The album jacket of the popular idol group AKB48′s new single “Chance no Junban” is officially unveiled on ORICON STYLE for the first time today. Three different editions including Type-A, Type-K and Type-B will be on sale. As known, it hasn’t been long after Uchida Mayumi won the AKB48 Janken (Rock, Scissors, and Paper) selection...

It’s been reported that AKB48 has officially been certified by the Guinness book, as the “Pop group with the most amount of members.” As a special intro on the latest “Guinness World Record (TM) 2011,” which will be released on November 18th, there will be a special interview with AKB48’s producer, Akimoto Yasushi, as well...

On Wednesday, AKB48′s new single “Beginner” hit store shelves, shattering previous records with a total of more than 568,000 copies sold in the first day. The next day, the song’s music video was released on Recochoku, and it had similarly impressive sales. According to Recochoku, its first-day downloads were roughly triple the amount of their...

Sports Hochi reports that AKB48′s 18th single, “Beginner,” will have an initial shipment of 1.03 million copies for its release on October 27. Although not likely, this gives it the opportunity to sell one million copies in its first week, which has not happened since Hikaru Utada’s 1999 hit “Addicted To You.” This is a...

The popular idol group AKB48 is getting their first documentary film in theaters. Titled “DOCUMENTARY of AKB48 to be continued,” the movie covers the group’s activities throughout this year, using footage from over 1,000 videotapes. The documentary includes the production process behind each of their singles, their concerts at Yokohama Arena and Yoyogi National Gymnasium,...

AKB48’s preview for the PV of ’Beginner‘ has just been released!.Preview inside~ As we’ve mentioned in a previous post, this single will come in five versions which includes 2 CD+DVDs, 2 Event editions, and a regular edition. It’s set to hit shelves and e-stores on October 27th, and will serve as the group’s 18th single....

Idol group AKB48 is now confirmed as one of the artists for the upcoming Asia Song Festival, which is being held in Seoul, Korea, on October 23. This is the 7th year for the festival, which gathers top artists from several Asian countries. In past years, Japan has been represented by Arashi, Kumi Koda, Ayumi...

The graduation of AKB48 member Erena Ono (16) has been officially set for September 27, during the group’s theater performance on that day. It was first announced in July that Ono was leaving AKB48 in order to study acting overseas. She reportedly decide to pursue that path after appearing in the movie “Sankaku” earlier this...

Bandai Namco Games announced on Tuesday that it is publishing a video game based on popular idol group AKB48. Titled “AKB 1/48 Idol to Koi Shitara…,” this is the first official game to revolve around the group. The game is described as the “ultimate dating fantasy game,” featuring 48 members of AKB48. All of them...

Weekly Shonen Magazine recently released a new manga series, published in favor of the new idol trend in Japan, AKB49 ~ Renai Kinshi Jourei. The title is loosely based on the ever popular AKB48 group. AKB fans will be delighted to find manga versions of their favorite idols drawn into the comic. In this article...

Atsuko Maeda, 19, of the pop band AKB48 was the special guest this week at the opening of Cafe Studio in Harajuku, a new cafe based on the successful “Twilight” books and movies. Holding a copy of one of the vampire novels, which center around the relationships between vampires and human women, Maeda said: “They...

Details have been released for the French Kiss debut single “Zutto Mae Kara,” which goes on sale on September 8. The single will come in three versions with different contents, including an original short drama. First unveiled last month, French Kiss consists of AKB48 members Yuki Kashiwagi (19), Aki Takajo (18), and Asuka Kuramochi (20)....

AKB48 will release a new single “Heavy rotation” on August 18th, and its cover jackets were revealed.and 2ch been complained that this cover album are far too sexy and erotic than before~read full news On the Type-A jacket, Oshima Yuko, Maeda Atsuko, and Shinoda Mariko are the cover girls, and on the Type-B jacket is...

At AKB48′s concert at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium on Sunday, it was announced that Team K member Erena Ono (16) is graduating this summer, though the exact timing has not yet been announced. She will be taking a break from the entertainment industry while she goes overseas to study acting. Ono has already appeared in...