4 posts tagged “hello!”

    In an age of blogs, comebacks, hiatuses, exterminations, scandals, rants, snark, and all sorts of things I can go on about, we experience a variety of subject matter and events in our lives as fans and as people. Of course, since they’re people too, our favorite stars, Eastern and Western, experience them too. As a person, I experience these twists in the plot of life. Will it continue? Yes. Will various bumps and pit stops along the road influence how we live our lives? Of course.

    This blog article, this entry is about that. Wait, scratch that, it’s actually about one of them: comebacks. Our cousin John coming back to family and society after being in rehab (ironically after he said “No, no, no!”). Our little sister Naomi coming back to America after studying abroad. Us coming back to work after debilitating illness. Comebacks are universal and never-ending.

    Which brings me to my comeback as a blogger. As you may or may not know, I have graduated from high school three days before v-u-den’s disbandment. Even before marching on that stage to “Pomp and Circumstance” played on a piano (read: keyboard), I have considered returning to my blog after I unconsciously abandoned it. With the support of my fans, along with anyone and everyone, I humbly thank you from the bottom of my heart.

    I had a lot of doubts about the direction my blog was taking but now I realize it was a case of emptiness, a deficiency of confidence as a blogger, and me being a perfectionist, especially at one… small… hobby…. People actually do this for a living and even if this is just a pet project on the side, I can’t abandon “Morning Meteora” (or “Magic Meteora” as it’s beginning to be called by some blogs. You can tell by the subtitle).

    Yes, I had uncertainties, I had things within and outside my own power and control that prevented me from being “Magi-Kat the Blogger” but the build-up of my feelings, the acknowledgement of my writing talent (I won awards for my writings), and knowing I’m appreciated is enough to make me want to “come back.” Thank you all for supporting me.

(I would like to also give a shout-out, albeit somewhat belated for him to notice, to Henkka for mentioning me in his blog. It made me bashful and honored to be named among other great bloggers (in fact, that's part of what led me to do this) and for someone as young as me, it says a lot so arigatou gozaimasu. Ganbare~!).

    Now that I have my comeback pretty much set up and known, it’s time to get into other comebacks as well.

• Goto Maki - the comeback of Maki Goto had officially come and for once, fan speculation really paid off! (In fact, it was on the dot). I have been only a recent “fan” of Gomaki and I was sad to she her leave. I mean, I love “Glass no Pumps” with a passion (who doesn’t?) and with her last album, her career with Avex can only go in one direction: upwards. Ganbare Gomaki! You have the pipes so go crack some glass in a good way! (Hey, you may even get me back into listening to Avex artists. I mean, among some of my first J-pop experiences was with hitomi and Ayumi Hamasaki).

• Tsuji Nozomi - Tsuji’s first post-pregnancy appearance was, albeit minor, like a dream come true. I was happy to hear about it when I first read it at Hell! Project. I was like, “Tsuji’s back in less than a year? She’s back? SHE’S BAAAAACK!” It was a bit odd to see her as “Nozomi Tsuji” and not just as “Nono” but it was worth it. She has grown up into a respectable woman. Sure, it wasn’t as crash-and-burn as her [possibly former] buddy Ai Kago but Nozomi has found life outside the idol light. Even if she is married with a kid and probably qualifies more as a talent than an idol, Nozomi Tsuji (along with Kago) will always be my #1 favorite Hello! Project member and I will support her no matter what. Even if we don’t see much of her, she will always remain my favorite (though I do admit I haven’t been rigorously checking Kago’s blog like a good fan should).

• Ogawa Makoto - Screw the Haromoni, we got Mako. (I doubt any of you would get that reference). Pardon the moment but let me get this off my chest first: Mako-cha~n! When I heard about her comeback on International Wota, I was excited! I… I… I… I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I looked forward to the Haromoni@ episode and while she didn’t really get to do much, it was nice to see her. (Besides, as a member of the Elder Club, she’s pretty much stock to UFA). Considering her high scores on those tests, she has a bright future ahead of her, maybe doing some translation work and possibly bridge the gap between English-speaking fans and H!P (but that’s just a fan’s speculation). I even imagined “Makoto Ogawa’s Surprise English Lessons”! (Trés impossible! C’est trés impossible, chacun). I look forward to your future, Makoto, and may great things come to you.

• Iida Kaori - Imagine my surprise. I mean, I always thought it’d be years before we’d hear from Kaori-san (if not, ever! Ditto to Nono). After all, didn’t she say it was her dream to be a happy mother? Well, dreams do come true after all. Good luck to her and Mini-Kenji. (However, I highly doubt her spectacularly unique “Euro-enka” releases are gonna continue, especially with the bia- er, preference towards the Wonderful Hearts by UFA. BTW happy [early] 27th, Kaorin!).

(Possibly big post ahead)
Dreams do come true in Hello! Land. They all may not be in ways that we want (Kikkawa Yuu getting a larger role, a new soloist who isn’t involved in anime) but with a little magic and wishing, we can make it happen:

• Gocchin is back! Imagine my happiness at the news that Goto Maki has reopened her blog, presently staying in LA no less. Dance lessons? Vocal training? I smell a comeback. Well, after getting hooked on “Genshoku GAL wa Hade ni Yukube!” I guess I don’t really have a choice but to see how she’s doing.
  

• Tsunku is going to be a daddy! Personally, I am rather surprised he didn’t have any children until now at his age. Now to believe in a similar thing with Nakazawa (though part of me is telling me she’ll be a childless woman… even a spinster). I know one thing Tsunku will have that neither Iida, Tsuji, or Nakazawa won't: twins.

• Well, how this even might affect his songwriting is anyone’s question. Will we hear songs of happy praise or continue to write breakup and loneliness songs? While that’s the norm and what we want… we will never know. Hmm…

• Buono is getting a new single called “Kiss Kiss Kiss.” It’s not necessarily a dream come true since we were anticipating this after “Honto no Jibun” and “Renai Rider” single, along with their “Café Buono” album.

• Reina fans were delighted to hear the Queen is going to be a voice actress on a Sanrio anime. Now, will this mean an anime-oriented solo career a la Koharu? An anime unit a la Athena & Friends? We are not sure at the moment. (Although, the name of her character, “Kirara,” reminds me of her fellow bandmate, Kusumi Kirari. Plus, imo, she looks a bit like Nono to me).

• V-u-den’s new song hits the airwaves and it’s rather good. It nearly brought tears to my eyes (and listening to “Leave Out All the Rest,” which will be Linkin Park’s next single, isn’t helping). Well… I wish I could write more about it but that’s for another entry. I will say this though: the b-side being solo songs for each member was a nice touch. Kudos to Tsunku, his posse, and UFA!

• More Eggs get the spotlight as Happy! Style takes the stage in a recent announcement. Lead by Ongaku Gata Noto Arisa (or “Nocchi” to her fans and wota), the group also features the members of Hello! Project Kansai alongside Aoi and Yui (rookie trainees). It is unknown whether they’ll be part of H!P or TNX but they are a part of “Up-Front Style.”

• One final dream I’ll mention is Milky Way’s “Anataboshi.” You have no idea how addictive this song is. I mean, it’s like they made this song to my particular taste (I’m a nut for international sounds). While in other blogs, I’ve seen favorable reviews towards Sayaka, I’m actually a fan of all three. (Then again, I’m not as familiar with [most of] the Eggs than some of you are, though I have some minor favorites). As soon as the single comes out, I… must… have it! (It’s the J-pop equivalent of moondust-sprinkled cupcakes with lemonade under a starry night).
  Anataboshi (PV) Milky Way

• I recently took that Musume quiz and here’s my result:
  

  Niigaki

• Took yet another quiz and it turns out the Musume I’m most like is… Ai Takahashi. Now that is a big surprise. Then again, I put most questions in the “middle” sections of the priority bar. Plus, Takitty is my third favorite Musume (after Mittsi and Kussun). The other Musume I'm supposedly like are:
  

• God Save the Queen! Speaking of going solo, while listening to music the other day, I thought of Reina as a soloist. What style of music could she go for? (Hopefully something not boring like Yuko-san’s “Danna-sama”). Well, I never really could get into that Kira Fuyu song she sang (it was too sweet for me) and I feel that style is just… too “shiny shiny girl” for me. Then again, I’m no Reina expert. Her Kirara role, if we’re lucky, would see us some solo releases (but they’d be “Kira Fuyu” songs most likely!).

• After the 9th Gen auditions, if Tanaka-san doesn’t go solo, Takitty will. A graduation at this point is hazardous to the health of Morning Musume since, as “Resonant Blue” proved, she and Tanakacchi are the “faces” of Musume nowadays (Koharu is also a front but only because of Kira☆Revo). With the 9th Gen auditions, if they select more than one person (2-4 is fine) and at least one great singer, either one of the present “aces” are cleared for graduation. (They can go soloist, form a unit, or leave H!P to pursue other opportunities. Heck, they might even join the other Musume in in the Japanese population!).

• *crosses fingers on more Eggs debuting in groups* I know that’s a possibility but it doesn’t hurt to dream. Hey, I hoped Kikkawa Yuu gets a second chance since she’s popular with the fans and lookie what we have here! Milky Way! After Milky Way, hopefully, Kikkawa-san gets put into a group or, better yet, a solo career (what’s with me and solo artists?).

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RuRu_231

• Rob Bourdon was born in the same year as Miyoshi, Maeda, and Michiyo but his birthday was in earlier (January 20), making him older than all three.

• Brad “Big Bad Brad” Delson was born in 1977, along with Azusa and Miwa. He is younger than them since his birthday is December 1.

• Dave “Phoenix” Farrell was also born in 1977 but with a birthday of February 8, he is younger than Azusa while older than Miwa.

• Joe Hahn is another ‘77 baby. He is younger than all of the mentioned members with a birthday of March 15 (three days before Cake Day).

• Mike Shinoda was (of course) born in the same year that popped up, his birthday being February 11. He is younger than Azusa while older than Brad, Dave, Joe, and Miwa.

(Note: I wrote this post weeks ago. Look and see how old it is)

Dear Up Front Agency,
    May I ask you a question?

Why?!

C-ute’s new single is going to be that “Wonderful Hearts All-Stars” song, Melon Kinenbi re-releasing “Charisma, Kirei” as a stand-alone single, the Berryz are covering an old Eurovision song (and that’s not actually bad). What’s next? The postponed v-u-den single being “FANTASY”?! (See how long ago I was composing this post?) Morning Musume are going to rerecord another song?

*rant ends*

This was going to be longer but I didn’t feel like writing it when it came to my mind. Plus, I spent a lot of energy on that pic. Besides, Hello! Project covered many a person, even themselves. Plus, the first H!P release for 2008 was not a cover (thank you Natsumi-san and Maimi-san).

To end this pointless post, here’s “Little Boxes” as performed by Chester & Friends. *goes singing into the sunset*

P.S. When is Kaori’s baby going to be born? It’s due this month supposedly.