Hey guys
I know this post is a little different to what I usually post on this blog, but this week I came across some news that made me a little shocked, upset and sympathetic, but I guess at the same time I should really understand this scandal a little more seeing as I know what the idol culture includes.
Now, if you've heard of idol culture of if you're a fan of idols then one of the groups you must have heard about are AKB48. They are an idol group that are also theatre performers and they were created in 2005 by their producer and founder Yasushi Akimoto (or Aki-P to the fans). One of the conditions for these girls (and is also used in many idol groups) is that they are not allowed to date whilst being a member of the group. The reason for this is that their image to fans is that they are pure, innocent girls so it creates a fantasy to their fans (which mainly consist of older males also known as wotas). And a part of their fantasy being maintained is that these girls are not allowed to date.
However, on various occasions this rule has been broken. Not just in AKB48 but other groups have also succumbed to this rule being broken. For example, in Morning Musume 2nd generation member Yaguchi Mari quit the group when she was discovered in a scandal and was caught having a boyfriend, and also 6th generation member Miki Fujimoto was also discovered to have a boyfriend but admitted publicly that these rumours were true, therefore concluding with her leaving the group of her own accord.
AKB48 has been in the Japanese tabloids last year for a various number of scandals that included their members but as we wade into 2013 AKB48 has already been involved in another scandal. But even though it was just the same as any other scandal, due to much more extreme measures being followed after the rule breaking, it has managed to make worldwide news. It has been broadcast on Australian television and British television broadcaster BBC.
The Scandal~~
Minegishi Minami, a founding and 1st generation member of AKB48, has been a member since a young age in 2006. She has gained a lot of popularity within her time of being a member and always came at a high number ranking in fan elections. However at the end of January it was revealed in a Japanese tabloid that Minegishi was caught in a picture leaving the home of male company. The identity of this male company was a boy band dancer Alan Shirahama who has not yet solely spoke to the public about his side of events, but his management did release a short statement.
Now after the revelation of this scandal, a few hours later, on the official AKB48 website, a video was broadcast with Minegishi Minami with her head shaved, and giving a four-minute-long apology. This included taking full responsibility for what she had done, and continued to apologise to the fans, the staff and fellow AKB48 members for the trouble she also caused to them.
From various sources, it has been established that the Minegishi solely chose to shave her own head as her own self-punishment, and in Japan it is also a sign of remorse. Not only did she punish herself, but the management also had to step in for her breaching her contract. Instead of them firing or removing her from AKB48, instead she was demoted to a member of the trainee team. This way she could continue her work within the AKB48 company, but she would have to go from the bottom up.
Now because of this news, and due to the fact that Minegishi shaved her own head and added more controversy than the usual AKB48 scandal, not only did this scandal make its way to Japanese tabloids, but it also made it's way to international news sources. And it has also created a lot of opinions from fans of AKB48, to idol fans, and to people who have discovered AKB48 and the idol culture through this piece of news (sadly). People believe what the management has done is right due to a contract being breached; there is speculation as to whether Minegishi shaved her own head and people also wonder if management made her do it for extra publicity. And then there are people who have sided with Minegishi and it has made them think that the whole "no-dating" rule should be thought twice about or boycotted.
What do you think about all of this?
What I think personally~~
Now, before you read the rest of this, this is just my sole opinion and if anything I say offends or annoys you then I apologise in advance. None of what I say will be demeaning or insulting any side of the argument.
Now, when I first came across the video I didn't know what had happened. I had come across youtube as I usually do and I saw the video uploaded onto the AKB48 youtube channel and I didn't think anything of it. From what I could see of the small thumbnail it looked oddly like Minegishi had tied her hair back, but I didn't watch the video. Then later that day, I came across the news on tokyohive and it shocked me so much when I read it.
From the instance of seeing the pictures, my instant reaction was "If the management have made her do this, then...I will be very angry and upset." Then I read the news and watched the video of her apology and I felt so much sympathy for the young girl and and I was crying when I watched the video. I hate this kind of stuff to be broadcast to the public because she could say whatever she wants on the screen but at the end of the day it might be much worse in her head than what she wants us to see from her words.
When I first got into AKB48 when I first saw Minegishi Minami the first reaction I had of her was "Oh my god she is so cute! She is so sweet and infectious I wanna pinch those cheeks!" and she did make me smile whenever I saw her in PVs.
Now this girl is only 19, the same age as me. And in my culture, in the UK, a lot of girls my age have boyfriends and go out dating. Now, this girl is under strict instruction not to break her contract, but there must be some days where you see a gorgeous guy and try your hardest not to approach them and flirt. So there is a part of me that understands why these idols break the rules, and I mean, how can the management not expect these kinds of things to happen. So, in case they have things like this happen, then they know the right ways to punish them.
In my opinion I think the "no-dating" rules are there for a reason and for business purposes so when these girls audition they know what they are signing up for. So they know what they get themselves into when their scandals are unveiled. Then again, I feel sympathy for these girls because they should be entitled to a life of their own. Yes, they sing and dance and release photobooks etc for their own fans, but out of work they have their own personal lives too, in which they should be entitled to. Their lives 24/7 shouldn't be under contract, just their working time.
The fact that Minegish shaved her own head really made me scared for the girl and I worried for her deeply. Is her mindset really okay for her to do this to herself? This scandal really did have a massive impact on this girl and made her think about her actions. And even though she did ask the management herself to broadcast the apology video, why did the management say yes? Yes, Minegishi wanted this, but if I was management I wouldn't have allowed it. I would have felt so bad for this young girl if the apology had a massive negative impact. I know how harsh the internet is so I wouldn't want to think about what people could say about her. So I think it is demeaning for the management to still continue to broadcast this video. However, I can see why the video was broadcast; so the public couldn't make rash and negative assumptions without knowing more details of what happened and from truthful sources.
Not only does this have a bad impact on the group, but it also showcases idol culture in a bad spotlight. Now that this scandal has been broadcast internationally, this might be the first link for a lot of people outside of Japan to come across AKB48 and idol culture. The idol culture, when I first came across it, I did raise my eyebrows a little when I found out about the "no-dating" rule but I've got used to it and I can understand why it happens and this kind of thing does make me think it would be best if this rule was dropped. I mean, who thought it would be a good rule to introduce in the first place? And I find it a little ill-natured how the worldwide media has caught onto this just because Minegishi shaved her head (and compare it to Britney Spears).
People I know from my university friends, boyfriend, close friends and family love songs by Morning Musume and AKB48 but don't know anything about their culture. So when people come across this piece of news and find out about idol culture, I don't want people to hate it and have a bad view on it. Because like everything, I admit it does have its bad points, but I think what these girls have done in regards to scandals, is actually nothing compared to what a lot of Western stars have done. For example, a couple of years ago Chris Brown assaulted Rihanna brutually, but to this day he still gets given a lot of success from his music (apart from the slight negative publicity from getting a tattoo of Rihanna's abused face etc). But if this kind of stuff happened in Japan the star who did this probably wouldn't be heard from again, or would have to work again from scratch, because the Japanese society places these kinds of things in a very bad and unforgivable light.
So that's what I think of the overall situation. I do hope Minegishi does learn from this and become stronger from this. And I wish her all the best for the rest of her AKB career, whichever path it takes.
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