Masterthesis on "AKB48" and "Japanese idology"

[thinkingoutloud89]

Hi folks,

I'm a 24 year old art/visual culture student from Germany, currently working on my master thesis. I chose AKB48 as the overall subject to my work, yet reading through the very few critical works I found to point out a a good question I want to work out.

I started this, because the whole fandom around the group grapped my attention and more importanly, how the whole group functions. One of the questions I thought I could explore would have been, if this concept could work out oversea or why it doesn't and what differs idols form western artists...yet what is an artist in japanese media culturw, with Namie, Ayu & Co. also beeing discribed as idols. However, this may falls to short...

that brings me to my question: Have you ever written something in same manner on the subject or encountered something like this. It would help me a lot if you could share it with me.

Moreover, if your are into the subject, do you have some tips for me to go on/actually start?

thank you for reading thus far!

[Polyrhythm]

Western idols (think early on, Mickey Mouse Club, ect): Usually have innate singing/dancing talent-->get "discovered"-->undergo extensive training--> debut-->some go on to be nobodies, others become international stars (Britney, JT, ect)

Japanese idols: Usually have little natural singing/dancing ability --> selected based on future "potential"-->undergo training but debut before a perfected product-->grows and develops in the public eye-->some go on to be nobodies (the growing list of AKB48 alumni), while others become huge stars (Maeda Atsuko, Hamasaki Ayumi).

This would basically never work in western society. Watching a bunch of (sometimes) <14 year olds dancing on stage in skirts is automatically classified as pedophilia...combined with the perceptions that males are the most pronounced fans of such idols and groups, making it easy to assume this is a sexual infatuation (though for AKB48 in particular, a majority of their fans are actually women).

IMO, a western idol is basically someone, guy or girl, whose talent was very obvious at a young age. They audition, or get noticed by some executives at a record company, $$$ in their eyes, and are offered binding record contracts (slave contracts in the case of a certain country). They then get trained (and sometimes physically modified, in the case of a certain country) and become a perfectly manufactured product before debuting, probably atop the charts (due to record label hyping in a certain country). They become true idols in the sense that they are upheld on a pedestal, gods/goddesses to the tweens.

A Japanese idol, again IMO, is someone who has no real outstanding talent. Some may have nice singing voices, maybe some experience in dance, but nothing on the level of say Beyonce. Then they are auditioned and selected by record companies, or for these large groups (the 48's, Morning Musume, ect) based on how much potential for growth executives see in them. It's kind of a gamble because they truly are ordinary, talentless girls most of the time. Like their western "counterparts" they undergo training but are by no means a perfected product. Even now, 8 years after the fact, AKB48 is still a work in progress....and not a single talented artist coming out of it. Japanese idols are not instant hits a lot of time; AKB48 spent about 4-5 years flopping before ever having a #1 hit. Fans basically follow them for the "growth and development" aspect. It's almost like a personal investment in these girls, giving them support and being rewarded by watching them succeed. And yes, there are a few fans who take this to an extreme (think thousands of crates of AKB48 CDs rotting in 2nd hand record shops)...which brings me to another crucial aspect of this culture. Idols you can meet. This concept manifests itself in the very controversial, handshake practice, the theater shows, online blogs, ect. These come together to create the illusion that Japanese idols are just ordinary girls who are thankful for their fans' support and who fans can connect with on a personal level, in contrast to western idols who are like untouchable gods (until they evolve into that status. Think Hamasaki Ayumi). It's all a very good illusion, but may not always be the reality of the case.

An artist is more like someone who has more control over their own image and music. Lady Gaga, Utada Hikaru, ayaka, Amuro Namie, Koda Kumi. This is just my personal opinion though, as I know the charts don't really discriminate.

[thinkingoutloud89]

Most of what you wrote is what I already thought and what I jsut read moments ago and I think on most pats you are right (yet, It answers my question to easy so I have to find anothe raspect to write about -.-)

yet the texts I have on the topic claim hamasaki, koda and the likes as "idols" too. we saw kumi has no control when the scandal happend...yet I would differ both from every girl of akb.

I like what you wrote and maybe I just can write it into, but it does not seem to extend to 80 pages which kinda worries me. there must be something to write about in the world of akb/idols and mass culture.

[owlflight]

I don't have any advice but I would love to read the completed thesis. I find this topic to be very interesting.