[youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WHkfR0nKFI”] Oh lord, this trend needs to be fenced in a bit. The massive success of ant-hill-like pop outfit AKB48 has inspired a plethora of spin-off groups, ranging from sorta expansion teams in other cities (Sendai, Osaka, etc.) to not-safe-for-work-named groups flipping the genders (Naked Boyz). Now comes the logical next step in either a…
AKB48 member/drone Yuko Oshima appeared on some World War II special recently. Quizzed about who Japan fought in the war, she blunders a few historical facts up, such as thinking Japan fought Italy. Whooops! Read the whole account thisaway. Hmmmmm, never would have guessed being thrown into a J-Pop army at a pretty young age…
[youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YVuqLKvMAc”] China might have leap-frogged Japan economically this week, but the Land Of The Rising Sun remains number one when it comes to pumping out sickeningly cute videos. Move over AKB48, Tomato-Chan trumps you big time. Speaking of… AKB48 “Heavy Rotation” [youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9znOcsdxUUo”] I’ve already explored the creepier aspects of “Heavy Rotation,” so how about we…
Already huge among high school girls and (presumably, if YouTube videos can be trusted) a certain kind of middle-aged man, pop-cult AKB48 has managed to become even bigger during the summer of 2010. They’ve nabbed TV candy commercials and appear on a convenience-store’s worth of magazine covers. Spinoff branches of the Akihabara-based groups have emerged…
Well, that’s one way to stay in the public spotlight. Former AKB48 member Rina Nakanishi began her new career in the adult film industry this month, trading in her creepy schoolgirl outfit for…errrm, nothing. All kidding aside, Japan Probe points out how the AKB48 model actively promotes this, making a few girls near the top…