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Idol group NMB48 is already on the rise, but Osaka's Minami area is about to get a second one, this time composed of boys. In order to attract more young women to the area, a major production agency is planning to recruit young men for an unnamed idol group that will launch this year. The unit will have a theater built in the head store of the ( Read more... )

A DVD consisting of images of young girls calling out "onichan" -- a familiar form in Japanese to address one's older brother -- is selling well, its Tokyo-based producer said.

The "Onichan DVD" succeeds its CD version "Onichan CD," which sold over 30,000 copies. It features five teenage girls, only shown from their noses down, simply saying " ( Read more... )

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Last year marked a breakthrough for Twitter in Japan. The microblogging service rapidly expanded from near obscurity to near ubiquity, creating a phenomenon that fascinated local media and critics.

Last summer during soccer’s World Cup, for example, the Japanese set a global record at the time of 3,283 tweets per second for the most-ever chirps per ( Read more... )

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AKB48 and Arashi fans beware, there is a new idol group on the block, and they’re threatening to dominate Japan.

The group’s name is AKP48, which stands for “Ah Kawaii Puppy”, and it’s the idea of “ANiCOT“, who produces pet models. As their unit name says, it’s an “idol” group consisting of puppies!

They were introduced to the public on December 2nd ( Read more... )

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