Last Idol 8th Single Interview

*Last Idol 8th Single - Close Up Star Interview. This was posted on TV Guide's site on March 25th.

"Selected members from the Aki-P produced group, Last Idol"

(L to R: Rio, Wakana, Abe, Midori, and Airi)

Last Idol, the Idol Group produced by Aki-P that debuted in December 2017, is releasing their 8th single "I Know Love". The groups was formed by members who won one on one performance battles held on a TV Show of the same name. After their debut, the title song for the singles was decided by battles between Units. They also tried various challenges such as the "Art of Walking" for their 6th single. This time, they held their first Candidate System Audition Battle to select 18 members to sing the title song! We spoke with members ranked 1 - 5 (Abe Natsumi, Nagatsuki Midori, Majima Wakana, Yasuda Airi, and Oomori Rio) about their thoughts on recent events.

--First of all, please tell us about your feelings after the first Candidate System Audition Battle.

Rio: out of 41 members, only 18 would be selected. I felt I absolutely had to be chosen. However, I had allot of anxiety, so I rented a dance studio and practiced by myself. As a result of challenging myself and giving everything I had, I was chosen for 5th place. I want to do my best to make everyone happy that I was chosen for 5th!

Airi: The candidate system was announced on twitter and I was at a loss. I really hate fighting against other members. However, after stressing out about it, I looked at the fans who work hard, and I remembered that Idols can inspire people and give them hope. Because of this, I decided to do my best and was chosen as 4th place in the candidate system.

Wakana: I was chosen as 3rd place, but I want to keep in mind the members who weren't chosen, and I want to work without being content with the results. The members who didn't place in the 18 are really disappointed and I think they are determined rise up. In this way, the entire group can raise our awareness of how much fun it is being in an Idol Group. I think that's what is most enjoyable. I hope to inspire this kind of group with the atmosphere of this single!

Midori: When this Audition Battle was announced, some members were crying because they were scared, but I was happy and crying (laughs). I've been battling allot, so my feeling was like "Bring it on anytime!" I went through the audition with the mindset of how I can improve and what I could do to get chosen. In the end, I got 2nd place!

--Midori-san has a battle temperament (laughs).

Midori: That's right (laughs). In Last Idol, it started with a 1 on 1 performance battle. But recently, the whole group is working together to accomplish one thing and there were many new dynamics. However, I was itching for a fight and started getting a little crazy (laughs).

--How about Abe-san how came in 1st place?

Abe: I also needed some kind of stimulation so I felt like "it finally came!" and was looking forward to the battle. As a result, I was chosen as the center once again, but I feel more pressure than I have before.

-- The title song sung by the top 18 from the Audition Battle is called "I Know Love". This a new type of song for Last Idol, isn't it?

Rio: This is the first time we've done Rock song. It's really upbeat. We can get fans really excited with a song like this when performing it live!

Wakana: When we received the song, I thought "It's finally come!" I wanted to sing the kind of song that gets people to spin towels above their heads at Summer Festivals, so I'm really happy!

Airi: I usually listen to upbeat songs, so I was really happy when I heard "I Know Love".

Midori: The music is upbeat, but the lyrics are a bit dark. Personally, I think that's become the trademark of Last Idol.

--Following her work on the previous song "Seishun Train", Akane, the choreographer of the "Bubbly Dance" and coach for Tomioka High School's Dance Club in Osaka, has also done the choreography for this song.

Abe: Last time, we performed the dance for "Seishun Train" with a serious expression. This time, there are allot of smiling faces and I think you can see allot of cute expression from the members!

Rio: There's also a part for a free dance, so we get a chance to show our individual charms.

--"I Know Love" is an impressive title.

Rio: Actually, I'm looking forward to what abbreviations will take root. There are some fans who are already abbreviating it to "Loving" and "I Love", but because I'm from Aichi Prefecture, "Loving" is the best choice! If this abbreviation catches on, we may be able to do a collaboration with Aichi Prefecture! (laughs)

(*This is something that gets lost in translation. "I Know Love" is written in Japanese as "愛を知る" When the characters "愛" and "知" are written together like this "愛知" it reads as Aichi, Rio's home. The joke makes more sense if I write her sentence like this: Because I'm from Aichi Prefecture, "Aichi" is the best choice)

--Of course (laughs). In addition to this, Last Idol has been around for over two years since it's debut.

What kinds of things have changed for you?

Midori: It's a group that was the result of 1 on 1 battles, but now I think we all respect each other. We can look past ourselves and see good points in the other members.

Airi: I think recently that Abe-chan has become a Center that encompasses everything. I look at Abe's back and see her dance and sing perfectly and it feels like everyone in the group is connected to her and follows her every move.

Abe: In the past, I only thought of myself. After being in Last Idol, I think of the entire group. I'm really very shy, but Akane-sensei said "If you open your heart to everyone, it will become a better group." Because of that, I think I'm changing.

--Currently, Last Idol has a television program being broadcasted on TV Asahi with the duo Shimofuri Myoji as the MCs.

Midori: Shimofuri Myojo also mentioned our name on the radio, so I'm really grateful. Both of them are very kind.

Abe: I want to thank them for taking good care of us.

--In closing, please tell us your current goal as Last Idol.

Abe: The goal is to make Idol known more and more and one day to stand on the stage at Budokan.

Wakana: Naturally, I think standing inside Budokan will prove without a doubt that Last Idol's popularity is growing, so we'll do our best!

https://www.tvguide.or.jp/column/closeup_star/20200403/01.html

Last Idol 2ch Comments - Vol. 1

*This was originally posted on OneHallyu on January 2nd, 2018. I've translated allot of comments from 2ch/5ch over the past two and a half years, so I'll be backing them up here over the coming weeks.

Rough translation for now, but I've been meaning to do this. It's an interesting discussion about reservations for Last Idol Family's upcoming Handshake Meeting from 5ch. There's allot more, but this is just a small sample:

23. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水) 02:23:17.55ID:2Cfguhif0>>26>>43>>65 >>104

Individual Handshake Party on the 22nd (Last Term) Selling out information.

Cumulatively Sold Out so far:

*Handshake Meeting: Nagatsuki (X5), Ishikawa (X4), Yoshizaki (X3), Koga (X3), Abe (X1 Remaining 1), Ozawa, Matsumoto, Kiyohara, Nishimura

*Shooting Meeting: Nagatsuki (X3), Yoshizaki, Koga, Abe

Ishikawa-san, do your best.

26. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水) 02:31:06.97ID:7XGlDJk40>>34>>41
>>23

The Sales of the Handshake Meeting shows the amount of funds of the Kimowota.
The Sales of the Photo Session shows the number of Kimowota.

In other words, Ishikawa has as small number of wealthy Kimowota, while Abe is supported by a large number of poor Kimowota.

34. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水) 07:41:14.46ID:rdtWmcs40>>40
>>26

It's the opposite?
1 Handshake Ticket is 1000 Yen. 1 Photography Ticket is 3000 Yen.
It's more difficult to sell Photo Tickets than the Handshake Ticket.

43. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水) 08:33:58.52ID:vmrygLOX0
>>23

It seems the Wotaku of the Akibisu Era have just followed Ishikawa.

65. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水) 11:07:13.38ID:/PA5mt4S0
>>23

In order to sell, you cannot remove Nagatsuki.

104. 名無しでいいとも！＠放送中は実況板で2017/12/27(水)02:53:47.36ID:nhwxUD+r0>>108
>>23

Is it because Abe's remaining 1 is increasing Kansai?
Aimi-chan has also increased Kansai for quite some time.

Yako-chan is now sold out in Kansai 1 frame, but I have already added Kansai 3rd frame and cannot write it after all sold out?

(*Backtracking and can't find the post to copy the ID and make it official):

A large quantity of people buy Handshake Tickets, but a wider range of people buy the Photography Tickets.

http://mevius.5ch.net/test/read.cgi/tv/1514301433

I didn't know who Ishikawa Natsumi was at first and didn't know why she was doing better than most of the other members. She was one of the last Challengers to appear on Last Idol and performed the BiS song.

She came from the Indie group Akishibu Project and is now in Love Cocchi. According to the poster, she must have a small hardcore fan base willing to spend allot of money compared to Abe who has a larger fan base, but is poor, lol. I don't know if they're putting down Ishikawa or just stating a fact.

(Ishikawa during her Akishibu Project days)

Based on these numbers, Midori is the Queen of Handshake Events! She's the only one who seems to be able to sell out the Photo Sessions.

I didn't see Airi, Nastumi, or Haruka listed, so I don't know if their reservations are available yet. I would've thought Airi would be popular. Also didn't see Good Tears or Someday Somewhere so maybe they're coming up later too.

A Brief History of Tokimeki Sendenbu

*This is an expanded version of the original that I posted on OneHallyu on April 15, 2019.

While looking for more old posts to archive here, I came across this brief one about Tokimeki Sendenbu. I thought I would expand on it so it's more of an actual history of the group.

The group was formed on April 11, 2015 on the television show, Shiritsu Kagayaki Jogakuen SEASON 2.

Shiritsu Kagayaki Jogakuen (私立輝女学園, Private Kagayaki Girls' Academy) was an actress development project under Stardust Promotion talent agency section 3. The group's activities were broadcasted through the TV variety show titled Shiritsu Kagayaki Jogakuen ~KAGAJO.COM~ in J:COM station starting from April 6, 2014.

They actually released a single in August 2014 "Kagayaki Together (輝Together)". It translates to something like "Shining Together". It was coupled with "Kagaya Onna Taisou" which translates to "Women's Shining First Gymnastics" (Don't quote me this, lol). You can clearly see Kanami in the middle of the first pic.

(Jacket for Kagayaki Together)

(Jacket for Kagaya Onna Taisou)

It's interesting that the other 4 members who would go on to form TokiSen didn't participate in these singles.

(Our 5 TokiSen members on April 11th, 2015)

The original 5 members of TokiSen were:

- Tsujino Kanami (Tokimeki  Blue)
- Koizumi Haruka (Tokimeki Pink)
- Sakai Hitoka (Tokimeki Red)
- Yoshikawa Hiyori (Tokimeki Green)
- Nagasaka Mako (Tokimeki Yellow)

Tokisen's concept involves singing to promote pounding hearts. That's why their mascot is a heart and a heart is featured in the logo for their group name.

Their first Indies single was "Dokkyun♡!! Shoujo (土っキュン♡!!少女)" and released on 2015.6.24.

The ZAG mascot from the Kagaya Onna Taisou MV even makes a cameo in the MV.

Their first Major single "Gamba!! (ガンバ!!)" was released on 2016.11.9 on Universal. Ganba is probably short for Ganbare, which means "do your best!".

Nagaso Mako announced her graduation on March 20th, 2017 and they held a final live with her on March 20th. After this, there was a brief period when they were 4.

Fujimoto Bambi replaced Nagasaka Mako, who was also an original member, but instead of being the new Tokimeki Yellow, they made her Tokimeki Lemon, lol. Bambi joined in June 2018 along with Odaka Sala who was the first member to wear purple.

During this period, the group started wearing darker and more monochromatic costumes.

(Bambi is in the back row on the left and Sala is in the front row in the middle)

TokiSen released their first album "Tokiotome" on 2018.4.11. It's worth noting that the sound production was handled by Matsukuma Kenta, who does the sound production for all the WACK groups.

They released an MV for the song "Suki!".

Odaka Sala  had the shortest tenure in the group (June 2017 - October 2018). She was replaced by Julia Ann. For some reason, instead of continuing the fruit naming convention, Julia just became the new Tokimeki Purple. She really should have been Tokimeki Grape. I think the reason might be that Sala was a member during the period when the group didn't wear their member colors as much. Being the newest member, that must be why Julia got the center spot on one of the Jackets for Victory Story and was featured so prominently in the MV.

TokiSen made their debut on Avex with "Tokimeki Sendenbu no Victory Story" on 2019.4.10:

The single debuted at third place in the daily singles ranking with 30,160 copies sold!

I'll finish this off with a live perf from Tokisen's Christmas concert during their original era.

*Bonus: Sunshine City Live

To promote Victory Story, TokiSen held the obligatory live at SunShine City Fountain Square in Tokyo on 4.10. The concert was an hour long and streamed on Line Live. I like these kinds of videos because it feels like your right there in the audience.

https://popnroll.tv/articles/2377

*Bonus 2: Yoshikawa Hiyori (Tokimeki Green) is pretty extra. She's the firecracker of the group.

Mameshiba no Taigun - 2ch Comments Part 2

I'm back with more comments from 2ch. These are from the 17th Mameshiba thread. Most of the comments revolve around the costume and the possibility of a new member.

964 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 00:35:36.47 ID:U1j0JE3xd.net[1/2]

My feeling after January's "WACK Nari no Koushien" is that people on the net are divided into either the "Mameshiba Faction" or "WACK Faction". Mameshiba is well known because they debuted on a TV Project. The other groups have grown steadily in popularity. At this point, there's a distinction between them. In addition, there was a confrontation between two MVs, the "Kuro-chan Version" and the "WACK Version" and the Kuro-chan version had 1 million more views.

965 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 00:46:09.31 ID:U1j0JE3xd.net[2/2]

Mameshiba had allot of fans until Kuro-chan was dismissed as Producer in December.

Early in January, the costume was changed to the black Yankee style one, and there were allot of complaints like "this is lame", "it doesn't suit them" and "we want Kuro-chan to return as Producer".

In February, after the confrontation between the Kuro-chan and WACK MVs, Kuro-chan's won and he became Mameshiba's Adviser.

To put it simply, Kuro-chan was dismissed as Producer and there was displeasure with the costume change. So Kuro-chan will return as Producer and his personal taste leans towards cute clothes and songs.

966 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 01:34:57.95 ID:y6lNj12K0.net[1/11]

Although Mameshiba is popular due to the effect of the TV Program, they lack a decisive hit (song),
so it's a plus that Kuro-chan has returned.

973 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 04:38:11.35 ID:lgJMs27G0.net[1/3]

Most of the new fans left because of the Sukeban costume.
Very few have come back after Kuro-chan's return.
It's difficult to recover what you've lost.

(*I'm not sure what they mean by "new fans". They could just mean that Mameshiba's fanbase is relatively new)

976 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｱｳｱｳｳｰ Sa2f-j6Zl)：2020/03/01(日) 05:53:19 ID:jBBMFMA5a.net

I think most of them would have left even if they hadn't worn the Sukeban costumes.

979 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 07:04:01.54 ID:rsBuIe500.net[1/8]
>>965

It's the difference between the majority and the minority.
Most people just watch the TV Show.
While watching the show, I heard the reason why Kuro-chan dropped Kaede and thought it was a waste.
When the Jakegaii was announced on the TV Show, I thought it was good that Kaede returned.

I didn't watch the survival show, so I don't know the circumstances surrounding Kaede being eliminated and then brought back.

(*Definition of "Jakegaii" from the Japanese wikipedia:

"Jakegai is the purchase of media products such as record CDs, DVDs, and books, with no knowledge of the contents, and motivated by the fact that they received a good impression from the package design they saw at stores. Also buying a jacket.")

The minority takes the initiative to look and search around.
Since I was already familiar with the contents of the TV Show, I looked through all the channels for the first time to get better acquainted.

(*When they say "channels" they must mean 2ch, 5ch, etc.)

There were probably a decent amount of people who searched here already, but the majority just was the TV Show.
It may seem like a majority because the protests over the costume change happened so quickly,
but most people remained silent.

(*I think he means that fans who check online knew about the costume change before people who watched the TV Show did)

Even though the WACK version was denied, most people who saw the costumes for the first time in the Daijoubu Sunrise MV thought they were okay.

1009 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 12:08:09.41 ID:gMGLl2Y20.net[1/2]
>>985

WACK really wants to challenge the Aki-P system.
WACK is a small fish with ugly music and low sales.
The Aki-P system is all that sells in Japan.
In the end, WACK desperately wants to sell Mameshiba to another office.

(*They used the word "hataku" or "tataku" which means "to slap, strike, beat". For lack of a better word, I went with challenge)

1011 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 12:27:16.69 ID:gMGLl2Y20.net[2/2]
>>965

Only the costume design was a mistake.
They would have been accepted if they wore black gothic lolita costumes.
Even so, Antis would still have complained here and there.

1013 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 12:56:46.56 ID:rsBuIe500.net[5/8]

In the first place, the costume was already similar to Gothic Lolita.
There is no way to do it in that style.

1041 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 20:59:39.90 ID:ExzHOl7Kd.net

YouTube Live Distribution.
2 months have passed since their Debut CD.
Aika is a beginner.
The other members are comfortable because they've all had Idol activities in the past.
Even though it's only been 2 months, I think things have progressed smoothly.

Watching the live stream, Aika and Miyuki seem to enjoy each other.
I think it's good to have a fun atmosphere.

1050 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 1beb-V03r)：2020/03/01(日) 22:51:42 ID:rsBuIe500.net[8/8]
>>1048

First of all, there are no new members.
At this time, there not adding a new member.

1051 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ ：2020/03/01(日) 23:22:24.39 ID:othWx+mzd.net[1/2]

When adding a new member, it's necessary to consult with their Adviser, Kuro-chan.
When a group releases two CDs at the same time, there seems to be some expansion.
For example, competing for CD sales.
I've never heard of a group releasing two CDs at the same time.

1056 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｽﾌﾟｯｯ Sd13-klgD)：2020/03/02(月) 00:53:27 ID:q+sCkaO2d.net

The number of subscribers for Mameshiba's YouTube channel is 854,000.
The Release Event has been canceled this week and it's been changed to YouTube live distribution.
With the big announcement coming, I hope that by March 8th, they will have over 100k subscribers.

1069 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 1beb-tor7)：2020/03/02(月) 11:54:45 ID:Rn8eGcgx0.net[2/7]
>>1068

I think it's better to stop thinking about new members.
If you increase the number of people, the assignment of solo parts will be busy and may become jumbled.
Line distribution is already congested in BiSH with 6 members.
If you want to focus on choruses like AKB, then that's different, but if you don't, then keep it the way it is.
And they never add a new member during the promotion period.
There's probably a likely candidate in the WACK trainee program.

1074 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 1beb-tor7)：2020/03/02(月) 13:52:51 ID:Rn8eGcgx0.net[3/7]
>>1072

Won't they make a Horde?

(*The above comment is what the person below is responding to)

Isn't Horde just a name? It's not a promise.
If they really want to make a large group, it will end up as Mameshiba48 where the main chorus is decided by Aki-P, so let's not talk about that.
A large group is impossible with the way things are in WACK.

1078 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｻｻｸｯﾃﾛﾙ Sp03-jvKQ)：2020/03/02(月) 14:12:16 ID:bhfCuPAIp.net[2/2]

When I first saw the black costumes, I thought the WACK sensibility was strong.
However, I think it looks better once you get used to it.
Kuro-chan's weird lyrics are suited for WACK.
However, since everyone is wearing black, it might be good to put their member colors somewhere.
Maybe the lines on the sailor top.

1079 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 3a61-r+hr)：2020/03/02(月) 14:15:43 ID:P+uDMG6w0.net[2/3]

Is there enough demand for an album or tour?
The new song just came out and the release event has been cancelled, so it might be too soon.
There might be new members, and I think they'll be announced at the exhibition after the training camp.

1080 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 1beb-tor7)：2020/03/02(月) 14:22:14 ID:Rn8eGcgx0.net[4/7]
>>1076

There are limits to the solo part because it doesn't change.
Lets assume there are 48 members and you assign a solo part.
It's impossible. Even 6 members are too busy.

1088 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 1beb-tor7)：2020/03/02(月) 15:07:52 ID:Rn8eGcgx0.net[5/7]
>>1083

I don't know which two, but are they the main chorus?
That's okay then.
In the chorus, individuality will die if it becomes like AKB.
Even 6 members are too busy for me.
If it can be done well with the current members, just do that.

>>1084

A 4 minute song is about 240 sec. In a group with 48 members, that's 5 sec. per member.
Considering the prelude, interlude, and time for the chorus, there's even less per member.

1091 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 3a61-r+hr)：2020/03/02(月) 15:16:36 ID:P+uDMG6w0.net[3/3]
>>1088

There isn't a main chorus in WACK.
It's usually good to add new members.

In fact Bish got better after adding Ayuni. The same can be said when NOW was added to EMPiRE.

Why are you so adamant about denying new members.

1098 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｽｯﾌﾟ Sd8a-drPS)：2020/03/02(月) 15:37:14 ID:VWAyUvQBd.net[2/2]

There is absolutely no new member.

1100 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ﾜｯﾁｮｲ 637b-3RV9)：2020/03/02(月) 15:44:04 ID:zFAe7VZY0.net

There will be no new member until the Training Camp ends.

1102 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｱｳｱｳｳｰ Sa2f-v0na)：2020/03/02(月) 15:44:51 ID:lpOF06D6a.net[15/20]
>>1098

A member from WAgg will be added someday.

1103 ：ファンクラブ会員番号７７４ (ｱｳｱｳｳｰ Sa2f-v0na)：2020/03/02(月) 15:45:36 ID:lpOF06D6a.net[16/20]

As long as Kaede is there, everything will be fine.

http://nozomi.2ch.sc/test/read.cgi/idol/1582378119/0-

Last Idol 8th Single Selection

Here's the line up:

1. Abe Natsumi (LaLuce)
2. Nagatsuki Midori (LaLuce & Chou Cream Rockets)
3. Majima Wakana (Someday Somewhere)
4. Yasuda Airi (LaLuce)
5. Ohmori Rio (Love Cocchi)
6. Yamamoto Airi (Love Cocchi)
7. Nishimura Honoka (Love Cocchi)
8. Ozawa Aimi (Chou Cream Rockets)
9. Machida Honoka (2nd Gen Main Group)
10. Okamura Mana (2nd Gen Unders)
11. Momiyama Himeri (Someday Somewhere)
12. Hata Misaki (2nd Gen Main Group)
13. Shinohara Nozomi (2nd Gen Unders)
14. Matsumoto Momona (Chou Cream Rockets)
15. Okumura Yuki (2nd Gen Unders)
16. Yoneda Miina (2nd Gen Unders)
17. Oba Yume (2nd Gen Main Group)
18. Shiraishi Mana (2nd Gen Unders)

I have to say, the uniforms look great. I wasn't expecting something like this. They're quite a departure from the previous AKB style ones they wore for the 6th single and the Keyakizaka style ones for the 7th.

/#ラストアイドル
8thシングル『愛を知る』
選抜メンバー18名が決定🎊
\#阿部菜々実 #長月翠 #間島和奏#安田愛里 #大森莉緒 #山本愛梨#西村歩乃果 #小澤愛実 #町田穂花#岡村茉奈 #籾山ひめり #畑美紗起#篠原望 #松本ももな #奥村優希#米田みいな #大場結女 #白石真菜https://t.co/iITAZh5Aja pic.twitter.com/pzzvalMPtU

— ラストアイドルファミリー公式 (@last_idol_pr) February 19, 2020

Overall, I'm fine with the selection results. Most of the members I expected to pass did so. I should note that the girls always seem so dour during these events. I remember watching Senbatsu's for Keyakizaka46 and the members didn't look happy at all. There's allot of pressure to stand out combined with competition among other members, so it could be that the stress of the situation is too much. There's also the expectation to be professional and maintain composure, so what should be a joyful occasion ends up being something grim.

They played it safe and went with the Abe, Midori, and Wakana as the top 3. This formula has worked before, so it makes sense (These three were at the top for the 3rd single "Suki de Suki de" and the 6th single "Otona Survivor". The only difference with the 3rd single is that Wakana was the center instead of Abe). Abe was the only choice for the center. There's no way Wakana was going to be chosen. While she does have an aura, she's not nearly as consistent as Abe. On top of that, Wakana's aura only comes through in MVs. It's not apparent during live performances.

Abe just seems to have so much confidence. Right before Lasu Ai, Yoroshiku! began, several members were selected to participate in the pre-release prayer (I can't remember, but it might have been for the 4th single). I don't know if it's still being done, but there was a trend where groups would go base jumping and say a short prayer for the single's success. Abe ended up going twice even though she didn't have to. That's the kind of person she is.

After taking her place, Abe said:

"Even though I've been the center on the previous two singles, there were times when I was unsatisfied with myself. This time, I will succeed. Thank you very much."

It's a bit hard to translate part of Abe's speech. She says "Shoubu" which translates to either "victory/defeat" or "sport/contest". I went with succeed because I think Abe wants to make this a challenge like it's a contest with herself.

Midori's so charismatic and has a great voice, so her being number 2 again is the right choice. She seemed quite humbled. It makes up for her not making it into the top 7 of the Dragon Egg Battle (she placed 8th). For those unaware, Dragon Egg is a very popular mobile battling game. It's doing a tie-in with the 8th single and the title track will be used in commercials for the game which is a big deal. Because of this, they held a battle involving fan participation. The rules are complicated, but fans could help members by sending them in game items. At the end of the competition, the members that ranked 1 - 7 would participate in a special commercial for Dragon Egg. The winners also received special golden dragon eggs with their names on them. It helped if you were good at the game and several of the members who placed in the top 7 are gamers, so that gave them an edge.

Midori said:

"I'd been standing next to Abe for such a long time during single promotions, but when Seishun Train was released, I dropped down a little. I didn't show it, but I was disappointed. This time, I became happy because I thought I would have the chance to stand next to Abe again. I feel that, standing in this position, I have to be great representative of Last Idol. This time, I will work harder than ever before. Thank you very much.

As I said earlier, Wakana wasn't going to be chosen as the center. The 3rd single with her as center was Last Idol's lowest selling up to the point. I don't think it was entirely Wakana's fault. They announced the single in the middle of the 2nd Producer Battle, which caught fans off guard. They were probably saving up to buy the single by the winners of that season and not prepared for a surprise single that would be released only 2 weeks after the announcement. It was poor planning on managements part, but considering how polarizing Wakana is, her role as center most likely hurt it as well. After being selected for the 3rd position, Wakana kept her speech surprisingly short.

All Wakana said was:

"I want to make Last Idol bigger. I'll do my best. Thank you very much."

I could go on an on about each member, so I'll make my comments brief about the rest of the selection process.

LaLuce's Airi seemed genuinely surprised to be 4th. She said: "when Last Idol debuted, #4 was my original position, so I'm happy to return to here." It's worth noting that the top 4 contains 3 members from LaLuce showing just how strong they are as performers.

I believe this is the highest position for Love Cocchi's Rio, so she was understandably emotional. She said: "I worked really hard to become the center of Last Idol and put allot of emotion in it. I was really worried about what I would do if I wasn't selected, but I'm happy to be standing here. Thank you for choosing me."

Personally, I would have switched positions for Love Cocchi's Airi and Rio. They're the two best performers in their Unit, but I'd put Airi ahead of Rio.

Aimi was also really emotional. She really wanted to be selected, but had allot of doubts. However, she thought it would useless if she said to herself "I can't do it" and instead thought positively. She came alive after hearing that she passed.

There are 3 choices I don't agree with:

- Good Tears's Kana should have been selected. Kana was better in her dance and vocal performances than some of the members who passed. Not only that, but Good Tears the only Unit not represented in the lineup. That's really odd.

- Hata Misaki should have been disqualified after forgetting the lyrics during her vocal performance. It doesn't feel right to select her when other members gave better performances.

- I feel the same way about Wakana. She shouldn't have been selected after her terrible vocal performance. Giving her such a high position only solidifies her reputation as Aki-P's favorite. I don't expect this will endear her to fans.

- I would also say that the 2nd Gen's Yoneda Miina should have been placed higher.

The judges commented, but I'm just going to summarize them. Akane said that the members who weren't selected weren't really that bad and they shouldn't feel depressed. She wants the members who were selected to evolve with the awareness that they are representatives.

Yoshida commented that the goodness of everyone came out. All the judges evaluated the members on different criteria, but the members that were selected had something that really shined.

This is how the rows will look.

I've read that one of the reasons fans think certain members were selected because they've been doing Gravure shoots so this helps marketability. They're actually doing a Gravure Battle to decide which Unit will sing the coupling song (I'll do a write up for that later). Naturally, some fans question what's the point of even doing an audition if the line up is chosen by management behind closes doors. It was pointed out that this kind of event is good because you can see how members have grown as performers. It can help their popularity grow. One fan said: "No matter what criteria is used to choose the lineup, whether it's ability, popularity, or appearance, someone will complain."

So very true.

8th Single Selection:

https://www.bilibili.com/video/av90260940?from=search&seid=11097122222227512182