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Morning Musume Members
This page consists of all current and former members of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume. The group is known for their ever-fluctuating line-up, with "graduations" and auditions held nearly every year. Current members Ninth generation (2011) * Mizuki Fukumura (譜久村聖), will graduate Autumn 2023 * Erina Ikuta (生田衣梨奈) Tenth generation (2011) * Eleventh generation (2012) * Twelfth generation (2014) * * * Thirteenth generation (2016) * Fifteenth generation (2019) * * * Sixteenth generation (2022) * Former members First generation (1997) * Yuko Nakazawa * Aya Ishiguro * Kaori Iida * Natsumi Abe * Asuka Fukuda Second generation (1998) * Kei Yasuda * Mari Yaguchi * Sayaka Ichii Third generation (1999) * Maki Goto Fourth generation (2000) * Rika Ishikawa * Hitomi Yoshizawa * Nozomi Tsuji * Ai Kago Fifth generation (2001) * Ai Takahashi * Asami Konno * Makoto Ogawa * Risa Niigaki Sixth generation (2003) * Miki Fujimo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Morning Musume
, formerly simply and colloquially referred to as , are a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most top ten singles with an amount of 64. Morning Musume was formed in 1997 by rock singer-songwriter turned record producer Tsunku, who later composed the vast majority of the group's songs over the decade. They are the lead group of Hello! Project that specialises in upbeat, pop-oriented music coupled with dance performance. The group produced several splinter groups, and often collaborates with other Hello! Project acts, including Country Musume, Berryz Kobo, Cute, Melon Kinenbi, and v-u-den. The group's name can be translated as "Morning Girls" or "Morning Daughters"; as the name suggests, it consists of members mostly in their late adolescence and early 20s. History 1997-1998: Formation and beginnings Japanese producer Tsunku started the group in 1997 throu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nozomi Tsuji
, known professionally by her birth name (born June 17, 1987) is a Japanese media personality, singer, and blogger. In 2000, she began her career as a singer for Japanese girl band Morning Musume. Tsuji later found success with related groups Mini Moni and W. She has participated in the shuffle groups 10-nin Matsuri, Odoru 11, and 11Water, H.P. All Stars, as well as being a member of the Morning Musume splinter group Morning Musume Otomegumi Early life Tsuji was born in Tokyo, Japan. She is the second and youngest child of two daughters. Career 2000–2004: Morning Musume and Mini Moni In 2000, when Tsuji was twelve years old, she auditioned for the pop group Morning Musume. Group producer Tsunku originally planned on selecting only three members; Rika Ishikawa, Hitomi Yoshizawa, and Ai Kago were chosen. He made the decision to add Tsuji as a fourth member, creating Morning Musume's fourth generation. "Happy Summer Wedding" was released on May 17, 2000, marking Tsuji's debu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Qian Lin
Qian Lin (born March 11, 1991), better known in Japan as , is a Chinese singer. She is a former Morning Musume member and leader of the Hello! Project sub-group Shin Minimoni. She was announced to be joining as the eighth generation of Morning Musume on March 15, 2007. Along with Li Chun, she is one of the only two members in the history of Morning Musume that are of non-Japanese origin. Biography Linlin was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. In the second grade of elementary school (1999), she was spotted by a local television station. Since then, she has been active in the entertainment industry, appearing in many television dramas and other shows as a host in China. Through the recommendation of a friend of Tsunku, the producer of Hello! Project (which Morning Musume is under), Linlin joined Hello! Project as a part of Hello! Pro Egg, a training center for practicing singing and dancing. On March 15, 2007, she (along with Junjun) were officially announced to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Li Qinyao
Li Chun (born January 11, 1988), known professionally as Li Qinyao, is a Chinese actress and former singer. From 2007 to 2010, she was a member of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume under the stage name . As an actress, Li has appeared in television and film projects including ''Moon Embracing the Stars'' and ''Eastern Battlefield.'' Career 2007-2010: Morning Musume In 2006, Li auditioned for '' Super Girl'', but failed to enter the top 10. Tsunku, who planned on expanding Hello! Project into overseas Asian markets, offered her and the other eliminated ''Super Girl'' contestants an opportunity to enter an audition for Morning Musume in Beijing, China, which was kept secret from the members of Morning Musume themselves. Li accepted in spite of her family's disapproval due to the Japanese-Chinese tensions. On March 15, 2007, Li was officially announced as an eighth generation member in Morning Musume as a "foreign exchange student" along with Lin Lin. On March 18, 2007, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aika Mitsui
is a Japanese singer. She is a member of Hello! Project and a former member of the J-pop group Morning Musume, joining as a member of the eighth generation from the audition in Japan during December 2006. Mitsui's audition process was documented during the late 2006 episodes of Hello! Morning. She performed Ayumi Hamasaki's "Blue Bird" in round one of her audition and Morning Musume's " Furusato" and " Osaka Koi no Uta" in rounds two and three. She graduated from Morning Musume on May 18, 2012. She retired from the entertainment industry to pursue culinary studies in New Zealand on November 3, 2018. Biography 2006-2012 (Morning Musume) On December 10, 2006, she alone out of five (originally six, but Ayami Masuda dropped out) audition finalists was chosen to join Morning Musume. An article published on December 11, 2006 revealed that Mitsui wouldn't be present in the 57th edition of Kōhaku Uta Gassen but would instead be featured in the group's 32nd single, Egao Yes Nude ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Koharu Kusumi
is a Japanese actress, model, television personality, singer, and voice actress. In 2005, she became the only seventh generation member of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume, a part of Hello! Project. While Kusumi was in Morning Musume, she provided the voice for Kirari Tsukishima, the main character of the anime series ''Kirarin Revolution'', and portrayed her in real life on ''Oha Suta''. In addition, she was featured in several musical releases affiliated with the series, including both solo releases under the name and group releases for the units Kira Pika and Milky Way. After leaving Morning Musume in 2009, Kusumi pursued modeling, discussing her career changes in her 2011 autobiography, ''17-sai no Tenshoku''. After making her runway debut in 2011, she modeled exclusively for magazines ''CanCam'' and ''Steady'', while also making regular appearances on variety shows. At the same time, Kusumi continued to perform at music events and took part in Dream Morning Musume. Kus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reina Tanaka
is a Japanese singer and actress. She is the leader of the Japanese rock band Lovendor. From 2002 to 2013, she was one of the main vocalists of the girl group Morning Musume and participated in other music acts under the Hello! Project name. Career 2001–2013: Morning Musume Tanaka auditioned for a spot in Morning Musume's 5th Generation in 2001 and passed, but had to leave the training camp for being under the age limit. She attempted again in 2002 for a position in the 6th Generation and passed along with members Eri Kamei and Sayumi Michishige. She provided the main vocals for the single "Shabondama". She was featured in two solo versions of "Memory Seishun no Hikari" on a fan club release CD. In 2003, Tanaka became a member of the sub-unit Aa!, along with Miyabi Natsuyaki and Airi Suzuki, two Hello! Project Kids members. They released one single, "First Kiss", on October 29, 2003. Later, in 2004, she participated in singing "All for One & One for All!", a collaboration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sayumi Michishige
is a Japanese singer, actress and model. She is a former sixth-generation member and former leader of the J-pop group Morning Musume. Following the departure of fifth-generation member Risa Niigaki on October 12, 2013, Michishige has the longest tenure of any member in the group's history. Michishige was born in Ube, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. She joined Morning Musume in 2003 along with Eri Kamei, Miki Fujimoto, and Reina Tanaka, who all debuted with Morning Musume on the group's nineteenth single, "Shabondama". In 2005, she was assigned as mentor to seventh-generation member Koharu Kusumi, until Kusumi left the group in December 2009. Michishige was also a member of the Hello! Project unit Ecomoni, along with former Morning Musume member Rika Ishikawa. She portrays a visual-focused, self-confident image of herself in more TV shows, often calling herself the cutest member in Morning Musume and saying that her cuteness overwhelms her poor singing skills. In one of the skit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eri Kamei
is a Japanese pop singer and model. She is a former member of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume. She joined in late 2003 as a sixth generation member along with Miki Fujimoto, Sayumi Michishige, and Reina Tanaka. She graduated on December 15, 2010, in Yokohama Arena along with Junjun and Linlin. Career Kamei was born in Arakawa, Tokyo. She was selected from the Morning Musume Love Audition 2002 to join Morning Musume as a member of the sixth generation. She first appeared on the single "Shabondama" and her first album was ''Ai no Dai 6 Kan''. Towards late 2004, Kamei is thought to have opened up after receiving her own segment on the Japanese variety show Hello! Morning, where she had been a regular since her debut. In the segment, known as , she, along with her co-host Yuko Nakazawa, and most often several guests promote the latest products from the Hello! Project. Her segment was removed from the show in the winter of 2005, but she still stars in the rest of the show ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Miki Fujimoto
(born February 26, 1985), professionally known by her birth name of , and nicknamed Mikitty, is a Japanese actress and former pop singer. After failing the audition to join girl group Morning Musume with the fourth generation members, Fujimoto debuted as a solo artist within Hello! Project in 2002 with the single " Aenai Nagai Nichiyōbi". Fujimoto later joined Morning Musume in 2003 along with the sixth generation and eventually became the leader of the group in 2007. Early life Fujimoto was born and raised in the Takikawa area of Hokkaidō, Japan. She has an older brother, who won a defamation case alongside Fujimoto in 2009. Career Early work: 2002–2003 Fujimoto originally started out as a solo singer in 2002 under the idol family Hello! Project, becoming the first of six members to debut under Hello! Project after losing a Morning Musume audition. She is often called by fans as Aya Matsuura's rival, but in fact, they are the best of friends. After a successful performa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Risa Niigaki
is a Japanese actress and singer. She was a fifth-generation member of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume. She joined Morning Musume in 2001 along with 3 others- Ai Takahashi, Asami Konno and Makoto Ogawa. She grew up in Yokohama after moving there at the age of six. She was one of the longest serving members of Morning Musume, and was the leader of the group from October 2011 to her graduation on May 18, 2012. Biography History Niigaki was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa. She was the runner-up for the 'Kiss Girl Audition' in becoming the Tomy image girl before joining Morning Musume. She appeared with the winner Ai Hasegawa in a Tomy Karaoke Machine commercial. In 2001, Niigaki joined Morning Musume as the fifth generation along with Ai Takahashi, Asami Konno, and Makoto Ogawa. Morning Musume producer Tsunku said he chose Niigaki because she "shined during the final studio recording" for the audition song that all the finalists had to sing. She debuted and lead on the group's 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Makoto Ogawa
is a Japanese singer and actress, best known as a former member of Japanese girl group Morning Musume. She joined the group in August 2001 along with fellow fifth generation members Ai Takahashi, Risa Niigaki, and Asami Konno. On March 31, 2009, she graduated from Hello! Project with the rest of the Elder Club. Ogawa is currently a member of idol band Dream Morning Musume. Biography Ogawa was born in Kashiwazaki, Niigata. Before joining the Japanese female idol group Morning Musume, Makoto Ogawa was enrolled at an entertainment school named Apple Little Performers (ALP) in Niigata. She made her CD debut on a cheer song for the J2 soccer team, Albirex Niigata. She has also been a fashion model for magazines and campaign, such as one for automobile safety for the elderly. Tsunku—producer and lyricist of Hello! Project—also commented that she was selected to join the group because she displayed great dancing skills and shined during the audition process. Ogawa joined i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
