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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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.

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).

Juice=Juice Miyamoto Karin 'I am an angel'

We have a direct face-off with Juice=Juice, a Hello! Project idol group that just released their new single 'Jidanda Dance / Feel! Kanjiru yo' on the 26th of April.

Firstly, please introduce yourself to the readers! Tell us something about yourself that you would like the readers to pay attention to!

Miyamoto Karin: I often say this myself - I am an 'angel'.

Takagi Sayuki: Hey, stop that~

Miyazaki Yuka: Are you all right? This is our first time working with this publication... (anxious look on her face)

Miyamoto: It's all right! I'm in this to bring smiles to the faces of lots of people. I'd like to become a person who can heal those around me just by being there. So, I'd like to further refine my cuteness! Please keep an eye on me, to see how much I'll grow from now on!

Kanazawa Tomoko: I want you to watch how I move my hips while I'm dancing. My goal for the year is to polish my seductiveness. So I'm studying up on how to move and swing my hips. I'm working on increasing the range of my hip motions. So I hope you won't take your eyes off me at concerts.

Miyazaki Yuka: I often get told that I'm a vixen. So I'd like to treasure that 'cute and cunning' genre that I find myself in!

Takagi: I love singing, so I want to become good enough that I'll be acknowledged even by myself. At the moment, I'm not at the level where anyone listening to me would say that I'm good, so I should try to learn more things. I'd like to grow in that way, so I hope that people will observe that.

Uemura: I'm currently growing out my bangs, so I want you to observe that! Pay attention to my bangs!

Miyazaki Yuka looks back on 2014 (Idol Frontline 2015)

You gave us five memorable incidents from 2014, so we'd like to ask you to talk about them in order. Firstly, on the 24th and 25th of May, Juice=Juice held your first bus tour.

Miyazaki: We've always wanted to hold a bus tour, so our dream had come true at last. Though I'd been on a Satoyama bus bus tour before, as part of the unit Green Fields. It was a lot of fun since we got to talk a lot and get closer to the fans, whom we'd normally only talk with at events like handshakes. We call everyone who's been involved with Juice=Juice as part of the 'Juice=Juice Family', and we members thought of it more like a family excursion rather than a bus tour. It was also before we went on our live tour, where we got to perform our senpai's songs for the first time at the bus tour.

What songs got picked?

Miyazaki: We performed 'Please Miniskirt Postwoman!', 'Suki Sugite Baka Mitai', 'Kimagure Princess', 'Suppecial Generation', 'Kiss Me Aishiteru', and also the H!P Kenshuusei's 'Kanojo ni Naritai!!!'. We practised at home, and then we'd meet up and get things in order, but I'm really bad at remembering them...

Is it any different from remembering a new Juice=Juice song?

Miyazaki: For new songs, the sensei would teach us how it's done. I hadn't danced up until I entered Hello! Project, so I would remember by watching. But honestly, I had no idea about how to move. At the time, I could only remember the general flow of the dance, so the members would help me out with the detailed parts.

How did the fans respond when you performed covers of your senpais?

Miyazaki: It seems that they thought that we'd only be performing Juice=Juice songs, so every time a song would end, they give us huge cheers of 'Ohhh!' It was so pumped up, I don't think I've ever seen people so excited before.

Is there anything that left an impression besides the live performances?

Miyazaki: We also saw them off with a 'good night', dressed in pyjamas, but since it was immediately after our live performance, we were all sweating (laughs).

Maruwakari Summer 2016: Miyazaki Yuka

Wily and cute, she's the 22 year old who asks you to call her Yukanya...
Yet she's a reliable leader!

Q1. Who is your favourite H!P member (including OGs)?
℃-ute's Yajima Maimi-san is whom I like and admire. I love how she's serious and sweet!
℃-ute's Nakajima Saki-san is whom I like as an idol. I like how flexible she is at expressing herself.
No matter what, I couldn't pick a single person. Sorry...

Q2. What H!P song would you like to sing solo?
'Tasogare Kousaten' (Mano Erina)
I like Mano-san's songs, so I'd recommend it to Juice=Juice's Takagi Sayuki-chan!

Q3. Among the (current) H!P members, who would you like to go to the sea with, and what would you do?

Juice=Juice's Uemura Akari-chan.
I'd like to bury her in sand.

Q4. Who is the 'summer girl' amongst the (current) H!P members?
Kobushi Factory's Taguchi Natsumi-chan. I feel that she'd go well with festivals!!! I'd like us to go goldfish-scooping together... (*^^*)

Q5. If you were to come out with a photobook, please tell us where you'd like to go and what you'd like to do.
I'd like to have a shoot at my hometown of Ishikawa prefecture!!
I'd like to walk around Higashi Chaya District wearing a yukata ♪

Q6. What is your treasure?

A necklace with my birthstones on it, which I received from both my parents on my twentieth birthday.

Q7. Is there anything that you'd like to make a start on?
I'd like to get a Nihoncha (Japanese Tea) Instructor Certification!! I love Japanese tea, so I'd like to know more about it.

Q8. Please make a new unit by picking a person from each group.

℃-ute's Suzuki Airi-san
Morning Musume。´16's Fukumura Mizuki-san
ANGERME's Nakanishi Kana-chan
Country Girls' Tsugunaga Momoko-san
Kobushi Factory's Hamaura Ayano-chan
Tsubaki Factory's  Asakura Kiki-chan.
And, if you include Morning Musume。´16's Makino Maria-chan, who's set herself up as Marian LOVErin, it'll be the pink members (*^^*)

Q9. Please tell us what's the best thing about your own group.

The frequency of our blog updates.
Since there are people who will be waiting for updates, there are people who will feel sad after going to all the trouble of opening our blog and seeing that there are no updates!!!

Finally, please give a message to all the fans

Thank you very much for your constant support

[Can't make out this part] ♫

Miyazaki Yuka

More from the same book

1001 Nights - The 17th Night: Miyazaki Yuka

Here are some highlights from Miyazaki Yuka's 1001 Nights Hello! Shop talk, held on 12th February 2015. As usual for these events, fan reports on Twitter are my sources. Hashtag was #北陸新幹線, which says Hokuriku Shinkansen. This is relevant due to its newly opened extension, linking Tokyo to Yuka-chan's home prefecture of Ishikawa.

The first part of the talk was Miyazaki Yuka's Top 10 favourite things in Ishikawa, giving our girl an opportunity to boast about the great things in her now better-connected home town. (reference)

10. Chirihama Nagisa Driveway (Hakui City)

9. Kaga-yasai vegetables

8. Mitsukejima

7. Kanazawa Station

6. Notoji (restaurant)

 5. Hyakumangoku Matsuri

4. Higashi Chaya District

3. 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art 

2. The sushi stores

1. Kenroku-en

2015 HinaFes Blog Relay - #4 Miyamoto Karin Miyazaki Yuka

While Eripon initially putted the baton to Miyamoto Karin, her new short-cut must have left her vulnerable, and she's currently recovering from the flu. While we pray that she gets well soon, picking up the baton in her stead is Juice=Juice leader Miyazaki Yuka!

(Original blog post in Japanese)

This was started by
Yajima Maimi-san from ℃-ute

The HinaFes Relay Blog…


And yesterday Morning Musume。’15′s
Ikuta Erina-san

Passed the baton to
Miyamoto Karin-chan！


But、 Karin-chan
Is currently recovering from the flu

So to make up for her
I’ll be taking up the baton
As leader

H!P Summer 2014 KOREZO: Share it if you like it (Part IV - 3 Aug)

For the KOREZO! performances held during the current Hello! Con (Summer 2014), there's a corner where the girls can bring up photos they want to highlight. A  Facebook page has been set up, entitled 'Hello! Pro Ki ni Ittara Share'. (H!P Share it if you like it).

Here's a selection of what piqued my interest. As the page says, if you like any of these photos, then 'Like' and 'Share' them on Facebook. Links are in the first line below the photo, the post titles.

If you missed them - Part I (12, 19 & 26 July), Part II (27 July), Part III (2 Aug)

【KOREZO！Takagi Sayuki】
Photograph from Juice=juice Miyazaki Yuka
Taken on an aeroplane、 this photo shows Takagi Sayuki messing around with the children sitting in the seats in front of her、 wanting to befriend them。
She was getting no response to her questions、  and this was taken just as she was trying to lure them in with a banana-shaped pouch。
She couldn't befriend them in the end、 but on the return flight, a child picked up some 「sweets」 she dropped、 and they were happy when they were told 「You can have them！」。
Miyazaki's statement:「Such a happy child」。

Wandering, Off-kilter Thoughts About: Miyazaki Yuka dropping out

For a change of pace, here's a more editorial piece. I'll be talking about Juice=Juice's Miyazaki Yuka and her decision to drop out from university.

H!P Blog Relay #5

{Her nickname is Yuka-nya? I think she announced that previously on her blog. Anyway, here she is responding to Miya's blog post}

Miyazaki Yuka - 6th March

The relay blog that started with
Morning Musume。'14's
Michishige Sayumi-san。♡


This afternoon
Berryz Kobo's Natsuyaki Miyabi-san

Asked me for
Something that moved me recently～♩


Natsuyaki-san is stylish
And speaks so elegantly

It made me really nervous


But she cut through that nervousness
And more or less shook it off

We had a chat
That was very open

Such a wonderful senpai ♡♡♡


At the end of that blog post
She invited me to their live performance

I immediately confirmed
With manager-san！

Though I don't know when I'll be able to go
Definitely！ Please go ahead ♡



Here's my response
To the question from Natsuyaki-san

Something that moved me recently！

When all of the
Hello!Pro Kenshuusei
Were doing individual handshake event

The fact that the songs they were dancing to
Were from our 2nd single ♡♡

When I took this photo
They were making
The Rose Quartz pose...

Things like
Dancing like that

Juice=Juice
Won't lose either！

Juice=Juice received
A lot of good motivation
From the Hello! Pro Kenshuusei！

Recently、we held a
Happy birthday celebration for Ichioka Reina
Who celebrated her birthday on the 25th of February♩

The Hello! Pro Kenshuusei
And all of Juice=Juice
Celebrated it

Celebrating it with everyone
Such bliss...♡

For the 29th、30th March HinaFes
The Hello!Pro Kenshuusei will also be appearing♩

{Event details skipped}

And！I'll turn it over to
Morning Musume。'14's
Ikuta Erina-san♡

I've chatted with
Ikuta-san
countless times

She's fun and amusing！
I'd like to chat with her again


Ikuta-san
What is something
That has moved you recently？？♡

{And we've gone full circle back to MM'14, on to Eripon}