At the first performance of Morning Musume 2009 Fall tour ~NINE SMILE~, sole 7th Generation Member of Morning Musume announced that at the final performance of the tour, she will be graduating from both Morning Musume and Hello! Project.
As a Morning Musume and Hello! Project fan, this is something I still haven’t really gotten used to. When I first got into Morning Musume’s new releases, Yossy had just graduated, so I didn’t have to get used to a brand new lineup, since everything was new. When Elder Club graduated, it didn’t really concern me either because the only elder club artist I regularly listened to was Aya Matsuura and let’s be honest, who cares about her new stuff (sorry maiZe ): )?
Then came Kanna, then Erika. Fortunately for me I don’t care about C-ute at all. I listen to their releases and when I have the opportunity I will get their newer music, but unlike the other H!P artists, I don’t go out of my way to watch their concerts or DVD magazines or PVs. The group just doesn’t interest me like Berryz or MoMusu.
And now Koharu’s graduating. This is the first graduation from an idol group that I think will really effect me. When Matsuyuki and Gussan graduated from AKB48, I was still learning the ropes and didn’t know what I was talking about. It was the stage when they were the first to catch my eyes and now I know better.
Since I first got into H!P, Koharu was one member that stuck with me. She was never my favourite. In fact, for a good year she was my least favo–no, I hated her. But one song compeltely changed my entire opinion of her.
That’s right, the Kirarin single that is usually considered the worst is what changed my absurd hatred for the girl to love–for her solo career at least. I steadily grew into listening to all of her solo music and then started to learn about her like any of my other favourite idols– for example, she’s the closest member of Morning Musume to my birthday, and the second closest in all of Hello! Project, second only to Sudou Maasa. That is an important thing to me, for some reason, and it’s part of the reason why I tolerate her below-average vocals during concerts and on singles.
Honestly, though, Morning Musume isn’t really losing much–just a personality. If you look at them as a serious group like they’re trying to be, she was the second weakest link. Her personality was still under-construction, thanks to Tsukishima Kirari stunting her development as an idol, and her vocals and dancing are sub-par.
It’s exciting that it’s my first real graduationg since I first started to get into Hello! Project, and I’m sure that there will be times that I’ll miss Koharu, but for right now I’m looking forward to December. This definitely does not mean that I’m giving up on Morning Musume, and no, Koharu is not suddenly my favourite. This is what Morning Musume is–or was, at least–known for. They need a fresh face or four, and hopefully this will be it.
