Former AAA member Chiaki Ito recently held a party at her home ahead of the birth of her baby.

Ito was joined by her closest friends, including product designer Shigeru, former ViVi reader model Ami Haruna and actress Waka Inoue who all shared photos on their blogs. The color theme followed soft pastels and the tablescapes were filled with vivid flowers and an eclectic selection of both Japanese and western foods to pick at.

Inoue, who gave birth to her first child in July 2015, commented, “Chiaki-chan’s happy aura is too amazing. I’ve never seen a more happy, radiant pregnant woman. The party was wonderful.“

Now that Kawatani Enon’s primary band, Gesu no Kiwami Otome., is back, it makes sense that his secondary band, indigo la End, is coming back as well. On July 12, the band will release their third major label (and fourth overall) album, “Crying End Roll.” This release comes a little over a year after their last album, June 2016’s “Aiiro Music.”

“Crying End Roll” will contain 12 songs, including “Kane Naku Inochi”, which serves as the opening theme for the Fuji TV FOD (Fuji TV On Demand) drama “Boku wa Mari no Naka”, which premieres on June 6. Two of the songs on the album are remixes of older songs, one provided by Qrion, while the other was done by Chan MARI, Gesu no Kiwami Otome.’s keyboardist.

The limited edition of the album comes with a DVD which features footage from the band’s September 2016 “Playback” concert at Tokyo’s Shinkiba STUDIO COAST. indigo la End has released the peformance of “Nagisa nite Maboroshi” from the DVD on YouTube. Check it out below, along with more information on their new album!

This week’s guests were Kis-My-Ft2, Ken Hirai, and Sambomaster.

Kis-My-Ft2 – PICK IT UP

Sambomaster – Oretachi no Susumu Michi wo Kanashimi de Tozasanaide

Ken Hirai – Nonfiction

Gesu no Kiwami Otome. came back to life (somewhat) last month with the delayed release of their scandal-shelved album “Daruma Ringo.” Looking for opportunities outside of the stimgatized band, drummer Hona Ikoka has decided to become an actress. She has signed with Oscar Promotion, home of the likes of Aya Ueto and Yonekura Ryoko.

On June 7, Ken Hirai will release his new single, “Nonfiction.” The song serves as the theme song for the TBS drama “Chiisana Kyojin.” Ken recently released the music video for the “Nonfiction.” The Tanabe Hidenobu-directed clip takes place in a deserted amusement park at night. Ken sings while holding a floral bouquet, while butoh dancers dance around him, adding to the odd feeling of the video. Check it out below, along with the single’s covers and tracklists!

On August 26 and 27, this year’s edition of Avex’s annual music festival, a-nation, will take place at Tokyo’s Ajinomoto Stadium. The first day’s headliner will be AAA, while the second day’s headliner will be Ayumi Hamasaki. See who else is performing below!

This week, GOT7 topped the Hot 100 chart with their new single “MY SWAGGER.”

Nogizaka46 topped the Hot Albums chart with their new album “Umarete Kara Hajimete Mita Yume.”

Back in January, it was announced that the former king of Arama Jin Akanishi would be starring in a Chinese Drama titled “The Legends of Monkey King”.  Also starring Raymond Lam and Jiang Meng Jie, “The Legends of Monkey King” has quickly become one of the most anticipated dramas of the Summer.

The drama series is based off of the folklore surrounding the famous mythical figure Sun Wukong, but with a twist. A normal man is going on about his day when suddenly he finds himself traveled back in time inside the body of Sun Wukong. He goes on a quest to try and understand the situation and restore everything back to normal.

Jin plays the role of “Erlang Shang”, a god and fierce warrior. In the drama Erlang Shang is infuriated when his sister, the “Holy Mother”, falls in love with a mortal man. This is Jin’s first major role in a drama in 10 years, the last being NTV’s “Yukan Club”.

Within the past few years Jin has established a very strong fanbase for himself in China. Back in April Jin was invited to attend the prestigious “Top Chinese Music Awards” (CMA). Not forgetting about his Japanese fans, Jin took a short break from filming to perform a two day concert in May at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium.

45 episodes have been produced and will air exclusively via the Chinese streaming service “Youku”. Promotional posters for “The Legends of Monkey King” can be seen below the jump.