8 - It's Hard Out Here for A Pimp
It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp
Arashi is cooped up in a conference room with a few other people, managers and publicists, discussing damage control. That none of the higher ups are around bodes well and yet, Arashi is silent, except for occasional words from Sho and some sounds of agreement from Jun. Kazunari and Masaki look so serious, as if nothing ( Read more... )
Yeah, basically, Arashi concerts are deliberated during production meetings, songs are chosen, stage designs are decided upon. MatsuJun usually is the one who is most vocal in these meetings [according to Arashi], he also decides on the blocking, costumes, light plans, the use of carts, cranes, harnesses and moving stages [the moving stage is a Jun invention, according to Arashi, because Jun wanted to reach the fans across the center stage]. He asks the other members about every decision, but the members just go along with him.
A-RA-SHI is a good song. They haven't been singing it lately in concerts, though. Maybe they'll sing it again on their 10th anniversary celebration?
Amy: Fame is a bitch. She's probably been addicted even before becoming famous, but fame has aggravated everything, highlighted her every move. I hope things go well for her soon.
Hm, music is changing, has always been changing--music before and now are different and diversity is always good. :) But yeah, I guess I won't be able to find any other artist that can affect me as much as the Beatles has. :)
When I'm done buying all the albums singles of Arashi [and L'arc] to date [sniff, my wallet], I'll start listening to other Johnny groups. I've only listened to Kinki Kids, Tackey and Tsubasa, KAT-TUN. They're all good, too. When I can listen to other groups, I'll start with Tokio because the rock genre has always been my preference. :) When that happens, I'll ask you for recs, that okay?
So without further ado, I want to ask you: can I friend you? ^^
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ROTFLMAO. i just. i have no words. a;lkdfj
so he's basically the pioneer of the whole moving stage thing. good for him. but it's amazing that they get to give input like this, cuz idk i sorta though that artistes had to do whatever management tells them to.
so it's A-RA-SHI. tbh i fell for the song when koki sang it during the lips PV making. when i heard it i was like !!!! nice song!!!!! lol hopefully they will. (but wow TENTH anniversary?! amazing.)
Fame is a bitch
isn't it always? :(
ALL the albums and singles of arashi... WOW. i mean, your wallet's gonna feel a lot emptier. L'arc... is that the one with gackt? or hyde? sry but i don't really venture out of my fandom (KT) much. more like never
kinki kids... i've heard like ONE song of theirs. anniversary. i liked it. T&T not yet. but tokio! tokio is AMAJING. seriously. it's the first band whose music i could concentrate on without wondering about their looks or rumors or gossip or stuff. you can definitely ask me for recs, but i haven't really listened to all their stuff yet. (i've got all their "greatest hits" albums and some of the full length ones. trust me, it's a lot.) ohh and K8 are not bad too. their songs are happy and crack-y and enka-ish. good stuff that sound like oldies but is modern at the same time. :))))
and YESH. DEFINITELY. you didn't have to ask :)))))) i love chatting with you. XDDDDDD
P.S. i'm so sorry i fail at html. -dies-
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Jun really sounds like a quacking duck on helium. But only on bad days. On his best days, he can sing along with the boys just fine. And on his good days, he just sounds like a duck. :)
I think the Johnny talents are told to fit their image, and they should help maintain their image, but they can have freely give their inputs on certain things like for TV shows, songs, dances, performances---un was the one who suggested overseas concerts for Arashi, Ohno choreographs some of their dances [and he also approached the management to launch his personal exhibit for the fans], they've all contributed in making some of their songs [Nino has composed some songs, Sho writes his rap lyrics, Aiba has used a friend's poem for his solo song]. I heard that it was Nakai who created the SMAPxSMAP concept. :D
Really, Koki sang it? :) That's nice! I love it when KT, Smap, T&T and all the other groups get along well Arashi, or if they sing each other's songs. :D Like there was an old clip of Kame taking a "secret" video of the making of an Arashi PV, "Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi." :D
Yeah, TEN years! They debuted early; Jun was only 16 then. XD
Fame's not nice for some people and useful to some. Elton John, Bono, and some other artists are able to advance their advocacies because they're famous. :)
Haha! I don't have plans on going to any Arashi concert sometime in the near future so CDs would have to do. L'arc! Actually, that's the first Japanese group I fangirled [I mean real people, the others are anime characters! XD]! They're very good. If you like rock songs, you might like them. I love Arashi, but am not always confident about recommending them to people. But with L'arc, I feel no fear! They're very good! That group is a powerhouse of pure talent! If you're interested, I'll upload files for you, or if I can't [I used to be able to copy data from my iPod using winamp. Now it's not working! Maybe iPod has update their firmware. Cunning.], I'll look for a place where you can download them. If you're not interested, that's fine. :)
Hyde is L'arc's singer; Gackt was with Malice Mizer vocalist before he went solo. I don't know much about Gackt, but he did a movie with Hyde -- Moon child-- in 2003. And he sang with Sho, Aiba and Nino in a KK show a long time ago! XDDD
Aiba swears Tokio is good; Tokio's his favorite group. But I'm not interested in listening to them because Aiba loves them. I wouldn't trust Aiba's recommendations, really. XDD
K8! I've heard a song from them in last year's countdown in Music Station! But I don't remember the song! :( I just remembered that they're dorky and really funny! I love funny! ♥
I want to learn about KT more, too, once I've started with my Tokio project. Maybe that would be...sometime in November or December this year. I hope. XD I'll be asking you for recs then, too. XD
YAY! Friends! ♥ I love chatting with you, too. :)))))))))))))))
That's okay. I suck at html. Like, a lot! XD
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i have no idea what's the smapxsmap concept, but i'm glad to hear that they actually contribute some. songwriting's a given, but i didn't know that they had free reign over things like concerts. i recently heard that whoever is hosting shokura gets to produce it, as in planning/scripting the whole show. it's good that they are given the chance to do things their own way and not just follow instructions. :D
yes koki sang it. it was sorta like a mini jamming session with kame koki and nakamaru. they started with kinki kids' "anniversary" and then koki did a-ra-shi. it was effing cool and made me love them so, SO much.
link's here, if you're interested. XD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvSLlR4Snuk
Kame taking a "secret" video of the making of an Arashi PV, "Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi."
i wanna see this!!!
well, you're waaaaaay better than me. i'm content with downloads. but only because i'd have to go to japan just to buy their cds, or order them online. we don't have JE stuff here. if there is it'd be hellishly expensive anyway.
i've heard a lot of good things about L'arc, aren't they like goth or something? i've watched moon child (ONLY FOR LEEHOM) and i got really scared of hyde AND gackt. they're scary. i mean, you could really believe that they are vampires. -dies-
Aiba swears Tokio is good
that sentence single-handedly made me love aiba and i don't even know what he looks like. XDDD but this is the one time when you should trust him. he's good.
you could use music rescue for ripping songs from ipod. at least that's what i use. :)))
and yes, k8 are seriously the dorkiest JE band i've ever come across. watching them perform is just a joy because they're not afraid to look stupid and that's what i really like about them.
I want to learn about KT more, too, once I've started with my Tokio project. Maybe that would be...sometime in November or December this year. I hope. XD I'll be asking you for recs then, too. XD
DEFINITELY. i'm sure you know by now that i'm a rabid KT/AKAME fangirl. lol
okay. long comment over. i've got 2 minutes before my lecture starts. XDDDDDDDDD
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I guess they are basically tasked to follow their contracts but are given some room to show their own creativity.
*saves youtube link for downloading later*
I'll upload the Kame video for you, although it's just Kame taking some videos, it's very short. And he was very, very young then, I think the video was released in 2000. I'll send a message when the video is up. :) There is also another video where KT and Arashi guested in the same show and Nino was pinching Kame's butt and they were laughing. Have you seen that? :D If you haven't yet, I'll upload it, too. :)
L'arc was a visual kei band for a while, then they toned down their "costumes", until they just stopped doing the whole dress up thing [They still wear sparkly skirts and wings and really big shoes sometimes. They're Japanese, after all. XD]. I've upgraded my winamp and was able to copy some songs from my iPod again. But I'll check out that music rescue thing you've mentioned. I'm currently uploading L'arc songs for you. If you're interested, the folders are here.
Ah, I'm sure Tokio is good. It's just that Aiba is not very reliable sometimes. He's sort of an airhead, and is treated like the group idiot [He IS idiotic sometimes, too, and he's very very hyper and babbles a lot. And he does these really terrifically funny experiments! Personally, I think he's a fucking genius, and just doesn't think like most people do. I also think that he is a BIG idiot and there are no contradictions there whatsoever.] XD
See? I can control my babbling. XDDD
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i haven't watched maou, but it's not far down on my list of dramas. :D
i realized that almost all JE groups plan their own concerts, down to the last detail on costumes. it's cool, and it makes me respect them a little bit more.
it's okay, you don't have to go to the trouble of uploading. the nino/kame one! yes i've seen it. they look like good friends. and after watching johnny's sports day 2003, i'm sure they are in RL too. they probably exchange pitching tips with each other all the time. XD idk why, but i really like it when johnny's interact with people other than their own group members.
btw jin's face totally spells j-e-a-l-o-u-s-y in that clip. XD
i'll go download the L'arc songs. they went ont ctkt once, the show that KT hosts, and they were really funny and down to earth. i like them already. <3
aiba an airhead! well between the last time i posted here and now, i've learnt a lot more about arashi, and i can actually name all of them now. i can even sing some of their songs! improvement, yes? (btw i am totally in love with "we can make it too" such an uplifting song <3) i've read fics with plots centering around aiba's experiments; oh god the crack. XD
i hope this didn't exceed the limit. :/
again, sorry for the late reply. i may take a lot of time, but i'll definitely reply. :D
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How have you been? I haven't been updated on any Arashi or JE activities recently.
I hope you've:
a. listened to L'arc songs
b. seen A no Arashi clips. Oh, they are lots of fun!
And I hope the world has been treating you well. ;)
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i've been good. coping with university. oh well, JE's still same old, same old, i guess?
yes i've listened to the L'arc songs! can't say i love all of them though... some are too noisy. :X
a no arashi? no i haven't seen them. will go check them out on youtube. :D
lol yes it has... so far. i haven't stayed in a fandom for such an extended period of time before in my life, so it's been fun. :D
hope you've been good. ♥
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Ahahaha! I haven't checked this journal in ages and when I finally did, I decided to reply to all messages I haven't responded to. I've been out of the loop for so long...
L'arc: I love L'arc a lot, probably more than I do Arashi, but even I don't love all of their songs. I dislike Pieces, for example. If you don't mind some recs, most of the songs in the following albums are good: Tierra, True, Heart, Ray & Arc, Smile, Awake. A few songs in Heavenly are good, too but most of them I don't really listen to except when I'm playing the entire album.
D no Arashi, Arashi's TV program from years back, featured segments from each Arashi member. The first segment was T no Arashi, Sho's, which became the butt of Arashi's jokes because no one liked it but Sho. A no Arashi was next. It was and is a work of genius [It survived the demise of D no Arashi! It's Aiba's segment for his wonderful experiments. Next was Ni no Arashi, Nino's segment, where Nino played practical jokes on the other members. O no Arashi, Ohno's, where Ohno painted images from two random pictures and where he proved what a weirdo he can be. In M no Arashi, MatsuJun's, MatsuJun did tasks that were too bothersome, at least for him. A no Arashi was the best of all these segments, even the other members wanted to join in conducting the experiments. It was and is very, very hilarious!
Oh, and if you don't mind recommending some KATTUN songs, please do. :)
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i'll hop off to download the albums you rec-ed, hopefully i'll like them. XD
i've never watched any arashi programs (except for tensai shimura which has aiba, but i'm guessing that doesn't count) and now it's even more difficult to get ahold of the shows. :X i'll try to find them on youtube though. :D
KT songs... we'll my personal favorite out of all their albums is the second one, cartoon kat-tun II you, the one without jin. the songs have a very relaxed, lounge-y, jazzy feeling to it. their latest album, break the records is good too, i especially like junno's solo in it, it's called WIND. give the group songs a try, you might like them... (i do) :D
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