On September 7th, 2020 was held the first edition of the collaborative concert MAD SHAKE exclusively broadcast online, in Shibuya Quattro in Tokyo. This hour and a half brought together 4 artists including the electro group NIKO NIKO TAN TAN, the idols rock group SOMOSOMO, the pop/rock group MINAMIS as well as the widely known solo idol Terashima Yufu. For this occasion, Bonjour Idol wishes to highlight the rock idol group of the evening, SOMOSOMO!
The sun is shining, the cicadas are waking up, Tokyo Idol Festival is getting closer… summer is not only about come to Japan but also everywhere else around the world of idol fans! It is the perfect opportunity for us to put up this little list of idol (and j-pop) songs that are perfect to enjoy your summer time with friends. The songs listed below are chronologically sorted and the list is, of course, non-exhaustive (and probably subjective as well). We will welcome more suggestions from you guys on our social networks to update the list for next year!
With a name like FES☆TIVE, you can already picture what kind of direction and sound such a group might have… and you would be right. Deriving from words such as “festival”, “positive” and “active”, the songs of FES☆TIVE describe these terms perfectly thanks to their colorful melodies. Add to this a stylish aesthetic drawn from carnival and traditional Japanese culture, the 6 members are self-proclaimed ambassadors of Japan overseas! They have so far had many opportunities performing in the United States for J-POP Summit, but also in Hong Kong, Indonesia, and more recently South Korea and Thailand. But their main activities are of course based in Japan, and are regular performers of big idol festivals like Tokyo Idol Festival or @JAM EXPO. In March 2019, the group will already celebrate its 7th anniversary! With a steadily growing popularity since their creation in late March 2013, they have released seven singles in total -six under a major label and one as an indie act- as well as one album. The line-up is composed of 6 members: their leader Aoba Hinari, Shiraishi Piano, Mano Saria, Doko Ruriko, Minami Marika and Kondo Saeko. Fun fact: Aoba Hinari and Doko Ruriko are real-life cousins! The group went through, like many young idol groups, a few graduations and withdrawals, some being quite sudden. In their first year, the group had already seen three departures and recruited two new members.
Necronomidol, under their label VELOCITRON, is an idol group based in Tokyo created in June 2014, with a rock-like musical style with a big metal inspiration. It is currently composed of 5 members: Risaki Kakizaki, Sari, Hina Yotsuyu, Rei Imaizumi and Himari Tsukishiro, while they were only 4 at their debut. Only Risaki and Sari are only original members left, and the latter is probably the most recognizable of them five, with her light blue hair and an “shironuri”-type immaculate white face. To this date, they have in their discography 7 singles, 2 albums and a third one is scheduled for the end of September this year. The producer, manager and man behind the band is Ricky Walson, an American aficionados of the Japanese underground idol scene. Thanks to the democratization of less traditional idol groups, Ricky wanted to create a group that follows this trend and wanted the group, as he explained in the interview below, surrounded by “darkness”. Their Patreon page labelled their style as “ultra dark japanese idol music”, which sets the tone.
Every year, Japan Expo in Paris gathers a very diverse panel of idol guests. While the convention has now a very Hello!Project oriented reputation, Japan Expo also welcomes lesser known and very promising groups and artists that you definitely do not want to miss. In this week’s write-up, we will introduce the fresh faces of Wi-Fi-5!
Every year, Japan Expo in Paris gathers a very diverse panel of idol guests. While the convention has now a very Hello!Project oriented reputation, Japan Expo also welcomes lesser known and very promising groups and artists that you definitely do not want to miss! The first idol group we will introduce you through these Japan Expo cheat sheets is strange yet cutesy indie sensation Maneki Kecak (just pronounce it “kecha”). Maneki Kecak debuted in 2015 and is the little sister group of now-disbanded-then-reformed drop (now known as Nanaland). They all belong and are produced by an agency called Nihon Twintails Association.