Shinichi Iwahashi came to Osaka this time to meet with people from Yomiuri TV and Osaka Cable Broadcasting.
The end of the year is both a closing month and a summary month, so everything is chaotic. For the entertainment industry, TV stations have to prepare special programs, and record charts have to calculate this year's sales in order to award awards to this year's outstanding singers.
Of course, this year's topical and popular singers have gathered together, and the ratings of the live program are also highly anticipated.
Since October, the Red and White Song Festival has successively announced the singers participating this year, and the organizing committees of various major awards have also begun to make preparations.
This year is a year of explosive growth for bands. There are new bands that have only been out for a few years and have quickly become famous. There are also veteran bands that have been dormant and have once again attracted public attention due to this momentum. In addition, there are also veteran bands that have been popular since their debut.
band
For example, Southern Various Stars released their famous song "Fruits of Manatsu" this year.
On the one hand, there is the explosion of bands, and on the other hand, there is the further decline of idols. Among the idols who have done well this year, whether it is Hikari Genki, Kudo Shizuka, or the duo WINK... none of the idols who have done well debuted this year.
Among male idols, Johnny's new group SMAP launched this year, and their debut single only reached the second highest ranking. By the end of the list, it had sold 180,000 copies, which is exactly what Kitagawa Kaguya envisioned as the "Hikaru GEN" successor.
"People" are far apart.
It's not even comparable to the improvised Heike faction, and it's not even qualified to compare with the male Douhu group that had a bit of success when they debuted.
Since the successful launch of Toshihiko Tahara, Masahiko Kondo, and Boys, Johnny's has become the king in the field of male idols. At the same time, it is gradually difficult for non-Johnny's male idols to come forward in the industry.
This can be said to be the result of Johnny's growing power, and conversely, it can also be said that Johnny-like idols have influenced the audience's aesthetics. Star-chasers have begun to equate male idols with an image like Johnny's.
If other agencies want to launch male idols again, they must either be original or follow Johnny. However, the former needs to have the ability to change the audience's aesthetics again, and the latter needs to be more Johnny than Johnny... In this case, just go for it
Wouldn't it be nice to watch Johnny?
Kitagawa's debut strategy is that for any debut single, he must pursue a "blockbuster" and must win the first place on the weekly charts. Therefore, no matter how he arranges it later, the debut single will definitely help find well-known songwriters and prepare a good song.
and promoted it with great fanfare.
As a result, when SMAP debuted, their ambition of "winning the first single with their debut single" was shattered. And that's not all. After the debut single, the group released a second single that was just ranked first in its first week.
In fifth place.
As soon as this result came out, the media, which had previously been restrained during SMAP's debut, finally couldn't hold back anymore and began to voice negative opinions. Johnny had to use public relations to temporarily suppress this voice.
After all, the group has only been out for a full year, they have just released two singles, and their future has not yet been decided. If there are too many negative comments, it will affect the group's impression among the public.
Of course, public relations requires management. For the media, the relationship with big firms is like "cat and mouse."
Before this group debuted, Kitagawa Gao had high hopes, hoping that it could clear away the haze of the Taira clan's failure in their debut. However, not only did they not achieve what they expected, but they also had to whitewash them.
Kitagawa's next plan is not known to the outside world. Iwahashi Shinichi just pretends that he doesn't know SMAP's debut results, and will continue to slowly train those few trainees according to the agreement with him. As for when to arrange those teenagers
Terrestrial broadcast programs and when to start planning to debut are not among Shinichi Iwahashi's considerations.
For now, the relationship between him and Johnny is just to collect money and do things.
Among the male idols, no matter how bad SMAP is, they still have 180,000 singles. As for the female idols, it can be said that the whole army has been wiped out. In the whole year, not a single decent new artist has appeared.
Although the popular idols who debuted in the past few years still maintained their high popularity this year, however, a truly as eye-catching idol as in previous years has not appeared. As soon as this year's list statistics are completed, Kohaku
After the list of concerts was announced one after another, it became an irrefutable fact that "the era of idols is over".
From this point of view, SMAP's poor debut performance is also related to the fact that the times have passed.
However, even though the debut performance was not very good, Kitagawa was able to secure an appearance spot for SMAP at this year's Kohaku Utakara Gala, allowing the group to appear on the biggest music show of the year.
The Johnny family has a great cause and influence, and every year there is a quota reserved for it in the Red and White Song Festival.
To be precise, every year, the Kohaku Utakai will arrange for a number of enka singers, idols, and bands to appear. Different forces can get a number of places, and there are also a number of them.
GENZO has been in the limelight this year, and the three bands they have performed very well. However, the Red and White Song Festival production team only gave two places. Even two places are an exception for a small company.
On the other hand, if it is an enka singer's record company, it might be able to give five places at once.
The performance of the idol market this year is not very good, and the decline of the enka market is also visible to the naked eye. In the past few years, idols and enka singers competed for each other on the charts and competed for awards. A few years later, the two have almost happened at the same time.
Go downhill.
The only difference is that idols will be abandoned by NHK once they become outdated, but enka singers have always been guests of NHK.
Similarly, the form of popular rotation and idol may one day be revitalized, but enka singers who need to abide by the rules will only become more and more outdated.
Of the two appearances given to GENZO by NHK, Shinichi Iwahashi decided to leave one for ZARD first. For no other reason than to fulfill the small goal he set for himself backstage at the Kohaku Song Contest last year: to provide a place for those who followed Miwa-chan in the red group.
Brother Nakamura and I are looking for some companions.
A man is a true man and must practice what he preaches.
Backstage at this year's Red and White Song Festival, the musicians from ZARD will be able to form a group to play games.
Another spot to appear in the Red and White Song Festival was given to Bo LAN. As for THE BLU E HEARTS, on New Year's Eve, the band had made an early reservation to sing for four hours at the Hibiya Outdoor Hall to celebrate the New Year with the fans present.
There is no such thing as two peaches killing three people.
In itself, THE BLU E HEARTS is a punk band. It would be weird to ask them to have a proper family gathering on New Year's Eve. If Shinichi Iwahashi really gives them the spot, then NHK will 100% give orders not to allow the band on the stage.
Make trouble.
Although these members of the band do not object to appearing on TV and have participated in TV promotions since their debut, they obviously have no interest in going to the Red and White Song Festival.
The plan to spend New Year's Eve at the Hibiya Outdoor Public Hall was decided by the band members together. Shinichi Iwahashi left a lot of autonomy to the band. After the members discussed it, they went to report to Shinichi Iwahashi a few times in advance.
In the month of March, I took the lead in booking the venue for the performance.
Considering that it is a live performance, the singers can sing to the fullest and can do anything. Especially for a band with the style of THE BLU E HEAT. Therefore, for the New Year’s Eve concert, the number of staff hired is larger than usual.
Halfway through. For singers, if an accident occurs in the audience during a concert, it will be a heavy blow, so they must be well prepared.
In this year's Kohaku Utakara, Shinichi Iwahashi will be accompanying Miwa-chan and Nakamura-nii. Needless to say, Akina Nakamori will also appear.
This is also good, as we can celebrate the New Year together on New Year's Eve.
…
Shinichi Iwahashi arrived in Osaka in the afternoon, and went to socialize with the managers of Yomiuri TV and Osaka Cable Broadcasting in the evening. He had dinner first, then went to a club and drank wine.
Yomiuri TV's production strength is animation, and this is the "Yomiuri TV" that a certain Shinigami elementary school student visits every now and then. However, Shinichi Iwahashi's socializing with them was not to discuss the production of animations.
Yomiuri TV and Osaka Cable Broadcasting are the organizers of the Kansai All-Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards. As the name suggests, the Cable Broadcasting Awards count the on-demand rates of songs that are on-demand through the cable broadcasting system in the Kansai region throughout the year. There are no judges to judge.
Just look at the final statistics.
Kansai Kansai's "Japanese Cable Broadcasting Awards" and Kanto Kanto's "Japanese Cable Broadcasting Awards" are jointly organized by the National Cable Music Broadcasting Association (Japanese Cable Music Broadcasting Association) and TBS TV station.
The two cable awards were launched at about the same time. The reason why they were held separately was because Osaka Cable Broadcasting, Japan's largest cable broadcasting company, did not join the All Music Association. Therefore, when the All Music Association launched the cable awards, Osaka Cable Broadcasting did not participate.
Instead, they turned around and cooperated with Yomiuri TV to start a new "Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards".
There are two Cable Awards, the Kanto and Kansai Cable Awards. The Kanto Cable Awards selects songs that are aired on cable through the All Music Association, while the Kansai Grand Awards selects songs that are aired on cable through Osaka Cable Broadcasting.
In contrast to these two cable TV awards, the Kansai award is more stringent in terms of selection. After all, it is an award held later. Even if it is to compete with the Kanto award, it will do the best.
Be extra attentive.
When ZARD debuted, there was a national funeral. The plan prepared by Shinichi Iwahashi was to put the focus of publicity on Kansai. Thanks to the people of Kansai who did not take the locusts seriously, ZARD made it through the debut smoothly.
After this hurdle, the subsequent development was also very smooth.
Also because the debut promotion started in Kansai, the band has formed quite a bond with Kansai. ZARD is extremely popular in the Kansai region, and the lead singer Sachiko Kamaichi is much more well-known in Kansai than in Kanto. The band is very popular in Kansai.
The on-demand rate in the western region has also remained high all year round. The band's debut single "Always Forward" is even a karaoke repertoire of girls in Kansai.
And this year, ZARD has booked the grand prize at the Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards.
The Record Awards looks at overall influence, while the Golden Disk Awards looks at actual sales. The selection criterion for the Cable Awards is the number of on-demand plays. Those who perform well on the record sales list may not be popular on the on-demand charts. On the contrary,
The same goes for coming here.
During dinner in the evening, the person in charge of Osaka Cable Broadcasting also praised ZARD to Shinichi Iwahashi, "In Osaka's shopping streets, ZARD is the most popular."
Iwahashi Shinichi replied modestly, "Our ZARD is thanks to everyone in Kansai."
Although this is a bit flattering, it is indeed true. Similarly, the reason why Kansai people love ZARD so much is probably because they are a little proud that "this band started with the support of Kansai people."
To a certain extent, several members of ZARD are considered "honorary citizens of Osaka".
Half flattering and half sincere, Iwahashi Shinichi sounded extraordinarily sincere when he spoke. Hearing such words, the person in charge couldn't help but smile heartily. He suddenly mentioned, "Tachichi-san seems to be a photo model."
Iwahashi Shin nodded, "That's right." From the very beginning, the company has never shied away from Kamaike Sachiko's experience as a photo model, and this matter is not a secret among the public.
The person in charge praised, "I have chosen such a lead singer from among the photo models. You are really the one."
Being complimented in return, Iwahashi Shinichi also smiled.
"It is said that a wise eye recognizes pearls... This is a wise eye that recognizes pearls." The person in charge said, "After seeing ZARD, I couldn't help but want to encourage Iwahashi-san to show off his skills again and choose a girl from Kansai.
New people come out."
Iwahashi Shinichi smiled and followed up, "If we really go to the step of choosing a new person in Kansai, then I will be grateful for your care."
After winning the Kansai Cable Broadcasting Awards through ZARD, I came to contact people at Osaka Cable Broadcasting and Yomiuri TV. Iwahashi Shinichi was planning to set up a sub-label here in Osaka.
"I'll take care of you, of course." The person in charge promised, "I'm looking forward to seeing Iwahashi-san's 'Golden Touch' skills."
It’s hard to say whether I can believe what I said over the wine table, but after all, the talks went smoothly. Next year the record company will expand its scale, and it really wants to set up an office here in Osaka to discover new talents. When the time comes, I will have to visit this place in person.
The person in charge of the side several times.
With ZARD as the trump card in Kansai, Shinichi Iwahashi feels somewhat confident. If nothing else, if Sachiko Kamaike is willing to nod to participate in Osaka Cable Broadcasting's program, he can exchange corresponding resources for other newcomers.
In the beginning, when the band first debuted, they had to use DREAMS E T breast E performances in exchange for resources. Now, as ZARD has grown up, it has become a target for the younger generations to rely on.
In addition, there is also the band "Shooting" that he "picked up" in Osaka Castle Park. Since it is a band with all members from Kansai, when it comes time to debut, publicity in Kansai will definitely be indispensable.
…
After dinner, the group went to the club to drink again. After leaving the table, the person in charge never mentioned official matters again. Shinichi Iwahashi knew what he was doing, so he stopped there.
The escort girls in Osaka and the escort girls in Tokyo are like two different styles, whether it is makeup or speech. Shinichi Iwahashi, a guest from Tokyo, understands it more and more the more he first comes here.
Thinking about this, he felt interesting in his heart and happy on his face.
At this time, I heard the person in charge of Yomiuri TV say, "...I would like to be a regular customer of the proprietress Oage's place."
Iwahashi Shinichi turned around, it was the person in charge who was bragging to the bartender.
