Harajuku Gakuen’s Three Day One-Man Lives

Harajuku Gakuen, my current favorite idol group, has been busy lately.  Leader Aoyama Nanako and Amakawa Mio both released solo singles on September 23.  They’re really good songs too!  Then on October 3 to 5 the group performed three one-man lives with all six members - Nanako, Mio, Matsuda Karen, Akizuki Rio, Sato Momo and Takanashi Miku - for the final time.  This is because Karen will be leaving the group on November 3.

I’d first like to share the music videos for Nanako’s and Mio’s singles.  I need to let you all know about something before you watch Mio’s video, though.  YouTube has been auto dubbing select Japanese and Korean videos for a few months now.  What that means for most overseas fans is that you need to turn this feature off to properly hear the music.  If you don’t then you will hear an AI (artificial intelligence) voice that translates the lyrics while the music is muted.  You can turn this off in your channel’s settings.  Thankfully, Nanako’s video isn’t affected by this.  Here are the videos. 

Seeing Harajuku Gakuen perform all the songs that they knew before Karen’s send-off was a bittersweet experience.  In all, the group sang sixty-five songs over the course of three days!  It was announced by SPIRAL MUSIC that all the songs that they were performing would be original songs, which I guess is true.  I thought that meant Harajuku Gakuen were performing only the songs that were written for their group.  As it turned out, they performed songs written for other SPIRAL groups, including Negaigoto, Omatsuri Shoujyo, and Runup!!, as well.  The three concerts didn’t go off without a hitch, either.  On the first day Karen became ill and left the stage early.  On the second day Miku had a hair malfunction and Karen had one on the third day.  Despite the problems, I enjoyed watching the videos.  Sure, it would have been nice if everything went perfectly, but then again, when does that ever happen?  Here are the three concerts. 

I’m really going to miss Karen when she leaves.  I have become attached to all six members of this wonderful and underrated group.  They have some of the best, most exciting songs that I’ve heard.  Harajuku Gakuen may not be very well known, and they may never be extremely popular, but they sure hit the right spot when it comes to independent Japanese idol groups.  I hope you’ll think so too.

Once again, thank you for reading my blog.                            

Marble Angel and ww Disband

 

Marble Angel (Photo Credit: Marble Angel Facebook) 

I forgot to mention last time that two idol groups that I’ve been following for years now have announced their disbandment.  Here’s the sad news. 

Marble Angel announced that they will break up on August 31, 2025.  This came after former leader Ishimatsu Haruna graduated on July 27.  Haruna’s graduation, after being a member for nearly six years, came as a surprise to me.  Another surprise was the release of the CD “CHEERS!! ~Marble Angel Full Album~”, which was released on August 15 with just the final four members.  The CD has just six songs, which to me is a mini album, but I digress.  One problem I had with the songs Marble Angel released as singles is that for the group’s second single the title song, “Rainbow Marble Story”, had the music from the group’s first single, “Smile”, used and new lyrics added.  

Marble Angel formed on July 7, 2018, with three members although their lineup has changed several times.  I’ve been a fan since the early part of 2019 but my interest in the group has been up and down depending on the members in the group.  Admittedly, I haven’t paid much attention to the group recently, but I never stopped following them on social media.  I even watched their latest video on YouTube, “Melty Heart”, twice before I realized that this was from Haruna’s final live with the group.  So, here’s the latest song from Marble Angel.  

The group ww has also announced that they will disband on August 31.  They haven’t been very active in the past several months so maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise.  Both members, Lin Oberndorff and Kokoa, were also involved in the group She’s a Rainbow with Harajuku Gakuen members Aoyama Nanako and Amakawa Mio, so maybe pulling double duty also caused some problems. 

ww (Photo Credit: Punam Kanda X) 

I wrote the above paragraphs two weeks ago and I intended to publish this article before the two groups disbanded.  I changed my mind because I wanted to wait until I had photos of each group’s final lives and to watch videos, if there were any.  The good news is there is a video for ww.  Lin and Kokoa perform for most of the 52 minutes that the group’s final live lasts, but there’s a surprise appearance of the three former members at the end!  It’s a bittersweet ending to such a fantastic idol group!  

 As always, thank you so much for reading my blog!        

The Latest Idol Happenings

A lot of things have been happening to the idols that I am following, so I thought it’s time I shared the news. 

RICORIRI is a new idol duo consisting of Sakihama Rico and Nakase Riri.  Rico is a former member of Rabi Rabu IDOL School who sang on the group’s debut single.  She stopped performing with the group at the end of December 2021 but didn’t officially graduate until March 2023.  Rico started modeling with Nicola, a fashion magazine for teen girls, and this is also the magazine that Riri was modeling for.  Nicola put together this duo and released their first single, “Pure pop”, on June 18.  Here’s the video. 

There have been some graduation announcements for some of the SPIRAL MUSIC girls plus the return of one idol!  Marika a.k.a. Poppy graduated from the group Babooom on August 10.  Mahina has announced that she will be graduating from Jingu Shojo on October 19.  The good news for Jingu Shojo fans is that Kurosaki Hana is back from her suspension and was added to the group on August 10.  Hana is also performing solo again with her guitar.  Sadly, Matsuda Karen will be graduating from Harajuku Gakuen on November 3, after being a member for over three years.  I think the one graduation that’s really going to bother me the most is Karen’s as she is a big part of why I like Harajuku Gakuen.    

Baboom

Mahina

Kurosaki Hana

Matsuda Karen

LuCheers have had some member changes since I last wrote about them.  They now have nine members.  Their new video is titled “Rainbow Days”.   

Once again, thank you for reading my blog.  Have a great day!        

My Favorite Japanese Idol Songs 2025

More than six years ago I shared a list of 54 idol songs that were personal favorites of mine.  I only chose one song per artist and included the year of release in parenthesis.  I thought I’d share an updated list of 80 idol songs.  The artists on my list have several great songs to choose from and it’s often hard to pick just one.  What’s even harder is finding talented groups and soloists to listen to.  I’m going to stand by what I typed last time and not change anything such as the songs or artists I chose.  I did my best to verify the spellings and dates of all the songs, but I apologize if I got anything wrong.  Many of these songs can be found on YouTube if you do a search, but there are some artists that are no longer active, and their videos have been removed. 

01. “Brand New Day” - SCOOPERS (2011)

02. “Niji Iro” - Caramel ☆ Ribbon (2010)

03. “Candy Machine ni Notte” - NA-NA (2013)

04. “Summer Paradise” - Aither (2013)

05. “RainBow × RainBow” - Prism ☆ Box (2013)

06. “Love Romancer” - Candy Kiss (2014)

07. “ORI ☆ STAR Love Jet!!” - Michinoku Sendai ORI ☆ HIMETAI (2012)

08. “KISS ME KISS ME” - CoCo DeCoRu (YouTube: 2013 / CD: 2014)

09. “Shuriken Shu Shu” - Himekko 5 (2013) 

10. “Koisuru Sniper” - Jewel ♥ Kiss (2011)

11. “Oh My Ghost? ~Watashi ga Akuryo ni Nattemo~” - Shiritsu Ebisu Chuugaku (2011)

12. “life is game?” - PEACEFUL (2011)

13. “Song for You” - Fairies (2011)

14. “Running Fighter” - Onigokko (2013)

15. “Ne~e! Sakuranbo” - Sakuran Bom Bom (2014)

16. “Delta” - Kagaku Kyuumei Kikou LOGICA? (2013)

17. “Hatsukoi Rocket” - Party Rockets (2012)

18. “St. BONAPRO SCHOOL” - St. BONAPARO SCHOOL (2013)

19. “FLY AWAY” - Sakura Gakuin (2011)

20. “lucky star” - mImi (2014)

21. “OVER FLOW” - SunRisa (Live: 2014 / CD: 2015)

22. “Let’s go out” - amorecarina (2015)

23. “Popple ☆ Heart” - Prizmmy☆ (2012) 

24. “NO: ID” - B♭ (Live: 2010 / CD Remix: 2012)

25. “Minichia Ouenka” - Minichia Bears (Live: 2010 / CD Remix: 2014)

26. “JS Datte!! Ima Shika Nai!!” - Pocchimo (2014)

27. “Star Road” - Haru ☆ Kana (2013)

28. “Kyoshitsu Sabaibaru” - Millennium Girls (2014)

29. “Honki! Matsuri! Love Sick!?” - Smile Kiss Gumi (2013)

30. “JUMP” - PARLISH (2014) 

31. “Kinen-bi Noto” - Maboroshi ☆ Love (2014)

32. “Go Go ☆ Dinosaur” - Candy Zoo (2014)

33. “Hypericum Chaka de GO!” - Hypericum (2015) 

34. “Hono’o no JUMPING KICK” - RABBIT KICK (2014) 

35. “Cherie Amour” - CheriCherie (2015)

36. “Susume! Hope!” - loop (2012)

37. “Shooting star ☆” - amorecarina Osaka (2016)

38. “Mirai e no Tobira” - Si☆Stella (2015)

39. “Shukurimu Monsuta ♪” - Cute☆Pit (2014)  

40. “FUJIYAMA △ no yo ni” - FUJI △ PASSION (2014)

41. “MODOKASHI BABY” - BABYFACE (2015)

42. “Warning” - Riluce (2014) 

43. “MY FOTUNE” - powder.jp (2014)

44. “QQQ” - Maliee (2015)

45. “Chocolate Paradise” - MOMONA from Prism☆Mates (2014) 

46. “Dancing Hero” - Showa☆Tokimeki Gumi (2017)

47. “Himawari” - Little Blossom (Live: 2017 / CD: 2018) 

48. “Smile Gakuen” - Smile Gakuen (2011)

49. “Suisei” - Global Unit Comet+ (Live: 2017 / CD: 2018)

50. “Mirai e no Shunkan” - Bear in Mind (2018)

51. “Niji Iro Drops” - W. (2018)

52. “RABBIT HUTCH Matsuri Wasshoishoi” - RABBIT HUTCH (2018)    

53. “Koisuru Bani” - White Rabbits (Live: 2017 / CD: 2019)

54. “Devil ANTHEM. ~Kimi no Heart wo Seifuku Chu~” - Devil ANTHEM. (2015) 

55. “Cherry” - Hiwillow (Live: 2019 / CD: 2020)  

56. “MY MODE” - SAKURA MODE (2019)

57. “Hokago Lip” - Jumping Kiss (2019)

58. “SURPRISE PARTY” - KUWAGATA☆KIDS (2020) 

59. “STEP☆UP” - ☆Fluffy Star☆ (Live: 2020 / CD: 2021)

60. “Tenshi no Namida Furu Hi ni” - amorecarina Nagoya (2018)

61. “Rabi Rabu IDOL School Song” - Rabi Rabu IDOL School (2021)

62. “Kimi ☆ Adventure” - Si☆4 (2019) 

63. “Brave” - Lock★Rock BAB (2021)

64. “Wishing Star” - Angel Sisters (2021)

65. “Searchlight” - ww (Live: 2022 / CD: 2023)

66. “Kiss ga Suki” - Harajuku Gakuen (2023)

67. “Seishun Shitai” - Cook a dish (Live: 2023)

68. “SWEETS” - SUNNY Fruits (2022) 

69. “Rock Kyun Date Sunday” - Rock Kyun Roll (2022)

70. “By My Side” - RIOT BABY (2017)

71. “ORANGE BUBBLE” - Orange (2020)

72. “Smile” - Marble Angel (2019)

73. “Let’s” - Sweet Cherry Pepper’s (2023)

74. “Dystopia” - ULTRA-C (2024)

75. “Iyahon Hazuse!” - Omatsuri Shoujyo (2019) 

76. “WATER Mermaid” - CRUiSE! (2017)

77. “I’ll try ~Todoku made~” - momo (2020)  

78. “FUNKY RIDER” - Colorful Scream (2018) 

79. “Itsudatte Party” - LuCheers (2024)

80. “Acchicchi -Sho☆Do? Chapter 1-” - Menkoi Girls (2014)

ULTRA GROUP

 

ULTRA-C is transforming next month as part of something called ULTRA GROUP.  Instead of one group there will be two, plus a subunit.  On June 7, the current system of ULTRA-C will end, and the new system starts the following day.  The members will split, with Kawai Riri, Sarasa and Momoi Aya in ULTRA-C along with two new members; and Mahina, Marika and three new members in a group named Jingu Girl.  The subunit will be Say, with Sarasa and Aya, who have already performed at SPIRAL MUSIC events. 

So, what happened to Kurosaki Hana?  She was suspended as of May 3.  While I have no idea of what she did exactly to get suspended, I do know that she was meant to be part of Jingu Girl.   Already in 2025 three members of ULTRA-C graduated and now another member is gone.  I was starting to like Hana too.  She performed twice at SPIRAL MUSIC events playing her guitar.  I thought her playing was good, too.  Hana joined ULTRA-C on December 19, 2024, so she’s only been an idol for four-and-a-half months.  Well, here’s hoping that Hana turns up in another group with another company soon.  In the meantime, all of Hana’s social media is still there.  You can still follow her, even if she may not update anything for the time being. 

Lit.Link (a list of all of Hana’s social media)              

Graduations and Revelations

A lot of things have been happening lately with some of the idols I follow, so I thought I’d share everything with you good people!  Graduations happen around this time of year in Japan, from school graduations to idols leaving their groups.  While some of this news is sad for the fans, it’s also expected. 

Tanahara Yuume with the new members of Rabi Rabu IDOL School

Rabi Rabu IDOL School had four new members (trainees) added on February 15, 2025.  Their names are Tanahara Yuua, Uchihara Mahina, Sasaki Mano and Kaho.  (I can’t find any info on Kaho beyond her given name.)  Yuua is Yuume’s younger sister.  Unfortunately, according to an Instagram post, Miyagi Rea graduated from the group on March 30.  I am looking forward to seeing videos with this new eight-member lineup. 

Watanabe Arisa (left) and Hananashi Rin (right)

Watanabe Arisa and Hananashi Rin of the group ULTRA-C both graduated from the group and SPIRAL MUSIC on March 30.  They were my favorite members so I’m very sad about this.  But I want to wish both girls the best with their school and home lives because they deserve it!  Good luck, girls!   

Fluffy Star

Fluffy Star also had some graduations, three in fact.  Yes, it’s true, long time members Sara, Tsumu and Riko (“Ri” to her fans) have all left the group.  This will have a major effect on Fluffy Star as their songs were often written by Sara and Tsumu and the remaining members Aya and Sena aren’t known for their songwriting.  I guess we will all see how the group moves forward from here.  Sara and Riko will continue to use their X (Twitter) accounts to update their daily lives, while Tsumu has deleted hers.  You can still follow the X accounts for the group, Aya and Sena, for updates on their activities.   

I have now found out that the group She’s a Rainbow are in fact a singing group, not a band.  The members posed for promo photos with instruments, leading me to suspect they were a band.  Well, there is a video on YouTube of their live debut, albeit only two songs of the group singing for fans at a Tower Records location.  The songs are written in a 1960s style, and I like it!  I hope you will too. 

Finally, I wanted to let you know that I saw a fan video of the group Babooom, with Amakawa Mio, Aoyama Nanako and Marika from SPIRAL MUSIC groups Harajuku Gakuen and ULTRA-C.  It turns out that they do sing and not just dance to K-Pop.  The video I saw is on X from user kuni_syavin, and I’ll link that here. 

It looks like I had more to talk about than usual today!  That’s a good thing as far as I’m concerned.  I don’t write in my blog as much as I used to in years past.  I want to keep the fans who are reading this constantly updated when it’s possible.  Thank you to everyone who reads my articles on Japanese idols.  I’m still a big fan of this music after 16 years (and counting!) of discovering idols and 26 years and counting of discovering J-Pop music.  This is the best music I’ve ever heard, and I mean it!  Stay awesome, people!      

What Are Those SPIRAL MUSIC Girls Doing Now?

Some of the members of SPIRAL MUSIC idol groups are involved in new projects.  Two new groups are set to debut soon, and both have a pair of Harajuku Gakuen members in them!  Here’s the lowdown. 

She’s a Rainbow are a four-member group featuring Amakawa Mio and Aoyama Nanako of Harajuku Gakuen and Lin Oberndorff and Kokoa of ww.  The girls are posing on the cover with instruments, but I’m still unsure if they are playing them or not.  I think it’s pretty obvious that the name of the group is taken from a Rolling Stones song.  It’s interesting that the song titles on the CD cover are all in English.  It’d be even more interesting if they are sung in English too.  The cover claims that this is produced by Sally Kubota for Impact Sound, so even though all four girls are from SPIRAL MUSIC groups I don’t think this has anything to do with SPIRAL.  The CD will be released on March 28, and I’m looking forward to hearing it if I can find a copy to purchase somewhere online.     

The second group is Babooom, a “Japanese dance & vocal group” that once again features Mio (as “Chucky”) and Nanako (as “Micky”) as well as Marika of ULTRA-C (as “Poppy”).  The videos that I’ve seen on social media make them appear to be a K-Pop dance cover group, but if they are singing as well then maybe that means they’ll sing covers of popular songs.  Will they perform original material too?  Only time will tell, and that time will be on April 3. 

I’m excited about She’s a Rainbow the most, since I like all four of the girls and because it might be a band.  Even if they are a singing group and not a band, I think I’ll still love them.  Babooom may have three talented dancers but I’m not really a fan of K-Pop dance covers.  Then again, it’s too early to tell what to expect from them.  I’ll keep an open mind. 

Thanks again for reading my blog.