Oga Saki (Saachan)

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100 Questions with all 3 new KKS.

 

Some info about Saachan in English from the AKB48 Staff X account:
https://x.com/AKB48_staff/status/1870387423731212538

 

I love her! Im a big Fan! Fluffy~

 

Thank you For me I think its her tallness and the fluffyness. Shes like a princess.*-* I think I probably also changed too over the years. Lets do our best supporting her !!!

 

Can't believe she's 18! She looks like 12 in the pictures

 

Short interview with Saachan on BOMBweb:
https://bombweb.jp/contents/p11788/



As it's only a short article I've run it through Google Translate:

 

Today Saachan performed 'Kanojo' as a Zenza Girl opening act for the RESET show:
https://x.com/Saki_Oga0516/status/1891445716628730121

 

UP-Tension #49 with Saachan:


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Saachan’s first video in the ‘Why AKB48 in the Reiwa Era’ series from Weekly Playboy:


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WeeklyPlayBoy's Interview Series, [Why AKB48 in Reiwa] continues! Saachan's interview time!

Saachan's article, part 1 (June 12, 2025)
https://wpb.shueisha.co.jp/news/entertainment/2025/06/12/127326/

video:

Translation assisted by ChatGPT (please inform me if there are any mistakes!)

AKB48 20th Generation Research Student Saki Oga:
“In my senior year of high school, I was doing both the AKB48 audition and job hunting at the same time”
【Series: Why AKB48 in the Reiwa Era?】



On December 8, 2005 (Heisei 17), AKB48 was born in Akihabara. The group produced numerous stars such as Atsuko Maeda, Minami Takahashi, Haruna Kojima, Mariko Shinoda, Yuko Oshima, and Rino Sashihara, and became a national idol group known to everyone.

More than ten years have passed since then, the era has changed to Reiwa, and once again, new star candidates have been joining one after another. In an environment different from back then, what made these girls want to become part of AKB48? What are they aiming for? This series, “Why AKB48 in the Reiwa Era?”, explores the charm of fresh new members through in-depth interviews.

In this 24th installment, we feature Saki Oga, a 20th generation research student from Fukushima Prefecture. Standing at 168 cm, she’s currently the tallest active member of AKB48. In Part 1, she talks about her chatty childhood and her school years.

■ I was the student conductor in the brass band club
—What kind of child were you when you were little?

Oga: I think I haven’t really changed much—I’ve always loved talking. My grandparents used to joke, “Were you born from your mom’s mouth?” I’d talk nonstop and sing nonstop, that was how I was as a little kid.

—What did you talk about so much?

Oga: It was like I had to report everything that happened that day. When I got home from school, I’d stand next to my mom while she was cooking—not helping at all, just talking endlessly. I just couldn’t rest unless I said everything.

—That must’ve been exhausting for the listener.

Oga: At first, my mom would say, “Okay, okay,” but eventually she stopped responding. But I didn’t need her to reply—I was just happy being able to talk.

—You also said you were always singing?

Oga: I’d sing songs from “Okaasan to Issho” (“With Mother”) and even “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”—apparently I could sing it before I could even talk. I was always moving around, had extreme mood swings too. I could be smiling and chatting one moment, then suddenly get angry and hit the sofa. I was a noisy kid, even by myself (laughs).

—Do you have siblings?

Oga: I have an older brother and a younger brother. We all got along well, and I didn’t have that “stuck in the middle” hardship or anything like that.

—What did you admire when you were little?

Oga: I liked anything sparkly—princesses, idols, pastry chefs. I watched the anime “Yumeiro Patissiere” a lot. I also watched “Mecha Mote Iinchou.”

—Did you do any extracurricular activities?

Oga: I did dance from a really young age, and I also tried swimming for a bit and took piano lessons.

—When did you start dancing?

Oga: From age 4. I don’t really remember the reason, but apparently I told my parents I wanted to dance. My older brother got roped into it too, and we started together.

Up until 6th grade I was in the kids' class, learning various styles. When I entered junior high, I chose hip-hop and jazz hip-hop. But balancing it with club activities was tough, so I quit in the fall of my first year of junior high.

—What were you like at school?

Oga: I didn’t like being alone, so I was always with my friends. During breaks I chatted with them, and after school I’d be the one inviting them to hang out. Also, exchange notebooks were super popular when I was in elementary school, and I really wanted to do that with everyone.

—Sounds like you were the center of the class.

Oga: I don’t think I was the center, but I was definitely someone who often said, “Let’s do this” or “Let’s do that.” But I’d also quit things really fast. I’m totally the textbook example of someone who gets excited easily and loses interest just as quickly (laughs).



—What club activities did you do?

Oga: I was in the brass band. I liked music, and since I played the piano, I figured the brass band would be a good fit.

—How long did you take piano lessons?

Oga: From sixth grade through my third year of junior high. I had always said I wanted to learn piano, but I had to choose between piano or dance, and I went with dance. But then I got a keyboard as a birthday present. I started playing it by myself, and eventually my parents said, “If you love it that much, we’ll let you take lessons.”

—What instrument did you play in the brass band?

Oga: I played the French horn.

—Did you choose that yourself?

Oga: During the trial period for new club members, we got to try all sorts of instruments. The club advisor would then decide which one suited you. That’s how I ended up with the horn. I’d never even touched one before and didn’t know anything about it, but a senior two years above me was incredibly kind and a great teacher. Thanks to her, I was able to learn a lot and really improve.

—Do people usually play the horn in a group, or...?

Oga: Our whole club only had about 17 or 18 members, and for the horn section, it was just me and that senior. When there weren’t any horn parts in a song, I’d play the xylophone or timpani instead. That’s something you often see in small school brass bands—you get to play a lot of different instruments, and it was fun.

—Did you take on any leadership roles, like club president?

Oga: I was the student conductor. I’d lead things when the advisor wasn’t there. Before we played, we’d all tune together, and I’d play a reference note on the piano to check whether everyone could hear and match pitch properly.

—That’s a really important role.

Oga: Since we didn’t have many members, everyone had to work together. We helped each other tune and adjust pitch, and we supported each other across all three school years as one team.

—How were you with studying?
Oga: I studied properly in junior high. I was always within the top five in my grade.

■ I decided to apply to AKB48 because I liked their costumes and songs
—What about high school?

Oga: I didn’t really feel like studying anymore (wry smile). Also, the school uniform was cute, so I entered a credit-based high school.

—What kinds of things did you study there?

Oga: I did things like using Word and Excel on the computer. In fashion class, we’d do clothing remakes and even held a fashion show at the school festival. My favorite subject was food culture—we made dishes from the Yayoi period and cooked foods from around the world. Since there were many international students, I learned how to make pasta and pizza from a girl from Italy.

—That all sounds really fun. But it also sounds kind of all over the place.

Oga: At the time, I didn’t have any dream or clear goal for the future, so I just picked whatever sounded fun—and that’s how it turned out (laughs).



—Did you join any clubs in high school?

Oga: I didn’t. I was more into hanging out with friends after school and heading home together.

While I was doing that, I eventually became a senior and had to start thinking about my future. I didn’t really have anything I wanted to do, but I started job hunting anyway.

—You were learning about food culture, fashion, and computers, right?

Oga: Out of those, I was best at and enjoyed the commercial computer stuff the most. I had a pre-level 1 certification in information processing, a level 2 certification in word processing, and a level 1 in document design. So I mainly looked into office jobs or web marketing and attended company information sessions.

—Did you consider going on to college?

Oga: In my first and second years, I did think about vocational school or university. I even sent away for brochures and wavered right up until the end. But at the time, I was really into this one idol group—I wanted to go to their concerts, buy their merch... So I figured it’d be better to get a job, earn money, and spend it how I wanted.

—So you were planning to get a job locally in Fukushima?

Oga: No, I wanted to go outside the prefecture. I looked into companies around Saitama, Chiba, and Yokohama. Tokyo was too expensive with rent, so I thought somewhere close enough to visit Tokyo casually would be better.

I had thought things through that far, but then I remembered—“Wait, didn’t I used to really admire idols when I was little?” And just as I was thinking that, a TikTok recommendation for the AKB48 audition popped up.

At the same time, Nogizaka46 was also holding auditions. But I told myself I’d only apply to one group. My mom asked, “Aren’t you going to apply to Nogizaka46?” But I didn’t want to be like, “This one didn’t work out so I’ll try the other.” I thought hard about it, and in the end, I chose AKB48 because I liked their costumes and songs.

—So you made up your mind. Had you ever auditioned for anything before?

Oga: No, this was my first time. Also, someone I knew from back home had appeared on PRODUCE 101 JAPAN. Seeing someone close to me working hard like that inspired me—it made me want to give it a try too.

—But you were still job hunting, right?

Oga: I was doing things like attending online company info sessions and submitting first- and second-choice applications based on job postings. The AKB48 audition started in June, so I was doing it in parallel with my job search.

(To be continued in Part 2)

The “Why AKB48 in the Reiwa Era?” series updates every Thursday. Part 2, in which Saki talks about the AKB48 audition and her future dreams, will be published on June 19!



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Two extra pics from Grajapa!

https://x.com/grajapa_2024/status/1933102015892377997


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As she mentioned in the recent UP-T radio episode, she's pretty skilled with computer stuffs.
Thank you for choosing AKB, Saachan!
Also her acquaintance that appeared in PRODUCE 101 JAPAN could be another Fukushima-born Aita Rin (会田凛), who is now in IS:SUE.

 

UP-Tension #50 with Saachan:


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