Chriselle 158 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 No, it's the ...AKApeach thread. I prefer a little more ripe variety. Link to post Share on other sites
METAL 0 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 So, what are the policies of the winner? Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 there were a couple of mingers voted into the top 10. What about the deep voices cheering when every girl made their speech!!?? err...my missus was watching it too Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 Mingers. Funny sounding word Link to post Share on other sites
mina2 6 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 Has Akiko Maeda left now? Link to post Share on other sites
ILoveZao 8 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 I wonder how long the AKB, SKB, ABC, XYZ crazy will last! Surely it is at it's peak now. Next please! Link to post Share on other sites
RobBright 35 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Has Akiko Maeda left now? Not yet. Link to post Share on other sites
RobBright 35 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Probably will become an AV star. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 who is that? is that the outgoing No 1? Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 I wonder how long the AKB, SKB, ABC, XYZ crazy will last! Surely it is at it's peak now. Next please! TBA.....ASAP..........DAMHIKT.........LOL Link to post Share on other sites
pie-eater 207 Posted June 8, 2012 Author Share Posted June 8, 2012 Don't you mean TBA 48 ASAP 48 DAMHIKT 48 LOL 48 ? Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 STFU 48.... Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Japan's voters overcame their disillusionment with the democratic process this week in an outbreak of election fever on a topic of seemingly unrivalled national importance. Watched by millions on TV, the victors took to a stage in central Tokyo to deliver tearful acceptance speeches as analysts offered interpretations of the vote's wider meaning. There was no place at this count, though, for greying, middle-aged men in dark suits; the candidates were all teenagers and women in their early 20s, vying for the title of "president" of the J-pop phenomenon AKB48. In a contest that has gripped Japan for weeks, Yuko Oshima – a relatively mature singer at the age of 23 – emerged as the most popular member of the band, whose sugar coated refrains have rivalled their Korean counterparts for the affections of Asian pop fans. Japan's broadcasters spent weeks trailing the vote, culminating in several hours of live coverage from the Nippon Budokan venue in Tokyo on Wednesday night in front of a TV audience of millions. Oshima, who will lead the group for the next year, was plastered over the following day's newspapers and generated hours of analysis on TV news shows. Even the normally staid broadsheets recognised that her election, with 108,000 votes – putting her well ahead of her closest rival – was a pivotal moment in J-pop history. Likening herself to a flower bud about to come into full bloom, she told her fans: "You have given me water and light. But flowers wither eventually. Please be my sunshine forever." Oshima and 15 other performers earned enough votes among the 1.4 million cast to guarantee them a place in the lineup for the group's 27th single, to be released in August. Her victory has propelled her to the top of a group whose 90 members appear in rotation, depending on their popularity with the public. The marketing brilliance didn't end there: the public could only secure votes by buying a copy of the group's latest single, a Japanese and English track about the joys of summer. Each copy came with a code number enabling consumers to cast their votes online. With the most devout snapping up multiple CDs to boost the prospects of their favourite singer, the single sold a record 1.62 million copies in its first week. One fan reportedly spent US$6,700 to secure 2,700 votes in online auctions. Since their debut in 2005, AKB48 have built up a huge following among girls in Japan and, more recently, other parts of Asia, as well as salarymen men who flock to concerts and publicity events for the chance to shake hands and exchange a few words with their idols. The group, which takes its name from the geeky Akihabara district of Tokyo, is behind a succession of million-selling singles, and generated sales of more than US$200 million in CD and DVD sales last year alone. Its members appear in commercials for everything from chocolate to mobile phones, and they were recently enlisted in campaigns to sell Japanese government bonds and prevent teenage suicides. While their performances owe more to a heightened sense of "kawaii" cuteness than overt sexuality, AKB48 members courted controversy over a recent confectionary commercial that some conservative commentators deemed inappropriate. But neither that, nor the arrest of one singer's mother for allegedly having sex with a minor, has slowed the group's rise to J-pop's apex. Together, the 48 stable has more than 230 members comprising four main groups and several smaller offshoots. Just as K-Pop has outgrown its South Korean roots, "sister" groups have emerged in Jakarta, Taipei and Shanghai. This week's election fever has been attributed to discontent with conventional elections, with one expert even drawing an improbable comparison with the Arab spring. Hidetomi Tanaka, a professor at Jobu University, offered a more prosaic explanation. "These girls start from the amateur level with few singing and dancing skills," he told Reuters. "But the thing is they grow up with their fans." While some heralded the election as a popular challenge to the authority of the AKB48 impresario Yasushi Akimoto, the vote left some fans feeling disillusioned. "It's supposed to be a general election, but it's the people with money who determine the result," a 16-year-old high school pupil told the Asahi Shimbun. "It's like shareholders who have a bigger say if they invest more. It's not a genuine election." [Reprinted with permission, from pie-eaters gran] Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 "But neither that, nor the arrest of one singer's mother for allegedly having sex with a minor, has slowed the group's rise to J-pop's apex." Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 yeah, she had sex with a 15 yr old boy.....lucky bastard!! Link to post Share on other sites
HighlyTrainedNovaTeacher 2 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Link to post Share on other sites
HighlyTrainedNovaTeacher 2 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Tubby ^^^^^ Considerably, Oranger than You!? Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 I wonder how long the AKB, SKB, ABC, XYZ crazy will last! Remember East End X Yuri a few years back, and all of the take-offs on them? West End X (Somebody or Other) Chubu End X (Somebody Else) (and how can "Chubu" be the End of anything?) etc. etc. Of course that was only a one-song craze("Da Yo Ne" and its variants), albeit an extremely annoying song. So it was all over relatively quickly, at least. Link to post Share on other sites
onsen tamago 0 Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Haha yes I do remember that. I don't think it was quite on the same scale though. "The group, which takes its name from the geeky Akihabara district of Tokyo, is behind a succession of million-selling singles, and generated sales of more than US$200 million in CD and DVD sales last year alone." Link to post Share on other sites
onsen tamago 0 Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Here it is! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaWRc3PmlbM&feature=related Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Tubby ^^^^^ Considerably, Oranger than You!? back at the end of March I got uber sunburned after a gorgeous day riding at Ishiuchi Maruyama, I started caking on the aftersun not knowing that it had "tan enhancers" in the mixture, I used a lot the first day or 2 and my face became Dale Winton X Oompa Loompa madness. Helpfully this was about a week before my wedding........the photos are amazing! Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Da yo ne, got that was bloody annoying Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 I think you need to change your little bit under your name Tubby, it's still declaring you as orange-y. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 yeah I know.....I just haven't got around to changing it yet Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Needs careful planning Link to post Share on other sites
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