The AKB48 Thread

[Ian905]

^ I doubt they outsold every artist in Asia. Japan maybe but all of Asia, no.

Probably not Japan either.

Congratulations to them for winning that award though! They earned it! I'm so proud of those girls.

[joooooooooe]

next 3 members announced for g+ cm senbatsu

11: Kuramochi Asuka (Team A)
12: Yamamoto Sayaka (NMB Team N)
13: Nakagawa Haruka (Team A)


3 more members left!

[shoruken]

^ I doubt they outsold every artist in Asia. Japan maybe but all of Asia, no.

Probably not Japan either.

Are you saying there is another artist in Japan that outsold AKB48 in 2011?

[karles48]

^ I doubt they outsold every artist in Asia. Japan maybe but all of Asia, no.

Probably not Japan either.

Those would be interesting rankings, indeed...

[YKT]

Woah!? Why is no one discussing about this.

AKB48 has just been awarded with the Artist of the Year by Billboard JAPAN Music Awards 2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOqvFd5MJMY

Tokyohive
Billboard Japan
Barks

I think we need a thread to post all of this awards, they are increasing at a faster pace than usual artist do then again AKB48 is not a usual artist.

Moar!

Billboard JAPAN Music Awards 2011 - Flying Get / Everyday, Katyusha / Kaze wa Fuiteiru
Itano Tomomi, Kasai Tomomi, Kashiwagi Yuki, Kitahara Rie,
Kojima Haruna, Maeda Atsuko, Minegishi Minami, Miyazawa Sae,
Oshima Yuko, Sashihara Rino, Shimazaki Haruka, Shinoda Mariko,
Takahashi Minami, Takajo Aki, Yokoyama Yui, Watanabe Mayu

Trailer for Ota Aika and Hirajima Natsumi new movie “Batsu Game 2″

[GATX105]

considering the small market size of the music industries of other asian countries, would there be someone that outsold akb?

[Melos125]

March 9th Shukan Asahi mag



Once you get past that gorgeous picture of paruru
The text on the right says
Akimoto Yasushi "Will not do another senbatsu election"
Or something like that I get the gist of it in my head but I have no confidence in actually translating it.


WTF I don't know what to think about this. No more election? It's too hard to believe. I hope it is just them misquoting AkiP.

[srking]

^
I saw this on tumblr and freaked out too! Does anyone have any details or is Aki-P just trolling as usual...

I will be happy if this is true. The election just undervalues a lot of girls and cause so much grief. Plus the acchan-yuko-acchan saga is over and there's nothing really in the elections anymore to keep the public (not the fans) interested.

[kimunlimited]

Though the Sousenkyou could be heart breaking its also a chance for those unpushed members, like my oshi, to move up to A-side thru the effort of the fans which is kinda interesting since this defy the management's Senbatsu slate and all those popularity polls.

Its a unique AKB48 event and google+ post by Aki-P doesn't hint any of this must be publicity stunt.

[karles48]

The election just undervalues a lot of girls and cause so much grief. Plus the acchan-yuko-acchan saga is over and there's nothing really in the elections anymore to keep the public (not the fans) interested.

Yes, but no elections means that Aki-P will have free rein to choose the senbatsu, and that not only means that Acchan and Yuko will still be in senbatsu but it also means that Yui, Mitsumune Kaoru and anyone you can think of for a "she's being pushed so I hate her" list will be in...

[mieniem]

Cool no more elections, that's great. There wasn't much of a point to those anyway, and Mitsumune Kaoru isn't really getting pushed.

[HoneyRoastedPeanuts]

It's a fake cover. You can see the actual one on Shukan Asahi's website. I got a little fooled as well but I felt something was off since this magazine doesn't usually put idols on their cover.

Aki-p mentioned doing the election on the radio just last week, so we'll definitely see one this year. Disregarding how I personally feel about the elections, I don't think they'll go away any time soon. They're too much of what makes AKB AKB in people's eyes.

[lionheartedvalor]

Thanks for clearing it up, HRP. I saw it on tumblr last night too and stared in disbelief for a while. Elections is actually one of the reasons why I'm in this fandom.

[ET920]

I will be happy if this is true. The election just undervalues a lot of girls and cause so much grief. Plus the acchan-yuko-acchan saga is over and there's nothing really in the elections anymore to keep the public (not the fans) interested.

While the news has been refuted, I am intrigued by your concepts. First, this is about popularity, not "value". Wasamin could be the best singer in all AKB and Sakippe could be the most talented girl in all thew 48 family, but if they don't have enough fans they won't be popular. So, no girl is undervalued, the girls are just not popular.

Also, the Acchan/Yuko showdown is really profitable for the group in general. They basically ended with 2x the votes of the 3rd each, and that amount will likely only increase this time. Acchan is the default face of AKB although Yuko is the one casual most recognize due Heavy Rotation, which continues generating revenue via karaoke (still #1 in the karaoke rankings). Plus, if not for that competition you would never see Acchan in AKBINGO! again If you mean it is over because Acchan will always win, it could be, but so everyone thought that during the second senbatsu.

Finally, the election has always been something for the fans to play with, but the marketing machine managed to insert it into morning and midday programs, news outlets, magazines, newspapers, etc. And they carry the news over because it gives good ratings. So, while the public might not be interested about it, they are forced to swallow it anyways.

[joooooooooe]

the last g+ senbatsu:

14: Kitahara Rie (Team B)
15: Yokoyama Yui (Team K)
16: Fujie Reina (Team A)

a couple of nmb members were disappointed but all congratulatory.
surprised to see Yui there because i hardly ever see her use it.




the election is something that practically defines AKB, there's no way they'd get rid of it.

i used to hate the election because it has nothing to do with talent or even music but just a straight popularity contest. and some of these people aren't popular because of how they perform in songs but because of their acting or variety show skills, none of which are important for a single.
i also hated it because it's really a money-grab.
there's also a lot of talk over rankings but i honestly don't remember where sashihara was in flying get, haha.

but i also think it's cool because some members get to shine for their fans; amina being one, as well as akimoto sayaka.
take the good with the bad, i guess.

[Melos125]

It's a fake cover.

...Good play jp wotas...you really got me shocked there...

Just like kimu has said, the election gives a chance for a lot of members who don't get screentime.
Amina would never have been in senbatsu if not for the elections. She's the only member in the 48s that got in the election senbatsu but not normal senbatsu.
Mocchi too, Yuttan too, Sayaka (AKB) too would be in undergirls. And Umechan would still be shafted.

[garnetjester]

At this point elections are like the sakura single - bikini guam single - song about love with english title - cool song - janken. Something that is a staple in AKB and that got them tons of PR last year, I don't see them stopping this anytime soon.

[srking]

I will be happy if this is true. The election just undervalues a lot of girls and cause so much grief. Plus the acchan-yuko-acchan saga is over and there's nothing really in the elections anymore to keep the public (not the fans) interested.

While the news has been refuted, I am intrigued by your concepts. First, this is about popularity, not "value". Wasamin could be the best singer in all AKB and Sakippe could be the most talented girl in all thew 48 family, but if they don't have enough fans they won't be popular. So, no girl is undervalued, the girls are just not popular.

Also, the Acchan/Yuko showdown is really profitable for the group in general. They basically ended with 2x the votes of the 3rd each, and that amount will likely only increase this time. Acchan is the default face of AKB although Yuko is the one casual most recognize due Heavy Rotation, which continues generating revenue via karaoke (still #1 in the karaoke rankings). Plus, if not for that competition you would never see Acchan in AKBINGO! again If you mean it is over because Acchan will always win, it could be, but so everyone thought that during the second senbatsu.

Finally, the election has always been something for the fans to play with, but the marketing machine managed to insert it into morning and midday programs, news outlets, magazines, newspapers, etc. And they carry the news over because it gives good ratings. So, while the public might not be interested about it, they are forced to swallow it anyways.

I see what you mean here...

I just thought that people may be tired of the center rivalry, unless you are a big fan of either Acchan or Yuko. Maybe this thought is wrong but the senbatsu election as a media/news event is going to loose steam as more and more of the public don't care about the rankings anymore.

Also some people maybe a fan of a member but disagree with the buy 10 cds to vote model. Though they may not be casual fans and will actually spend money on other goods which still generates revenue for akb. So the election model is too one dimensional to measure popularity. I don't think it's unfair at all but just saying that some girls get pushed down because of an election's result.

I don't mind this for a fourth year but personally I prefer keeping setlist over senbatsu and janken just to keep things fresh.

Thanks for clearing the rumors up!

[Kokuhaku]

I just thought that people may be tired of the center rivalry, unless you are a big fan of either Acchan or Yuko. Maybe this thought is wrong but the senbatsu election as a media/news event is going to loose steam as more and more of the public don't care about the rankings anymore.

It's good to keep the election but they should limit the multiple votes
And the election becomes more and more predictable. There is a pattern:
- We're not surprised that the pushed girls always have a huge jump in ranks (Sasshi, Yui).
- Regarding the center battle, the one who got the most exposure prior to the election is so gonna win (3rd election with Acchan on every single magazine cover just before the election while Yuko is nowhere to be seen - intentional?)
- As members become more mainstream, they start to lose wota fan and thus, drop in ranks (take Tomochin as an example; Mariko, a household name, dropping 1 rank and losing to Yuki, is also a case. In the future, Acchan and Yuko as well, Acchan already experienced this with her handshake tickets don't sell that well considering her position)
- Some members feel set with their current positions and they no longer have any desire to rank higher (Mayu's speech in the 3rd election)
- No matter where you rank, management decides it all

[Starshard]

- Some members feel set with their current positions and they no longer have any desire to rank higher (Mayu's speech in the 3rd election)

I don't know about other members, but Mayuyu's speech in the 3rd election sure did not reflect how she felt, seeing there was an uncut clip showed us Mayuyu looking really sad, was crying even, when she sit at her 5th ranked seat.

Personally, I like the election. It gives the fans the sense of involvement in that certain single (whether that's true or not is up to debate), a chance to show off their supports to their favorite members and gives the public something seemingly fun and interesting to watch. The public might not care about a specific member and who is at center position, but an unique competition and ranking in general is always fun.

[joooooooooe]

am i really seeing this?

man, if anything, we've learned that nothing is predicatable.

the public ate this stuff up last election. i mean, really ate it up. if the 1st question you get as an akb fan is "who's your oshimen," the second one is probably "what rank is she?"

japanese friends online were telling me about the election and they're not even fans, that's how mainstream the whole thing went last year.

it's not just about #1 and #2, but given last year's results there's so much going on now. NMB's much stronger now. HKT's in the mix. people are getting pushes all over. some members have improved, some haven't. google+ and the additional exposure they're getting there. team 4 too.

for the more hardcore fans like us, we're watching to see if there's another kami 7 shakeup. we're watching to see who barely sneaks into senbatsu or how certain members have improved and dropped. we're curious to see who gets into UG and who leads UG.

if i was to pick one event that would really represent AKB it would be the election.

[A93x]

i agree with jooooe^, i think the election is now quite an important part about AKB. With all their appearances in the media, it makes media senbatsu especially interesting although it seems that girls with a strong push, like yui, can still feature.

For me, personally, i like it, even though i havent voted before, i find it exciting to watch, and see how girls fare compared to the previous year(s). It can at times be quite unfair if you think "____ has worked so hard, yet she doesnt rank", but with so many members involved (like jooooe said, with NMB rising, team 4 improving, etc.) it will lead to inevitable disappointment as there is only 40 spots. But thats part of the excitement for me as a fan. Seeing how Sasshi and Rena will do this year, the senbatsu in general with kitarie, akicha, jurina, yui etc and how they end up, who will be in undergirls (paruru, kuumin, non etc).
This year i'll be buying a single and putting a vote towards Rena. Personally, im not too sure i agree with the ability of fans to buy multiple (im talking in the hundreds) of cds to vote for their oshi, but in the end, it is their money, so if thats how they wish to spend it, then fair enough

[Gingerninja]

the public ate this stuff up last election. i mean, really ate it up. if the 1st question you get as an akb fan is "who's your oshimen," the second one is probably "what rank is she?"

The last few Japanese people to ask me about AKB skipped the whole "do you like them part" and went with the "who's your oshimen?" question first.. It's just kind of assumed you know and or like them if you even slightly speak Japanese it seems.

The election is a genius piece of marketing strategy, it allows some girls to shine, it unfairly probably mentally scars a few more, but you can't deny it generates interest (and sales) I can't remember what TV show I was watching last year, but they gave were giving live updates as it happened along the bottom of the screen as if it was sports results.. now that's mainstream.

Be interesting to see where last years pushed members place this year.. if Tomochin can regain her top 7 spot, can Yukirin stay top 3? lots of stories will come out of it, not just who finishes top.

[srking]

^
That's true, maybe they do care about everyone's rankings after all. I got the impression that the public is tired of AKB after talking to a few Japanese people I met at work, but they are not wotas or young people so maybe that's why I thought it'd be a good idea to try sth else to shake things up.

Thatt said, I still think surprises are what defines AKB. If they don't make some variation out of the election this year, as they did for google+ and the sakura single, I'd be disappointed.

[mieniem]

I can't help it if i dislike the election at this point, after 3 years it really is getting predicatable (actually after the first one really) and all anyone disscusses is the election, seeing people overreact over drops in rank and in denial over changes in rank. Also i've become more and more aware of damaging this event this is to some members and find that it can be the second most damaging to a member in experience second only to the harrassement one gets after a scandal erupts about them.