HINABINGO: MC Koyabu Kazutoyo and Hinatazaka46 are ready to put themselves on the line

The host of HINABINGO, which starts Monday night at 1:29am, will be top Osaka comedian Koyabu Kazutoyo, famous for his harsh insult humour, but also chairman of the troupe that has a theatre in Osaka and puts on the long-running weekly TV show Yoshimoto New Comedy. He is an important figure in the entertainment world, particularly in Osaka. Here is a translation of a preview article on Abema Times:

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Hinatazaka46: Will Koyabu's hard training make a new kind of appeal blossom? Sasaki Kumi: "I've never seen this Kakizaki before."

2019.04.11   14:00


Hinatazaka46's "Giving Their All! Hinatazaka46 Variety HINABINGO!" will start 16 April on the NTV network. The first episode was recorded recently in the Capital.

HINABINGO is a new program in which Hinatazaka46, who changed their name from Hiragana Keyakizaka46 and released their debut single Kyun on 27 March, will hurl themselves at the challenge of variety training. The MC will be Koyabu Kazutoyo 小籔千豊, chairman of Yoshimoto New Comedy.

Hinatazaka46 only learned at the recording session that the MC would be Koyabu. When Koyabu appeared in the studio, Higashimura Mei, who is from Nara Prefecture, burst into tears. She said joyfully that to see the chairman of New Comedy appear "made me very, very happy. I love him."

The first episode followed the theme of finding out if the members of Hinatazaka were straightforward people or not. Kakizaki Memi was the first to take up the challenge, and she had the studio in an uproar. Captain Sasaki Kumi commented: "This is the first time I've ever seen this Kakizaki."

After the recording, the members of Hinatazaka46 gathered around Koyabu for a discussion. Sasaki Mirei said, with determination: "It's the first time we've worked with someone who makes such outspoken comments. I think that receiving such harsh comments will be good training. We'll do our best."

Watanabe Miho blogs about Kakizaki Memi

Watanabe, whom the Snow Princess's magic turned into a cat

2019.04.10  01:19
Watanabe Miho


Hello everyone ( ･ᴗ･ )
It's Watanabe Miho of Hinatazaka46

April 6 was the day Keyakizaka46 debuted.
Congratulations on their third anniversary.

It's nostalgic to remember buying all the types of Silent Majority...
The seniors whom I have always loved and admired,
And the promising 2nd generation members....

For me who three years ago was in a different world, as a fan,
It makes me so happy to have been able to see the constantly changing Keyakizaka46 up close.
I think that from now on, they will continue to show us many new scenes...
And at the same time, they will stimulate us to do better.
Once again, congratulations on your third year!
Let's continue to get along well from now on.

Kakizaki Memi notes: Mechakari ads, Road Relay Exhaustion

There's a great series of surreal "mannequin" Mechakari web ads out now, with multiple appearances by all Hinatazaka members -- particularly Memi. The basic idea is mannequins in a store window with time on their hands because everyone is renting clothes from Mechakari rather than buying them at a store.

First, here is one of the main ads, this one featuring Memi, Takase Mana, Sasaki Mirei and 2gen Kamimura Hinano.



Memi: We've got a lot of time on our hands. Mana: What are those art objects about? Memi: You can have a free one-month trial with Mechakari. Mana: That's the zero, eh. Mirei: What? Y5800 turns into zero? Hinano: So you get three garments [at a time] for zero? Memi: "That's right" (in English). Mirei: So that's why this store has zero customers? All: "That's right."

Kakizaki Memi doing more gravure

There has been very little gravure of Memi up to now. That seems to be changing, however, now that Hinatazaka has entered the big leagues with their first single. And now that Memi is within 7 months of being 18.

Bis magazine:

As Xiphyas says on Stage48, she looks like a baroque painting...one by François Boucher, it seems to me....

Nagahama Neru blog: Long post about her history with Hiragana/Hinata...and Keyaki.

Hinatazaka,  338

Nagahama Neru
2019.03.26


Good evening!

Today was sunny in Tokyo!
Spring weather!
It was so nice and warm that my feelings even became calmer.


A few days ago,

I happened to come across a place that made me think:
"Hey, haven't I been here before?"

Even in Tokyo,
I've noticed that there are places that give me a nostalgic feeling.
I get a feeling that's somehow a happy sadness.

Life in Tokyo....



Tomorrow,
Hinatazaka46's debut single
Kyun comes out.


For a little while now -- no, for a really long while
I have thought of writing about this.
So when you have the time to read it....



In 2015, as a member of Hiragana Keyaki,
I became an idol.

Hinatazaka46 Triumphant!! Huge CD sales, great concert

Wednesday, March 27 was a great day in the history of Hinatazaka46. Their first single, released that day, had first-day sales of 359,528. That was the best-selling first day for a debuting female group ever.

In addition to that, they turned the Zip Spring Festival's second day into a Hinatazaka festival, with an audience that rocked and with a feeling of unity between fans and members and among the fans. Including fans of other performers.

It was the fulfillment of their dreams. I'm sure they are still feeling shell-shocked by the wonder of it all. It would be surprising if they weren't all grinning ear to ear today. Here's Thursday morning's Zip report:




Comments afterwards were immensely positive. Shizuku of the band Polkadot Stingray said she fell in love with them. She was done in by Memi's burikko line: "I want you to fall in love with me, meow." She described the members, particularly Memi, as "amazingly beautiful".

Kakizaki Memi x Saitou Kyouko SHOWROOM 5 Feb 2019 (English subbed)

I watched this broadcast live and found it so entertaining that I have made a subbed version so others can enjoy it. This is the smart, funny, natural Memi I am a fan of. And Kyouko is great in conversation. Over the hour it was on, the show worked its way up to over 50,000 viewers, delighting both Kyouko and Memi.

Be sure to watch Memi's face: it is often in motion, communicating even when she is not speaking.

I've been a fan of Memi and Kyouko right from the time of their auditions three years ago,. Here are notes about various things they mention:

01:54  “Cute lately” – Kyouko emphasizes that Memi has been “cute lately.” Perhaps she’s thinking of how upset she was around a year ago when Memi invaded her Showroom, romped around and tickled her – after Kyouko had told everyone not to come, that she wanted all the time with her fans. Then, Memi was being “not-cute” (i.e., not behaving nicely).

05:10 Hinanonano – They talk about Kamimura Hinano’s hand gesture for her name, and Memi shows how complex it really is. It’s so cute when their voices bounce back and forth in shrill surprise: Kyouko at the complexity, Memi that Kyouko didn't know.

07:10 how to grow taller – Kyouko explains what she did to try to get to 150cm (she's now 153cm - 5'-1/4"). Memi finds it all hilarious. Perhaps partly because she would like to be taller than her 157cm (5'-2").