I'm no good with farewells, I much prefer just a 'See you later'...

Even though we both know that we won't see each other once again...

- I Need You/Buono!

Well, as mentioned a month ago, this is it.

Thank you for following along with this blog through its four years, over what my tags tell me totalled over 700 translations, both short and long.

I've learnt a lot over this four years, and not just in terms of Japanese.
Subtitling, image editing, philosophising on the art of translation...
These probably wouldn't have happened without the time I spent filling up this blog.

My target was at least one decently-sized translation a week.
I think I managed to do pretty well on that.
It was a useful constraint that kept me committed and let me continue improving.

There's still some things left hanging, but I suspect that they'd probably keep on hanging even if I had all the time in the world.
I plan to take some time to hopefully recentre myself, and see how things go on from there.
I'll still hopefully be around, here and there.
And maybe someday I'll be back, perhaps in some different form.
I don't intend to give up being an idol wota any time soon. After all, Momo herself has said that she hopes we keep on supporting idol culture.

But when all's said and done, with all the recent changes in H!P, it feels like a whole different ballgame nowadays.

In some ways, it's barely even the same H!P that I remember from a couple of months ago.
Guess it's now my turn to wave off.
After all, to me, it feels like the H!P that I remember has already waved goodbye...

Thank you again for these four years.

Mata aeru yo ne
(We'll meet again, won't we?) 
- Love Together/Berryz Kobo

Four Years of Translating

My fourth cake day as a translator!

So a couple of days after my previous birthday post, ℃-ute announced that they would be breaking up. As sad as the announcement was, I wasn't going to let anything bring me down for my trip to see Buono! at the Holy Land of Rock, the Nippon Budokan.

It was only later on Country Girls' second anniversary that the bomb dropped - Momochi announced her graduation and retirement. 30th June 2017 had been marked as the end of days.

A lot has happened in between - illnesses, sudden graduations, a reshuffle of Country Girls - but honestly, over this past year, Momochi's graduation was and still is the biggest thing to me. Coupled with increasing pressure from my work life, I came to the decision that it was high time for me to close the curtain on this blog.

In the meantime, I made some more excursions to Japan to catch a ℃-ute concert, Buono!'s Yokohama Arena show, and of course, Momochi's graduation concert.

To cap off the year, Pink Cres. dropped by my neck of the woods a couple of weeks ago. Took the opportunity to have a look, and even got a photo with the girls.

🌹🌹🌹

And as I did last year and the years before, here are some translation highlights over the past year. For obvious reasons, expect this to be heavily Momochi-biased, even more than usual lol

Rival - 12 shoujo no 10-nen monogatari -
Momochi no Kimochi
Both these books are pretty important to me, and while I couldn't finish either completely, I'm glad that I got translations of them out there, as niche as they are. While BeriKyuu may have graduated fully from H!P, BeriKyuu's 10th anniversary book was an interesting insight into the relationships between the girls. While the essays from Momochi no Kimochi of course provide an interesting insight into Momochi. XD

Miyamoto Karin loves 80s idol songs and ballads!!
Had to put in quite a bit of research into translating this, but as tough as it was, it was fun. Karin-chan talking about her obsession over 80s idols was a treat, and I'm glad this seems to have piqued people's interest in Karin-chan as well.

Karin-chan: 'I'm an angel, so I've never seen that (toilet paper)!' pic.twitter.com/BxQtH0xySZ

— IceCream & My Jiggly (@IceJiggly) 2017年4月21日

Danbara Ruru: The Future Legend (Top Yell Sept 2017)

(Summary of Danbara Ruru's solo interview)

♪ Ruru was very shy when she was small, so her mother sent her and her sister to a performance school. Ruru had always liked singing, but she couldn't sing in front of people, she'd only sing at home.

♪ Sayashi-san was what got her into Morning Musume。Ruru went to every Musume concert that happened in Hiroshima after Sayashi joined.

♪ Once she joined the Kenshuusei, Ruru was surprised at how much emphasis was put on capturing the rhythm. At the school she had previously attended in Hiroshima, the focus was more on singing with personality.

♪ With many of the girls from her generation getting into groups before her, she had thought about quitting. She'd actually gone out and said that she wanted to quit three times. But when asked in return if she'd quit if that were the case, she'd reply 'It's not like I particularly want to quit!' and keep at it. She's competitive, and is the type who doesn't want to quit until she gets some sort of result.

♪ Haga Akane-chan's debut was the most surprising to her. She was more mentally prepared for the debuts after that.

♪ When her group had yet to be made known, the Musume would have been her first choice. But she was happy to have gotten into Juice=Juice. Juice=Juice hadn't crossed her mind as a possibility because the group had never taken in new members before.

♪ On Yanagawa - Ruru: That machine gun chatter is crazy.

♪ Her goal in Juice=Juice
Ruru: I want to be doing work where I always bring smiles to people's faces, so I hope to become someone who can provide smiles and energy through my singing and dancing!

♪ Bonus from the 47 questions segment
What's the origin of your name?
My older sister is Riri, so I became Ruru.

Twitter Tidbits: Country Girls on tour

22nd April Momochi-ism tour in Nagoya [x][x][x][x]

Yamaki: Mai-chan, Yanamin, you've become senior high students. How are you finding it?

Ozeki: I'm cute, right!

Momo: Well, it'll take some time if we go in that direction, so let's just put it aside for the time being...

Ozeki: As senior high students, we have new teachers as well. So at our first lessons with the new teachers, we have to introduce ourselves. Since I'm cute, I've get told that I'm cute dozens of times a day.

Momo: Hmm? Okay.

Ozeki: Like my friends tell me that I'm cute. But it'd be awkward to start off with a, 'Yeah, I know'. For me to suddenly come out to say it, the people around might wonder, 'What's up with this girl?'

Momo: I can relate to that, obviously (laughs)

Ozeki:  So I modestly tell the speaker that they're cute too. But humility just doesn't fit with me! I can't lie, can I? We started off with science classes, and we had to introduce ourselves with something that made us happy recently. So I was like 'I'm Ozeki Mai, and my cuteness makes me happy every day!'. The mood of the class was like, 'What's up with this kid?' But what I've learnt from Country Girls is that persistence through difficulty makes one stronger. Regardless of how down class' reaction made me feel!

Audience: Ohhhh~!

Ozeki: Next class was English. When I had to mention what I like, I went 'Hello, my name is Mai Ozeki, I like looking my face.' While the mood at the previous class was underwhelming, it was somehow well received at this class!

Momo: It went well!?

Ozeki: Our teacher was a native speaker, and even they were excited, going 'Oh, wonderful, beautiful'. My friends and teacher understood that that's the kind of person I am. And that's how I started my life as a senior high student.

🍑🍑🍑

22nd March Happy Dinner Time ~Momochi ni Sachi Are~ Dinner Show in Cotton Club [x][x]

Momo: I discussed the setlist with Yamaki Risa-chan. I wasn't sure if I should put in my favourite non-Hello! songs. And then she was like 'Momochi-senpai, what are you saying! The fans have come to watch their oshi have fun, as she enjoys singing the songs she likes!' I'm sure that she must have said that with Misshige-san in mind!

🍑🍑🍑

22nd April Momochi-ism tour in Nagoya  [x]

Yamaki: If I may say so myself, I think that we've grown compared to how we were in the past. And I've got a proper basis for making that statement. Do you remember the opening day of our second tour?

Morito: At the opening day of our second live tour, the first song was Kakumeichikku Kiss. We couldn't even get to our positions in time while the introductory song was playing. We completely missed the timing. We had to dash to get to our positions in Kakumeichikku Kiss. In a sense, it was legendary. It was just a week before when Momochi-senpai had to go on a break because of vocal cord polyps. Out of the blue, the four of us had to practise for the opening day, and we were nervous wrecks.

Momo: So it's because of my scheduling?

Yamaki: Momochi-senpai, without you, we were like mere children, completely clueless!

Momo: I was in the ward, worrying about you guys. Then I got a call. I was told, 'Momochi-senpai, it went perfectly!' That gave me some relief. Later that night, I got a video from the show. It only took 30 seconds of watching for me to see the first mistake.

Yamaki: On Hello! Sute, Hello! Project's YouTube programme, I hosted the show for my first time with Momochi-senpai. I was fully dressed up, putting in everything I had in my own way. To bring up my luck, I wore pink. And obviously, Momochi-senpai was also completely decked out in pink. As we were hosting, we were happily commenting about how we were both in pink. By the time I rewatched that Hello! Sute a couple of years later, I'd realised that I should make sure that my clothing doesn't overlap with the senpai.

Momo: I'm fine if that happens. But if it was some senpai who wasn't me, there might have been trouble. I won't name any names though.

Fresh Idol Kobushi Factory

First half of a November 2015 Hustle Press interview with Kobushi

The dreamed-of major début

They froze in surprise!?

――How did you feel when you found out that your major début was set in stone？


Hirose「It was a surprise announcement, so my mind was completely blank immediately after. I couldn't make head or tail from it、 but when I got back home and my parents greeted me with a 『Congratulations』, that was when the feelings gushed forth。 While we ushered in our major début on the 2nd of September、 there hasn't really been any drastic changes. But it's a big step on the way to our dreams、 so I'll be grateful and will do my best」

Ogawa「Kobushi Factory had no idea whether we'd be able to make our major début when we were formed. But our début came as a surprise when they made the announcement、 and we got to go around the whole country to do promotions. The realisation gradually welled up」

Hamaura「I'd been a Kenshuusei for about 4 and a half years、 and I had lots of worries, like would I be able to make a major début？ Would I get into a new unit？ I was really glad when Kobushi Factory was formed, and my tears really flowed despite me being completely clueless. On the way to our major début、 Kobushi Factory got to experience all sorts of things like stage-acting。 I don't think that anything changed on the 2nd of September、 but at handshake events、 everyone would give me words like 『Congratulations』、 『You'll be making your major début』 That's when the realisation hit me、 and I was really glad」。

Taguchi「For me, the announcement went 『You'll be making your major début this autumn！』、 but at the time、 everyone froze for a moment. After that、 everyone was screaming out 『Kyaー！』。 However、 at the time、 I didn't cry。 I was looking at it quite objectively、 without thinking about myself」。


――Ah、 that's somewhat mature。 Taguchi-san commenting about the rest in such a way doesn't jive with your image though （laughs）。


Taguchi 「Thank you very much （blushes）。 I was glad、 but we had to do all sorts of things until the 2nd of September。 I was a Kenshuusei for ４ and a half years as well、 so I've been active just as long as Hamaura Ayano-chan、 and we were able to do performances and promotions at places that we hadn't been able to go to as Kenshuusei…Ah、 I'm gonna sneeze…」。


――（laughs）。 That's fine。


Taguchi「…It's gone （laughs）。 When the 2nd of September came、 I understood that I was able to make my major début as a member of the Hello！ Project that I admired」。

――Amongst the songs in your 3 major début songs、 please tell us what you'd like to highlight。


Hirose「I like 『Nen ni ha Nen （Nen-iri Ver）』. The whole song is cool and makes use of all our members' punchiness。 But、 what I want you to keep an eye out for most is the interlude for 『Dosukoi！ Kenkyo ni Daitan』、 where Fujii Rio-chan and Wada Sakurako-chan have a sumo match、 and I act as the referee。 I'm also in charge of saying the line 『Mattanashi！』、 so I want you to watch that！」。

Ogawa「Mine is from 『Ramen Daisuki Koizumi-san no Uta』、 where there's a call ＆ response after the interlude。 We couldn't really hear the voices the first time we performed it 、 but slowly、 everyone matches their voice to our call、 and that sense of unity lifts me up」。


――Because it's built up with the fans、 you can enjoy how it gradually grows。


Hamaura「For 『Dosukoi！ Kenkyo ni Daitan』、 I'd like you to keep an eye on the choreography when you watch it at concerts. But since it's a song with positive lyrics、 I hope you pay attention to the lyrics when you listen to it」。


――Eh？ Although I'd heard that Hamaura-san was the one who liked ramen the most…（laughs）。


Hamaura「I really love ramen！　As for how frequently I have it…。 I had it at night the day before yesterday、 but I had it in the morning of that same day as well…。 If we go far away、 I'll have it in the mornings、 and I'll eat ramen again at the hotel」。


――You eat it in the morning!?


Hamaura「If I go to a place that I've never been before、 I'll find cup ramen that doesn't get sold in Tokyo or Saitama。 I want to give them a taste、 so on days that we'd be staying overnight、 I'd buy ramen from the convenience store、 and I'd put in about 4 into my bag」。

Hirose「If I'm in the same room as Hamaura Ayano-chan、 there'd be the nice smell of ramen in the morning （laughs）。 Ramen or edamame （laughs）」。

――Doesn't that make her like some hybrid of an old man and a young girl （laughs）！


Hirose「When I get up、 I'd see Hama-chan in her pyjamas, slurping up some ramen （laughs）」。

―― 「Ramen Daisuki Hamaura-san」。 I wonder if the fans know about this？


Hamaura「I think they know about it。 They'd tell me 『Be careful about eating too much ramen！』 at handshake events」。

―― I heard that you actually do eat a lot though…。

Hamaura「I don't know if it's a lot、 but I only eat the things I like。 Like Hamburg steak or omurice or noodle dishes」。

―― How impish。 Do you eat quite a lot, quantity-wise？


Hamaura「To the extent that I eat other people's ramen portions！」。

Source: https://hustlepress.co.jp/kobushi_interview02/

1001 Nights in Osaka - The 2nd Night: Miyazaki Yuka and Miyamoto Karin

Just like the Tokyo Hello! Store in Akihabara, the Osaka Hello! Store runs its own series of the 1001 Nights talk events. This event was held 22nd April 2016, with the generic hashtag #ハロショ大阪 (#Hello!ShopOsaka).

Usual disclaimer that these are from fan reports and are more snippets from the events rather than a comprehensive overview.

🍑🍇🍑🍇🍑🍇

What's comes to mind when you hear Osaka?

Yuka: Old ladies from Osaka.

It's not that Yuka-chan has some sort of stereotypical image of them, but her grandfather's sister who actually lives in Osaka has a very loud voice. Her family enjoys travelling, so they've been to Universal Studios Japan multiple times.

Karin: Takoyaki, Downtown-san. 

On that day, Nishiguchi-san had given the both of them takoyaki as a gift. Karin-chan has been watching Downtown-san's DVD from when she was small, thanks to her mother's influence. Karin-chan lets loose some of Downtown's joke material, which has Yuka-chan stunned.

🍑🍇🍑🍇🍑🍇

Memories of Osaka

Yuka: I saw a UFO at USJ
Nishiguchi: Are you alright?
Yuka: It's true! It's true! My dad saw it as well!

Karin: It's where I had my first Hello! Project concert.

Karin-chan was announced as a new member in November 2008, but didn't get called for the New Year's Hello! Con. Instead, she went along with the tour at the next summer Hello! Con as part of Shin MiniMoni。To Karin-chan, it felt like she was on a trip.

🍑🍇🍑🍇🍑🍇

What do you like about Osaka?

Yuka: The dialect resembles Kanazawa dialect.

Yuka speaks in dialect when speaking with Uemura Akari-chan.

Karin: I like how everyone's funny.

🍑🍇🍑🍇🍑🍇

Places in Osaka that they like 

Yuka: Kaiyukan.

She went there when she was in primary school, and saw whale sharks. Karin-chan has never been there. Yuka finds that it has similarities to Notojima, so she feels a sense of affinity

Karin: Amerikamura.

🍑🍇🍑🍇🍑🍇

Favourite food from Osaka

Yuka: Takoyaki.
Karin: Why do people from Osaka use takoyaki as a bento side-dish! It's carbs on carbs!
Yuka: Couldn't you just not think about that?

Karin: Takosen. (Takoyaki hot-pressed to form a cracker)

This was well received by the wota in attendance.

PokeMo infographic: Favourite voice

PokeMo Question: Whose voice do you like best in Hello! Project?

Posted this relationship graph on Twitter before, but would just like to keep it here for records.

You can find translations at Hello-Online:

℃-ute (23rd March)

Morning Musume。´17 (21 March)

ANGERME (1st March)

Juice=Juice (10th April) 

Country Girls (31sr March) 

Kobushi Factory (25th March) 

Tsubaki Factory (26th March) 

Renako gets quizzed on the Olympics

(Excerpt from Hustle Press interview with Kobushi Factory)

-- By the way, Ogawa-san, do you know how often the Olympics are held? Once every how many years?

Ogawa: Once every four years!

-- Then, where was it held last?

Ogawa: Heheh, Brazil! (said with complete confidence) Ah, Brazil's this year. Well, the nearby France.

-- Um, nearby? You're close, but no cigar.

Hirose: We talked about this at an event recently (Hirose and Fujii silently mouthing 'London, London')

Ogawa: Ah, Lawson! (With a triumphant look on her face)

(Everyone laughs)

Ogawa: Well, it starts with an 'l' or an 'r'. Ah, Russia!? It's London!

-- You finally got there (laughs). Well, where will it be held in four years time?

Ogawa: Tokyo! Since it's mentioned in the lyrics of our new song!

Source: https://hustlepress.co.jp/kobushi20160725_interview/

A relentless dialogue - Sato no Akari (Gekkan Entame June 2014)

(Excerpts from Sato no Akari's Gekkan Entame interview)

---If the three of you took part in an airhead championship, who would emerge the victor?

Uemura: I wonder who? From the stories I've often heard, it'd definitely be Sato Masaki-chan.

Sato: Nope, it'd be Akari-chan. She's actually amazing. Like a monkey.

Katsuta: Um, monkey?

Sato: No, I don't mean that Akari-chan moves like a monkey. Or has the face of one...

--- We understand. Feels like you've just casually fired off a slew of insults though. (laughs)

Sato: Since monkeys aren't relaxed. A staff member mentioned it before. 'Uemura's less settled than Sato'. When I heard that, I was relieved.

Katsuta: Well, within S/mileage, Maachan is famous for being noisy. Speaking objectively, Maachan's probably at a higher level of airheadedness. But I think that it's also a good thing. She can immediately become friends with any senpai, and that's something I envy.

Sato: I see. But Akari-chan's definitely more of an airhead. You know, she somehow managed to get a manager-san to take off their socks just now.

Uemura: That's because Masaki-chan, you said that you wanted socks. So I told you to wait for a bit as I was making preparations, and I just borrowed the manager's for a bit.

Sato: But the manager was really against it. That made me think that you really were an airhead~ (laughs) What's amazing about Akari-chan is that while she's such a beauty, she's also an airhead. I think that it's such a great contrast. I envy you.

--- I see. Well then, please do your best as the airhead trio from now on!

Katsuta, Sato, Uemura: We're not airheads!

Ozeki Mai's 'Member I'd like to have teach me' ranking

More from this ranking series:

Tsugunaga Momoko: Member that I'd like to help with studies

Funaki Musubu: Member I'd like to go with an on-location shoot with

Yanagawa Nanami: Member I'd like to turn to for advice when I have problems

Morito Chisaki: 'Member I'd like to stay over with'

Inaba Manaka: 'Member I'd like to have as a boyfriend if they were a guy'

Yamaki Risa: 'Member I'd like to have as a girlfriend if I were a guy'

――Please go ahead! First of all, which rank should we start with? 

Ozeki　Then we'll start with fifth. Fifth place is Funaki Musubu-chan. Funaki-chan is currently in her first year of middle school. The other day, the members of Country Girls had a mini kanji quiz in our dressing room. And it turned out that she really can't write out kanji. She was at a such a low level that even I was surprised. (laughs) There's also the difference between our academic years, so it'd be strange for her to teach me. That's why she's at this spot.

Inaba　Eh, but still, she's at fifth.

――Yamaki-san, you seem to be a bit relieved?

Yamaki  Yeah. I do have have seniority, after all!

Inaba　I'm more worried about where I stand! (laughs)

Ozeki　Continuing on, Yanagawa Nanami-chan is fourth. Yanagawa-chan is my age, but I feel that she has a very 'intellectual' air to her. But if she were to teach me, I feel like I'd end up confused and have no idea what she's talking about. So she's 4th!

Yamaki　You mean that you can't match her level?

Ozeki　Yup. Yanagawa-chan uses a lot of difficult words when she talks. All these words that I don't know. But I'm wondering that maybe if I keep talking with Yanagawa-chan, I'll gradually learn those words and also English words, and be able to use them in my speech! I'm sure that it'll be useful when I have to talk as an idol. So rather than being taught academically, I'd like to be taught 'the basics of everyday conversation'.

――Going on to third place! 

1001 Nights - The 34th Night: 100 questions to Nakajima Saki (Q1-50)

Another fan report translation from the Hello! Shop series of 1001 Nights talk show events.
This was held on the 28th of July 2016, with the hashtag #nksk. Will only be getting around to covering the first fifty questions.

Usual caveat that these are based on fan reports, and thus represent snippets of the event rather than a full-blown report.

Q1. How to deal with nervousness when taking chekis. 
Just be your normal self. I get nervous too when I meet aiko-san. Anyway, take a deep breath and calm down. I also heard from Nishiguchi-san that breathing out works as well, so I did it unconsciously before stepping up on-stage.

Q2. What do you do when irritated?
Nice scents soothe my nerves. I'll use hand creams, or if I'm at home, I'll put on some aroma candles. I still haven't gone on to use incense. How do you use them? Just light up the ends? I don't use a lighter. If I come upon some incense, I'll light them up.

Q3.  Anything you're particular about when it comes to clothes?
Most important is that they're easy to walk around and move in. I don't like tight clothing. Also, when it comes to colours, I follow what I've learnt from watching Hagiwara Mai-chan.

Q4. If you were to go on a ten day trip with a ℃-ute member, who would you go with?
Leader. I'd like to go diving once I get my diving licence. I enjoy the view and the animals, so I think it'd be fun to make all sorts of plans.

Q5. Have you got your driving qualifications yet?
I'm currently in the midst of applying for them. Actually, on the day of the FNS, my right wisdom tooth suddenly started to hurt. I had to put an icepack on it, which made the MomoClo-chans worried. The next day I went to the dentist to get it taken out. Two days later, I had a practice session at the pool.

Which Juice=Juice member cries when she sees balloons?

We tackle Juice=Juice, an idol group under Hello! Project. They've just released their latest single 'Jidanda Dance / Feel! Kanjiru yo' on the 26th of April! We'll be having a close-up look at Juice=Juice!

- Last year, you completed your 225-show tour, and your first Budokan performance was also a great success. The other day, you announced that you'd have an overseas tour. Could you please tell us about your future goals?

Miyamoto Karin: When I checked out the videos of our Budokan performance, I found so many things that were lacking. Our facial expressions, singing, dancing, everything was still lacking. So I want to focus on improving those first. We can always go higher with our singing and dancing, so we have to keep up honing our performances.

Takagi Sayuki: I had vocal cord nodules, and immediately underwent surgery the day after we had finished our Budokan performance. I think that I have to study how to bring out my voice, and I'm currently in the midst of tackling it as through discussions with our vocal coach.

Miyazaki Yuka: I'm also focusing on voice training! our vocal coach told me 'I'll fix you up this year!' And I told him that I'd like to do so too. I immediately went and reviewed everything with my coach, from my vocalisation and whatever else. But I had no place to test things out, and I was unable to sing when we were rehearsing for our livehouse tour from February. By changing things, I wasn't able to sing well even when I wanted to. I ended up being at my very worst. I had no idea what to do, so I consulted my coach and we thought together about how to deal with it. That's when singing started becoming fun again!

Takagi: I've always intended to go for voice training, but there are a lot of things that I don't really understand. I'm glad to be praised for for my good singing. But I'll be thinking lots and lots about how to get better, starting from my vocalisation. Partly since there are parts of me that I personally have yet to acknowledge. It'd be great if I could enjoy singing because of that. It's tough though. (laughs)

Uemura Akari: I'd like to increase my repertoire of facial expressions. There are times when I feel a bit spent in the middle of concerts, so I'd like to be careful about how I appear on-screen. I'm not good at playing for the camera, and when the cameras turn to me in the middle of a concert, I'll be watching the audience, not the camera.

Kanazawa Tomoko: I'm fascinated by feminine seductiveness. So my goal for the year is to refine my sexiness and seductiveness. We've always thought that we'd be a group where each and every member puts forward their own forte. So I thought about what I'd use as a weapon. I haven't found anything so far, and I'm feeling the pressure to work hard at everything.

Miyamoto: Also, I'd like to cherish the feelings and passion I experience at every concert. I think that it's important to to enchant the audience with our passion at times when they can only watch Juice=Juice. We might face language barriers when we go abroad, but the excitement and heat of concerts is something that's common all over the world!

Kanazawa: For overseas artistes and actresses, even if you don't understand what they're saying, you can feel it through their eyes and gestures when you watch dramas, movies, or music videos. So I'll build up my femininity so that I can make overseas fans feel that way too.

Twitter Tidbits: Karin-chan

A smattering of fan reports from Twitter involving Karin-chan that piqued my interest.

[x] Release commemoration event at HMV Omiya - MiyaMiya (30th March 2017)
Miyazaki: Karin-chan has recently been saying things like 'I'm the cutest in the world!' And that was the very first thing she said to an interviewer who we were meeting for the very first time. I'm concerned, I don't want people to think of her as some strange kid
Miyamoto: It doesn't matter to me if I'm thought of as some strange kid~

🍇🍇🍇

[x][x][x] Talk event at Nishinomiya Gardens (23rd April 2017)
Karin-chan: Recently, when I looked up 'Cutest in Chiba', Miyamoto Karin came up as the top result. It's thanks to the support from all of you that I was able to win against the splendours of Chiba. Thank you very much!
Miyazaki: Talking about Chiba, there's also the person next to you. (points to Sayuki)
Takagi: I'm fine! Leave me alone!

🍇🍇🍇

[x][x][x][x] Release commemoration event at Funabashi (28th April 2017)
Karin-chan: I'm Chiba prefecture's angel, Miyamoto Karin.
Miyazaki: Karin-chan, in the first part, you said you were the Funassyi of the idol world, didn't you?
Karin-chan: Funassyi's a pear faerie, right? I'm an angel, so there's a difference.
Miyazaki: Have you stopped with saying that you're 'The cutest in Chiba'?
Karin-chan: It'd be a constant struggle to be number one. Just within H!P, there's Tsugunaga Momoko-san and Suzuki Airi-san. Then there's also our kouhai. I'd be competing with the lovely people of Chiba.
KanaTomo: We've got one in our group as well. Mention Sayuki's name!
Takagi: This is embarrassing.
Karin-chan: I'd say she's already in the hall of fame...
Miyazaki: Sayuki!?

🍇🍇🍇

Release commemoration talk event at Tower Records Grandtree Musashikosugi - Karin-chan (13th April 2017)
[x] Karin-chan: If I say 'I'm an angel' when we go overseas, they'll say 'Oh, Crazy Girl', so I should stop doing that. (laughs)
[x] Karin-chan: At the overseas performances, I don't want the fans overseas to be like 'Huh, it's just Juice=Juice...' I want to work hard so that they'll say 'It's Juice=Juice!!!' All you guys, come and do some sightseeing as well. Even if you can't come, please send us your power!

[x] Release commemoration event in Shizuoka - Karin-chan and Aarii (6th April 2017)
Karin-chan: Uemuu~ There's a differently coloured paper over here  (grinning)
Aarii: Hmm? Let's see. Eh? This is from 'Wants to be loved by Uemuu'-san?
Karin-chan: That's me!
Aarii: 'Please show with your whole body how much you love Karin-chan'... Who is this from~?
Karin-chan: Me!!!
Aarii: Yay! (Rips up the question paper)
Karin-chan *shock*
Aarii *ignores*
Karin-chan: I'm so sad! She ignored me!

Twitter Tidbits: Airi's 2017 birthday event

Some tweets from Airi's 23rd birthday event, held on 24th April 2017.

Usual caveat that these are more fan-reported snippets than a comprehensive picture.

[Ref] Airi admires Takahashi Ai-san, and when Aichan's graduation came around, she was at a loss - what should she do with the impending graduation of the person she admired?
In tears, she went to talk about it with Aichan.

Aichan: Airi, since it's you, it'll be fine. I leave it in your hands.

Airi has since carried those words in her chest.

Airi: H!P is linked, isn't it? We've got a history.

🎤🎤🎤

[Ref] Airi continues on to talk about Takahashi Ai.
As she was talking how Aichan used her neck and shoulders in such an alluring manner, she recommended looking up videos under '高橋愛 最高峰' (lit. 'Takahashi Ai Greatest Peaks').

[Ref] Airi: I'm being told by some of the girls who joined H!P recently that they look up to me. But firstly I'd like them to at least have a look at where it all came from! Have a look at the first generation!

[Ref] Airi: I don't know the extent of how much we took over from what had been made by Nakazawa-san and Tsunku♂-san, but want to hand it over to the kouhai-chans. I've got my hopes pinned on them.

🎤🎤🎤

[Ref 1][Ref 2] At the end of Airi's birthday event, Airi gave a signed cutout of her face to a girl at the front row.

Airi: You're always [at events], saying you want to be like me! It was the same with me. I was sitting at the front row at a musical and Yaguchi-san waved to me. That's what got me started.

Tanimoto Ami, Ass Appreciator

Would just like to highlight Tanimoto Ami, who seems to have inherited Maasa's love of asses. Inheriting the Berryz spirit indeed.

Colour me impressed by her courage to feel up her senpai though lol.
As Airi mentioned in a blog post:

Backstage、 she feels up my butt relentlessly！ lol

HaroSute 162
Tanimoto's interest in Airi pic.twitter.com/lmHwR0Uurc

— Skoban🍑Momoloss (@realskoban) 2016年3月30日

Some of the wota have even asked about it.

[x] Handshake event with Tanimoto Ami
Wota: Why do you fondle butts?
Ami: Hmm, since they're soft and nice to touch.
Wota: Is that so?
Ami: Yup. Ah, listen! The person who butt feels best to the touch is Yamaki Risa-chan! Hers is really great.

[x] Amusing discussion with Ami-chan
Following up at the next handshake
Wota: So it's Yamaki Risa-chan?
Ami: That's right. It's soft and plush?
Wota: Plush?
Ami: Yup, plush. (while making butt rubbing motions)

So now you know who has the best butt in current H!P. Although she isn't keeping her hands off the young ones either.

[160402] Nanami: Today Tanimoto Ami told me: "Your butt is a good buttΣ(°д°ﾉ)ﾉ! I'm shocked!!♪ pic.twitter.com/gkHsONlUhS

— Country Girls Blog (@countrygirlsbot) 2016年4月3日

The weird tastes of Juice=Juice (excerpt from Big One Girls 023 - July 2014)

--By the way, between all of you, who's the most gluttonous?

Miyamoto: I can really eat if I seriously put my mind to it. (laughs). I'm amazing when it comes to buffets. I can eat anything besides celery. But when I point out how delicious something is, the members get doubtful though...

Takagi: That's not it! Your sense of taste is weird! Even when we had to eat a can of silkworms as a penalty game, [Miyamoto] ate it like it was nothing. She said that it was unexpectedly delicious.

Miyamoto: Delicious..... Hmm. I'd still prefer it to celery.

Takagi:  I'd completely take celery over that! (laughs)

--This is going off-topic, but would you be completely fine on that variety show staple - penalty games where you have to eat weird dishes?

Miyamoto: At penalty games, I don't really react in an entertaining way. I'll just mention, say, how bitter the tea was. (laughs)

Kanazawa: In a way, good-for-nothing. (laughs).

Words by... Shimizu Saki (Berryz Kobo 7th Anniversary Photo Book '7')

 

It's thanks to the support from the fans that we're able to celebrate our 7th anniversary. Some of you have been cheering us on from when we made our debut, and some of you have just recently become our fans. These seven years have really been long. Tsunku♂-san has mentioned it as well. 'It's amazing for idols to continue on for so long'. I'd like to do my best from now on as well, without forgetting these feelings of gratitude.

Looking back, there really were a lot of things that happened. But it was pure bliss to have achieved the record for youngest girl group to perform at the Saitama Super Arena ('2007 Sakura Mankai Berryz Kobo Live ~Kono Kandou ha Nidoto to nai Shunkan de aru!~'). It was so emotionally moving that I cried. A former manager of ours who came to watch us told me that I shouldn't cry, there were bigger goals in store for us. (laughs) But that was how it was.

Whereas for concerts where I remember having a tough time, I'd pick the time when we were in a huge panic because the members were missing concerts due to feeling unwell. During 'Berryz Kobo Concert Tour 2009 Autumn ~Medachitai!!~', there was a point when (Tokunaga) Chinami and Kumai (Yurina)-chan were absent due to illness, so we had to perform with five people. That was a reminder about how important each and every one of us is.