You might not think Final Fantasy XV still exists, but Square swears it does. They even brought proof to this week’s Tokyo Game Show, including a new trailer featuring gameplay, cool cars, and pretty boys. Check it out, along with more info below
Sweet 16 dancer-songwriter Mirei Toyama has released the video for ‘Memories‘.
Mirei is a newcomer to the game and in the past year has performed at BET Experience dance competition and collaborated with the singer SHUN. This single includes two new songs, “Just You” and LINE messenger app tie-in with “DON’T CRY, LINE ME” , as well as a couple remixes and even a cover of Ken Hirai’s “Hitomi wo Tojite”.
Esteemed newspaper The New York Times has released an article on the anomaly that is that Japanese music industry. In the article, the Japanese obsession with cds as opposed to digital music was discussed. The stalled implementation of streaming music services is also discussed. The rest of the world is moving towards digital formats such as downloads and streaming while Japan remains steadfast in its love for physical music. Japan’s impact on the health of the struggling worldwide music industry was also covered in this article.
Once again, electro-pop indie unit spoon+, fronted by vocalist aco, is back with another PV as part of their Sunday music video relay. As this is their fourth video release in five weeks, it seems like the music project is on fire with their creative visuals. This time the song they used is “merry marie” off their newest album eat, and the PV depicts aco in a surreal and cute wedding. Watch it below!
Back on September 13th, DISH// performed a free live at The Orchard Town Center in Denver, Colorado as the opening act for US boy band After Romeo as previously reported.
At the live, they introduced themselves in English to the crowd of After Romeo fans (“Juliets”) that packed the venue, though there were some excited yells and a general positive reaction to the J-Pop band. As opening act, DISH// performed three songs: ‘GRAND HAPPY’, ‘Odoranyason! Song!’, and ‘Saisho no Koi ~Motetakute~’.
Check out some fancams below!
In ‘Ori Star’ magazine released on the 12th of September, the results of a poll of 300 female reader’s ‘favourite female idol!’ was published.
Mayu Watanabe took the number one spot, Haruna Kojima in second, and Yuko Oshima was third, with members from AKB48 and their sister groups taking half of the places.
Comments from the readers for Mayu included “she has a high sense of awareness as an idol” and “It is good that although she is cute she is also an Otaku!”
For Haruna, readers complimented her looks stating “She has a cute and pretty face, she has a wonderful feminine style without being too thin.”
However, comments on the website ‘Girls Channel’ were not so positive towards the ranking.
Former Morning Musume member Mari Yaguchi (31), who has not appeared in public since her affair came to light last May, emerged through a telephone appearance on Fuji TV’s Mecha-Mecha-Iketeru on the 13th. Since then, Yaguchi’s blog has had a rapid increase in comments hoping for Yaguchi’s return.
Yaguchi’s blog, just like her career, took an indefinite hiatus once her cheating scandal was exposed. Her last entry is titled “To everyone,” contains her apology as well as her intent to take a break from the industry. Due to the blog not being shutdown, fans who hope for her return still leave comments. Though only a few are left each day, there are more than 5000 comments as of September 12th.
The AKB48 2014 Janken Taikai (rock-paper-scissors tournament) was held earlier today on September 17 at Nippon Budoukan. This year, 113 members participated from all the domestic sister groups: 93 from AKB48, 8 from SKE48, 7 from NMB48 and 5 from HKT48.
Unlike the past Janken Tournaments, this years will not determine the Senbatsu for a new single. This year, the tournament winner gets their very own solo debut, and if they have already debuted, they get a solo concert instead. Runner-ups from 2nd to 16th place win a spot on a coupling song along with the MV on the solo single.
Haruna Kojima was pit against SKE48 and NMB48’s Miyuki Watanabe, but in the end, Miyuki Watanabe was deemed the 5th queen of Janken.