen”). Can be shortened to oshi, and used in reference to oneself (i.e. “I’m A~rin oshi”).

wota – An idol fan; shortened version of “otaku” so it’s usually used for intense idol fans!

wotagei – movements/fan calls that people do. Usually the fan cheers are more important during a concert!

kwkm – MomoClo’s manager. They make jokes on his behalf.

Hyadain, Narasaki – two of MomoClo’s most well-known songwriters. They haven’t written as much for the group lately.

Shiritsu Ebisu Chuugaku, Team Syachihoko, Takoyaki Rainbow – Momoiro Clover Z’s “little sister groups”.

Stardust Promotion – the agency MomoClo is under

3B Junior – the idol arm of Stardust that has both MomoClo and its sister groups.

If you have any questions at all, feel free to ask away! This is a very basic intro, but I hope it’s helpful to new MomoClo fans!

Idol Matsuri: Interview with Beckii Cruel

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One of the really fun experiences I had at Idol Matsuri was interviewing Beckii Cruel!

Beckii got her start posting dancing videos on Youtube to various anime and idol related songs. Her performance of Danjo, a song that had spread as a meme in Japan, is really what gained her a lot of attention in Japan.

After this Beckii performed in Japan several times, released a single with two other Western performers (as Beckii Cruel feat. Cruel Angels), and did a variety of activities in Japan. Today, she has left her label and decided to release more stuff on her own. She has released music in both English and Japanese, and has focused a lot of her attention on fashion/beauty blogging and managing her own career. I was lucky enough to sit down and have a conversation with Beckii about where she’s come from and where she’s going with her career.

Serenyty (S): You mentioned that this is your first time in America, so how have you been enjoying it so far?

Beckii (B): It’s been really exciting being here. I’ve been far from home before, but to the East, so coming to the West is a lot different. I mean, we’re both Western cultures, but you know it’s a different kind. At home I live on an island with 80,000 people, and coming here and seeing space in between everything is just a huge different scale, so it’s really exciting. It’s like being in TV.

S: For sure, I spent a semester abroad in the UK, never to the Isle of Man but mostly to London. I was actually there when you were at Hyper Japan..

B: Oh were you really?

S: But I didn’t get to see you, as I had plans for that Sunday, so I was like “aww, dang.” But I totally understand what you mean, because there was a difference in culture even if it’s both English-speaking [cultures]. So since this is Idol Matsuri, do you have any particular favorite idol songs or idol groups that you’ve been listening to lately?

B: For me, the way I enjoy idol music is through the dances, so when I’m in my casual “I want to listen to music” I tend to actually listen to a lot of different things. But I only listen to idol music when I’m learning a dance because I have that tight association where, if I listen to it, I have to be on the move.

S: Right, and you can’t be listening to it on the train.

B: No, it’s something where I definitely have to either know the dance or be learning the dance to listen to it.

S: Oh sure. Do you remember the first time your Youtube channel was kind of blowing up and what your first feelings were when that was starting to happen?

B: I had absolutely no idea because the video that went viral was Danjo, but that had been uploaded six months earlier, so I was like “this is strange” because I had the email notification for when people were subscribing and I was just watching it. I had like 200 subscribers before this happened so it was not like a huge amount of people and suddenly for it to grow by like 3000 people in one day, it was like “this is way bigger than anything that I have experienced in my life.” I had no idea where these people were coming from. Eventually someone informed me that my video had been uploaded to Nico Nico Douga, so then I was like “oh, ok, that makes sense.”

S: How did you manage to keep your cool with all of that press at such a young age, especially since it happened so fast?

B: It was a huge learning curve for me and I feel very proud of my younger self for managing to cope with it quite well. I’ve always been a grounded and realistic person so I made sure to never to get too carried away. I mean, the first time I went to Japan, even the day before I was telling my parents “I’m sure we’re not going, I’m sure something will fall through” even though we had the ticket confirmations and stuff. I was like “Something’s going to go wrong here, and I’m not going to get my hopes too high.”

S: Which is a good view to have of it.

B: It’s sensible.

S: You don’t want to necessarily have too high hopes and then have them dashed because then that would be tough. Do you have any favorite memories of being in Japan or your early concerts?

B: The first time that I went to Japan I had to go through London and I had never been to London before, so flying to London I was like “Oh my God, London.” Then I was only there for one day, and then it was “Oh my God we’re going to Japan, this is like a place of my dreams,” and it was amazing. And also I was informed that when I landed I would be performing in a concert, and I was like “OK, what dance am I doing?” Oh, this five minute dance which you have got to learn on the plane and then you will have to perform it when you land after being jet lagged after only knowing the dance for one day. So it was tough. But I managed to do it. I was just so proud of myself when I was on the stage and I could see anyone there. I was thinking, who gets to do this, this is insane, this is my life now, this is amazing.

S: That sounds really surreal!

B: It was, it was completely surreal.

S: My favorite trivia bit of your career is your English language textbooks. Did you have any input on those?

B: Well, the author, he’s quite a well-known author in Japan who does English language books, so these books were actually quite advanced in his course. So they’re not beginner books, which I would have thought makes more sense, so it would appeal to more of my fanbase. But now it would only appeal to the fanbase who had already been learning English for quite some time.

S: That’s interesting; I didn’t know what level they were for, I would have assumed they want to reach people who found about you and wanted to learn English because of that. That’s interesting.

B: Yeah, and I did have some input on all the scripts, they sent them to me to read over. They wanted me to put it into my own words, and how I would say it with my dialect. That was quite fun to do.

S: That’s good. I was wondering if it was that or if it was kind of “let’s put Beckii’s picture on the cover…”

B: I did have some input on it. I am still good friends with the author, as well, so it’s nice that we managed to keep in touch.

S: Recently, a lot of your focus has been in the UK. What would you say are the primary differences?

B: It’s a completely different ballgame. Right after in 2010 when I was kind of blowing up, in the UK I was working with a lot of trance producers, which was a mile away from what I was doing, but I was very honored that they would work with me, because there were some big names in there. They had worked with people like Kylie [Minogue] and things like that, so I was like “Ooh, I’ll listen to what you have to say, I will go along with that because this sounds great!” So that was my focus in 2010, but I didn’t really feel like it was completely me, so now I’m independent and happy doing what I’m doing.

I guess the fans are also a bit different, the one difference is that I can understand them all.

S: For sure, which makes it a little easier.

B: Yeah, they’re not too different, because they’re interested in Japanese culture, so they try to emulate that kind of Japanese spirit for supporting your idol. It’s nice to have that parallel.

S: Since you have a lot of creative control, with something like Future Fantasy did you have a lot of control over the music video, and stuff like that?

B: Yeah, we recorded it because this documentary crew came over and they wanted to follow me making a single, so I thought “Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.” This is how most of my stuff happens, people approach me and I’m like “OK, sounds good, I’ll do it!” So they had arranged for me a writer and a producer but the producer fell through, so I arranged for a producer. Then I was unhappy with the mix, so then I had to arrange another producer. Before then it was all remote, in Japan and America, but we could actually go into the studio together. We rerecorded the entire track and rearranged it as well. It started off as a pretty bland, generic idol song, and then I think we created something really exciting. It was so nice to be in the studio and be present for that.

S: Which is what makes being in the UK a little bit nicer, so you can do that as opposed to flying back and forth and doing things remotely. You’ve focused a lot on fashion and beauty with your blogging, is that always something you’ve been interested in?

B: Yeah. In Japan, in the idol, entertainment and talent industry the talents get to experience a lot of different things, which I experience as well, such as modeling, fashion, music, dancing, singing, performing. All these different fields I was being exposed to, so it was really great to have that experience. Fashion was always something that really sang to me. Even earlier on, with my videos, I did have a little bit of interest in fashion then and I tried to express that. That’s always been something which I’ve really loved and enjoyed, so I think it’s a natural progression for me.

S: So that’s something you’d like to do more with your career in the future?

B: Yeah, definitely. I took a hiatus on my Youtube channel; the last time I put up a dancing video was about a year and a half ago now. I took a hiatus in that time because I just wasn’t comfortable with any of the dances that I was making anymore, I wasn’t feeling too self-confident in them. I was recording them and didn’t feel like I could upload them. I decided “OK, let’s go back to the start, what was I making Youtube videos for in the first place?” which was to make videos that make me happy. So that’s why my channel has changed so much now, because I’m doing the content for whatever it feels like, I record a video and make one. So for the past couple of months it’s all been about fashion and beauty.

S: Is there any beauty tip or trend you’ve been enjoying a lot lately?

B: I’m really big into some certain trends. I really love holographic designs and transparent mesh fabrics. I’ve been into them for the past couple of months, and I’ve got my eye on the horizon for what’s next, but I’m attracted to the shiny things.

S: Moving forward with your career is it difficult to reconcile your current beauty focus with your previous focus on your Japanese career? Do they work together, in a way?

B: They kind of work together. I mean, the way I can maintain both is doing these convention performances. This is how I express that side of my career and continue with it. Even if I’m not so present with that online, I’m present with it in the real world. So I guess they move together now.

S: Is there anything you want to let fans know about you? Something you don’t get asked about in questions?

B: Thank you so much for supporting me, everyone who’s been there for a week or for the whole seven years that I’ve been on Youtube so far, I hope they’ll continue on with me for the foreseeable future too.

S: Lastly, what are your plans for the future? Do you have anything you’d like to promote?

I also have a fashion brand called BCKY Couture . It’s a brand which is couture, which means I’m making garments to your measurements. I noticed that a lot of girls who watch my videos, the stores which tend to be advertised are Asian stores where they have one-size clothing. I can fit into that because I have the same kind of body type, but a lot of my supporters don’t really fit into that mold. But there’s really cute clothes, and that’s the only place you can get them for an affordable price. I wanted to bring that into my brand, making high street designs but to your measurements. It’s been going well so far and I really love it. I’ve been trying to bring an element of my Japanese fashion love into it, as well.

S: Alright, that sounds great, and I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors!

B: Thank you very much!

S: Thank you!

Thank you so much for the fantastic interview, Beckii, and for coming to Idol Matsuri! You can find Beckii at the following locations!

http://beckii.co.uk/
https://www.youtube.com/user/xBextahx

http://www.bcky.co/
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBeckii
http://instagram.com/beckiicruel

Idol Matsuri Event Report

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(Cross posted from Pure Idol Heart!)

From June 20th through June 22nd, I had the distinct pleasure of attending Idol Matsuri, which was geared at being the United States’ first idol convention. I was interested in the event when it was first announced quite some time ago, but when the guests were announced I knew I had to attend. Aither, the first group, wasn’t one that I was very familiar with, but I have been a fan of RYUTist since covering them for Tokyo Idol Festival so they were a group I was really excited to meet. I was really intrigued by the idea of going to see both of these acts, though, because usually only large groups get to go do a foreign live. Since I love indie idols, this was an opportunity I knew I couldn’t pass up.

First off, I spent the weekend hanging out with various idol fans, as well as other idol bloggers. I spent some good time with Steve from Selective Hearing as well as a large number of the bloggers from New School Kaidan, many of whom I had spoken to on twitter for a while. While I went to Idol Matsuri to meet with RYUTist, I was incredibly happy to meet other idol fans. I have honestly never really met any serious idol fans in person, so to be surrounded by other people who share my passion for idol music and culture for a weekend was incredibly fun. I’m so glad I met everyone there.

The convention itself was fairly small, which wasn’t unexpected. This convention is one in its first year, so I don’t think anyone knew quite what to expect from this. However, the group of us who were there were a really fun, passionate bunch. So what we lacked for in members I believe we made up in spirit. That said, I know that the organizers want to host Idol Matsuri again, so I have to emphasize just how much I recommend it. It was a wonderful, once in a lifetime experience and I want more people to have as much fun as I did!

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There were several guests. Several Western idol acts came; Beri New Day, Ally & Sally, SHEawase and Beckii Cruel. I unfortunately missed Beckii and Beri’s concerts due to my flight schedule and I had to miss half of SHEawase’s set to get to a scheduled interview. However, these girls were really fun and added a lot to the experience. I interviewed Beckii (which will be hosted on Happy Disco soon!) and she was a real class act. I chose not to interview the other acts because I didn’t want to overexert myself (and, given how tired I am, this was a pretty wise choice!), but they were all fantastic to have around.

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As for the Japanese guests… Wow. I interviewed and went to the concert of Momoi Halko. I didn’t know much about her before the convention, but she put on a great show and I asked her several questions about her long-lived idol career and about her career as a producer for acts like Afilia Saga and Kotone Mai. She was a really interesting person, and a fun one to watch in concert. I took it easy for her concert (saving my strength for RYUTist!) but her fans were SO passionate and she put on a great show.

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Aither was a LOT of fun. I watched several of their videos in preparation for this event, but I had a great time with all of them. They were all really energetic, cute and bubbly. Since the convention was so small I actually ran into them in the hallway several times and they seemed to always be bubbly. During their concert there were some technical difficulties, and they took it all in stride. During an impromptu MC (due to these tech issues) they were really funny; Airi and Yuuka did a gag which was “Terminator & Titanic” which is basically exactly what it sounds like. They also all sang “Do You Want To Build a Snowman?” from Frozen which was kind of neat, because Team Syachihoko recently did that same thing in a video. I also stood next to another Misaki fan, and she focused a lot in on us, which I didn’t mind one bit!

During their photo and handshake events I gravitated towards Misaki; I liked all the members going in, but Misaki was a LOT of fun. We got a chance to chat a bit about idols, and how she likes Morning Musume ’14; I mentioned that I liked Ishida Ayumi, whereas she likes Michishige Sayumi and Kudou Haruka. I also told her that I like Team Syachihoko, which made her go to MomoClo and sing a bit of Ikuze Kaitou Shoujo. Sakura seemed really shy, but was sweet. She said I was cute, to which I replied that she was really cute, too, which she got a bit embarrassed at. Yuuka was a very idol-like person, and I had fun with her. She had American-themed nail art, which I marveled at with her. Airi was very sweet, too; I can’t really remember what I spoke to her about, but she was quite nice.

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RYUTist was really great. One thing that a lot of fans noticed is that they aren’t really super idol-like, but in a good way. They felt really genuine, like they were showing how they really felt. I’m a fan of Tomochy, and so when I went to get my two-shot with all of them wearing my Tomochy towel her thanks felt very genuine. While it was hard knowing exactly what to say at the autograph and handshake sessions, they were super fun. I knew part of their concert introductions (“Konnichimuu” and “Haropyon”) and told them to Muutan and Tomochy respectively, which I think kind of surprised them a bit. I used basically all my Japanese knowledge talking to all of them, but I think I conveyed what I wanted to say. I told Wakkar that my favorite RYUTist song was “Arrivals and Departures” (which they performed first at the concert!) and she also seemed kind of surprised.

Their concert was frankly amazing. All the members are really skilled at both singing and dancing, and even though many of their songs aren’t really geared towards wotagei and fan calls, all the fans really enjoyed their concert. Their dancing was VERY sharp and precise, and their vocals were VERY strong for being done during that dancing. RYUTist is made of great performers, and that made their performance all the better. They performed a fantastic that contained some of my favorite songs; Arrivals and Departures, Beat Goes On, Colorful Milk, Natsu no Mahou/Fuyu no Mahou, Arashi wa Nichiyoubi and Raririreru. The concert was everything I hoped for and more. They actually put it up on Youtube really early, so you should watch it. It’s kind of embarrassing, but you’ll see me; I’m the girl wearing the pink towel and with the pink light stick up front. I also happened to run into them a whole lot.

Another fun thing was that around midday on Sunday, RYUTist filmed a video with a lot of the fans there. They recently did a cover of BiS’ song Nerve and filmed a dance video with us. I’m in that too. I’m not a very good dancer, but how could I pass up an opportunity to dance with idols? Again, that’ll be up on the RYUTist youtube soon.

For a first year event, Idol Matsuri went very well. I had a great time meeting idol groups (especially RYUTist) and I met a lot of great people! If there is another Idol Matsuri next year, I encourage everyone to go!

Idol Matsuri 2014 – Live Blog

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Hello there,

As some of you may know, I’m attending Idol Matsuri this year! This is the first ever idol convention in the US, and I’m super excited to be a part of its first year! This is a new experiment where I’m going to try and update Happy Disco while I’m there, in addition to the posts I’ll inevitably do post-event. So, if you want to follow along as I go to the event, keep an eye out on this post! Idol Matsuri is going to be streaming several of the events, including the Aither events and my two panels. I’m running one on 3B Junior groups and one about Idol Blogging. Both of these will be streamed, AND I’m going to try and make this interactive! If you have anything to add or any questions either during the panel or before the panel, tweet me @writerserenyty. From there I’m going to be answering questions and taking comments, so you can participate even if you can’t attend the event!

THURSDAY JUNE 19 2014

11:06 AM – I’m waiting on getting a ride to the airport. I JUST got my King Blade in the mail for the Morning Musume concert in October, which means that I should probably have gotten a multi-color one to bring to Idol Matsuri. That’s how it goes, I guess. I’ve been listening to RYUTist’s Arrivals and Departures almost nonstop because of how excited I am!

2:30 PM – My flight got delayed. 🙁 At least I’m flying in today and not early tomorrow! I’m basically just sitting around listening to Team Syachihoko music because that’s my first instinct when I’m a little displeased with something.

8:30 PM – Here and in my room!

FRIDAY JUNE 20 2014

7:51 AM – I was up a lot later than I was planning, and got up earlier than I was planning, too. Ah well, it’s not a convention without some sleep deprivation! The first event starts at 10 AM, but I’m up so that I can try and get a VIP ticket to see Morning Musume at 9 AM. Fingers crossed! Today the biggest events are Q&A sessions with the Japanese guests and the Halko Momoi concert. There are just assorted things going on around it, as well, like the opening ceremony, some photo ops and such.

10:26 – the opening ceremonies happened, which was the first introduction of the guests. I was smiling like an idiot because I like RYUTist a lot and they seem really adorable in person! Next up is the Halko Momoi Q&A and then the RYUTist/Aither one. 🙂

1:30 PM – We just had the Q&A sessions for Halko Momoi, Aither and RYUTist! All of them seem really cute and fun, and we had a great time. I don’t know much of Halko Momoi’s stuff, truth be told, but she’s a veteran in the industry and her Q&A session was interesting. I’m kind of nervous for my interviews with these girls because I want to get some interesting questions! I went and bought some items from the tables, and both groups were hanging around. Everyone was all smiles and was very sweet. Alright, time to get these items signed!

2:05 – Just got a poster signed by RYUTist; all the signatures are super cute, and the members themselves are all ADORABLE in person. It’s hard to say much more, but they were all working hard signing everything. Next is Aither! I’m glad I bought goods when I did, because apparently they sold out of a lot of stuff. I managed to snag the very last photo set, which I’m getting signed. 🙂

9:47 PM- WOW I have had a long day. I went and got the items signed by Aither; I bought a photo set, so all the members signed their individual photos. The members were all super adorable, which was very fun. Soon after we took two shots! Since the event is on the beach we took them outside, which was very pleasant. I got a photo with Misaki, who proceeded to make a really cute pose with me. I’ll have to post a photo of the cheki later but WOW it is cute. Then it was Momoi Haruko’s concert! I’m not at all familiar with her music, to be honest, but I enjoyed it! Her fans are REALLY passionate, which was kind of cool, but almost a bit tough to get in on? I didn’t really participate in the intense fan stuff, as someone who doesn’t really know much about her solo music, but hung back and took photos. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s concerts! After this were the two shot photos with RYUTist! This time I got to take a photo with the whole group in front of the ocean, as well. At both photo events we took large group photos, which was really fun. I just finally got back from getting some dinner and now I’m working on interview questions to ask the members! My first one is tomorrow and I’m a little nervous!!

 

AKB48 2014 General Election: Thoughts + Analysis

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Hey everyone! This morning I got up at the bright hour of 3 AM to watch the AKB48 senbatsu election live. Even as my AKB48 fandom has changed and shifted (I really haven’t been into AKB’s music much lately, for example) this is still a huge event that I love staying up for year after year.

If you haven’t seen the results yet, THIS is where I’m looking at, though most of my thoughts are coming from what I saw at the livestream.

Last Night’s Winners: HKT48

Now, this might be odd; Watanabe Mayu is the new AKB48 center, not Sashihara Rino. However, HKT48 did VERY well. On Fuji TV there was a running counter of how many members ranked from each group. Usually this number goes sequentially from when the group was formed; AKB, SKE, NMB and HKT. However, this year more HKT48 members ranked than NMB48. Girls like Murashige Anna ranked for the first time (a fact that thrilled everyone) and Miyawaki Sakura had a huge leap in rankings.

One thing I noticed, however, was that HKT had a really big sense of community. Murashige went straight to Sashihara after she ranked to celebrate. The girls seemed genuinely all thrilled whenever someone ranked. I think HKT48 has really proved themselves to be a great group, and they were really enjoyable to watch.

Last night’s Losers: NMB48 (and Watanabe Miyuki)

NMB48 didn’t do terribly, not at all. However, being outstripped by HKT48 has to be significant. Further, there were some drops. I was surprised to see Ogasawara Mayu ranked fairly low in the Up Coming Girls (the new added ranking) and I was very disappointed to see Watanabe Miyuki’s ranking drop out of senbatsu. Yamamoto Sayaka did well, but that’s the biggest gain that NMB had.

Winners: New(er) girls

The senbatsu lineup is usually girls that are well-known. However, FOUR new faces entered the senbatsu. The old guard has generally been graduating, but it’s interesting to see who’s entering senbatsu. It makes sense; new girls generally get a lot of press. But those climbing the ranks tend to be members who are newer.

Losers: Old(er) girls

A couple of us tweeting the senbatsu noticed some disappointment. Kuramochi Asuka, for one, mentioned in her speech that she kept dropping in categories. Kobayashi Kana didn’t rank. Nakagawa Haruka didn’t rank. Miyazaki Miho ranked again, but she was low in the Up Coming Girls (which was noted to be pretty funny, considering).

This makes sense; as management is promoting the newer, fresher girls, the girls that never got a big push (or got a small push) are falling. Still, it’s something I noticed.

Winner: Matsumura Kaori, Undergirls center?

Kaotan being popular isn’t that new. It’s just that I’m really looking forward to what a Kaotan center song will look like.

Winner: Nogizaka46 and Ikoma Rina

I thought that Ikoma would rank highly. I mean, she’s a popular Nogizaka46 member, once the center of the group, and Nogizaka fans would want to vote for her even if they weren’t particularly into Ikoma. However, ranking in the senbatsu is really significant, and does a lot to show Nogizaka46’s power in relation to AKB. Well done.

Winner: Kawaei Rina, Iriyama Anna (and all the members)

The live event started (notably) with Gamushara Ouendan cheering on the 48 members. It was a bit silly, and I know a lot of foreign fans (including myself) were wondering what was going on. However, this was for the girls. This is the first really major 48 event since the incident, and I imagine every single one of them is a little afraid.

However, the most memorable and emotional moment of the night was Kawaei Rina appearing on stage. She’s my favorite AKB member, so it was already going to be emotional. However, she outshone everything else. The fact that she had the courage to appear was remarkable. The hosts asked her if she was scared, a few times, and Ricchan just said “I’m not afraid at all, I’m fine.”

The incident was hard on AKB48, all 48 groups, and the fans. This is a sizable step that people are moving beyond it.

Winner: Watanabe Mayu

You know, because she actually won it. Seriously, it was an unsurprising turn of events, but not unwelcome. CG Revolution!

All in all, it was a really solid election; some surprises, a lot of really expected things, but overall an enjoyable year.