Request Hour 2012 Day 3 ended not too long ago, and wow, has today been a day of surprises. Many new entries to the top 50 this year, some not even expected. Really shows that the fans are trying their best to push their favorites this year.
Popular group SMAP appears in the latest commercials for SoftBank Mobile!
Sporting matching white suits, the members of SMAP strut about the rooftop of the high class Singapore resort “Marina Bay Sands“ for the CM. Other scenes include the group having a party at a beautiful tropical park overflowing with greenery, and SMAP enjoying themselves at a pool located on the rooftop of MBS.
Filming for the commercial took place on March 3rd. A helicopter was used for several shots. SMAP member Kimura Takuya was also said to have been extremely impressed by Marina Bay Sands, commenting that the location was like “a daydream made into reality”.
“The five of us don’t have chances to go overseas a lot,” said Nakai Masahiro about filming for the CM. “Last time was New York, and this time is Singapore. Who knows where the next one will be (laughs).”
The CM began airing on June 6th, and can be viewed here on SoftBank’s official website.
AKB48’s Maeda Atsuko is going to star in a new version of the drama “Hanazakari no Kimitachi e – Ikemen Paradise“, widely known as just “Hana Kimi“, this summer.
Fuji TV aired a drama of the same title back in 2007, starring Horikita Maki. Just like the Horita Maki, Maeda is going to play a girl who has to disguise herself as a boy in order to get enrolled into a boys’ boarding school for certain reasons. There is no doubt that the cast will be made up full of hot, young actors and idols again, making it difficult for female viewers to resist the drama, but will Maeda be able to make some girls’ hearts flutter as a boy as well?
Maeda Atsuko’s “Hama Kimi” look was revealed. What do you guys think?
Having required to play a girl who disguises herself as a boy to enter an all boys school, Maeda cut about 5~6 cm of her hair, and will also wear a male student’s school uniform. Maeda said, “I think I will look even more different without make-up. I can’t wait to wear boyish clothes.”
The first “Hana Kimi” was a huge success with an average rating of 17.3%, with the final episode managing to reach 21.0%. Next to Horikita, the cast featured various big names such as Oguri Shun, Ikuta Toma, Mizushima Hiro, Okada Masaki and many more. Most of the staff will return for the “rebirth” of the drama, making sure to adapt the atmosphere from the original manga once again, but of course they will work on a slightly new scenario and a different story.
Shoujo Jidai(SNSD) has announced that they will be releasing a new Japanese album in July. To promote this new album, Shoujo Jidai has managed to get British singer C.J. Lewis to rework the Korean idol group hit track “GENIE” for an English remix version of their hit song!
The song has been uploaded onto Universal Music Japan’s official YouTube channel. Although the video is just a teaser, the song features lines that are entirely in English and promises an official release sometime this July.
Check it out:
Source:tokyohive
Held on the 29th of May, the performance had the same time slots as the first one with one being held at 3pm and the other at 7pm.
And here is the tracklist of the concert.
AKB48 2nd Theatre Performance @ Singapore – 29th May 2011
Tracklist:
Overture
01 – Aikatatta
02 – Ponytail to Shushu
03 – Iiwake Maybe
MC (ALL – Introduction of the Members)
04 – Bye Bye Bye
05 – Wagamama Nagereboshi
06 – Gomen Ne Jewel
07 – Dakishimeraretara
08 – Hajimete no Jellybeans
MC
09 – Everyday Kachuusha
10 – BINGO
11 – Oogoe Diamond
12 – Sakura no Kini Narou
ENCORE
13 – Heavy Rotation
14 – Dareka no tame ni
15 – Hikoukigumo
Extras:
- Nacchans Birthday Celebration – 7PM session only
- Group Photo of all the AKB members and the audience.
- Handshake with All the Girls at the end
Yes, you didnt read wrongly. There was a handshake session at the end of the performance. This really follows the style of AKB48. They always do something unexpected.
The performance itself was electrifying. The members captivated the audience making time pass in a flash. Watching their theatre dvds really cannot compare to the atmosphere you feel there.
Credits: AKB-sg.net (set list), AKS/AKB48 Singapore(pictures)
AKB48 Singapore held a hand-shake session this afternoon, 28 May at the Gallery,*SCAPE.
The event was something not to be missed. Three of the ladies, Akimoto Sayaka (Leader of Team K), Uemda Ayaka , and Nito Moeno were the special guests for todays event.
Well, due to some unforeseen circumstances, the event was delayed around 30 mins. But all the fans waited patiently. Some even prepared cheers for when the ladies arrived!
Finally, when the ladies arrived, they were greeted by cheers and shouts by the crowd. After a brief introduction and briefing by the staff, the handshake event went underway.
And what an event it was! I had a chance to take part as well and what can I say……….It was pure bliss.
I have never expected to see Sayaka face to face in my life.
We also saw many young fans and family coming.
Its still quite hard to believe that I have shook hands and talked to 3 girls from Team K.
After the handshake event, the ladies also checked out the AKB48 Singapore store today.
They hung around taking pictures and soak up the atmosphere there.
Do look out for their comments and pictures in their respective blogs.
Picture Credits:AsiaPRWerkz
AKB48’s third Senbatsu General Election for their 22nd single is set on June 9th. Not wanting any fan to miss out on the action, Sony Livespire is going to deliver it LIVE in over 70 cinemas across the nation!
Twenty-one members will be chosen by fan votes to be on the Senbatsu team and become the face of their next single. Year after year, the election ceremony has increased in its scope, and so this year, they were forced to change to a bigger venue, the Nippon Budokan. Wow, they really know how to do things in style.
Just like last year, Livespire is going to broadcast the election live in various cinemas across Japan, but the number of screenings will also be doubled to around 70~80 (numbers unconfirmed).
Credits:tokyohive
An unemployed 18-year-old man pretended to be a TV station worker and filmed the members of AKB48 during their handshake event in Sapporo city in the Hokkaido prefecture. Currently, he is being questioned by the Hokkaido police.
AKB48’s agency has expressed caution regarding the matter, stating, “There is the possibility that this was an organized crime.”
—
The handshake event which the man intruded on was held on May 15th. 20 members of AKB48, including Maeda Atsuko and Takahashi Minami, shook hands with 1100 fans who had bought the first press limited edition of their single, “Sakura no Ki ni Narou“.
According to a source, three local media outlets, including Hokkaido Broadcasting Corporation (HBC), were covering the event. The 18-year old suspect was found wearing an arm band and identity card with the HBC logo on it. He had also rented a professional video camera from a rental company. He then put a HBC sticker on the video camera and shot footage of the members among the actual crew of the TV stations.
—
Since the interview with the press was scheduled to be the first five minutes of the event which started around 1:30 PM, the media staff left not long after that, however the intruder continued filming until around 5 PM. Occasionally, he even talked to the members to film “comment footages”.
The members were separated into 12 lanes, of which the man filmed each one carefully. When he got to the last lane, an AKB48 staff became suspicious of the unusually long filming time. When questioned, the man replied, “You have to ask my boss“. The staff spoke to a man who said he was the intruder’s boss on the phone, but the conversation did not make sense.
—
The man, after questioning, named member Yokoyama Yui, who was not present at the event, as his favorite member.
Although initially thought to be just an over-enthusiastic fan, fears that he was part of an organized effort to sell illegal footage prompted staff to call the police.
Fans are strictly forbidden to take video at AKB48 events, and are banned from further events and theatre performances if caught.
It has been announced that Watanabe Mayu, one of AKB48’s most popular members, will be holding a handshake event in conjunction with the launch of the AKB48 Official Shop in Taiwan!
The Official Shop opens on June 12th. On that day, 500 lucky fans will have the chance to shake hands with Mayuyu! There are also certain exclusives only available at the Taiwan Official Shop.
To be able to participate in the draw for a handshake ticket, you must first register as a member on the website of the Official Shop. Detailed instructions can be found here.
===
Date: June 12th, 2011
Time: TBA (Afternoon)
Number Of Participants: 500
Place: AKB48 Official Shop Taiwan (Ximending Eslite 116 B1F)
===
Source: AKB48 Official Shop Taiwan
