AKB48

AKB48 to sing in Paris at Japan Expo 2009

Tuesday 28th April, 04:00 AM JST

TOKYO —

Popular idol group AKB48 announced Monday that they will be performing at Japan Expo 2009, held in Paris from July 2-5. It will be their first overseas gig.

Meanwhile, the group teamed up with SKE48 at a concert at NHK Hall in Shibuya on Sunday to see off Mai Oshima, 21, a member of AKB48 since its inception in 2005. Oshima has “graduated” from the group and announced her ambition to devote herself to a solo career.

“I want to grow into someone people can look up to,” she said.

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Latest 15 of 25 Total Comments Show All

AlffromWapping at 11:35 AM JST - 28th April

Why do they want to torture Fench people with these wallies? Is that really going to make Japan look good an all that?
fatfrenchfool at 12:23 PM JST - 28th April

we do not want these shrieking twits.
Yelnats at 12:42 PM JST - 28th April

mon ami
tasha77 at 02:10 PM JST - 28th April

I wish they would burn down that stupid factory that they use to churn out these clones with the pitch of a tea kettle and the intelligence of a door mat. Someone is laughing all they way to the bank shaking their head at how stupid the japanese people are for falling all over themselves at these "non talented talents" and the people doing the laughing all the way to the bank are certainly not the singers.
onewrldoneppl at 02:27 PM JST - 28th April

AKB48 to PRANCE AROUND in Paris at Japan Expo 2009. i wouldn't call what they do professional singing.
kurisutofu at 02:39 PM JST - 28th April

What is worse is that people at the expo will enjoy! When I was still living in France, I've met a lot of so-called "japanophiles" ... they think in japan you only listen to j-pop, maid or lolitas are common and anime a religion ... Those people will go out of the "concert" and say "well, now THAT was real j-music!"
Otaru at 02:56 PM JST - 28th April

kurisutofu - So enjoying yourself at an event is now a bad thing? I just don't get some of the comments here? Why so bitter? Maybe you all need to set up a display at JX2009 and educate all those weeaboos on what Japan is really all about. Jeez.
GW at 06:58 PM JST - 28th April

otaru

in case you havent noticed about all jpn promotes about itself the last few years is anime, manga & insipid j-pop, THAT is or rather SHUD be embarassing for Jpn, hell I am embarassed the govt etc promotes the hell out of these 3.

If it was once in a while I wudnt care, but these days it seems that thats it anime, manga, j-pop, THAT is embarassing, just saying!
GW at 06:59 PM JST - 28th April

sorry forgot the robots ha ha
WillB at 08:33 PM JST - 28th April

Well Japan Expo is in fact a huge manga/anime and jpop expo. The problem is that this expo is how most french see Japan... like many others I think this is really embarassing, Japan is lot (lot) more than that.

I'm living in Paris and I can tell you that there are real Otaku here too... the kind of guys who won't go anywhere else than Akiba and a little Kyoto, if they ever travel. If it continues this way we will someday have a Paris' Akiba too, thanks to this "expo"...
yawmin at 01:36 AM JST - 30th April

im in~
kurisutofu at 11:10 AM JST - 30th April

Otaru, WillB explained it perfectly. I7m not against the japan expo itself but the way most of the people going there sees Japan. I was even said "Oh! You live in the country of "one piece" (name of a manga)! So lucky!" This kind of things were funny the first times but it happened too many times ...
airrunwesker at 04:29 AM JST - 1st May

I suppose every other talanted group was already doing better things. This band reminds me of Hello Project... and AKB48 is due for a (graduation of most memebers).
harkins at 09:11 PM JST - 1st May

I don't know about France but in the UK people seem to have little or no real 'images' of Japan. I say send AKB48 here to too - it might distract people from Kamikaze pilots.

If I was in Paris I'd go see them and I'm not an anime, manga or J-pop fan. It just seems like harmless fun to me. Must admit, I wouldn't buy a CD though!
seggahme at 08:16 PM JST - 3rd May

commenters above, just calm down. you're not the target audition. AKB48 girls go to France to sing not for you.