AKB48 Group (Japanese:AKB48グループ,Hepburn:AKB48 gurūpu), orAKB48 sister groups, shortened to48 Group or48g, refers to the sister groups of theJapanese idolgirl groupAKB48. Based on the same concept "idols you can meet", it currently consists of five sister groups in locations across Japan and seven (DEL, SGO, MUB excluded) sister groups in major Asian cities overseas from Indonesia to Thailand. The Japan-based sister groups not only release their own singles, but also perform on some of the AKB48 singles and events. They also send participants in the AKB48 annual events such as the AKB48 general election. The sister groups outside Japan release local-language versions of the AKB48 singles.[1][2] In their early development, they are often supported by temporary, concurrent members of AKB48, such asJurina Matsui andMiyuki Watanabe.[3]
AKB48's first sister group,SKE48, was formed in 2008 with its theater inSakae, Nagoya.[4][5]SDN48 ("Saturday Night"),NMB48[6] ("Namba") andHKT48[7] ("Hakata") were later formed.NGT48 was launched in 2015, and is located inNiigata.[8]STU48, the latest Japanese sister group, was announced during the AKB48 rock-paper-scissors tournament on October 10, 2016. It is based on the seven prefectures adjoining the coast of theSeto Inland Sea and they performed on a ship for a while.[9] Following theassault on NGT48 member Maho Yamaguchi, the management of AKB48 faced severe public criticism.[10] In response, it was announced to significantly change AKB48 management structures, with individual companies independently running each of the Japanese groups.[11]
In 2011 AKB48's first sister group outsideJapan,JKT48, was announced; the group is based inJakarta, Indonesia.[12] JKT48 was followed bySNH48 based inShanghai,China.[13] On June 6, 2016, AKB48 announced it had suspended its partnership with SNH48 due to the latter's contract violations.[14] Following the statement, SNH48 declared that it had been completely independent from AKB48 from the beginning and SNH48 management had never made any form of partnership with AKS.[15]
On October 12, 2016, AKS announced the "AKB48 China" project; two members were selected and participated inProduce 101 China. The first group of the project,AKB48 Team SH, was launched in early 2018 and audition began in April 2018.[16]
The creation of the TPE48 was announced on October 10, 2011, in AKB48's official blog.[17] At that time,AKS cooperated withYoshimoto Kogyo Taipei Branch and expected to start audition in 2012. However, the two sides failed to reach a consensus in the preparation work, and thus they were discontinued after the second half of 2012. Three new overseas sister groups were announced in March 2016:BNK48, based inBangkok,Thailand;MNL48, based inManila, thePhilippines andTPE48, based inTaipei,Taiwan.[18] On July 30, 2018, AKS canceled a joint venture and license agreement with TPE48's management and createdAKB48 Team TP.[19] The formation ofCGM48, named after and based inChiang Mai, Thailand, as a domestic sister group of BNK48 was announced in Chiang Mai on 2 June 2019.[20]
On December 27, 2017,Yui Yokoyama, the general manager of AKB48, announced the formation of MUM48, based inMumbai,India, through aShowroom live broadcast.[21] AKS cooperated with Rashmi Raj Media Pvt. ltd, and audition began in early 2018.[22] However, the group's official site was closed in July 2018.[23] On June 19, 2019,DEL48 and MUB48, based on India'sNew Delhi andMumbai respectively, were announced.[24] The group went on an indefinite suspension in November 2020 and later disbanded in July 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[25][26]
On June 21, 2018, AKS announced the formation of SGO48, based inHo Chi Minh City (Saigon),Vietnam.[27] On December 5, 2021, it was announced SGO48 will disband after their 3rd anniversary on December 22, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[28]
On January 1 2024, the formation of KLP48, based inKuala Lumpur,Malaysia, was announced in AKB48's official social media accounts and KLP48's official page. They are set to debut in August 2024.[29]
SNH48 Group is also known to be a big rival against AKB48 Group:[citation needed] After creating their own sister groups BEJ48, GNZ48, SHY48, CKG48, CGT48, IDOLS Ft and JNR48, the group got more recognition in China. Their single "Forest Theorem" was bought 200,000 times in just a few minutes.[citation needed]
On June 15, 2018, AKB48 groups participated in the Koreanreality competition showProduce 48, which acted as the third season for the Mnet seriesProduce 101. The show brought in 96 girls from South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan to compete for a spot in a 12-member girl group that would promote in both Korea and Japan for two and a half years.[31] Of those 96 contestants, 57 were from Korean talent agencies while 39 were from the AKB48 group.[32][33] On August 31, 2018, the show's final episode aired and the final contestants were chosen to debut in a new group namedIz*One. Among the 12 members chosen to debut wereAKB48'sHitomi Honda,HKT48'sNako Yabuki andSakura Miyawaki.[34]
Iz*One was an immediate success, with their debut showcase at theOlympic Hall selling out within minutes.[35][36] On October 29, 2018, the group's firstextended playCOLOR*IZ was released, and sold over 34,000 units (as reported by Hanteo Chart), setting a new record for the highest number of albums sold on the first day of a Korean-based girl group's debut release.[37][38][39] The music video for the lead single "La Vie en Rose" achieved more than 4.5 million views within 24 hours of its release onYouTube, making it the most-watched debut music video by a Korean act in 24 hours.[40][41] Since their debut, the group has earned multiple awards, includingBest New Artist at theMnet Asian Music Awards.[42]
On November 11, the group was scheduled to release their first studio album.[43] However, the release was postponed due to theMnet vote manipulation investigation,[44][45] which revealed that theProduce 48 producer Ahn Joon-young had selected the twelve members of Iz*One from the top 20 just before the airing of the finale.[46] As a result, Iz*One's showcases, promotions, and several guest appearances were cancelled or put on hold,[47][48][49][50][51] which included the release of their concert film,Eyes on Me: The Movie[52] and their Japanese promotions.[53][54] On January 6, 2020, the members' agencies andCJ ENM reached an agreement to resume the group's activities.[55][56] In April 2021, they officially disbanded and all 12 members returned back to their respective agencies.[57]
Iz*One, a South Korean-Japanese girl group formed from the television competition showProduce 48, of which its Japanese contestants were from the AKB48 groups
^"JKT48 website" (in Indonesian).Archived from the original on September 23, 2011. RetrievedDecember 28, 2012.
^SNH48 Project."SNH48 Website" (in Chinese). AKS.Archived from the original on June 11, 2018. RetrievedDecember 28, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^Kang, Jin-goo (December 5, 2019)."[단독] 아이즈원ㆍ엑스원 멤버 전원 시청자 투표 전 결정".Hankook Ilbo (in Korean).Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. RetrievedJanuary 24, 2020 – via Naver.
^Gong, Mi-na (November 7, 2019)."아이즈원, 11일 컴백 쇼케이스 결국 취소(공식)".Star News (in Korean).Archived from the original on November 8, 2019. RetrievedNovember 7, 2019 – via Naver.
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