This is the first part of RAY’s Uchiyama Yuua’s interview in issue 30 of idol mook IDOL and READ. It can be purchased here. …

My favourite idol, KOTO, is retiring on 29 April 2021 after a truly wonderful career. I’m so thankful for everything she has given us. This post doesn’t give any factual information on KOTO, but I wanted to share something meaningful to commemorate her retirement. I first saw KOTO-chan live on…

I have hand-picked a small selection of albums from a book I picked up in Japan, which has become a music-bible of sorts for me. …

To Maho Yamaguchi, and the industry that failed her. On 25 May 2014, a man named Satoru Umeta lunged into a crowd of excited idol fans in Takizawa, Iwate Prefecture. Armed with a saw, he aggressively hacked his way through the huddle of fans, managing to slash two AKB48 members…