Musicians and other artists are getting inventive in the face of COVID-19, holding free streaming concerts and the like. But this might be the most, uh, creative idea we’ve heard of yet. AKB48, the chart-dominating, many-member-having pop group from Akihabara, Tokyo, is famous for its …Read more »
In an occurrence that recalled similar incidents involving idol groups and disgruntled fans in the recent past, a man was arrested June 24 after igniting a flare and carrying a knife into a event for group Keyakizaka46. The 24-year-old man reportedly told officials he “wanted …Read more »
You may recall the various incidents that have plagued the Japanese idol scene in recent years, like when two members of supergroup AKB48 were attacked by a saw-wielding fan at a handshake event in 2014, or when indie idol Mayu Tomita was stabbed in May. …Read more »
A 26-year-old man in Kyoto was arrested for possession of an illegal fake ID card, it was reported January 6. His motive for owning the card: to attend more AKB48 handshake events. Part of the charm (read: marketing gimmick) of idol group AKB48 is the …Read more »
Idol groups -- particularly one as big and terrifying as AKB48 -- make their fans do crazy things. I still remember hearing news of a guy beaten near to death outside a Shibuya train station bathroom for some kind of AKB48-related misgiving when I was …Read more »
AKB fans descend on a handshake event - Karl Baron AKB48’s “akushukai” – sessions where fans of the idol supergroup can meet and shake hands with their favorite members, have been on hold since an attack on two of AKB members at one such event …Read more »
Anna Iriyama (left) and Rina Kawaei (right) In a piece of news so grisly and odd it sounds almost made up, it was reported Sunday two members of phenomenally successful idol group AKB48, plus one member of their staff, were seriously injured by a man …Read more »
Matt Schley
Jason Moses
