Maybe Aki-P and staffs are hoping to find another shiny gem that can pull the rest of the group like Jurina (remember Oogoe Diamond) and Hirate Yurina by pushing certain members.
Duh! Too bad it'll take ages for us to see it in all its glory (if we ever do). Poor girl must be praying to the seven gods so that she doesn't get to center anything.
Agreed but this weekend a 'popular' British newspaper has published a badly-researched article on AKB48 and the Japanese idol scene. I'm not going to link to the article but let's just say the newspaper is named after the big yellow thing in the daytime sky and the article can be easily found on its website. Can I please suggest that anyone who wants to read it can do so if they want to, but having done so simply sigh, roll their eyes and move on without discussing it here?
A little OT but I must disagree. She isn't just in the right place at the right time. Techi is a star because she is an amazing performer and actually has that elusive "center aura" that people liked to talk about when Acchan was around (but honestly Techi blows every single other center thus far out of the water). Ikoma centered Nogi's first few singles but it didn't earn her the kind of crazy perma-center fervor of fan love that Techi's getting, because Ikoma just doesn't have what Techi has, and eventually she was shunted to the side for more suitable centers. I do agree though that AKB is looking for that same kind of star power in their own ranks and not finding it. Mion - let's face it, she's a nice girl but she's no permacenter material. Giving her a solo concert is just a way of saying "hey fans, this is our megapush girl, plz keep voting for her in SSK and going to her handshakes because she's super interesting, see?" Team 8 on the other hand has talent coming out of its ears and no way to showcase them all on the public stage. But AKB's big Mion push smacks of desperation to me, a little bit. Like they're making do with what they have even if it's not ideal. I like the rotating center system for AKB anyhow, so it doesn't bother me, but if this Mion push doesn't bear the fruit they want I suppose they will just shove her aside and start pushing someone else. It's possible she's already plateaued in popularity. That's showbiz
Acchan didn't have star power when she debuted. She became a star, with less resources and less exposure than right now. So why it isn't working? Why doesn't the current AKB get member popularity like Acchan and Yuko in the new gen? I think is that fans change as well. They want everything, and instantly. Management try to push like crazy but doesn't let a member fanbase develop as much as they used to be. It takes a lot of time and effort to reach a high level of popularity. Also, i don't feel like people oshihen that much. When their oshimen graduate, most of the time they graduate as fans too. Basically new gen need to build their core fanbase on brand new fans. Problem is that there's much much more competition than before. AKB group is spread out while Sakamichi series hasn't, thus explaining their huge handshake sales. Before trying to go back to our past glory, first we need to accept the fall. And start from scratch again.
I think it's like how a star shines in the vacuum of space, the darker its circumstance, the brighter that star shines. AKB needs to thrust itself into a market that they don't fully understand and find success in that market. This is why I believe that in order for AKB to have another rise in popularity, they have to look internationally. I mean, AKS has enough sister groups in Japan for financial security, why not make a group that can stand toe to toe with KPop, which is doing great? As my Oshi Song says: there is a river in front of you but you need to cross that river. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Techi is a great center yes, but to say she's a star because of her talent/force alone is a stretch. Sony has a good eye seeing Techi's ability but you could probably pick another girl from the popular members pool and she would have sky rocketed with Silent Majority too.
Well AKS almost succeeded in investing in SNH48 but those mainlanders thought otherwise and stab the japanese in the back to claim the whole cake as their own. SNH was truly an opportunity to get global and it was stolen away.
I feel like one of the reasons why SNH went away from AKS is because AKS didn't let local Chinese music producers make SNH music and SNH realized this.
I think Techi is great, but there are probably other member that can be as great as Techi but didn't get the same chance to prove it. Other member will become popular if they centered SiMajo, but not everyone can maintain their popularity. Actually I like Ikoma in her early years, I think she got that center aura. But then I feel Ikoma character is changing (or maybe it is her true character) to the direction that make me don't care for her. Techi so far is great, but whether she will still be great in a couple of years is still a question mark. What I'm sure is that without SiMajo, she wouldn't have the chance to show how great she is (at least not at fast as currently is). That is where the right time and place came from. If she were to enter Nogi or 48G, Techi would still be nowhere right now. If other managed to be in the same time and place as Techi, she will have the chance to be as great as Techi (not a given, but at least she will get the opportunity to be great). Also the one of the problem with 48G is that not only about the center but their reliance on the senior member as their spoke person. Most of the talking on music program is being done by Sasshi. Sasshi is usually in the spotlight more than the center. Yes, it is can't be helped that the host want to talk to the popular member, but I wish the center can get more spotlight, otherwise it would have less meaning to be the center if those programs in the end focusing more on Sasshi, Mayuyu, etc. It is definitely a lot harder to find someone like Techi in the current 48G environment instantly. Let's say one of the 16th gen have the potential to be like Techi. Then what? will fans accept a 16th gen that suddenly being pushed to the front of the senbatsu? And not only the fans, but will the member them self accept that kind of thing? The one that has been working hard waiting for their chances just to see those chances fall to the hands of someone new. Okada Ayaka upon hearing about 16th gen have their own concert make this remark on her 755 -> もう16期生単独やるんだね… Also hopefully management didn't forget about the existence of D2. Actually this is kinda surprising for me since with the team not having enough members I would've thought that they would promote them already.
13th and non-ori-4 12th gen members have always been in such a weird spot since their debut, most of them haven't really been included in a unit/group/whatever promotion, only individual placements here and there and short-lived theater teams. Lack of group narrative have really hurt a lot of members (e.g. non-ori-4-12, 13 and non-musketeer 14), and they're practically invisible to casual fans. Some 15th members and draft members may be heading the same way.
It seems that if Miion G+ post is true, she only know about the concert at the same day as everyone else. A month of preparation should be enough for her but it doesn't look like something that is well planned. Having said that, it can still turn out to be great.
I don't think we can compare Techi to a group that already has so many other "well-built" members. Afterall, Keya just formed and needs someone to become the center. Coincidentally, Techi was lucky and got a popular song. However, if she auditioned for 16th gen and got airdropped into Senbatsu, regardless of whether she's full of promises or not, fans (and even members) are not going to be happy. Even if management will push her like Matsuoka Hana, they still won't see the "center aura".
2016 when ? anyway i just noticed that with establishment of STU48, now 48G has conquer all western japan. with NMB in Osaka (kansai region), HKT in fukuoka (kyushu region) and STU48 in seto sea, wich may include hiroshima, okayama and all shikoku city (chugoku and shikoku region), that made 48G have conquer all big city/region in western japan. in the midle of of honshu (central japan) they also make NGT48 in north, wich strengthen 48G presence in chubu region (nagoya, niigata) now what is left is eastern japan, with hokkaido and tohoku region. and its been like years that there's floating rumour that they'll make Sapporo48 in hokkaido, and tho maybe the rumour its not as strong as sapporo48, they might also make Sendai48 in miyagi (tohoku region) Once they make Sapporo48 and sendai48, then there i'd say 48G have conquering the whole japan. if you relate it to history of japan, 48G now is japan in oda nobunaga + toyotomi hideyoshi conquest, wich have conquer all western japan.
I have seen a few "women-only" shows on the schedule this year. However, what I have seen more of lately are "Enpou Only" and "50+ only" shows
Nobody in AKB had star power when they debuted, because the group itself didn't have any power. It is an extremely simple reason why it isn't working now. AKB is too well known and too famous to give one or two members 3 years as a perma-center, and have them grow. Acchan/Yuko didn't really have seniors above them like members do today. How are you going to take the top member of 16th gen and the top member of the 17th gen and basically put them front and center of the entire AKB group, kennin's and all, for the next 3-4 years? You can't put them there in front of Sasshi, Mayuyu, Yukirin, Sayanee, Jurina, Sakura, etc. Without forcibly disbanding and kicking out every member before the 16th gen, stopping 100% of sister group participation in singles, and basically starting from scratch, it is impossible for what happened in the first 2-3 gens to ever happen again. Thus the only way is to either not push anyone at all from a new generation, or do what they are doing now and try to decide who the top 2-3 members are and push them and hope the fans agree and they become popular.
