30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 30

After the sudden news of Kago Ai I decided to put this post off until today.

Day 30 - Why Kath Loves Hello! Project

There are many reasons why I love Hello! Project, such as  . . . .

The Music
For many people the musical element of idols doesn't even register as an important factor. For me it is one of the most important things. Before I got to know the girls in any detail it was the music that drew me in. I was amazed that your standard manufactured Japanese pop groups appeared to get some decent songs thrown at them. As someone who grew up listening to the charts in Britain, which were plagued with girl bands throughout the early-mid 2000s (when I was at primary school) I love that fun pop sound. That sound has been missing for a while over here (especially since Girls Aloud vanished) and I having been getting my (over)dose of pop music from Japan for the last couple of years. However a lot of Hello! Project's music not just fun but actually very good. Can anyone seriously tell me that Shouganai Yume Oibito and Shabondama are anything but pretty damn good? Tsunku has some epic skills in composition. (The arrangers usually do a good job too.)

The Girls
The girls in Hello! Project never fail to put a smile on my face. The antics and over the top reactions of the girls are always very entertaining and are very enjoyable to watch. The diverse personalities and characters of Hello! Project create something incredbile when put together, something you don't really see outside of the idol world.

Aswell as the personality side of things many of the girls are truely gifted performers. Recently I saw the performance of 'How do you Like Japan' from the 2010 Pika Pika tour and was astonished at the amount of sheer presense the girls had. Even the idols of Hello! Project who aren't techincally the best singers such as Risako, Captain or Sayu all have their own way of leaving an impression.

 

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 29

I am nearing the end of the challenge and today comes what feels like the hardest question so far.

Day 29 - Your favourite Morning Musume leader?

Every leader of Morning Musume has been great in their own way and deciding who was my favourite leader was an incredibly difficult choice to make. Each girl who has become leader has dealt with the task in a different way. There was Yuko's 'authority figure' to Kaori's 'big sister' to Ai's 'friend who happens to be leader'. In the end I picked Yuko because she seems to me someone who could deal with things efficiently and I like how she still retains her leader position in a way.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 28

Day 28 - The idol that brings special memories of something or someone to you?

 Aichan reminds me of my best friend. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's because they both have huge levels of talent, maybe it's beacuse they both have an ability to be really cool at the right time and slightly spastic and other times. Whatever it is, I see a lot of my friend in Aichan.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 27

Day 27 - The idol you have a special place in your heart for?

Erina is an idol I really want to succeed. Despite her occasional awkwardness Erina, to me, comes across as someone who is determined to improve and to catch up with her senpai. She is becoming more prominent as time goes on and I suspect that she will become very popular. Erina holds that special place in my heart because I feel that we are seeing her rapidly grow into a great idol.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 26

I am getting worse and worse at keeping up with this! I was at my grandparent's house this weekend. I could have used their computer but they've got a mac. Now I shall sit back and watch the nerdwar commence.
Three days in one would be a bit too much (got french homework for tomorrow) so I shall just do the one. Sorry for falling so behind!!

Day 26 - The idol with the best personality?

Sayumi never fails to make me laugh. Some may find her cutesy image and devilish remarks very annoying but I find it very entertaining. Sayu has come a long way since she joined the group and her personality makes Momusu's tv appearances worth watchingSayu is not stupid and always knows what to say and when to say it. This is why she is a successful idol.
Stepping away from her tv persona Sayumi seems like a very nice girl and (from what we can see) gets on well with all the members.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 25

Day 25 - Past group that you miss the most?

I became a Hello! Project fan a few years after W came to an unfortunate end but even so, they were the group that kick started my obsession. I am a proud owner of both their albums and one of the many people still itching (is that the right word?) for 'W3: Faithful'. The girls were only getting better, with 'Miss Love Tantei' being one of their best singles. I'm sure everyone is still wondering what happened to W3. Is it sitting collecting dust? Are the songs being used? If so, which ones?
I doubt any of these questions will ever be answered but hey, we can dream.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 24

Day 24 - The idol that is not one of your favourites but you think is really good?

Despite Airi not being one of my personal favourites I think she is a great idol. Her singing and dancing is top notch and she is a great front person for C-ute. She is also very easy on the eyes, something which stands you in good stead in the idol world.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 23

Day 23 - The past H!P member that you miss the most?

Is there any real answer other than Aibon? She was a great idol but I find her much more interesting now. She has learned a lot through her experiences. I still try and keep up with her activites and recently her version of 'Blue Moon' has managed to convice me that song isn't as annoying as I originally thought it was (even though she never seems to hit that note at the end). Unfortunatly she has made more mistakes recently such as leaving her agency. Even if their style of management wasn't entirely her cup of tea it must have been better than nothing?

On a bit of a sideline, I love this photo. It is actually taken well unlike her post H!P photobooks.

30 Day Hello! Project Challenge - Days 21 and 22

Since it seems like school is engulfing some of my free time today will be another "two day special".

Day 21 - The idol you have the most respect for or admire?

Originally I didn't particularly like Nacchi. When I first got into Morning Musume it was the early singles that I recognised her for which is understandable considering she is incredibly prominant in the first 6 singles. And within that early era her voice was, let's face it, pretty terrible. But in songs later into her Momusu career, such as 'The Peace' and 'Ai Araba It's All Right' I noticed that she had improved greatly. This is why I admire Natsumi Abe. She worked hard to improve herself and inspires me to do the same. Sure there was a few blips along the way but she has become a woman who I greatly respect and admire.

Day 22 - You're Favourite Costume?

I love these outfits. I don't think they were actually used during the 'Rival Survival' concerts but they were used for promotion (maybe). I'm not sure of this so please correct me if I'm wrong! Anyway, these outfits are simple but effective and they flatter the all of the girls (Junjun looks especially amazing). I wish they had been used for a single.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 20

Day 20 - The Most Charismatic Idol?

I am tempted to refer to a dictionary definition of the word 'charisma' like everyone else seems to be doing but I will resist and just play by instinct.
There is something about Tsuji that draws people in. Despite not really being an idol fan my younger sister seems to really like Tsuji and has described her as "awesome" in the past. Tsuji is still popular because she has charisma. She is the charismatic mum!!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 19

Day 19 - Who would you like to be for a day?

Wouldn't life just be better if you woke up this cute?
If being Sayumi means being really pretty and hanging around with lots of other really pretty people then I am all for it!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Days 17 and 18

I missed a day due to a piano lesson, manically practicing for the piano lesson I had forgotten about and subsequently forgot about everything else so this is a sort of "2 for the price of 1" kind of thing.

Day 17 -  Your first Idol?

The first idol that I was exposed to was a certain Kusumi Koharu. The story of how I discovered Koha in the first place is rather odd yet uninteresting. I wrote a version of it out recently for the 'about me' section of the blog so I shall just copy and paste from there. (Yes, I am that lazy.)

"Back in 2008 I was browsing a page of 'Japanese female singers' on Wikipedia. Naturally, I was looking at the 'K' section. I saw a name that I thought sounded quite cool and on a whim clicked on it. The name was Koharu Kusumi."

Despite, not really getting in to Koharu at first (the first idol I really loved, and still do, was Aibon) I have grown to love her. She really has her own brand of complete madness and even though her singing voice is just plain weird her dancing is good. Also, no-one can deny that she is beautiful.

Day 18 - Your favourite concert

Why is it that I love the 'pika pika' tour? Is it because '10 MY ME' was fantastic and the concert therefore has a great setlist? Is it because of the sleekness of the performance? It is both. I just love this concert a lot (although that dvd cover is terrible).

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 16

Day 16 - Your favourite S/mileage member?

After choosing Wada Ayaka as my favourite member of S/mileage I recalled my answers to the favourite Morning Musume member, the favourite C-ute member and the favourite Berryz member questions. That's right, I have now picked 4 leaders. I'm starting to wonder if I have some sort of leader complex! I certainly hope not! Anyway, I picked Dawa because despite her singing voice being kind of grating she is a great overall leader and member of the group. I like the way she handled the 'new member situation'. Despite not being overly keen on the idea at first she has seen the positive side of the decision and has now warmly welcomed the new members.

30 Day Hello! Project Challenge - Day 15

Day 15 - Favourite Morning Musume member?

 For anyone who has read much of my blog . . . this won't come as a surprise. At all. I like pretty much everything about Ai. Her voice, her dancing, her personality, her looks and even her ridiculous reactions. However the thing I love most about Ai is her dynamic on stage. For someone who seems kind of shy when talking she gives off an amazing air of confidence when performing!

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 14

Day 14 - Favourite Buono! member?

This was another hard question. All three members of the group are brilliant, they are like some kind of super-unit! I have chosen Airi simply because I believe that she suits Buono!'s style incredibly well and her voice is pefect for the type of pop-rock that Buono! is known for.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 13

Day 13 - Favourite Berryz Koubou member?

 Today's question was something I'd never thought about much. I like everybody in Berryz too some extent. In the end I chose Captain (Maasa and Chinami were a close second though). I like the love she seems to have of what she does and she always manages to stand out (despite being tiny).

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 12

Day 12 - Favourite C-ute member

I don't really know what it is about Maimi that makes me like her. She has a certain "flair" and maturity about her so maybe it's that. Anyway she is my favourite member of C-ute, with Nakajima Saki not far behind.

30 Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 11

Day 11 - Your favourite soloist?

Nacchi is a great soloist. I own 'Hitoribocci' and 'Vingt-cinq' and I love the more mature style that they have (especially the latter).  Another thing I love about Nacchi's solo career is that she performs more often than not with a brilliant live band, something I wish more H!P girls got to do more often.

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 10

Day 10 - You're favourite egg?

For starters, I don't really follow any of the eggs very much. However Jang Dayeon caught my eye in the recent S/mileage auditions. She is not the best singer yet (much better than she was when she actually won the Korea audition though!) but she has a lot of potential. There was somthing about this girl that stood out to me and I hope she gets to do something in the near future. (I want her in Morning Musume. Don't tell anyone though.)

30 Day Hello! Project Idol Challenge - Day 9

Day 9 - The voice you dislike?

Now, Mai is usually in tune when she sings and that aspect of her voice is all well and good. However, I dislike the tone of her voice. When I first heard Mai sing I thought her slightly childish tone would be something that she would grow out of but it seems that hasn't happened yet. Hopefully there is still time, fingers crossed! If she can sort that little fault out she will be really quite good.