Soshibond, but levelled up
Read this janx!
Or don't, I'm about to quote the relevant parts anyways.
Background: Berryz Koubou performed at Sakuracon Seattle this year,(yes, that SakuraCon *facepalms*) after UFA established relations with the con by sending Hangry&Angry last year.
The opening link is an article/interview writeup about their appearance/with them by Anime News Network, and I'm 99% sure that the interviewer is Pata, hence the article actually being well written and interesting instead of some half-cracked job by someone who knows nothing about the group or the ways of the idol industry.
EXCERPT TIME:
The saga of Berryz Kobo begins in the early 2000's, at the height of Morning Musume's popularity. The group's producer, Tsunku, built a mothership organization around them called Hello! Project and began to populate it with other young female talents. Perhaps his most daring experiment was the Hello! Project Kids, fifteen grade-school girls selected in 2002 in hopes that they could be trained over the years. "When we started," says Natsuyaki, "we had no training in singing or dancing-we really didn't know anything. But we had our friendship, so we grew by supporting each other."
[...]
In 2004, eight of the Hello! Project Kids were selected to form Berryz Kobo (kōbō meaning "workshop"), a name that at the time seemed fitting for a gaggle of unpolished grade-school and junior-high girls. But did they ever imagine lasting a full seven years (and more) when they first debuted? Chinami Tokunaga, she of the beaming megawatt smile, admits she had her doubts: "When we started out, we were told that the lineup might not be permanent. So every time our managers called a meeting, everyone was really nervous-are they going to announce someone coming out? Someone coming in?"
Even when the remaining Kids were herded into another group, °C-ute, about a year later, there was no sigh of relief. "Even then, we still didn't know if there might be auditions for other members," says Natsuyaki. "There was also the trainee group, Hello! Project Eggs, and we thought that they might jump in. So we were never sure."
They needn't have worried. In Berryz Kobo's seven-year history, there has only been one change to their lineup: the departure of then-twelve-year-old Maiha Ishimura in October 2005. "Maiha left to concentrate on school rather than performing," Natsuyaki explains. "[After that], she did come to visit us once for a sports tournament and we hung out, but we haven't heard from her since." It is a sobering reminder that some friendships simply aren't meant to last.
Aside from that, Berryz Kobo's longevity and stability is remarkable in a music scene where idol groups sometimes form and disband within months. The secret, says Shimizu, is that "we always talk things out with each other. We ask about each others' feelings." Natsuyaki adds, "Since we were kids, we'd have regular 'Berryz-kai' (Berryz meetings) and talk about what could be improved."
Then Tokunaga gives the inside tip on improving group communication skills: "There's actually a notebook called the 'Berryz Note,' and in it we write about what to be mindful of, like: don't leave your lyrics sheet lying on the desk, or if you borrowed something from someone, make sure to give it back. It's a code of conduct agreed upon by everyone ... We all write in it, even the littlest things, and that's how we know what we need to fix. We still have it and Captain hangs on to it."
Meanwhile, other Hello! Project acts continue to come and go. The last couple of years have seen the debut of high-school-aged quartet S/mileage, as well as the addition of some 12-to-14-year-olds to Morning Musume's lineup. Natsuyaki reflects on the changing landscape: "When we started out, we were the youngest, so everyone treated us like little sisters and we'd get guidance from our senpai like [Morning Musume's Risa] Niigaki. But now, by comparison, we're the oldest, so we feel we have the responsibility of teaching the younger members."
It's like Soshibond if it was Suju made from Girl Story. Regular meetings to air grievances? Possible changing lineup but ending up mostly stable? Having an initial average age around 11?
Even throw in a little T-ara: Captain Shimizu Saki doing the Eunjung thing before Eunjung with her "things to fix" notebook.
Actually, their closeness is even more remarkable compared to Soshibond in some ways. Jpop girlgroups don't live together. Former Morning Musume members have openly said that things were quite tense between them behind the scenes, and current member Reina has said that she doesn't interact with the other members outside of work. There is no obligation for them to get close to each other. No late night after-work rehearsals to bond them together either, as child labor laws in Japan prohibit the underage from working past a certain time. Unless of course they voluntarily practiced together outside of the studio, which is quite likely and just as extraordinary. Fellow H!PK in their sister group C-ute Nakajima Saki once mentioned that she had started practicing past midnight on her own, and this is probably in Chisato's(also C-ute) actual home bedroom. Except, C-ute has undergone a lot of lineup changes for being a younger group by two years, and Berryz has not and released their 7th anniversary single.
Too bad the PV closeups were a hot mess, although nice DVD extras, eh? Look at that, almost even line distribution too! Benefits of being around for so long.
Yeah, this coulda gone in the LJ, but I read the article, was struck by the familiarity of their group unity tactics, and decided to stick it to the Soshibond for the group that got me into idols, and the only other group besides SNSD that I've bought an album for.
Tangent: Frontgirl maknae Risako is a 94er, and despite being still older than Krystal she had her first non-backdancing performance in 2003.(In yellow, subbing for Megumi) That's like, before Krystal even started training under SM. She also starred in a couple dramas pre-debut. Fuck, she was still only 9 by the time Berryz's first single was released, in which she was a main vocalist.(Pink vest in the dance shot, yellow hat and pants in the closeup/story shots)
Other interesting tidbits from the article:
Whoa, Captain learned beat-boxing from INSPi! She got the connections going on!
Acapella at 1:41, features at 3:14
Yes, askbask, that is indeed a remake of Eurovision Dschinghis Khan. Only in Japan. Some of us were anticipating a Moskau remake b-side, but alas. The DK remix PV featuring the original DK vocals and footage was pretty cracktastic though.
I apologize for Risako's flatness there. In her defense though, the song is in a rather stupid key, she can do better, and it's a miracle that she hasn't fucked her voice up yet since she has NO formal voice training. Whereas it's weak-voiced Yurina who sounds like she has nodules. The embed was for Captain's beat-boxing skills anyways, which I didn't realize she was properly taught!
They're quite aware of their own cute image and showed their rebellion of it in their own backhanded ways in the article:
Yurina Kumai's height defies the "petite and cute" idol mold, and perhaps for that reason, she looks across national borders to find inspiration as a performer, citing Korean group Girls' Generation as her role model. "When I saw their music videos, I was so impressed by their dancing, and by how attractive and talented they are-I want to mimic the way they move." What also impresses Kumai is that, compared to Japan's music scene, their Korean counterparts "don't have the traditional idol attitude, but more the charm of grown-up women."
Never stop being hawt, Kumai. You could out-pretty-leg them any day of the week. Long bear is long shisus!
Maasa "mentions recently getting into the work of novelist Kanae Minato, writer of the acclaimed mystery-thriller Confessions."
Momoko(who is an image manipulator at almost Sunny levels) said that she doesn't really want to be the leader of Buono, which is startling to me because her leader ambitions have been a big part of her image in Buono, including an entire DVD Magazine with the premise of her trying to go from self-proclaimed to official leader of Buono by winning games over the other members.(Much less the entire running gag beforehand about her being self-proclaimed leader!) Momoko will probably get her own post on the LJ because she's so fascinating.
Chinami "prefers characters who are strange rather than cute."
Or don't, I'm about to quote the relevant parts anyways.
Background: Berryz Koubou performed at Sakuracon Seattle this year,(yes, that SakuraCon *facepalms*) after UFA established relations with the con by sending Hangry&Angry last year.
The opening link is an article/interview writeup about their appearance/with them by Anime News Network, and I'm 99% sure that the interviewer is Pata, hence the article actually being well written and interesting instead of some half-cracked job by someone who knows nothing about the group or the ways of the idol industry.
EXCERPT TIME:
The saga of Berryz Kobo begins in the early 2000's, at the height of Morning Musume's popularity. The group's producer, Tsunku, built a mothership organization around them called Hello! Project and began to populate it with other young female talents. Perhaps his most daring experiment was the Hello! Project Kids, fifteen grade-school girls selected in 2002 in hopes that they could be trained over the years. "When we started," says Natsuyaki, "we had no training in singing or dancing-we really didn't know anything. But we had our friendship, so we grew by supporting each other."
[...]
In 2004, eight of the Hello! Project Kids were selected to form Berryz Kobo (kōbō meaning "workshop"), a name that at the time seemed fitting for a gaggle of unpolished grade-school and junior-high girls. But did they ever imagine lasting a full seven years (and more) when they first debuted? Chinami Tokunaga, she of the beaming megawatt smile, admits she had her doubts: "When we started out, we were told that the lineup might not be permanent. So every time our managers called a meeting, everyone was really nervous-are they going to announce someone coming out? Someone coming in?"
Even when the remaining Kids were herded into another group, °C-ute, about a year later, there was no sigh of relief. "Even then, we still didn't know if there might be auditions for other members," says Natsuyaki. "There was also the trainee group, Hello! Project Eggs, and we thought that they might jump in. So we were never sure."
They needn't have worried. In Berryz Kobo's seven-year history, there has only been one change to their lineup: the departure of then-twelve-year-old Maiha Ishimura in October 2005. "Maiha left to concentrate on school rather than performing," Natsuyaki explains. "[After that], she did come to visit us once for a sports tournament and we hung out, but we haven't heard from her since." It is a sobering reminder that some friendships simply aren't meant to last.
Aside from that, Berryz Kobo's longevity and stability is remarkable in a music scene where idol groups sometimes form and disband within months. The secret, says Shimizu, is that "we always talk things out with each other. We ask about each others' feelings." Natsuyaki adds, "Since we were kids, we'd have regular 'Berryz-kai' (Berryz meetings) and talk about what could be improved."
Then Tokunaga gives the inside tip on improving group communication skills: "There's actually a notebook called the 'Berryz Note,' and in it we write about what to be mindful of, like: don't leave your lyrics sheet lying on the desk, or if you borrowed something from someone, make sure to give it back. It's a code of conduct agreed upon by everyone ... We all write in it, even the littlest things, and that's how we know what we need to fix. We still have it and Captain hangs on to it."
Meanwhile, other Hello! Project acts continue to come and go. The last couple of years have seen the debut of high-school-aged quartet S/mileage, as well as the addition of some 12-to-14-year-olds to Morning Musume's lineup. Natsuyaki reflects on the changing landscape: "When we started out, we were the youngest, so everyone treated us like little sisters and we'd get guidance from our senpai like [Morning Musume's Risa] Niigaki. But now, by comparison, we're the oldest, so we feel we have the responsibility of teaching the younger members."
It's like Soshibond if it was Suju made from Girl Story. Regular meetings to air grievances? Possible changing lineup but ending up mostly stable? Having an initial average age around 11?
Even throw in a little T-ara: Captain Shimizu Saki doing the Eunjung thing before Eunjung with her "things to fix" notebook.
Actually, their closeness is even more remarkable compared to Soshibond in some ways. Jpop girlgroups don't live together. Former Morning Musume members have openly said that things were quite tense between them behind the scenes, and current member Reina has said that she doesn't interact with the other members outside of work. There is no obligation for them to get close to each other. No late night after-work rehearsals to bond them together either, as child labor laws in Japan prohibit the underage from working past a certain time. Unless of course they voluntarily practiced together outside of the studio, which is quite likely and just as extraordinary. Fellow H!PK in their sister group C-ute Nakajima Saki once mentioned that she had started practicing past midnight on her own, and this is probably in Chisato's(also C-ute) actual home bedroom. Except, C-ute has undergone a lot of lineup changes for being a younger group by two years, and Berryz has not and released their 7th anniversary single.
Click to viewToo bad the PV closeups were a hot mess, although nice DVD extras, eh? Look at that, almost even line distribution too! Benefits of being around for so long.
Yeah, this coulda gone in the LJ, but I read the article, was struck by the familiarity of their group unity tactics, and decided to stick it to the Soshibond for the group that got me into idols, and the only other group besides SNSD that I've bought an album for.
Tangent: Frontgirl maknae Risako is a 94er, and despite being still older than Krystal she had her first non-backdancing performance in 2003.(In yellow, subbing for Megumi) That's like, before Krystal even started training under SM. She also starred in a couple dramas pre-debut. Fuck, she was still only 9 by the time Berryz's first single was released, in which she was a main vocalist.(Pink vest in the dance shot, yellow hat and pants in the closeup/story shots)
Other interesting tidbits from the article:
Whoa, Captain learned beat-boxing from INSPi! She got the connections going on!
Acapella at 1:41, features at 3:14
Yes, askbask, that is indeed a remake of Eurovision Dschinghis Khan. Only in Japan. Some of us were anticipating a Moskau remake b-side, but alas. The DK remix PV featuring the original DK vocals and footage was pretty cracktastic though.
I apologize for Risako's flatness there. In her defense though, the song is in a rather stupid key, she can do better, and it's a miracle that she hasn't fucked her voice up yet since she has NO formal voice training. Whereas it's weak-voiced Yurina who sounds like she has nodules. The embed was for Captain's beat-boxing skills anyways, which I didn't realize she was properly taught!
They're quite aware of their own cute image and showed their rebellion of it in their own backhanded ways in the article:
Yurina Kumai's height defies the "petite and cute" idol mold, and perhaps for that reason, she looks across national borders to find inspiration as a performer, citing Korean group Girls' Generation as her role model. "When I saw their music videos, I was so impressed by their dancing, and by how attractive and talented they are-I want to mimic the way they move." What also impresses Kumai is that, compared to Japan's music scene, their Korean counterparts "don't have the traditional idol attitude, but more the charm of grown-up women."
Never stop being hawt, Kumai. You could out-pretty-leg them any day of the week. Long bear is long shisus!
Maasa "mentions recently getting into the work of novelist Kanae Minato, writer of the acclaimed mystery-thriller Confessions."
Momoko(who is an image manipulator at almost Sunny levels) said that she doesn't really want to be the leader of Buono, which is startling to me because her leader ambitions have been a big part of her image in Buono, including an entire DVD Magazine with the premise of her trying to go from self-proclaimed to official leader of Buono by winning games over the other members.(Much less the entire running gag beforehand about her being self-proclaimed leader!) Momoko will probably get her own post on the LJ because she's so fascinating.
Chinami "prefers characters who are strange rather than cute."