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Japanese Entertainment News & Info HERE! [part IV]
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Ayaka Yamauchi leaves NMB48
Fri, November 5, 2010 (8:13pm EDT)
AKB48's newest sister group NMB48 barely made its public debut last month, and now it already has its first graduating member. It was announced on Friday that research student Ayaka Yamauchi (15) has left for health reasons. Yamauchi previously had to take a break from training due to poor health, but her condition has apparently not improved. It is said that she herself also requested to be removed from the group.
NMB48 held its auditions earlier this year, screening a pool of 7,256 applicants that even included submissions from overseas. 39 girls passed the audition, and 26 of them were chosen as the initial members of the group. With Yamauchi's departure, NMB48 will continue for now as a 25-member unit.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Salyu sings as Lily Chou-Chou again
Sun, November 7, 2010 (1:19am EDT)
The musical unit Lily Chou-Chou is reuniting, nine years after its last release. They have a new single scheduled for December 8, and a live performance a week later on December 15.
Lily Chou-Chou was a fictional singer created in 2000 for Shunji Iwai's internet novel "All About Lily Chou-Chou," which was turned into a popular movie in 2001. Before the movie's release, Iwai and music producer Takeshi Kobayashi formed the real-life unit Lily Chou-Chou with vocals sung by Salyu, who plays the fictional Lily Chou-Chou in the movie. In 2000, they released the two singles "Glide" and "Kyoumei (Kuukyo na Ishi)." Then in 2001, they released the album "Kokyuu," which was essentially the movie's soundtrack.
For the new single, Lily Chou-Chou consists of Salyu as vocalist, Yukio Nagoshi as guitarist, and Takeshi Kobayashi as keyboardist, producer, and composer. Nagoshi has worked as a live and studio guitarist with many artists, including Salyu, Ringo Shiina, Chara, and hitomi.
A teaser for the song is available on the group's newly created YouTube page. The unit also has a new official website, Facebook page, and Twitter account.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Hello Bye Bye, Doki Doki Camp comedians announce marriages
Sun, November 7, 2010 (9:18am EST)
Two comedians recently announced that they each got married. Akio Seki (35) was first, revealing that he got married last Wednesday. Then Mitsuharu Sato (32) revealed in his blog on Saturday that he has been married since last month.
Seki is a former member of the duo Hello Bye Bye, which broke up at the end of last year. On November 3, he and his girlfriend (33) registered their marriage. It is said that they plan to hold their wedding ceremony sometime next year.
Sato, on the other hand, is part of the duo Doki Doki Camp. His agency stated that he registered his marriage on October 2. The age of his wife was not revealed, but it is said that the two began dating one or two years ago.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Nippon Broadcasting System starts new radio drama series
Sun, November 7, 2010 (9:56am EST)
Nippon Broadcasting System is starting its first radio drama series in 14 years. Titled "Bakumatsu Sanshimai," the drama tells the story of three sisters who changed the fate of Japan during the Bakumatsu period.
The last radio drama series on Nippon Broadcasting System was "Hayao Miyazaki's Daydream Data Notes" in 1996.
"Bakumatsu Sanshimai" stars three young actress signed to the Stardust Promotion management agency: Shiho (18), Karin Aiba (17), and Ayumi Okazaki (15). The series will be broadcast late on Sunday nights (1:30am), starting on November 7.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Nao Matsushita stars in Fuji TV detective drama
Sun, November 7, 2010 (5:28pm EST)
Nao Matsushita (25) will star in a new drama series on Fuji TV this winter, which will be her first lead role on one of the commercial networks. The series is not yet titled, but it will have her playing the part of a police detective.
Matsushita has had a few starring roles in dramas on the public network NHK, including the recent "Gegege no Nyoubou." That series tremendously boosted her popularity, to the point that she was chosen as one of the hosts for this year's Kohaku Uta Gassen.
 
In her new drama, she will play a quick-acting detective, who forms a strange combination with a level-headed but eccentric psychology professor, played by Naohito Fujiki (38). His skills at behavioral analysis are the key to successfully solving the cases and tracking down the criminals. Kanjani8's Yu Yokoyama (29) will play another detective who helps Matsushita, though he also has feelings for her that he is unable to confess.
Fuji TV will air the series on Tuesdays at 10:00pm, starting in January.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Hikaru Utada drops Universal for global contract with EMI
Mon, November 8, 2010 (7:32am EST)
EMI Music announced on Monday morning that it has signed a new global recording deal with singer Hikaru Utada (27). This spells the end of her contract with Universal Music, which has released her two English albums in the United States under its Island Def Jam label. Although those albums were released under the name Utada, she will now be using her full name Hikaru Utada for her future releases in all countries and all languages.
The press release issued by EMI Music notes that Utada's debut album "First Love" has shipped more than 9.9 million copies worldwide and is currently the "most successful Japanese language album ever." So far, she has "sold in total over 50 million singles, albums, and DVDs worldwide."
Utada's dissatisfaction with Universal was apparent when she recently told fans they shouldn't buy the "Utada The Best" album, a compilation of her English works. Universal had unilaterally decided to release the album on the same day as her Japanese single compilation "Utada Hikaru SINGLE COLLECTION VOL.2," being released by EMI Music on November 24.
With her new global recording contract, it is not clear how long her planned hiatus will last.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Best Smile of the Year: Nao Matsushita, Kuranosuke Sasaki
Mon, November 8, 2010 (7:43am EST)
 
The Japan Dental Association presented its 2010 Best Smile of the Year awards on Monday. In the celebrity category, actress Nao Matsushita (25) and actor Kuranosuke Sasaki (42) were honored for their smiles.
The Best Smile of the Year awards started in 1993, and they have been awarded every year (except 2004) on November 8, which can be read as "ii ha," or "good teeth." Last year's winners were Becky (26) and Ryuta Sato (30).
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Model Ryoko Tanami expecting first child
Mon, November 8, 2010 (7:51am EST)
Fashion model Ryoko Tanami (37) will become a mother next year. On Monday, she wrote in her blog that she is currently six months pregnant, which means she is expected to give birth around March 2011.
Tanami has been married since April 2007 to businessman Yoshitaka Nojiri (38), who is the president of wedding services company Take and Give Needs. They had been dating for only four months at the time they married.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Ozora Takami to make drama debut in "Onmitsu Happyakuyacho"
Mon, November 8, 2010 (8:03am EST)
A few more cast members have been announced for NHK's upcoming jidaigeki drama series "Onmitsu Happyakuyacho," which starts on January 8. One of the additions is 15-year-old Ozora Takami, making his television drama debut.
"Onmitsu Happyakuyacho" was first announced in September. Hiroshi Tachi (60) stars as a samurai who forms a group called the "Onmitsu-gumi" to fight against the evils of the government during the time of the Tokugawa shogunate.
Takami has been chosen to play one of the members of the Onmitsu-gumi. Although he is only 15, he has been performing in theater since he was 1 and a half years old. He has already made a name for himself as a skilled onnagata (a male who plays female roles), with many calling him the next Taichi Saotome (another well-known onnagata, 19). In "Onmitsu Happyakuyacho," Takami will show off those skills, as one scene will require him to dress up as a woman in order to infiltrate a household.
Another newly revealed cast member is Yumiko Shaku (32), who will play Takami's sister Otoki, the only female in the Onmitsu-gumi. Although she has appeared in a jidaigeki drama special before, this will be her first jidaigeki series. Her role will also call for plenty of action scenes.
 
Akiko Nishina (57) is set to play Tachi's sister, while Rika Adachi (18) has been cast as his adopted daughter.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Hikaru Utada directs first music video
Mon, November 8, 2010 (10:53am EST)
It was confirmed on Tuesday that Hikaru Utada (27) directed the music video for her new song "Goodbye Happiness," which is included on her upcoming album "Utada Hikaru SINGLE COLLECTION VOL.2." This is her first work as a director, and she is credited under her actual name (Hikaru Utada), rather than the way it is usually written.
The video is shot with a single camera in one continuous take, using no CG effects. It will be included in a special bonus DVD for pre-orders of the album, though the full video can also be seen on her YouTube page.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Kenichi Matsuyama to star in 2012 taiga drama?
Mon, November 8, 2010 (6:34pm EST)
Nikkan Sports is reporting that Kenichi Matsuyama (25) has been chosen to star in NHK's 2012 taiga drama, "Taira no Kiyomori." No official announcement has been made yet, but if the report is true, it will be Matsuyama's first time appearing in one of the taiga dramas.
NHK revealed in August that the 2012 series would be about Taira no Kiyomori, a general during the 12th century who led the Taira clan to power. As previously mentioned, the show's producer is aiming to undo the villainous image that Taira no Kiyomori has had up until now.
"Taira no Kiyomori" will begin airing in January.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Ikimono Gakari sets 2010 record with best album
Mon, November 8, 2010 (7:18pm EST)
Ikimono Gakari's best album "Ikimono Bakari ~Members BEST Selection~" was released last week, and it has already sold 457,000 copies, more than doubling the first-week sales of their last album. That amount sets this year's current first-week sales record for an artist with female vocals, surpassing AKB48's "Kamikyokutachi" (295,000). Even including male artists, they are in second place behind Arashi's "Boku no Miteiru Fuukei."
Ikimono Gakari formed in 1999 but did not make their major label debut until 2006. They achieved their first number-one album with their 2008 release "My song Your song." With this, they now have three consecutive number-ones (two original albums and one best album). The last mixed male/female group to achieve that was HY in 2006.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Korean girl group KARA stars in TV Tokyo drama
Mon, November 8, 2010 (7:58pm EST)
The promotional push for popular Korean girl group KARA continues with the news that they will be the stars of their own television drama, scheduled to begin airing on TV Tokyo and its affiliates on January 14 (Fridays 12:12am). Titled "URAKARA," the show will feature the members of KARA as themselves, taking on a series of missions related to love.
The premise of the show has KARA working for an underworld service as for-hires, but instead of killing their targets, their missions require them to make those men fall in love with them. Each week, a mysterious boss will give them their new target - from powerful politicians to kabuki actors to ordinary salarymen - and they will use any technique they can to accomplish their goal. But due to their inexperience with love, various problems come up during their missions.
Producer Kaori Hashimoto said, "There's no doubt that you'll be able to see another face of KARA that has never been seen before." The show will freely blend reality and fiction, with the members using their own names to give it a greater feeling of authenticity.
KARA made their Japanese debut in August with the song "Mister," which received a lot of attention for its famous "butt dance." Their second single "Jumping" is being released this week, and their first original Japanese album "Girl's Talk" will quickly follow on November 24.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Ai Hashimoto stars in horror film "Avatar" (Updated)
Tue, November 9, 2010 (6:31pm EST)
Model and actress Ai Hashimoto (14) has been given the starring role in a new movie titled "Avatar," directed by Atsushi Wada. The film has no relation to the popular 3D movie of the same name, but is instead a horror film in a school setting.
Hashimoto entered show business in 2008 and is currently a model for the magazine Seventeen. She made her movie debut when she starred in the 2009 film "Give and Go," but she is much more widely recognized for her role in Tetsuya Nakashima's "Kokuhaku" ("Confessions"), released earlier this year.
In "Avatar," Hashimoto plays Michiko, the plainest student in her high school class. However, when she obtains a rare avatar on a social networking site called "Ava Q," the boundary between her real and online identities becomes blurred as she shapes her physical form to match the avatar, even receiving facial surgery. As she gains influence among her classmates, she begins committing crimes for the sake of the site's digital currency, going as far as committing murder.
Hashimoto has already finished filming her scenes. The movie is set for release in spring 2011.
Additional information from Eiga.com: "Avatar" is based on a novel by writer Yusuke Yamada (29). Yamada also wrote "Real Onigokko" and "Batsu Game" ("X Game"), which have both been adapted as films.
Other cast members include Rikako Sakata (16), Nako Mizusawa (17), Yuri Hane (21), Kazuma Sano (21), Mizuki Sashide (16), and Mio Otani (18).
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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A few celebrity baby announcements
Tue, November 9, 2010 (8:00pm EST)
Comedian Tetsuo Sato (34) of the duo Punkbooboo recently announced that he became a father. His wife, whom he married in April, gave birth to their first son on November 6.
Actress Hiromi Iwasaki (33) also gave birth to her second daughter on November 7. She married actor and musician Metal Yoshida (39) in 2007 and had her first daughter later that year.
Meanwhile, comedian Red Yoshida (45) of the duo TIM announced on his blog that he and his wife are expecting their fifth child in February. They currently have two sons and two daughters, ranging in age from 3 to 12.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Ryuichi Kawamura to star in "Wuthering Heights" musical
Tue, November 9, 2010 (9:30am EST)
Emily Bronte's classic novel "Wuthering Heights" (known as "Arashigaoka" in Japan) is being performed as a stage musical next year, starring LUNA SEA vocalist Ryuichi Kawamura (40). Although there have been musical adaptations of the book before, this one will be a new adaptation written by playwright Sanae Iijima and directed by Nobuhiro Nishikawa.
 
Kawamura is taking on the lead role of the revenge-seeking Heathcliff, while voice actress Aya Hirano (23) and singer Natsumi Abe (29) have been double-cast as the heroine Catherine. Although Abe has plenty of experience on stage, this will be Hirano's first performance in a theatrical production.
The revealed cast so far includes Ikusaburo Yamazaki (24) as Edgar, Yuki Shoda as Isabella, Dai Iwasaki as Hindley, Keaki Mori as Nelly, and Tsunehiko Kamijo as Mr. Earnshaw.
The musical will be performed at Tokyo's Akasaka ACT Theater on July 6-24, then at Osaka's Theater Drama City on July 25-31.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Jun Natsukawa engaged
Tue, November 9, 2010 (5:58pm EST)
Talento and gravure idol Jun Natsukawa (30) is reportedly getting married in January. A source close to her says that she has been engaged since the start of this year and has already informed her close friends about the engagement. The man (29) runs a cafe-restaurant in Roppongi, and he is described as resembling actor Hayato Ichihara (23).
Natsukawa was introduced to the man a few years ago, and they have been dating for a while. The two have already formally met with each other's family regarding the engagement. Although they have decided to register their marriage in early January, no date has been set for the wedding ceremony. It is said that she is not pregnant, and that she plans to continue with her work.
Source: www.tokyograph.com |
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Nozomi Sasaki shows some leg for lingerie maker
Wednesday 10th November, 05:09 AM JST
TOKYO —
Popular model Nozomi Sasaki, 22, showed a pair of shapely legs at a recent event for underwear and lingerie manufacturer Fukusuke. Sasaki modeled a new brand of of black tights. She told reporters: “They look like they’ll last a long time. They’d make an ideal gift.”
Naturally, she was asked about her plans for Christmas. “I’ll be at work this year on Christmas day,” she said.
www.japantoday.com |
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Lena Tanaka appointed tourism ambassador for Kurume city in Fukuoka
Thursday 11th November, 03:22 AM JST
FUKUOKA —
Actress Lena Tanaka, 30, has been appointed special tourism ambassador to her hometown of Kurume in Fukuoka Prefecture. City authorities chose Tanaka to be the public face of the city in the run-up to the grand opening of Kurume’s shinkansen (bullet train) station next year.
“I’ve always wanted an opportunity to repay my hometown for the happy years I spent here right up until high school,” said Tanaka. “I’m going to use everything I’ve got to let people know about Kurume’s best features—which, by the way, include the city’s amazing ramen noodles.”
From now until next year, Tanaka will be attempting to create a name for the city as a tourist destination by appearing on posters advertising the city’s charms, before attending the station’s commemoration ceremony in March.
Source: www.japantoday.com |
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Yuna Ito says she wants to get married by 30
Thursday 11th November, 10:00 AM JST
TOKYO —
Hawaiian-born singer Yuna Ito, 27, attended the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Dome City winter illuminations in Tokyo’s Bunkyo Ward on Wednesday night and performed a short, four-song live set including new song “I Want to Protect You.” She also announced the release of her greatest
hits compilation album “Love” which is to be released just in time for Christmas.
Ito expressed her amazement at the Christmas lights, which she said were “amazingly beautiful.”
The press then turned their attention to her personal life and asked how she would be spending Christmas. “Probably at a friend’s house having a nabe party or something,” she responded. When asked if there was a special man in her life with whom she would be spending the holidays, Ito responded, “No there isn’t. Although I wish there was. I’d like to be married by the time I’m 30.”
“Love” goes on sale from Dec 8.
Source: www.japantoday.com |
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