is a Japanese
actress
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...
,
presenter
A presenter is a person or organization responsible for the running of a public event, or someone who conveys information on media via a broadcasting outlet. Presenter may refer to:
People
* News presenter, person who presents news during a new ...
and former
idol
Idol or Idols may refer to:
Religion and philosophy
* Cult image, a neutral term for a man-made object that is worshipped or venerated for the deity, spirit or demon that it embodies or represents
* Murti, a point of focus for devotion or medit ...
. She is a former second generation member of the idol group
Hinatazaka46
is a Japanese idol group produced by Yasushi Akimoto. The group was established as a subgroup of Keyakizaka46 named Hiragana Keyakizaka46 on November 30, 2015, and was renamed and spun off into its own group on February 11, 2019. The group's ...
.
Watanabe joined Hiragana Keyakizaka46, now Hinatazaka46, in August 2017 and made her acting debut a month later in the group's drama ''
Re:Mind''. She has starred in the television films ''With You, Who Wanted to Be A Star'' (2021) and ''
Good Morning, Sleeping Lion'' (2022). She left Hinatazaka46 in July 2022 to focus on her acting career.
Early life
Watanabe played
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
from elementary to high school. She was the captain and
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...
of her high school team, and participated in prefectural level tournaments.
Career
On August 15, 2017, Watanabe was introduced as one of nine Hiragana Keyakizaka46 (now Hinatazaka46) second generation members.
In October 2017, Watanabe made her acting debut in the Hiragana Keyakizaka46 drama ''
Re:Mind'', aired on
TV Tokyo
JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certified b ...
and
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
, and was the only second generation member to appear in the main story with those of the first generation.
She co-starred in the Hinatazaka46 drama
''Dasada'' (2020)
and appeared in ''
Koeharu!
is a Japanese television series starring members of the idol group Hinatazaka46. The show follows the students daily lives as they attend a voice acting school. The show aired on Nippon TV at 1:00 AM to 1:30 AM on Thursdays, and was available o ...
'' (2021).
Watanabe's first photobook, titled ''Hidamari'' and photographed in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, was released on January 17, 2019. About 17,000 copies were sold in its release week, placing it first in that week's photobook ranking and fifth among all books. It was the first and only solo photobook by a Hiragana Keyakizaka46 member, as subsequent books by other members were released after they were renamed into Hinatazaka46 in February of that year.
In July 2020, Watanabe became a co-host for the basketball program on NBA Rakuten, the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
's web streaming service in Japan.
In January 2021, Watanabe played female lead Nasa Kotosaka in the television drama adaptation of the romance/science fiction novel ', alongside
Gordon Maeda
is a Japanese actor. He is the son of actor and martial artist Sonny Chiba. Maeda is best known for portraying Takashi Mitsuya in live action movie adaptation of ''Tokyo Revengers'' and Issei Kataoka in the romance drama '' Promise Cinderella'' ...
. The drama was aired on
Nippon TV
JOAX-DTV (channel 4), branded as , is the flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned-and-operated by the which is a subsidiary of the certified broadcasting holding company , itself a listed su ...
and Hulu Japan, with slightly different storylines for each version.
In 2022, she played female lead Remi Watanuki in the action web film ''
Good Morning, Sleeping Lion''.
On April 3, 2022, she announced her departure from Hinatazaka46 after the promotion for the group's 7th single "
Boku Nanka" has concluded. She would be the first 2nd generation member, and the third after the group renamed, to graduate the group. In that single, she served as the lead singer for the "aggressive,
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
-sounding" track "Koishita Sakana wa Sora wo Tobu",
and the music video for "Hikōkigumo ga Dekiru Riyū" is about the closing of a dormitory named "Hidamari", a reference to her aforementioned photobook. Her farewell concert took place on June 28 at the
Tokyo International Forum
The is a multi-purpose exhibition center in Tokyo, Japan. The complex is generally considered to be in the Yūrakuchō business district, being adjacent to Yūrakuchō Station, but it is administratively in the Marunouchi district.
Tokyo Int ...
, Hall A. The video will be included in Type-A and Type-B of Hinatazaka46's 8th single "
Tsuki to Hoshi ga Odoru Midnight". A graduation commemorative book, titled ''Watashi ga Watashi de aru Tame ni'' was published by
Nikkei BP
, commonly known as , is a book and magazine publisher based in Tokyo, Japan. The company was established as , a joint venture of Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) and McGraw-Hill in 1969, and it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Nikkei in 1988.
Nik ...
, which sold 16,000 copies in its release week.
She officially graduated from Hinatazaka46 on July 31, with her posting on its official blog for the last time the next day, August 1.
In an interview with
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...
, Watanabe stated that she will continue her entertainment career after graduation, saying that she has garnered some experience in acting.
On September 1, 2022, Watanabe announced her affiliation with the talent agency Queen-B. She also launched her
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
and
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
accounts, an official website and her own fanclub.
Discography
Watanabe had participated in all Hinatazaka46 title songs,
as well as the all-member and second generation songs by Hiragana Keyakizaka46 since "
Kaze ni Fukarete mo
is the fifth single (music), single by Japanese girl group Keyakizaka46. It was released on October 25, 2017, by Sony Music Japan.
Track listing
All lyrics written by Yasushi Akimoto.
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
...
" (2017)
and by Hinatazaka46, until "
Boku Nanka" (2022).
Prominent appearances include:
* "Kirei ni Naritai" (''
Hashiridasu Shunkan
is the first album by Japanese idol girl group Hiragana Keyakizaka46. It was released on 20 June 2018. The album reached the top position on the weekly Oricon Albums Chart. It also reached number one on the ''Billboard Japan'' Hot Albums Chart.
...
'', 2018), as a trio with
Nao Kosaka
is a Japanese singer, model, and actress. She is a member of the Japanese female idol group Hinatazaka46 and an exclusive model for the women's fashion magazine ''Seventeen''.
Career
On August 13, 2017, Kosaka passed the auditions for new membe ...
and
Akari Nibu
is a Japanese singer, voice actress, and television presenter, represented by Sony Music Records. She is a member of the idol group Hinatazaka46.
Early life
Nibu was born in Tochigi Prefecture and lived in Gunma Prefecture until she was eigh ...
* "Akubi Letter" ("
Tteka
is the sixth single by Japanese idol group Hinatazaka46. It was released on October 27, 2021 through Sony Music Entertainment Japan and features the first appearance of Miku Kanemura as the lead performer of a title song.
Production and release ...
" B-side, 2021), with
Color Chart
A color chart or color reference card is a flat, physical object that has many different color samples present. They can be available as a single-page chart, or in the form of swatchbooks or color-matching fans.
Typically there are two diffe ...
* "Koishita Sakana wa Sora wo Tobu" ("Boku Nanka" B-side, 2022), center
Appearances outside
Sakamichi Series
refers to a Japanese idol group franchise that began with Nogizaka46, an "official" rival group of AKB48. It currently consists of four groups: Nogizaka46, Sakurazaka46, Hinatazaka46, and Yoshimotozaka46. Despite the name, the groups are not r ...
releases include:
* "Hatsukoi Door" (
AKB48
AKB48 (pronounced ''A.K.B. Forty-Eight'') is a Japanese idol girl group named after the Akihabara (''Akiba'' for short) area in Tokyo, where the group's theater is located. AKB48's producer, Yasushi Akimoto, wanted to form a girl group with it ...
single "
Jiwaru Days
"Jiwaru Days" () is the 55th single by Japanese idol group AKB48. It was released in Japan by King Records on March 13, 2019, in seven versions. The single features departing member Rino Sashihara as the center performer. It debuted at number one ...
" B-side, 2019), Sakamichi Series collaboration with
AKB48 Group
, or AKB48 sister groups, shortened to 48 Group, 48g, refers to the sister groups of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48. Based on the same concept "idols you can meet", it currently consists of 5 sister groups in locations across Japan and 7 si ...
(SakamichiAKB)
* "Hitoribocchi no Kakumei" (''
Good Morning, Sleeping Lion'' theme song, 2022), solo song
Videography
Video albums
Filmography
Voice acting
Television drama
Web drama
Variety and talk shows
Music video
Radio
Fashion shows
Tokyo Girls Collection
Bibliography
Notes
References
External links
*
Queen-B official profile
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watanabe, Miho
Hinatazaka46 members
2000 births
Living people
Musicians from Saitama Prefecture
21st-century Japanese actresses