Japanese pop group AKB48’s member Atsuko Maeda is featured on recent issue of Young Magazine. Maeda – arguably the most popular girl among the 48 members – has released her first solo single, Flower, which topped the Oricon chart in its debut week. Check out the music video (just an ok song imo) and magazine images…
Otaku & Wota
AKB48 Mariko Shinoda WPB Magazine
Japanese pop group AKB48 member Mariko Shinoda is featured in recent issue of WPB Magazine. Mariko is one of the most popular girls among the 48-members group which is making waves on J-pop charts for the past 18 months.
AKB48-YJ7 Weekly Young Jump Magazine
AKB48-YJ7, a sub-unit of Japanese girl group AKB48, is featured in recent issue of Weekly Young Jump [Jp]. The unit consists of seven of the group’s 48 members, i.e. Minami Minegishi, Rie Kitahara, Miori Ichikawa, Suzuran Yamauchi, Yui Yokoyama, Amina Sato and Aika Ota.
AKB48 to setup theatre in Singapore
Japanese pop group AKB48 is setting up a theatre in Singapore, which would be their first regular show venue outside of Japan.
The 48-members idol group made their debut as theatre based performers in 2005, and have since evolved into the most successful female pop group in Japan. AKB48 still perform on regular basis in their theatres despite the mainstream success. Their best selling singles include Sakura no Ki ni Narou and Beginner etc.
According to official announcement [Jp], the Singapore show will be held twice a month in 2011, beginning on May 15. The concert and ticketing details are not yet finalised. Judging from their previous well-received performances in Singapore, it’s probably going to be a sell out crowd, at least for the first few shows.
AKB48 series – Previous: No3b Shonen Champion
Danny Choo @Home Maid Cafe, Tokyo, Japan
Photos by popular Japan based blogger Danny Choo from the @Home Maid Cafe, one of the more popular cosplay cafes in Akihabara, Tokyo. Photography is usually not allowed in a themed cafe; these pictures were taken when Danny was filming a TV show, Culture Japan, for Animax Asia last summer.
OOO, Den-O, All Riders: Let’s Go Kamen Riders
Japanese trailer for OOO, Den-O, All Riders: Let’s Go Kamen Riders, a special movie in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Kamen Riders franchise.
Kamen Riders was created by mangaka Shotaro Ishinomori. It debuted as a TV series on April 3, 1971. The original show lasted for two years, but its legacy lives on with various spin-off and other masked-men-inspired productions then after. It’s an epic for many Asian folks (especially the guys) who grew up in that era..
