On October 21, it was revealed that AKB48's Tano Yuka (17) and NMB48's Umeda Ayaka (25) have both been cast in the lead role for the musical "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." This decision came after a final round of auditions amongst the AKB48 group members.  Former AKB48 member Masuda Yuka (23) previously won the lead for 2 consecutive years starting in 2012. Stage director Miyamoto Amon (56) spoke about the unprecedented casting of double l

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Singer Matsuda Seiko and actress Matsu Takako sing along to Matsuda's song "Akai Sweet Pea" together in a new CM for Total Aging Care Brand's 'Astalift'.  After shooting the CM, Matsuda expressed her joy of collaborating with Matsu, "I am so happy to sing 'Akai Sweet Pea' together with Matsu-san. I was able to sing it with a 'happy feeling'." Meanwhile, Matsu revealed, "I feel honored that my singing with Seiko-san will be used [in the CM], but

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Recochoku have just updated their weekly charts for the week of October 15th to October 21st. Check out the top ranking chaku-uta, digital singles and music videos for this week below! - < Chaku-Uta - Weekly Ranking > 01 - "C.O.S.M.O.S. ~Akizakura~" - Sandaime J Soul Brothers 02 - "BRIGHTER DAY" - Amuro Namie 03 - "Suki" - Nishino Kana 04 - "Dragon Night" - SEKAI NO OWARI 05 - "Last Scene" - JUJU 06 - "Netsujou no Spectrum

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Entertainment magazine 'Ori★Suta' has revealed the results of their 2014 "favorite artist" ranking. Popular group Arashi came in first place again this year, followed by Mr.Children, B'z, Ikimonogakari, and Utada Hikaru. This marks Arashi's 5th year in a row to top the ranking, making them the first artist to achieve this feat. Besides the overall ranking, Arashi also topped the "overall women", "overall teens", "overall twenties", "women in the

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Actor Ito Hideaki (39) will be getting married to a company employee 8 years his junior (31). The couple is expected to submit their marriage registration on October 24. On October 22, Ito sent a handwritten letter to media outlets via his agency. He announced, "This is a personal matter, but I would like to humbly announce that I will register my marriage on October 24. My partner is a former company employee, a non-celebrity woman who I've

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On October 22, HKT48's Sashihara Rino made a live appearance on Nippon Broadcast's 'AKB48 no All Night Nippon' where she talked with producer Akimoto Yasushi about the week's theme 'Kinkyuu Dougi. Sashihara wa AKB ni Modoru no ka?' (translated as: 'An emergency resolution. Will Sashihara return to AKB?').After her dating scandal, Sashihara was transferred from AKB48 to HKT48 in June of 2012. Regarding the topic, she showed her intentions of remai

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Oricon has released its weekly charts for October 13 to 19. Check it out below! [Single Weekly Ranking]1. "Itta Janai ka / CloveR" - Kanjani8 : 10/15 (271,021)2. "TIKI BUN / Shabadaba Doo~ / Mikaeri Bijin" - Morning Musume.'14 : 10/15 (135,109)3. "C.O.S.M.O.S. ~Akizakura~" - Sandaime J Soul Brothers from EXILE TRIBE : 10/15 (120,918)4. "Dragon Night" - SEKAI NO OWARI : 10/15 (85,055)5. "Kindan no Resistance" - Mizuki Nana : 10/15 (40,018)(C

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On October 21, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu revealed through her Twitter that she's stopped disguising herself when going out. "I went out for a little while today. I walked a lot. To walk openly is a good thing. I haven't disguised myself, nor wore a mask in a week," she said.今日は少しお出かけした。たくさん歩いた。堂々と歩くことは良いこと。なんかもう1週周って変装もマスクもしなくなった。— きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ (@pamyurin) October 20, 2014 Recently, tabloid magazine 'FRIDAY' reported that Kyary has been secretly m

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On October 19, talento Minami Akina (25) appeared on NTV's program 'Gyouretsu no Dekiru Houritsu Soudansho' (roughly translated as 'Very Popular Legal Information Centers') where she refuted rumors of plastic surgery. Recently, pictures of Minami from her elementary, intermediate, and high school graduation albums have surfaced on the internet. She was told by friends that there were comments on pictures saying, "Her face is completely diffe

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On October 20, former AKB48 member Itano Tomomi revealed her current weight through her official Twitter account. Itano tweeted, "I lost weight!" and attached a photo of herself standing on a scale. The picture features the singer's bony feet and a scale that reads "36.8 kg" (80.96 lbs). 体重減った‼︎ #ツアーで痩せた予感 #食べるぞ pic.twitter.com/bEiq8isowF— 板野友美 (@tomo_coco73) October 20, 2014 Fans showed their concerned over Itano'

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