On June 29th, Akimoto Yasushi, the producer for AKB48 and their �official rival group� Nogizaka46, formally announced the birth of the new group at Nogizaka in Tokyo. On the very same day, the official public advertisements for the auditioning of this new group opened and�No Sleeves (an AKB48 sub-unit), also heard the news of this announcement as they were holding their release event.

To the members of AKB48, this was a shocking announcement. The three AKB48 and No Sleeves� members, Takahashi Minami (20), Kojima Haruna (23), and Minegishi Minami (18) all yelled out, �Whaaaaaat~?!�,�when the press asked about their new rival group, Nogizaka46. They elaborated, �Seriously?! I�ve never heard of this!� (Minegishi), �Is that really true??� (Takahashi), �I heard it in the news this morning but I thought it was a joke�� (Kojima).

To be qualified for Nogizaka46, the applicants need to be between the ages of 12 and 24 and the deadline for the application is July 20th. It was also announced that they will be part of a regular television program and that they will debut their CD this fall. Unlike SKE48 and NMB48 who are sister groups of AKB48, Nogizaka46 will be their official rival group.



According to Akimoto, the �46� comes from the idea that �Although there are fewer members than AKB48, they will not lose.� After hearing his commentary, the three members once again screamed out words �No way!!!� and �Stop it!!!�, showing their rejection of their producer's commentary.

In addition, Kojima and Minegishi respectively expressed their worries with, �Even though I have a laid-back personality, I cannot look through this one�� and �I wonder if Mr. Akimoto thinks that AKB48 is lacking something.� On the other hand, Takamina (Takahashi Minami) showed her composure with, �I�m happy. It makes me look at them with the eyes of a loving mother.�

It has been 5 1/2 years since AKB48�s formation. The topic of� 'if the new group will be a threat or have as much presence as AKB48' is at rage right now.

Source & Image: Daily Sports