Sakuragi Nene will Attend her Final Class with Houkago Princess

(Image from Houkago Princess Official Website)

On February 1st 2015, it was announced that Sakuragi Nene, a 3rd generation member of Houkago Princess, would graduate from the group on February 11th. This is due to Nene's difficulties with keeping up with the activities required of her as a Regular member, and also because she declined the position of a Cadet member. Because of this, the decision was made that she would make her departure from the group.

Below are the translations from the Staff and Nene, regarding her leave of the group. I give many thanks to Elsa for translating this post for me! <3

.｡.:*☆*:.｡.☆.｡.:*☆*:.｡.

"With regards to the Sweet-tooth chairman, Sakuragi Nene.

On 1st February, 2015, it has been decided that Sakuragi Nene will be demoted to being a sub member. 

The reason is because she has not met the criteria of being an official member. We have given her three warning however she has not improved on her behaviors, therefore we we have decided to demote her.

In addition, on 11th of February at the live in Shibuya RUIDO K2, she will refuse the demotion and will be fired.
The main reasons are due to the difference of our approach to the activities and the professionalism. 

She will attend the live event on 11th of February. (She will not be attending on the 4th of February due to her academic reasons)

Thank you."

✽.｡.:*・ﾟ ✽.｡.:*・ﾟ ✽.｡.:*・ﾟ ✽.｡.:*・ﾟ ✽.｡.:*・ﾟ 

"Although I will be graduating in such an undelightful form, I appreciate your support from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for the love in the past 2 and a half years. There isn't much time left, however I will do my very best for the stage I love, all the fans and for the feelings I have towards myself as an idol.

2015.2.1 Sakuragi Nene"

(Source: http://ameblo.jp/nenenenenetasu/entry-11984107478.html)

Once again, many thanks to Elsa for the translation! I wouldn't be able to do this post without it, so I am very grateful! <3

.｡.:*☆*:.｡.☆.｡.:*☆*:.｡.

(Image from Cute Black)

Regarding the Graduation Announcement of Sakuragi Nene, I can safely say that I am not surprised, but rather taken aback by it too, namely in the manner the Graduation. Really, I can't say this was unexpected; it did feel like, as of late, Nene was not taking her role as a Regular member of HouPri seriously.

For two and a half years, Nene has been a part of Houkago Princess as a 3rd generation member. In 2013 though, she halted her activities to focus on University, and since returning to said activities around the early 2014 mark, she has since been in-and-out of the group, barely being able to juggle both school and being an Idol. A lot of the time, when I saw updates on the group, Nene was very rarely a part of the live performances or even the MV shootings - now, her inactivity has taken its toll. Whilst I really am sad about her Graduation, I can't say that I blame management for taking action here - Nene simply was not taking her career as an Idol as seriously as she should have, and she was not being a professional.

I understand that school is important, and it was good of the management to let Nene have days off for her studies (in the past, Shiraishi Rika (Graduated) and Michishige Saho (Cadet) have also taken time off for their studies), however it does feel like recently, she has not been as active as she could have been. So, I understand why they decided to demote her. In the end though, she and management have decided that she will instead leave the group, because she did not want to become a Cadet.

In more ways than one though, I do wish that she would have decided to Graduate by herself at one point when she realised it was difficult to do both things at once. I think then, she would have left in a more positive light, because reading the blog post, I just feel sad that she has to leave this way.

Well, at least she will be able to have a final performance a Graduation of sorts; she has done better than some of the girls.

I feel like I am being mean to Nene regarding her leave of HouPri, but honestly, I am really sad about this; I liked Nene, she was a very promising member to the group and, for a while, quite an important addition, having been given a center spot (more or less) after being a part of the group for only a month. She was 3ki's leading lady, and she was rather well-liked, so it is indeed sad for her to go out this way, as a member who did not take her activities seriously.

I will really miss Nene when she is gone, but until that happens, I will treasure her in Houkago Princess as they are now. Right now, they are a group of nine, but once Nene has departed from the group, they will become eight.

(Image from Sakuragi Nene's Twitter)

For her final concert, I really do hope that she delivers her best stage yet. Please, Nene, enjoy your final days in Houkago Princess. From now until the 11th of February, the fans will surely cherish you.

(Images from animate.tv and the Houkago Princess Official Website)

From 2012 until now, thank you for being with us. Please Graduate with a smile and a beautiful song.

Much Love,
Chiima

Hayamizu Rin no Sotsugyo ~Now Pursuing Acting!~

I was going to have to do this eventually, so why not now?

I hate these kinds of posts... >____>

On May 22nd, Houkago Princesses 4th generation member Hayamizu Rin announced that she would be graduating from the group. On the same day, it came to light from the staff that Sakurai Riho, whom had previously been on a (very) long suspension for breaching her contract, would officially be dismissed from the group as well. Through her blog, Rin announced her graduation in a 'report' where she gave her gratitude to the fans as well as gave her reasons to as why she will be graduating.

Hayamizu Rin's decision to graduate was through conflicted feelings of wishing to do other things aside from her Idol activities. Below is a very very rough translation of the report from yours truly. Bear in mind that I use google translate because I have no skill in reading languages, and those who usually help me (Steve and Momo) are not online right now. Thank you.

I, Hayamizu Rin, have decided to graduate from Houkago Princess.

Since joining the 4th generation class, about a year and 4 months has passed.

If I had lived a normal life a year and four months ago, life would have gone quickly and I might have forgotten the events in a few years.

But I've been allowed to work in Houkago Princess, get support from the fans. It was a really happy time.

I love to sing and dance.
To be on stage.
It's so much fun!

With the encouragement from the fans and their warmth. I sincerely felt it.

You do not forget that sort of life.

To everyone who is a Houkago Princess fan, I want to convey a feeling of gratitude to each person.
I can not write in full the feelings I wish to convey.

This time now, I have decided to graduate.
It is not only my idol activities in singing and dancing as a Houkago Princess,
but I thought that I wanted to work hard for more of my dreams.

While fighting with those various feelings,
the result was that I would graduate.

I, Hayamizu Rin of Houkago Princess, have made the decision to graduate without being able to properly greeting everyone. I am sorry.

(this part I couldn't translate at all or make heads or tails of what it said, so I'm leaving it out)

In addition, I look forward to seeing you all again with a smile.

Houkago Princess

I love you.

Thank you all!

Hayamizu Rin

Furthermore, on May 25th Hayamizu Rin revealed that she will be performing in a stage play, Flying Pirates ~Neverland Hyoryuki~ which will star the model Obana Kie, who is also a part of the group Model Girls. The play will take place in the summer this year at Theatre Green: BIG TREE THEATRE and there will 9 performances in total running from July until August. The idol group PASTEL CALLA will also participate in the stage play.

The stage play will be based on the story of Peter Pan.

Because Rin will be continuing her activities in acting, her blog and Twitter are still active and open right now.
...

I think Hayamizu Rin's graduation was, without a doubt, going to happen eventually. With most members of HouPri, their blog or Twitter posts tend to decline and eventually stop when they are ready to announce their dismissal or graduation, though Rin was very much a Twitter bird despite the stall in her posts on her Ameblo blog. Still, I knew this was coming... I'm saddened, but I'm not surprised. It was expected, no matter what.

However, I was highly surprised by the sudden announcement that she was in a stage play already despite it being so soon after her graduation announcement (I don't think she had a ceremony, as her Twitter claims she has already left the group by stating she graduated in May). But, I was very happy to see that she was already getting a job and basically doing what she wanted; though it was never directly stated that she was going to pursue stage acting in her blog post, I was rather aware that was something she seemed to enjoy; she liked doing the Hana yo... Cho yo... stage play alongside Sakuragi Nene, so I figured she would either go for more stage plays in HouPri, or eventually follow that path if she decided it was what she wanted to do. Clearly, it's what she wants to do, as she has graduated Houkago Princess in order to focus on following other dreams, and I can't fault her for that really.

I'm sad by Rin's decision to leave Houkago Princess because I did like her, even if she wasn't my absolute favourite in the group. She was beautiful to look at and had a certain charm about her, especially when she smiled. She's very eye-catching, in my opinion. That said, I'm glad she's decided to go down the acting route; it seems to suit her, and I think she'd probably be happier doing that than being an Idol, because whilst acting is demanding, she can continue to sing and dance whilst also meeting different people and gaining more experience in that field. Hopefully this won't be her only acting gig after her departure from HouPri, because I do like it when Idols find something new to pursue and grow in, so here's to hoping that Rin continues working on the stage happily and creating new opportunities for herself.

Regarding Riho's dismissal announcement, I'm more annoyed by the staff for keeping it quiet for so long what was happening with Riho. I knew that eventually they would 'withdraw' or dismiss her from the group, because they had suspended her for having a boyfriend and a secret Twitter account, however I really did not like that they decided to lump her dismissal with Rin's graduation announcement. It seems convenient for them, indeed, however it's rather unfair to Rin and Riho in my eyes; Riho, to me, had been gone from the group since February (it was obvious she would never return) and Rin had only just graduated, so I feel like they should have simply let Rin have her graduation notice rather than simply write that they were both withdrawing from the group.

In the end though, this is how some groups work, even if it isn't fair or nice. I will dearly miss both girls, but I wish them luck in their future endeavours in whatever they do, whether it's continuing to pursue the music career or going on towards acting and stage plays. Whatever it is, I'm sure these girls will find or create their own success.

Once again the revolving door has turned for HouPri, and now 20 members (that we know of) have officially graduated from the group, leaving only 9 members. Who will come next, and who will leave? No one ever knows with this group...

It's sad that so many have graduated... -sigh-

Chiima

Sakurai Riho has been Kicked out of Class, Sakuragi Nene returns, and Shiraishi Rika auditions to become a Doll!

My time away from Idols and blogging means that I have missed out on a bit of news these past couple of weeks, so I'm going to get to some of the bigger topics of news (to me) in the Idol Universe and talk about them a bit, updating you on whatever may have happened that we do not know about, because goodness gracious me, Idols do like to pop out lots of news, right?

First up; Houkago Princess!!!

Sakurai Riho of Houkago Princess has officially been Dismissed from the group as of February/March this year, following her appearance in Young Jump's Idol Survival issue, where different Idols from various up-coming groups were featured. It was revealed that a personal Twitter account under the name Hiruma Riho (alleged to be her real name) had been found, and that through this account it was revealed via the profile picture that she has a boyfriend. Her withdrawal/dismissal from the group from the group had been announced on January 27th apparently.

Now, regarding this news, I'm firstly going to say that I am really not surprised that Riho has left the group; her last blog post had been in January on the 25th, and I wondered for a while if she had simply decided to leave Houkago Princess. Thing is, there was the issue that there was no notice of her withdrawal at all, and so I just thought she was studying a bit... well, that was until I saw that both her Twitter and Ameblo had been deleted. Then I started digging.

I eventually came across a 2ch thread (always reliable for this sort of information, though I get scared reading their comments...) which confirmed my fears from about two months ago, stating that she had left the group. However, I was surprised to learn that she had been dismissed from the group because of a boyfriend; at first I thought it was because she wasn't doing anything in HouPri, given how quiet this whole affair seemed to be, but nope. She was dating. I'm still a bit surprised, though I'm getting used to the idea that that is why Riho is now no longer a part of HouPri. Still...

After a bit more research, I found one more bit of information about Riho's 'scandal' in the form of a Twitter account which gives the reader enough information to let us know why she was suspended, and a rough estimate of when she was going to halt her performances. The account also gives us a picture of Riho with her supposed boyfriend, basically confirming that she breeched her contract.

Now I am surprised, but I'm also at the point where I've just come to terms with the fact that HouPri loses girls as quickly as the 48's do and in that respect. I'm sad, don't get me wrong, because I quite liked Riho and enjoyed the fact that she was getting exposure as a gravure model, however I have just grown accustomed to how many members HouPri seems to lose in such a short amount of time and I think it was just a matter of time before I found out that Riho had graduated anyway, because I already picked up on the fact that she wasn't updating her blog any more and so I was essentially preparing myself for when I did find out that she was gone... either way, she's been Dismissed, and I can't do anything about it.

I can whine and bitch about how it's unfair and how the no-boyfriend rule is bad, but I've said it before, and I will most likely say something about it again in a post for that specific topic, so I don't think I need to say it again. Either way, this sucks and yet another good member from HouPri is gone... but that's how HouPri works.

They are one gigantic revolving door, and really, you never know just who is going to step inside the building, and who is going to leave next.

As of March 24th, Sakuragi Nene has resumed her activities within Houkago Princess! It has been half a month since the Idol postponed her performance with the group to focus on her studies, and now that she is successfully graduating High school and awaiting confirmation for University, Nene is back! Right now, she is working alongside fellow HouPri member Hayamizu Rin on the stage play Hana yo... Cho yo... and is working hard in rehearsals!

... It's been over half a year since Nene went on her Hiatus, which is kind of crazy! I've actually missed her greatly, because Nene was a great addition to the group and is one of, if not the, strongest singer within Houkago Princess, so yeah, I missed her quite a bit, and I'm pretty sure that her fans did too!

Knowing that she has returned from hiatus after successfully graduating (or close to graduating) school is wonderful, because her hard work this past half a year has really paid off, and now she can focus on having a bit of fun with her fellow Houkago Princess members whilst also anticipating University!

From what her blog entry says, it seems that from her graduation until she begins University, she will basically be unemployed, and that when she returned to the stage for Yamaguchi Miran's birthday live, she felt the exhilaration of being back on stage again. She will also be practising daily from 1pm until 7pm for the stage play, so there is plenty of hard work ahead for Nene! Still, it's great to see that she has returned to HouPri after a successful exam period, and that she will be working 100% as always for the group and the stage play! Wahey!!!

In news outside of the Houkago Princess Universe (by barely a thread, of course) it has been uncovered that Shiraishi Rika has auditioned for the company Arc Jewel as a potential candidate for the agency's 3rd, new Doll-themed group! The agency is known for their Doll-like groups Doll☆Elements and Lovely★Doll.

For the audition process, the finalists for the new group will be voted on by the fans, with the final round of votes to be sent on March 29th.

Shiraishi Rika graduated from Houkago Princess in November 2013, citing her reason for leaving was to study for up-coming exams after she had taken a brief hiatus in order to focus on school work.

... I had a feeling you would return! Then again, I have a feeling that most HouPri members will return at some point, ready to debut somewhere else! I mean seriously, just how many of the former HouPri members have actually re-debuted somewhere else...?

Anyway, I'm happy to see Rika back on the scene, and it's understandable that she would come along about this time, because she would have graduated or be preparing for her graduation from school by now, so it seems logical that around the same time, she would decide to return to the Idol scene... Yaaaay!!!

Shiraishi Rika Twitter
Arc Jewel Audition Site

...

And that is all I have for Houkago Princess updates! Yeah, I know, not much in terms of updates, but I find them all rather exciting regardless! Well, except for the graduation... er, Dismissal... those are never exciting! >____<

Still, it's News, and this is some of the more exciting stuff to come out of HouPri as of late because we don't have new members announced yet BOO!!!!

So that is all for now, until next time! What do you think of the HouPri News you have been delivered today?

Chiima~

Yamakawa Risa has been Expelled, Chiima Thinks and Feels

On January 10th, it was reported that Houkago Princesses 4th Generation member Yamakawa Risa, the Chairman of Classical Ballet, has been dismissed from Houkago Princess and the company Princess Music as of January 8th, 2014.

The reason for Yamakawa's dismissal is due to a breach of contract, as she met with a fan the day after she had asked to suspend her performances until January in order to get treatment for her foot.

Here is the full announcement translated in English, with thanks to Steve of Selective Hearing. You can find the original report here.

Report on Yamakawa RisaJanuary 10, 2014 

4th Generation member Yamakawa Risa was taking leave from performance activity for treatment of her foot near the end of last year, but because of a rule violation, as of January 8th, she was dismissed from Houkago Princess and our company. 

To all of our supporting fans, we regret to inform you in this manner. 

A few days ago, there was an action performed that was deemed inappropriate, where Yamakawa interacted with a fan outside of work. 

Because of the treatment for her foot, she was scheduled to miss live appearances including the One Man Live on January 12 and individual handshake meeting on January 13 so she could rest, since, at the time, she could not even walk properly. She put in the request to leave for this period of time and it was accepted on grounds that she return to work with peace-of-mind, but Yamakawa was found meeting with a fan the next day. 

At first, for fact checking purposes, we tried to speak with the fan directly, but after finding out about this, we received a mail from Yamakawa stating her intention to resign from the group, saying she wanted to resign for a different reason, and soon after, we gave up trying to contact the fan after he fully stopped communicating with us.

Since the fan broke communication with us, we couldn’t confirm anything with him, and given the information we had, we had no choice but to take action against Yamakawa for breaking the rules as a member of Houkago Princess and causing a breach of contract with us as a company. Breach of contract was based on non-delivery of her duties as a member and any further communication with Yamakawa was handled directly by our lawyers. 

We strictly prohibit message exchange and communication between members of Houkago Princess and fans, whether it is through blogs, Twitter, or through letters sent to us directly. Even if you send letters, we cannot give you a direct response from the members. 

We also cannot share any of your personal information with the members, even if you send it in letters to us, whether it is your address, phone number, e-mail address, LINE ID, etc. Please note that if you include any of this information in your letters to the group members, we will not deliver it to them. 

If we find that this rule is broken again, not only will the member in question be banned from all activity with Houkago Princess and dismissed from the company by our lawyers, but we will consider taking legal action against the fan in question as well, and on top of being banned from attending any other Houkago Princess events in the future. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding. 

We truly apologize whole-heartedly to everyone who has supported the group and Yamakawa for the last year, and we hope you can still continue to support the other Houkago Princess members in the future, and we’ll do our best to continue our activities. 

Also, if you have a cheki ticket for Yamakawa Risa, please come to the corner of the area where the event is being held and let us know that you have one and we can exchange it for another member.

 ...

And so another HouPri member bites the dust... great.

I am really shocked by this announcement, because I liked Risarina a lot. She wasn't my favourite member, but she was a member that I liked to hear about and see, so to find out that this has happened... it was shocking.

However I was even more shocked by the entire report once Steve had kindly translated it for me when I asked him if he would. Even Steve was shocked I think, because as he said, this is pretty harsh, and as you can see from what has been written, Management are taking things to a whole new level in Houkago Princess, and it really upsets me.

I already knew that management were monitoring the girls' Twitter, e-mails, letters and blogs in case another 'Hitomi' incident happened, where one of the more known or popular members was found to be meeting up with fans and exchanging messages, but to bring the law into it is kind of intense and really really harsh. It's shocking, and as I said, it really upsets me and makes me feel uncomfortable as well.

I understand that this is what being a Japanese Idol is about; being unattainable and basically being there as an object of desire for fans, someone to like and look up to, or someone to fawn over. I understand that this is how the Idol industry works, but that does not mean I feel at ease with it. In fact, I feel less at ease with it now than I did before, because as Steve put it, this is Management basically claiming the members of HouPri as their property and if anyone dares to touch them in any way, they are no longer worth it. Reading this and realizing that has hit me seriously hard to be honest, and I just don't even know what to think...

Yes, I do think that Risarina shouldn't breach contract, and I find it good in a way that even the fan is being punished for this (HouPri Management never lets a fan who has basically helped to breach an Idols contract come back to the venue ever again) but I find this whole thing utterly stupid and upsetting, and I feel so bad for those girls, because they can't have a normal teenage or young adult life because they are 'owned' by a company who sell them on as products. I know that some of the girls enjoy this and want to be an Idol, but for those who feel the need to break out, being punished for basically being a teenager is not nice.

Sadly I know that we as fans can do nothing about it, because this is basically like Animal Cruelty; we know it goes on but, no matter how much we whinge, whine, cry and petition for change, it won't happen because we are in too deep with it already. Even if we do see a little change over time, like Noda Hitomi coming back and hjoining READY TO KISS or Sashihara Rino rising to the Top after adulterous pictures of her were given to a magazine or newspaper company, there is still no major change in the Idol industry that allows these girls to be girls. They are basically still products to the industry, and whilst I try to turn a blind eye to it sometimes, seeing something like this happen and then talking over it with Steve makes me realise just how upsetting this entire thing is for me as a fan, and how hard it is to think that this is what happens, and that there is no way of stopping it.

I love my Idols and I love Houkago Princess, I love them with all my heart, but I'm having a difficult time with this one, because this Report has shed a lot of light on a topic we all struggle to deal with as fans, and I honestly just don't know what to think right now.

Chiima

Class has been Dismissed for Noda Hitomi of Houkago Princess

All thoughts and opinions are my own. Also, translations may be horrible. I suck, I'm sorry.

I decided to look on Houkago Princess' website today to see if there were any updates, like new members or whatever, but found nothing... I then went to Ameba, because I made a blog to follow some Idols there, and when I looked at an update, I saw the title and noticed the shortness of it, and then clicked...

We know where this is going, don't we?

On September 10th, the Staff of Houkago Princess and Noda Hitomi, a first generation member who helped to kick-start the group, left a notice of Noda Hitomi's sudden dismissal from the group. It was, with deep regret, found that Noda Hitomi had been keeping contact with a fan of the group, even though relationships between fans and Idols are not permitted.

Here are both the Staff message and Hitomi's message:

Staff Message:

For the companionship with a fan that has been discovered, the Lunch Chairman Noda Hitomi will be dismissed as of today. The fan she has been communicating will be banned from future Houkago Princess performances.

Noda, who initially began working when the group Houkago Princess as one of the first students, participated in activities with the fan in such a way that is truly a pity, and also heartbreaking.

In the future, we will strengthen checks, such as monitoring conversations during the two shots with fans, checking fan mail, gifts, and also watching over handshake meetings.

To the fans, thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Noda Hitomi Message:

I have sinned.

To all of you, I have an important announcement to make.

As of today, my dismissal from Houkago Princess has been decided.

The reason is that my association with a fan has been discovered.

I have done something that is not allowed of an Idol.

Everyone who has been cheering for me up until now,
I am truly sorry.

I continued in Houkago Princess these last two years, and there were many meetings with a lot of people!

It was filled with gratitude to all of you each and every time.

I will not be in front of you any more
but I will never forget your encouragement for me.

Thank you very much.

Hitomi Noda

...

... I don't know what to think, to be honest. I'm shocked, that's for sure, because this is a scandal that Hitomin is going out on. In fact, this is the first scandal from Houkago Princess since the group debuted back in August 2011. Now, whilst I never expected a scandal from this group, I didn't think that Hitomin of all Idols would be the one to go out like this.

Surprisingly, though... I'm not sad. Or at least, I'm not sad yet. I haven't cried, but I also don't know how to feel. Right now I am in-between feeling sad, angry and surprised... either way, I am at a bit of a loss right now, because Hitomin was my favourite member of HouPri... but I really don't think that this news has sunk in yet...

So I kind of dread to think what I will feel like when it does eventually set in. I have a feeling I will be more angry than sad, because I guess I am somewhat disappointed in Hitomin. The thing is, I can't be mad at the Dating rule this time; it seems that Hitomi associated with the fan, but there is no hint of dating at all in the statements made, but because she associated with a fan, she has been dismissed from Houkago Princess as of September 10th, 2013.

Did she date the fan? I don't know, because it has not been clarified. All we know is that she swapped messages with the fan and possibly met up with them, and it breached her contract. I mean, I don't like the rules Idols have set for them as much as the next person, but right now... well, I really don't know what to think. I'm confused, and hurt.

I love Hitomin, I still do, and I am sad she had to go out this way... a Class Dismissal, it seems. How befitting for an After School Princess who has done wrong in the eyes of the fans and staff members.

Noda Hitomi Notice Post
Staff Notice Post

Chiima

PING!!! Recommended Jpop♀ Reading: September 2013, Part Two