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AKB48?

While boy/girl bands were quite popular in the West in 1990′s only to slowly (and fortunately) fade from main stream society as us tweens began to realize the mistakes of our ways, this genre of pop-music featuring exclusively male or female “artists” is still quite popular in here in Japan.

I would like to introduce to you Japan’s most adored girl-band, AKB 48.

God… why did I write this post?

…

Ok, if you got through all of that, I applaud you. You have more patience than me.

Anyway, more about the band.

Currently, AKB 48 is on fire in here in Japan, holding the entirety of the 2011 Top 5 Oricon Yearly Singles Chart (Oricon being the largest corporate entity in Japan that supplies statistics and information on music and the Japanese music industry), selling over 10,000,000 records, and is presently the proud holder of a unique (and slightly disturbing) place in the Guiness Book of World Records.

Bland statistics aside, you are probably be wondering what the “AKB” and the “48″ in AKB 48 stand for.

So I will do my best to explain…

First, let me touch upon the “AKB”.

The “AKB” in AKB 48, as everyone here knows, is an abbreviation for the “otaku” district in Tokyo going by the name of Akihabara. This district is known as a heaven for those geeks and dweebs alike who seek an outlet to curb their comic book, video game, hentai (comic porn) addiction.

But books, screens, and creams aside, there was just something missing for those otaku of Akihabara. YES! These socially awkward dudes needed some musical entertainment that was suited to fuel the nerdy flame that resides within all of their socially awkward souls.

So, in order to appeal to a large number of single, hunched backed, ramen slurping, scraggly hair, 30-something-or-other dudes, a group of young (starting at 14) cutesy girls that had the unique ability of producing sound from their vocal chords and looking good in school uniforms were gathered…

Whoa there partner! One of these ladies (Miyu Takeuchi) was born in 1996! SHAME ON YOU!

And thus, with the power of MONEY AND FLAME, Japans most celebrated girl-band, AKB 48, was vomited from the depths of concrete Tokyo!

Of course, AKB 48 did not create themselves (its pop-music folks), but rather was the product of a 2005 development by a  Japanese television writer, lyricist, record producer, professor and vice president at Kyoto University of Art and Design – Yasushi Akimoto.

Dude who created AKB 48

Anyway, enough about the “AKB”, lets get into the “48″.

It is a common misconception that the “48″ in AKB 48 signifies the number of members in the group. Yes, although AKB 48 holds the title of “Largest Pop Group” in the Guinness Book of World Records, the number of people participating in the band has little to do with the figure “48″.

Yep, when the band was first conceptualized by Mr. Akimoto, only 28 of the 7000+ applicants were accepted to be full-time members of the AKB crew. That number has increased since then, and the current number of members rests at 59 (with a line up of “kenkyuusei” (trainees) just waiting to increase that figure).

NOW THAT’S A LOT OF ESTROGEN!

Yup 59 girls, all scantly dressed, all mediocre singers (Japanese pop groups almost never sing in harmony), all mediocre dancers (keep it simple so those tweens can remember the moves), and all unnervingly cute.

With all that cuteness, you would imagine that 59 girls is a lot to have on stage, right?

Well if you assumed so, you would not be mistaken.

I didn't even bother counting~!

The girls are broken up into specific performing groups. Team A, along with team K and B, have 16 members, while Team 4′s members rest at a pleasant 11. Each respective team has their “leader”, while Maeda Atsuko, who is probably the most recognizable face in the jumbled mix of makeup and flesh, represents the whole group.

Maeda Atsuko - The leader of AKB 48

Each team performs on a rotating schedule on the 8th floor of first original “Don Quixote” (a popular Japanese chain-store that sells EVERYTHING) located in Akihabara. The shows are so popular that tickets have to be sold in a lottery.

Aside from performing, band members will attend as guests TV variety shows, act in Japanese dramas, appear in commercials, find themselves on your students chopstick, and even give commentary on the evening news. If you are in Japan, you cannot watch TV without hearing about, or laying your eyes on AKB 48!

Ok, that was AKB 48 in a nutshell, but what does this pop group symbolize about Japanese society?

Well, first we can see that the number of members and their conformity in style compliments the fact that Japan is a group-oriented society.

Whereas in West, where individuality is the norm, the members of past boy/girl bands would each have their individually fabricated personalities. There was the “bad boy/girl”, the “jock”, the “goody two-shoes”, and “the cray-z one”, all who were immediately recognizable to fit that character by their clothing and conduct.

Japanese pop-bands, on the other hand, have all the girls dress the same, sing the same notes, and act in the same way.

The focus here is more on the forest than the tress.

Try to find the nail that will so surely be nailed down

In my opinion, AKB 48 would just never work in an individualistic society as its groupistic nature would just not be appealing enough to our youth. In Japan, on the other hand, the appeal of this group sensation permeates through the generations.

The popularity AKB 48 has achieved here bridges generation gaps, and reinforces the notion that Japanese are less hesitant in appreciating things that, in the West, would be considered childish. Its not that every one loves and enjoys AKB 48, but it seems to be more common, and more acceptable, here to see an older person be obsessed with these pop groups that are seemingly developed to appeal to a younger audience.

Just imagine being happy and proud that your Pa could sing and dance “Wannabe” by the Spice Girls from memory!

ZIGA-ZIGG AWW!

Popularity aside, the pure monetary capabilities of the AKB 48 “brand” has not gone unnoticed to the labels that OWN them. There are now currently a large number of spin-0ff groups who are gaining a fair amount of popularity here in Japan…

SKE48 (named after Sakae, a shopping district in Nagoya)
NMB48 (named after Namba, an entertainment district in Osaka)
JKT48 (etc.)
HKT48 (etc.)
TPE48 (etc.)
OJS48 (etc.)

SKB 48 - a spin-off group of AKB 48

So, now we can easily see that AKB 48 is reproducible brand name rather than a musical group with specific style and talent. This is reinforced by the fact the its members are not static, but variable. Any one of the 59 members are subject to being “let go” for committing the pop-sin of being too old, not popular enough, or emotionally unstable.

In the end, AKB 48 is a perfect example of capitalist Japan and its focus youth, money, mass-production and mass-consumption.

The End!