Talking about going out with a bang.
So many idols from AKB48, Nogizaka46, and their sister groups quickly disappear into the ether after graduating, so their final individual release (photo book, photo shoot, etc.) may be one of the last ways they can make a mark.
Seira Hayakawa is doing just that, and then some.
Whatever happens to the 23-year-old Osakan after leaving Nogizaka46 at the end of August (and she has indicated her intention to fully retire from the entertainment world), she has rewarded fans with her most explicit photo shoot yet.
Her photo book, Some You Again, Someday, ...
It's one of the industry's open secret that most Japanese music and gravure idols are poorly paid. While it's natural to assume that a struggling musician or an underground (chika) idol has a day job, the agencies and management for other kinds of idols are very controlling, and prefer their idols to be available 24/7 despite not paying them a living wage.
It leads to scandals sometimes, when the compensated dating that many idols do gets exposed. Such a scandal led to the end of Shoko Takasaki's gravure career in 2015 -- and the birth instead of her porn career, where she enjoyed immese ...
We recently wrote about ex-AKB48 idol Satomi Kaneko's retirement, noting how she had carved out quite a striking career as a sexploitation actress and nude model after her brief stint with the group.
In general, after leaving one of the AKB or Sakamichi groups, or any idol group for that matter, the surest way to cement your status is to do more provocative shoots in gravure magazines, release photo books, and branch out into fashion modeling and TV gigs, either acting or presenting.
Only a lucky few land "serious" acting roles (perhaps only Atsuko Maeda and Yuko Oshima spring to mind), but ...
Unlike the members of AKB48 and Nogizaka46 and all their sister groups, the fine young ladies of the somewhat tamer Momoiro Clover Z have not indulged in gravure shoots during their long careers as performers.
Now as they edge toward 30 -- a significant milestone for music idols -- and even start to get married, it seems even less likely.
Or so you would think.
Reni Takagi, a member of the color-coordinated group, announced her marriage last year, though thankfully not her retirement from the group.
She is now set to release her first solo photo book on August 29 at the ripe age of 30. ...
Morning Musume idol Maria Makino is promoting her ninth (!) photo book, the aptly named Dear Maria, which came out in Japan earlier this month.
That's quite a career and she's still only 22!
The summer-themed photo book, which was shot in Guam, includes pics of the young Aichi native in a figure-hugging, skin-tone swimsuit that makes her look naked.
Unfortunately, the actual photo book is too new for decent shots to exist online, it seems, but there are a few somewhat grainy behind-the-scenes shots of lovely Maria in her skimpy swimwear.
Netizens are, it almost goes ...
Recently graduated from Nogizaka46, Asuka Saito has released a new photo book and it's making a splash.
Saito, who is half-Myanmarese and half-Japanese, was a first-generation member of Nogizaka46. The 24-year-old graduated the idol group earlier this month.
She was one of the most popular members of the group, having performed with them for over 11 years, and is hoping to use her departure (and the buzz surrounding her graduation concert last week) to launch a solo career.
This week, the first images from her new photo book, Museum, were released. They are semi-nude, with the slinky ...
One of the most popular members of NMB48, Yuzuha Hongo made the surprise announcement on April 4 that she would be graduating the Osaka group.
Alongside her singing, Hongo pursues a burgeoning career in gravure (as reported before), having released her first photo book from Kodansha in 2022.
A second photo book is set for release at the end of May, shortly before she will graduate from NMB48.
Known as Yuzu to her fans, the idol is still just 20 years old and seems very young to graduate (though she joined way back in 2015, so has devoted eight years of her life to the Namba-based group). ...
We've said it before and we'll say it again: the idol world is dodgy.
Let's be loud and clear: we hope the young women (well, girls -- they are usually young teenagers) know about these potential risks before they get into the industry.
Sure, there are respectable managers out there, but bad apples and the bunch and all that. The industry is highly competitive and exploitative, known for making its young members work long hours for little pay, and for sexual abuse (no doubt partly accepted by people in the industry as the equivalent of the casting couch).
The media has reported another ...
The mayor of Nagoya, Takashi Kawamura, has been accused of making an inappropriate hand gesture when posing for a photo with young music idols.
The head of Japan's fourth largest city, and a major industrial center, the 74-year-old mayor stood for a jocular pic with several attendees at a Korean cultural festival in Nagoya held on November 12 and 13.
However, it was immediately noticed that he did the fig sign with his right hand. The image of the smiling Kawamura, surrounded by women decades younger (dressed in traditional Korean clothing), with his thumb between two fingers has caused a ...
An underground Japanese music idol group has claimed that one of its members will become an adult video star for being the least popular.
Announced on September 16 and apparently running until September 19, the last day of a music festival, the Planck Stars said that the member who got the least number of snapshots taken with fans would be forced to debut in porn. Incidentally, the winner gets a free bicycle.
The group claimed its members devised the campaign themselves.
The original announcement got some attention back in September, but has received renewed outrage on Twitter in the ...
