From the left: Yoshizawa, Takahashi, Konno, Ogawa, Niigaki, Fujimoto, Kamei, Michishige, Tanaka, Kusumi
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Morning Musume.
This is probably the page which will result in me being stigmatized for life LOL. But I really don't see what the fuss is all about. I have no delusions about what Morning Musume is, but I think that a lot of other people do. They are a bubblegum pop idol group for sure, make no mistake, but being "idols" and not just "singers" there is a lot more to them then the music. The point of an idol is that they go beyond the normal realms of just singing songs, and branch out into other forms of entertainment, such as TV shows, acting, fashion, etc. People who say "well they have no talent, they just look pretty" are obviously missing the point. It'd probably be better to take a jack-of-all-trades point of view when examining idols. They do many different things ok, but have no real specialty. Showing off their personalities and actually being "accessible to fans" is a large and charming part of what they do. To judge them purely on the basis of their songs or one other random aspect is unfair and ignorant really. If you want a really in depth analysis of the pop idol group then I invite you to take a look at an essay I wrote for my Japanese Pop Culture class during my study abroad in Japan during the summer of 2004. Link here.
I take the kind of "reality TV show" approach to the group. Ask yourself, "why do people like reality TV shows?" The answer would be cuz you get to see intriguing characters, interesting situations, and most importantly there are "real emotions." If you look at Morning Musume as a kind of "reality TV show experience" then you'll see that they fit the bill exactly. Since they do so much, it's up to the fan to really decide how much they want to follow the group. Some people only watch the TV shows, some people only listen to the songs, some people only follow the dramas. There is quite a wide-spectrum to chose from. For me, I really only follow the TV shows, with the songs. That's because I want the "reality TV show" kind of experience. I don't care for the acting at all because it's all fake. Through the tv shows you get to know the personalities of the group, sympathize with them, and kind of grow along with them. I'd also be lying if I said that listening to their happy songs didn't cheer me up from a bad day more than once.
That being said, I was also a momusu hater before LOL. My mind was changed around August 2003. I was super duper bored one day and was randomly clicking through the jpopmusic forums and I *accidentally* clicked on the Morning Musume forum. I had never been there before and never had any intention of going there ever, so I was going to click the "back" button when a thread caught my eye. It was an English lessons thread, which featured the girls getting quizzed on their English abilities. They were subtitled by a certain guy named SMP, and I thought to myself, "What the hell. I'm bored, it's in English, and I can probably laugh at how stupid they are." It's true, they were really really bad at English, but it was funny as hell. So this little video file sparked some interest and it all snowballed from there lol. I won't go into much background since the group has such a long history and there are many other sites that explain it well (or you can read my essay). All you really have to know is that group members change every year or so but the girls are always adorable :-D
Don't be a hater. Be HAPPY!
Top 10 Favorite Morning Musume. Songs:
1) Honki de Atsui Theme Song
2) The Peace!
3) Souda! We're Alive
4) Koi-Ing
5) Roman ~my dear boy~
6) Fine Emotion!
7) Summer Night Town
8) Daite Hold on Me!
9) Sotsugyo Ryoko ~tabidastu hito ni okura uta~
10) I Wish
Favorite Albums:
1) 4th [Ikkimashoi!]
2) No. 5
3) Ai no Dai 6kan
4) Rainbow 7
5) 3rd -LOVE Paradise-
6) Second Morning
7) First Time
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Profiles: Members as of March 2006
Hitomi Yoshizawa
4th Generation
Birthday: 1985/04/12
Birthplace: Saitama
Blood type: O
Height: 163cm
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Comments: Hitomi is the current leader of the group as of March 2006 and is the oldest member of the bunch. She has a very boyish personality which provides contrast to many of the other super girly members. She is also captain of the H!P Futsol team, Gatas Brilhantes H.P. which she has led to many victories.
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Ai Takahashi
5th Generation
Birthday: 1986/09/14
Birthplace: Fukui
Blood type: A
Height: 153cm
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Comments: Ai is the lead singer of the group and has a simple, honest personality which is adorable to watch. Her thick accent used to be something that people made fun of her for (it was super cute tho lol) but she has gotten rid of it in recent years much to the disappointment of fans and management lol.
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Asami Konno
5th Generation
Birthday: 1987/05/07
Birthplace: Hokkaido
Blood type: B
Height: 156cm
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Comments: Asami is the brainiac of the group, being the smartest member, but she also is known for her large appetite as well. When she first joined the group, she was a slow and timid person, but she has really broken out of her shell in recent times to become a more fun loving and outspoken member.
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Makoto Ogawa
5th Generation
Birthday: 1987/10/29
Birthplace: Niigata
Blood type: O
Height: 155cm
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Comments: Makoto is probably the most "un-idol" like of the entire group, but has her own charms which make her an important part of the group. She is also rather boyish like Yoshizawa, but is made fun of on a constant basis by other members for her hilarious "kimoi" behavior.
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Risa Niigaki
5th Generation
Birthday: 1988/10/20
Birthplace: Kanagawa
Blood type: B
Height: 154cm
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Comments: Risa is a member that never seemed to get much spotlight in the past, being lost in the shuffle of other members but she has grown up a lot in the past few years to be able to hold her own now. She is always cheerful and has recently also blossomed into a strong singer.
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Miki Fujimoto
6th Generation
Birthday: 1985/02/26
Birthplace: Hokkaido
Blood type: A
Height: 156cm
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Comments: Miki was formerly a solo artist under H!P before Tsunku moved her into MM. She is the 2nd main singer in the group and has a very strong personality. She is known for her quick wit and her sometimes agressive demeanor. This helps her to beat people up on the Futsol team lol.
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Eri Kamei
6th Generation
Birthday: 1988/12/23
Birthplace: Tokyo
Blood type: AB
Height: 155cm
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Comments: Eri was a very quiet person when she first joined the group. She had a small voice which probably contributed to her reluctance to speak up. However once she joined the news corner on the weekly H!M show, her real personality really shined. She is a very cheerful person and seems to make a lot of lame jokes which are hilarious to watch other members react to.
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Sayumi Michishige
6th Generation
Birthday: 1989/07/13
Birthplace: Yamaguchi
Blood type: A
Height: 157cm
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Comments: Sayumi is a very controversial person for the fact that she is the most girly of all the members. She is known to do stuff like "Usa-chan (rabbit) Peace!" and other cutesy things which some people (including other members) cannot stand at all. Miki in particular, seems to not get along so well with Sayumi's contrasting personality lol.
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Reina Tanaka
6th Generation
Birthday: 1989/11/11
Birthplace: Fukuoka
Blood type: O
Height: 152cm
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Comments: Reina is the 3rd main singer of the group and has a very bright future with her great singing ability. She is similar to Miki in her strong personality and strong determination. Always willing to speak her mind, she has quickly become a focus point of the group on many levels.
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Koharu Kusumi
7th Generation
Birthday: 1992/07/15
Birthplace: Niigata
Blood type: A
Height: 157cm
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Comments: Koharu is the newest addition to the group and has been labeled the "Miracle Girl" by producer Tsunku. Whether or not she lives up to that moniker has yet to be seen, but she has definitely shown flashes of her idol potential so far. She is 100% genki all the time and she brings a great freshness to the group.
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Links:
Wikipedia Entry |
Sing back
to Artist Jam
Sing back to
THE SUPER HAPPY
FUN HOUR
created 02 Oct 2005
updated 26 March 2006
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