ARAMA! JAPAN | Page 1334 | Breaking J-Pop News and Celebrity Gossip

Ishihara Satomi and Yamashita Tomohisa co-star in next getsu9 drama “5→9”

Ishihara Satomi and Yamashita Tomohisa will co-star for the first time in Fuji TV’s next getsu9 drama. It’s a drama adaptation of Aihara Miki’s manga “5→9 ~watashi ni koishita ikemen sugiru obousan~” [from 5 to 9 ~the exceedingly handsome monk who fell in love with me~ ]. It’s an interwoven love story of a female English conversation school teacher and a handsome Tokyo University graduate monk.

First time leading a “Getsu9”, Ishihara plays the heroine who on the day before her 29th birthday suddenly gets approached by men breaking in to her period of being popular with guys (moteki). When she attended a funeral service, due to the numbness of her legs, she ends up emptying the ashes from the burning of incense on the head of a monk played by Yamashita and this is the occassion of their worst meeting. Once the two meet again in a matchmaking session, the heroine is prejudiced against the monk. However, the monk commences with a positive approach.

Nothing’s Carved In Stone show off their skill in PV for “YOUTH City”

Just a couple of weeks ago we reported that punk-rock band Nothing’s Carved In Stone would be releasing their latest full album “MAZE” on September 16th. Ahead of this date, the group has now chosen to make the music video for the album’s opening song “YOUTH City” available for viewing on their official Youtube channel.

The PV gives us a great view of the band performing the track, spending a not insignificant amount of time on each member playing their instrument of choice; these performance scenes are then juxtaposed against the background of a nighttime city and the various different locales within it.

The full PV for “YOUTH City” will be located right after the cut, so don’t hesitate to read onward.

Age Factory reveal special Documentary Music Video for new song “Saraba Machi yo”

It’s been a good long while since we’ve heard from Age Factory, but the promising young band have recently announced that they will be making their return to the music scene with the release of a brand new mini-album. Due out on September 16th, “NOHARA” will be the group’s second release on Space Shower Records and is set to include five songs written and composed by the band’s members.

In support of this new album, the group have published the PV for its lead track “Saraba Machi yo” to their label’s official Youtube channel. The video takes the form of a documentary which involves the group’s members as well as a comedian whom is a close friend of the band, aiming to express the emotions of each individual towards both their craft and the city of Tokyo.

You’ll find the full music video for “Saraba Machi yo”, as well as the track list for “NOHARA” just below the jump, so please do stick around for just a little bit longer.

AKB48 and DREAMS COME TRUE top the Weekly Oricon Charts! 08/25-08/30

The Oricon physical music sales charts for the week of 08/25-08/30 have been released!

August has just passed so that means Halloween anticipation in Japan is rising and Halloween-themed singles have begun their release cycle! Topping the charts is AKB48’s 41st major single, a disco-inspired “Halloween Night”. The single centered by 7th AKB48 General Election winner Sashihara Rino dominated competition with 1,277,761 units sold in its first week.

Back at its number one position with an additional 22,162 units sold is DREAMS COME TRUE THE BEST! Watashi no Dorikamu, the latest best-of compilation album by legendary pop group DREAMS COME TRUE, who have sold well over 50 million records worldwide since their 1988 debut.

Check out the top 10 of both lists below!

Open Reel Ensemble Release Short PV for “Kuchu Tokkyu”

Open Reel Ensemble is an electronic group that uses open reel tape recorders connected to computers during their shows to create unique performances. Today, they released their new album, “Vocal Code.” The theme of this album is “voice.” To execute this theme, Open Reel Ensemble has brought in a number of collaborators to lend their voices to the album, including Mori Shota, Nanao Tavito, and Kanda Ayaka.

Today, the group also released the short music video for the album’s third track, “Kuchu Tokkyu.” Check it out after the jump along with the album’s cover, tracklist, and trailer.

Kiko Mizuhara creates break up related buzz on Instagram once again

Last week, model and actress Kiko Mizuhara uploaded a picture of herself wearing a t-shirt that says “F*CK YOU” on her Instagram account.

This is not the first time that one of Kiko’s daring uploads has attracted attention.

At a first glance, it seems like a normal tee, but from up close, ornaments that resemble dragons can be seen. Now, a lot of people think that this is related to rumored ex-lover and BIGBANG leader G-DRAGON.

Crystal Kay and Namie Amuro make a ‘REVOLUTION’ in new full music video

As reported before, Crystal Kay will be releasing single, ‘REVOLUTION‘. This release has been gaining a lot of attention due to the collaboration with J-pop queen, Namie Amuro. And today, they have released the highly anticipated music video.

To further drive home the theme of empowerment, the video features about 500 women surrounding the two songstresses, fist pumping to the beat of the song. We also get to see Namie and Crystal dance together, in this beautiful, dream collaboration.

According to the source, Crystal Kay worked out and practiced prior to the photoshoot. Hence why fans were seeing glimpses of her in the gym and after dance sessions on instagram. According to Crystal it was because she didn’t want to drag down Namie and therefore tried her hardest to keep up. In total the video took 12 hours to shoot and looking at the end product, it was definitely worth it.

Don’t forget to check out the video below and tell us your thoughts on it!

Ayumi Hamasaki under fire for a-nation performance + divorce rumors

Singer Ayumi Hamasaki (36) has (almost) always had the honor of carrying out the final performance at avex’s summer festival a-nation.

This year, she performed at four dates in Tokyo and Osaka.

Besides Hamasaki, South Korean top-tier acts like BIGBANG, Super Junior and EXO as well as popular Japanese performers like Sandaime J Soul Brothers, AAA and E-girls were on the guest list.

However, even with such an all-star lineup, not all tickets were sold this year.

“Even though a-nation looks tremendous at a first glance, a lot of fans do not enjoy it that much because their favorite artists’ performances are short. There are plenty of other music events in summer, ‘Summer Sonic’ for example, so people get tired of festivals.