is a Japanese idol

girl group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

. The group was formed through a media mix project by Yasushi Akimoto, Aniplex, and Sony Music Records. The members consist of voice actresses who provide the voice and motion capture for their characters, as well as perform as a musical group. 22/7 later receive anime, manga, and game adaptation.

History

2017: Debut

An audition for 8 characters, which included both a CD debut and an anime, was held until December 17, 2016, with the final examination taking place on December 24, 2016. On December 25, 2016, the idol group name was revealed as 22/7, which was chosen because it is an approximation to the mathematical constant

\pi

, a transcendental number that represents their concept as "idols transcending through dimensions." Among 10,325 applicants, 11 voice actresses were chosen through voting, with only the first 8 characters announced. The group held their debut showcase on June 16, 2017, and an animated adaptation was announced during their first live event on July 22, 2017. 22/7's first single, "Boku wa Sonzai Shiteinakatta", was released on August 22, 2017, with the jacket designs illustrated by

Yukiko Horiguchi is a Japanese animator and illustrator from Kyoto Prefecture, who used to work for the anime studio Kyoto Animation. When illustrating a light novel, she uses the pen name . She is best known as being the character designer for the anime adapta ...

. The music video was animated by Tatsunoko Production.

2018: ''22/7 Keisanchū'', final three characters revealed

On April 11, 2018, 22/7 released their second single, "Shampoo no Nioi ga Shita", with the CD visuals designed by Horiguchi again. A series of animated character shorts were also released. To promote the group's upcoming activities, 22/7 launched individual social media channels for the characters, including YouTube. 22/7's variety show, ''22/7 Keisanchū'', was broadcast on Tokyo MX beginning July 7, 2018. 22/7's third single, "Rikaisha", was released on August 22, 2018. The song was promoted during their annual live event on July 22, 2018, where they also announced Chiharu Hokaze had been elected the leader of the group. "Rikaisha" debuted at #7 on the Oricon Daily Singles Chart. On September 21, 2018, the last 3 characters for the remaining members of the group were revealed during a promotional event.

2019–present: Departure of Hanakawa, 22/7's anime adaptation

On July 22, 2019, the music video for their fourth single, "Nani mo Shite Agerarenai" was released, becoming the first of their releases to reveal all 11 characters. The single was released on August 21, 2019, with the disc debuting in 4th with 29,000 units sold in its first week on the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart. On December 11, 2019, Mei Hanakawa announced that she was leaving the group due to health issues. Hanakawa's final performance with the group was held on December 24, 2019, where Uta Kawase was introduced as a new member taking over the role of Nicole Saitō. In February 2020, Takatsuji and Kuraoka went on hiatus due to poor health; Takatsuji resumed activities with the group on May 15 while Kuraoka returned to the group in September 2020. On December 1, 2020, Takeda went on hiatus to focus on her studies. On December 23, 2020, Hokaze announced she was leaving the group to pursue voice acting full-time, her final release with the group being "Boku ga Motteru Mono nara", which was released on February 28, 2021. On March 22, 2021, it was announced Takeda would return on April 10, 2021. The remaining eight members continued to perform activities. On September 29, 2021, Umino and Kuraoka announced they were leaving the group in November while Takeda announced she was leaving in December. Umino stated her reason for leaving is to pursue voice acting full-time; Kuraoka stated it was to find a career path suitable for her; and Takeda stated she wanted to pursue a career as a model and television personality. On November 2, 2021, it was announced that Takatsuji would be leaving the group following a series of unexplained absences from work. Following the departures of the five members, the project announced on December 27, 2021 that they were retiring the five characters played by them.

Characters

Current

; : :A girl who develops inferior complex, Miu serves as the main protagonist of the anime series. She is a 16-year-old girl from Saitama Prefecture who is distinguishable from bangs that covered her eyes most of the time. Miu is designed by

. ; : :Nicole is a 16-year-old girl designed by Kurehito Misaki. ; : :Ayaka is an aggressive and militant 17-year-old girl who is designed by Koharu Sakura. ; : :Nicknamed "Ranran", Sakura is the 16-year-old daughter of a good family. She has a sunny personality with a dark side. Originally, Sakura was not written as an English speaker, but after noticing Amaki had drawn in a large overseas fanbase, she was rewritten as an English speaker who had grown up overseas. She is designed by

Kantoku was a after '' Chōkyū'' and before '' Eishō'', This period spanned the years from November 1044 through April 1046. The reigning emperors were and . Change of era * 1044 : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. ...

. ; : :Akane is a 16-year-old girl whose personality resembles that of an aloof robot. However, under this façade is a very hard-working and cheerful girl. She is designed by Tometa Ohara. ; : :Mikami is a 16-year-old girl with slow pace who came from Kyoto and speaks in Kyoto dialect. She is designed by

Kouhaku Kuroboshi , also known as , is a Japanese illustrator and character designer. He is from the Kanagawa Prefecture and lives in the Fukuoka Prefecture. He is probably best known for his frequent collaborations with writer Keiichi Sigsawa as the illustrator/cha ...

. She was revealed as a character in September 2018.

Retired

; : :Reika is a 17-year-old honor student who is part of student council. She is designed by Hirokazu Koyama. The character was retired on December 27, 2021. ; : :Mizuha is an energetic 17-year-old girl from Osaka who speaks Kansai dialect. She is designed by Mieko Hosoi. The character was retired on December 27, 2021. ; : :Yuki is a 15-year-old tomboy designed by

Akio Watanabe is a Japanese animator, illustrator, character designer, supervisor, director, dōjin artist and a member of the circle . His pseudonym is . He worked with Akiyuki Shinbo at Shaft. His representative works include key animation for ''Popotan'' ...

. She was revealed as a character in September 2018. The character was retired on December 27, 2021. ; : :Jun is a 15-year-old high class girl who is designed by Masayoshi Tanaka. The character was retired on December 27, 2021. ; : :Tsubomi is a 17-year-old girl designed by

Mel Kishida is a Japanese illustrator. His works include both light novel illustration and anime character design. His major works include the character designer of the ''Hanasaku Iroha'' anime and character designer for the ''Arland Atelier'' game series, ...

. She was revealed as a character in September 2018. The character was retired on December 27, 2021.

Discography

Filmography

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:22 7 (idol group) 2017 establishments in Japan Aniplex franchises Japanese girl groups Japanese idol groups Animated musical groups Musical groups established in 2017 Sony Music Entertainment Japan artists Sony Music Entertainment Japan franchises Yasushi Akimoto