Honestly , ARASHI's latest single Ai wo Sakebe should have sold a bit more as for the 1st time in a very long time , all the songs in the single are great and the last single when they released which was an all rounder great one was 2013's Calling / Breathless as the B-sides in their singles are quite notorious to listen/remember unlike in the past where their B-sides were really good

When I went back to Tokyo at the last week of 2014 , when I was at Ueno waiting to cross the road , there was suddenly a van that pulled up that contained a big ARASHI promo for their show they host & many people (including male adults) scrambled in front to take photos even though it's not the real group themselves lol

And Johnnys who host their own TV programmes do play a part in their sales . Kanjani8 in the beginning weren't very popular (even though their older works are still better to me as it had an unique heavy Enka sound) but the TV shows they host , help them gain new ground

Also most Johnnys TV shows that they host , they tend not to take themselves seriously which's different from the image they portray to fans onstage and in their music

Likewise for the other senior groups that're still popular up to now . SMAP is still going strong after 24 years and V6 celebrates their 20th anniversary this year

If Johnnys start to mimic the same way that AKB48 market themselves (likewise for their sister groups) , I will leave the fandom immediately , no joke about it but since I've been in the Johnnys fandom from mid 2008 until now , I don't see this will ever happen (I hope)

^I really like Johnny's style of promoting their groups. It's more about the real talent than just crazy gimmicks. :)

A lot of Johnny groups can really sing though. AKB48's sales mostly come from perverts and little girls.

Yep , fangirls are poor by nature . The only other ways in making them more poor is them buying shop photos at the official Johnnys shops and/or concert goods (which by Johnnys standards , the costs are considerably cheaper as compared to other artistes)

Generally most Johnnys can sing well if not sing live , it's too bad ARASHI lip sync even when comes to their tours and/or even during 'live' shows :no

I don't understand why because even the other groups that're more senior than them , they don't do that . Heck SMAP's leader Nakai is tone deaf in nature but despite him not able to sing/carry a note well , he doesn't lip synch

The only thing ARASHI cannot fake via lip synching is when Sakurai Sho raps . But I understand why they lip synch (that goes for ballads even D: ) is because in reality they sound horrible . If not why back then when they performed at FNS , it was considered a big deal when for once they didn't lip sync but turns out they sound really really really bad

Tokio is really the only group I respect from JE. But not the only group I like. I like Yamapi, and I used to like Kat-tun before all the members left lol. News was good too, and I still listen to classic V6 songs.

But I'm certainly not the demographic and the new JE stuff doesn't appeal to me haha.

And personally I loathe SMAP.

Tbh I lost little interest I had in JE some years ago when NEWS split. Still like some of their and tegomasu's old song and occasional arashi track from their peak.

I loathe smap and no one will ever be able to convince me they can sing lol. Over all the idol industry stopped appealing to me, even AAA which I stopped following recently.

I thought this is an Ayu thread, so I don't know why we're talking Johnny's...

But I do have to agree. I'm still irked though why they're restricting on online material, such as no official online downloads (e.g. iTunes) or pictures outside of Johnny's sites (generally), but that partially is the reason why Johnny's sales are pretty much high-end, and add to that, the REAL talent rather than those AKB girls. (And that's probably also the reason why the boys keep winning the Kouhaku in recent years compared to the girls...)

TOKIO is unique as they're the only Johnnys that do not dance (I can count KinKi Kids in since Domoto Tsuyoshi looks awkward when he dances unlike Domoto Koichi)

I don't listen to SMAP but I can understand why they're still popular up to now as vocally they might not be the best but it's their non music activities that're able to still draw people in as leader Nakai is a very good host (although singing & cooking wise it's a different matter lol)

AKB48 might be deemed as idols but it's somewhat ironic that whenever member/s leave the group , who's decided will be the centre of the cover of their next single/album & also who will be in the top 48 or whatever nonsense , these are always been capitalised which I feel it's quite hypocritical

AKB48 members are not allowed to date and all that but the above mentioned matters are supposedly ok ? :irked

And frankly the whole yearly 'general elections' thing is so fake , it's not as though they're changing the world or something every time this's organised if not broadcast live on TV :no

The solo lines always sound live to me. It's the group singing parts that seem lip synched, but that's not surprising as that's how it is for pretty much every group out there.

All Arashi members can actually hold a tune and Ohno is pretty exceptional actually. SMAP on the other hand....the only one that can sing is Kimutaku, lol.

Lots of people know who the true Queen is.

Oricon? Just a number.

Position 93, 621 copies sold this week. Total 42,304

Oh, so it's under 1k already... Guess it should be expected, it was one week earlier than A ONE.

Still hoping for 45k :)

Me too!! It's so close to it

45k by December!

the competition though is harder than the competition was in April. i dont think it will least so many weeks. it will stop at 43.900 i guess :P

It surpassed 42k copies, that's already great

And Johnny fangirls who writes explicit fanfics about the boys having oral sex, they are pervert too you know? :rolleyes

i don't get why people get this harsh about akb48, let them girls get rich, ayu already has her million dollar account

^ For me, I'm just tired of seeing oricon's top selling singles all being AKB48's every single year, I feel like I have to get pass all those so I can actually see how the ranking went, because abk48 doesn't really count imho (since we all know at least 2/3 of those sales are due to the well known gimmicks).

^ the only thing not sertanejo on brazillian billboard singles top 10 this year was Anitta ^^ and we do have a massive variety of great musicians that aren't sertanejo. This is how business work, ayu doesn't have a commercial appeal since ages, that's why she doesn't sell. The same people who keeps sertanejo owning top 10 here are the "same people" that keeps AKB48 selling millions there.

You can always trust on Recochoku if you hate Oricon, Jhonnys and AKB48, but AKB48 even without handshake tickets sell well digitally.

Well if the girls would get rich I would be happy for them. But they don't really see any money that comes from their releases. Everything goes to their producer.
And seeing a group of 13 year old girls making a bunch of videos and photos which would be concidered child pornography in some countries or at least here in Germany and an old man getting rich because of them just makes me angry.
I mean, imagine an uncle would make private photos like that of his 13 year old niece - would it still be some harmless fun? Don't think that is any different.
Female idol groups always were questionable, but AKB48 takes it to a whole new level.

Yeah, but you're making a comparison between a whole genre with just one artist. There's a big difference there. And it's not really the same people, because the people that keep akb48's sales on the millions are people buying tons of copies of the same release because of the gifts that come with it, which is very differwnt from the many different people that buy sertanejo and makes it popular...

Though I don't like sertanejo either, yuck.

Also, I can't think about any sertanejo artist or duo who is kept at the top of the game through bizarre gimmicks... They either get their share of radio hits or have popstar status.

The problem with AKB48 is that their sales number don't match their listeners number.

I don't think the girls in AKB48 themselves are rich & sure they might sell a lot of copies of their singles on paper but since they're so many of them sharing the 'pie' , it does make me wonder salary wise , how they're being paid ?

Are they being paid based on popularity or seniority ? I do wonder at times when comes to the actual dough , how Akimoto Yasushi decides on that since he's the 1 that's behind AKB48

I do feel that AKB48 genuinely have some good songs (like UZA) but I just cannot accept that behind all that , there're just too many members behind the scenes . It's like trying to know and remember all the names of 101 Dalmatians or something :dead2

This was in 2011

Interviewer: So now that AKB songs are so popular you must be becoming rich!
Acchan: Not at all. My salary hasn't increased since AKB become popular
Interviewer: How's that?
Acchan: We don't get paid royalties. AKB members have all the same base salary but we do recieve some bonuses if we get do extra things like photobooks in the interview

I assume they also get paid some bonus when they do commercial sponsor or TV appareances but she only mentioned photobooks

#195 this week. 409 copies sold, total 42,713...

Next week it should pass 43k :D

Still praying for 45k but i can live with 43k

Still praying for 52k

45k would be awesome... However, this mini-album deserves more, in terms of quality, songs and lyrics is perfection.

hahahaha amazing

Sayonara PV youtube viewer almost reaching 1M...let's help it on daily basis...right now it has about 960k viewers. I think it got 4k-5k viewers a day...in this rate, it will reach 1M within a week...crossing fingers

She could still sell Gold if we each buy 1,900 copies.

#210 this week! with 340 copies sold. Total 43,053 copies!

looks like it will end up closer to 45K

hope for 45k
44.9k or 43.9 would be Q__Q

I'm not sure if it can keep charting long enough to reach 45k though... It's going to take another 3 or 4 weeks for 44k, and I don't know if it can even last this long :(

Maybe limited edition in TA tour will increase sales again?

But everyone says Oricon count less copies wich are sold at venues, I wonder what rate do they use and if it's fair enough.

^The rate is 1/3 of reported venue sales.

That's so not fair how Oricon handicaps venue sales numbers... :irked

I once heard they count only one third out of all copies sold at venues :dead2 Not sure if that's real, but either way I don't see a reason to count less copies for something sold at venues at all

^ It's because venue sales can be easily faked, so they don't consider the full numbers.

9th Week
Position: #206
Sales: 393
Total Sales: 43,446

A small rise this week :)

I'm surprised it's still charting! That's awesome :heart

Rise up sixxxxxx rise!!!

^ I was honestly expecting you to come and say exactly that when I saw the rise :laugh

YAAAAAAAAAS <3

GO SIXXXXXX GO

I'm pleased with the charting this year.

WOOOOOOOOT

this is amazing!

Wow yay didn't expect it to rise! <3

Yay 50k is possible. Let's keep praying guys.

^ no not really- depending on albums are charting the next few weeks, she will barely reach 44.300, even if... but sixxxxxx did great!

Pretty surprised...but heyyyyyy! lol

It's still charting? Awesome~ :heart

sixxxxxx has charted another week on Oricon

http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/246497/products/1128227/1/

It has charted for 10 weeks now

10th Week
Position: #276
Sales: 226
Total Sales: 43,672

QUEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

fight ayu!! 43.999 is possible!!! Go for it!!
i think we can say that orican stayed stabil for this year, no drops this time! now we can talk for going uppppp

yay for the tenth week!!

sixxxxxx has charted another week on Oricon

So now it has charted for 11 weeks (and counting)

http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/246497/products/1128227/1/

11th Week
Position: #130
Sales: 468
Total Sales: 44,140

OMG, A BIG RISE!! :heart

omg almost 500 copies sold? influenced by TA TOUR but i dont care RISE sixxxxxx

Seems like the TA Tour is really helping, be it by making buzz or venue sales, but either way I am so happy with the charting :yes

Congrats to Sixxxxxx
it will be reached 45k for sure but i do hope for 50k, Ayu Go!!!

I wonder if the a-nation broadcast gave it a boost.

Ooh nice surprise, congrats to her. :yes

that's amazing!! and quite unexpected

so nice its having a nice life!!

Omg that's awesome!

50k may not be feasible but 45k definitely is!

wow..now 45K is really possible

Does the Vynil-version count in the sales?

Out of the Top 300 this week z_z

really sad after last week's rise, I really thought it would chart another week :(

Agree....^^V

Come on sixxxxxx, rise up!!! It's just the beginning!