ARAMA! JAPAN | Page 1437 | Breaking J-Pop News and Celebrity Gossip

The “7th AKB48 Senbatsu General Election” to be held at Fukuoka dome

It was announced that the “7th AKB48 Senbatsu General Election” will be held on June 6 at the Fukuoka Yafuoku! Dome.

In the last 2 years, the election was held at outdoor stadiums, Ajinomoto Stadium (2014) and Nissan Stadium (2013). For this, year, the venue was decided after considering issues such as weather, noise levels and stadium capacity.

Under the same candidacy system like last year, members of AKB48, SKE48, NMB48, HKT48, and former AKB48 members who transferred to overseas sister groups (Nakagawa Haruka and Chikano Rina) are eligible to apply as a candidate. Members can declare their candidacy from March 25, 4pm until March 29, 10pm. Voting period will begin on May 19, 10am until June 5, 3pm.

So far, SKE48’s Matsui Rena has opted out of the election, same as JKT48’s Nakagawa Haruka.

Arrest of former AKB48 manager reveals illicit footage of members

According to weekly tabloid Shukan Bunshun, it has come to light that former AKB48 manager Takashi Nodera (38) stashed hours of compromising footage of members of the popular Idol group in varying states of undress taken during his time with the company.

The inappropriate materials in question were taken over 2009 and 2010 during the filming of “The Show Must Go On,” a documentary showing the inner workings of a group of girls on their rise to becoming their most popular pop band in the nation.

Ayumi Hamasaki Releases PV for “Last minute”

As previously reported, Ayumi Hamasaki is set to release her new album “A ONE” on April 8. Ahead of the album’s release, she has released the music video for “Last minute.” “Last minute” was originally released last December as part of Ayu’s triple A-side winter single. It is now the 5th song on “A ONE.” The music video for “Last minute” features Ayu in a red gown, singing the song in an empty room. Check it out after the jump!

Check out Shinohara Ryoko in new Triumph CM

Actress Shinohara Ryoko (41) is back as the image character for Triumph “WONDER MAKE”. You might want to check out her first and second CMs for the brand, specifically for the Tenshi no bra (angels’ bra) product, as Shinohara was credited with a 200% boost in sales for her endorsement.

For the new line of items under WONDER MAKE and its non-wire comfort feature, Shinohara shows off her “angel bra” under her white shirt and along with a gray pants, establishing an image of a sophisticated woman. Adopting the image of Shinohara, who is active in TV and movies, the ad is likely to give a positive feeling to working women.

Check out her new CM and its making of below.

Koro Sensations PVs out; Ninomiya Kazunari voices “Koro-Sensei”

The movie Assassination Classroom starring Hey! Say! JUMP’s Yamada Ryosuke opened last March 21 and topped the box office ranking, pulling 350,900 viewers and raking in 410,788,100 yen ($3.44 million) on its opening weekend. During the first day stage greeting, the voice behind the CG character, Koro-sensei, also kept hidden from the cast, was revealed. During the event, the lights in the venue were dimmed. When the lights were back on, Arashi’s Ninomiya Kazunari appeared on stage, surprising the cast and the audience.

Ninomiya apologizes “I do not want my evil character to stand out in my junior’s first movie, so I only came out today. I’m sorry”. Yamada, who was also surprised, delightedly says he is happy to be able to work with his senior even in such a form. His parents told him they think the voice actor behind Koro-sensei is Ninomiya but Yamada insists it is not him or else he would have heard from the Jimusho. He apologizes to his parents but says he was not lying to them as he was unaware.

In addition, the theme song for the movie titled “Koro Sensations” is released as a DVD single under the name Sensations (Hey! Say! JUMP). The members each have a code name for the new unit. Check out the 2 music videos for the song – Battle Mode and Operation Mode- below.

Sato Takeru to use Twitter for a limited time + 3 min trailer of new drama “Emperor’s Cook”

Sato Takeru will be acting as a chef for TBS’ 60th anniversary Special drama “Tennou no Ryouriban” (Emperor’s Cook), which will be broadcasted on April 26. For a limited time, he will be using the drama’s official twitter account from March 19 until the drama goes on air. For his first tweet, he uploaded a picture of himself from France, the drama’s shooting location.

The drama is based on the non-fiction novel “Tenno no Ryoriban” by Sugimori Hisahide and the main character is based on a real person Akiyama Tokuzo. Sato plays a cook who, at the age of 26, becomes the chef for the Emperor of Japan.

To prepare for the role, Sato took cooking lessons from August, 2014 at a culinary school. He also had his hair cut for the film. Filming also took place in Paris, France.

On March 23, the actor uploaded a 3 minute trailer of the upcoming special. Check out the trailer below and his twitter account for several more of his selfies uploaded.

Digital Singles Charts for the Week of 3/18 – 3/24

Recochoku:
1. Hazzie – Kimi to.
2. whiteeeen – Ai Uta ~since 2007~
3. Kumamushi – Attakaindakara
4. Southern All Stars – Iya na Koto darake no Yononaka de
5. chay – Anata ni Koi wo Shite Mimashita
6. SEKAI NO OWARI – Dragon Night
7. Nogizaka46 – Inochi wa Utsukushii
8. GReeeeN – Ai Uta
9. 8.6 Byou Bazooka – Rassungorerai
10. Kyary Pamyu Pamyu – Mondai Girl

iTunes:
1. whiteeeen – Ai Uta ~since 2007~ 42,483
2. Hazzie – Kimi to. 30,578
3. Kyary Pamyu Pamyu – Mondai Girl 20,826
4. Southern All Stars – Iya na Koto darake no Yononaka de 19,132
5. Huruya Kenji – Swallow Dive 18,257
6. chay – Anata ni Koi wo Shite Mimashita 15,233
7. SEKAI NO OWARI – Dragon Night 12,712
8. Nogizaka46 – Inochi wa Utsukushii 12,006
9. Kumamushi – Attakaindakara 9,656
10. Sandaime J Soul Brothers – R.Y.U.S.E.I. 8,402

V6 announces 20th anniversary single “Timeless” and tour

V6 has announced the release of their 20th anniversary single round 1 and tour. This single has a theme of “bonds” throughout its songs. “Timeless” is the theme song for the 10th installment of the TV Asahi drama series “Keishicho Sosaikka 9gakari” featuring member Inohara Yoshihiko. The music video features both V6 dancing to a medium ballad, and costumes specialized by each of the members to their own exacting tastes, so it’s a must-see.

The dance song “SPOT LIGHT” can be enjoyed by everyone together, expressing tight bonds in the form of V6 singing about their feelings and gratitude toward all their supporters. In the music video, you can enjoy V6 dancing their hearts out in a concert-style format!

In addition, the group has released details of their upcoming tour “V6 LIVE TOUR 2015”. The tour will cover 15 performances from August 30 – November 1, kicking off at Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center, and ending with a 4-day concert at Yoyogi National Gymnasium. Johnny’s net and Johnny’s web will be taking requests of what songs fans want V6 to perform during this tour, until April 20th at 12:00 pm.

Check out the single and tour details below.