cptn

2020 had a somber start after monogatari announced they would be disbanding. Shortly after, COVID-19 and the resulting lockdowns put a halt to almost all activities for several months. Nonetheless, my year following idols was a very pleasant one. I was fortunate enough to not be negatively affected by the lockdowns, which allowed for more time to follow and discover idols.

Throughout the summer, idol groups began performing again through online events. The year may have turned into one of the best years for foreign idol fans as more groups streamed their concerts online for the first time. Individual group events and festivals such as @JAM and TIF had never been more accessible outside of Japan, at least live. Photographers also blessed us with more photos as soon as Japan starting locking down due to the pandemic. Many idol fans shared older, unseen photos of their favorite idols. It was a real treat being able to open up social media and see so many photos being posted.

There are too many groups to mention here but the ones listed below are the ones that helped get me through the year. Highlights from the year are summarized below for each group or artist.

Lily of the Valley

2020 was an incredible year as a Lily of the Valley fan. Previously, one of the only lives available of the group was their One Man Live DVD. Fans were able to watch the live streams of most of the birthday lives as well as multiple festivals. The girls have made a lot of progress since prior years and it was evident in their streams. I'm excited to see what they continue to accomplish in 2021.

Twinkle

There are very few updates for Twinkle but they played an immense part in keeping me sane. The group canceled almost all live events for most of the year but they stayed very active on social media. The girls streamed almost daily on Showroom for months where I was able to watch most of them during my time working from home.

In other Twinkle news, an extremely dedicated Twinkle fan compiled a list of all user submitted Twinkle videos from youtube. This list was used to create a multi-user initiative to save and archive the videos for safekeeping.

Angel Sisters

Angel Sisters is a duo group consisting of sisters Anna and Yuria. Both sisters graduated from Rainbow Flowers in late 2019. The girls' cousin Hikari also participated in a handful of their early events. My first time seeing Angel Sisters was in TIP's 2020 New Year's Party stream which consisted of all three members. Previously, Rainbow Flowers didn't make it on my radar apart from a few youtube videos, but I turned into an instant fan of the sisters during that New Year's stream.

Rising/Zero

Rising/Zero's Mio, Airi, and Miduki continued to steal my attention throughout 2020. Unfortunately, Miduki graduated from Rising/Zero as well as Pastel Candy, leaving Mio as a solo member in Pastel Candy. I don't know if Mio will continue in Pastel Candy but Rising/Zero is still active.

Rabbit Hutch

The rabbits multiplied since my last blog post with two new members, Anri and Miu. They also released three singles which include “歓迎！御一行サマー”, “ダイスキ”, and “Loveit”. Four official DVDs featuring Rabbit Hutch were also released throughout the year. Management has never allowed video recording at events so the DVDs offered some of us foreign fans the chance to see the rabbits perform live as a group for the first time.

Tokyo Girls' Style

I've been a Tokyo Girls' Style fan for a couple years now. They quickly rose as one of my favorite idol groups with hardly a day going by where I don't have at least one of their songs playing. Their 10 year anniversary live show was canceled and replaced with an online stream. Fortunately, this was a benefit as a foreign fan as I was able to see the anniversary stream live. The group also performed in another number of festivals and events. Their Halloween show was especially fun to watch. Here are some photos of Mei and Hitomi's costumes.

Sakurai Yune

Yune partly stayed out of the concert spotlight in 2020. She participated in some television karaoke competitions but took breaks from her live shows. Yune did perform in multiple appearances with Aimi as well as end the year with a performance with Runa of Sakura Mode. It was revealed that Yune was also busy recording her first album, so that's something all of us Yune fans can look forward to this year.

A documentary featuring Yune was also released in 2020. The documentary was filmed in late 2019 and was intended to be released before the Olympics were scheduled to take place in Japan. The documentary about Yune ended up being a propaganda piece against the idol industry as a whole. This isn't the first time a “documentary” like this has been released, yet it was unfortunate seeing Yune as the collateral damage. In the end I met a few more people who became Yune fans so I'm glad some good came from it.

Kosugi Yun

Yun still participated in events in 2020 but I personally felt a real lack of Yun compared to other years. She participated in some summer photosessions and she released her first photobook. I'm hoping she was able to rest and relax but of course I hope to see Yun at more events this year.

Candyzoo

Candyzoo is one of the latest groups I was introduced to. The animal themed group has a very high energy and has a pretty long history. I know very little about them but the current group is made up of a newer generation of girls compared to their original formation. I look forward to learning more about this group as I follow them. I'll see if they become a favorite by the next review.

so you've read this far...

cptn's obsessions of the year

Nishimura Tsukino (西村津希乃)

2020 was the year I finally realized my oshi. My heart was stolen by Tsukino of Lily of the Valley. I haven't felt this entranced over an idol since Usa of monogatari. This little angel is one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen and I've enjoyed following her since her debut. I can never resist her infectious smile and a powerful wink. Her posts are always a highlight to my days and I hope she has another very successful year ahead. I wish I was a better writer so I could express my feelings better but I'll just leave it at this for now.

Imaizumi Mao (今泉まお)

Mao is another idol that demanded my attention last year. She's a member of Imouto Sisters Nagoya Class, a sub-unit under the same management as Lily of the Valley. She has the perfect mix of beauty, elegance, and adorableness. Mao is another idol that brightens up my day whenever she posts updates. I want to keep supporting Mao in 2021. Perhaps one day she might move up to Lily of the Valley.

Nina (ニーナ)

Nina can't be left out of this part of the post as I've frequently posted her on fedi the last few months. Nina is incredibly cute and energetic. I thoroughly enjoy her updates as well as all the pictures posted by the photographers. I hope to see her continue throughout this year.

#RisingZero #LilyoftheValley #東京女子流 #櫻井佑音 #小杉ゆん #Twinkle #RabbitHutch #キャンディzoo #AngelSisters #ニーナ #今泉まお #西村津希乃