An Introduction To: LONDON BLUE

An Introduction To is a series of articles on both Selective Hearing and Okay! Musume Time that aims to introduce readers to various groups and musicians, regardless of their time within the industry. Whether they are indies or major, unknown or even relatively well-known, this series is here to give readers an insight into who is who and what they do. For our first post, let’s check out a group inspired by the UK.

Who are you? It’s LONDON BLUE!

With their humble beginnings starting back in 2013, LONDON BLUE began with this audition notice: “We’re looking for girls who can express the world of “pop&rock”. In September of the same year, LONDON BLUE was formed with its four original members – AKANE, MISAKI, MIDORI and HIKARI – and their sound producer Hidemaro Aoki of Kabuki-Rocks fame, who has since been creating music that incorporates a mixture of genres ranging from UK Rock to Bubblegum Pop and more.

Now with a modest 5 years under their belt, LONDON BLUE proudly claim their love for the UK music and fashion scene in both their sound and style. Yet despite the groups significant lineup change over the past five years, the members still tote a ‘cool & cute’ style in their music, visuals and fashion choices, all of which they showcase frequently with various lives and release events they perform throughout the year.

From February 2018, LONDON BLUE has seen a significant change not only in its lineup but also its status. With their fifth anniversary the group finally held its first performance in London, England at HYPER JAPAN in July 2018 before returning to Japan to prepare for a September major debut under King Records. Since then members have been busy with performances, radio segments and release events. Furthermore, auditions are underway for new members to join the group.

Now made up of five members – KANA, KAYANO, RINA, KYOKA and RINKA – the towel-waving cool & cute group are doing their best to make themselves known both on and off the stage. With various activities to focus on outside of their performances, these five girls are slowly but surely carving out an image for themselves as idols and talents. But who are the girls of LONDON BLUE? Let’s take a moment to find out.

Member Profile

Name: Kawaguchi Kana (川口花菜)
Stage Name: KANA
Nickname: Kanapyon
D.O.B: March 17th 1997
Age: 21
Hometown: Tokyo
Blood Type: A
Height: 165cm
Member Colour: Red
Special Skill: Jump rope
Hobby:
Shopping, drums
Favourite Food: Fried chicken, squid, ice
Tenure: July 2014 – Present
Status: Leader, Active

Blog  |  Twitter  |  

Bio:

Acting as LONDON BLUE’s leader since the beginning of this year, KANA is a 3rd generation member who debuted with the group in 2014 when she was 17 years old. Since her debut just over four years ago, KANA has participated in two single releases – Special My Love (2015) and LONDON CALLING (2018) – as well as the groups first and only album, We are LONDON BLUE (2016). KANA was also featured in the groups short movie, LONDON BLUE no Yuutsu (2017).

KANA recently created the choreography for the groups major debut song, LONDON CALLING, as well as choreographed for some of the groups other songs. She has previously played the drums in one of the groups music videos.

Name: Kominato Kayano (小湊かや乃)
Stage Name: KAYANO
Nickname: 
Nocchi
D.O.B:
June 17th
Age: 
25
Hometown:
Fukuoka
Blood Type:
O
Height: 
158cm
Member Colour:
Yellow
Special Skill:
 Swimming, UFO catcher, Voice Actress
Hobby: Watching anime, plays, watching baseball, singing and dancing
Favourite Food: 
Ramen, Starbucks
Tenure:
February 2018 – Present
Status: 
Active

Blog  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  ACROSS Entertainment profile  |  

Bio:

Prior to joining LONDON BLUE, KAYANO has been active as both an actress and a model since 2013 and is now under ACROSS Entertainment as a voice actress. Despite debuting as a member of LONDON BLUE at the start of the year, KAYANO is the oldest and one of the more seasoned entertainers. So far she has only participated in one single release, LONDON CALLING.

KAYANO’s past works include participating in a short film, MENTAI (2015) where she acted as a visual, as well as modelling for the kimono hearts collection. The film debuted at the Fukuoka Independent Film Festival for its 7th Anniversary. She was also a lead visual and dancer for the Fukuoka Independent Film Festival’s CM.

Name: Kawasaki Rina (河﨑莉奈)
Stage Name: RINA

Nickname: Rinya
D.O.B: May 24th
Age: 22
Hometown: Okayama
Blood Type: A
Height: 160cm
Member Colour: White
Special Skill: A monomane of Mickey Mouse and Stitch
Hobby: Collecting scents, listening to music, K-pop
Favourite Food: Sushi and pumpkin
Tenure: June 2018 – Present
Status: Hiatus

Blog  |  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  

Bio:

Another seasoned entertainer, RINA joined LONDON BLUE this year alongside KYOKA and RINKA in her idol debut. An active entertainer since 2014, RINA has participated in a variety of mediums that include web-dramas, commercials, magazines and more. As of September, RINA began her hiatus from LONDON BLUE in order to focus on her role in the NTV adaptation of Kyou Kare Ora Wa!!, a live-action remake of the manga of the same name. So far, RINA has only participated in the LONDON CALLING single. She was not able to attend the Hyper Japan event in England with her fellow members.

Name: Yasui Kyoka (安井京香)
Stage Name: KYOKA

Nickname: Kyon-chan
D.O.B: September 30th
Age: 20
Hometown: Wakayama
Blood Type: O
Height: 150cm
Member Colour: Blue
Special Skill: Singing, classical ballet, making friends, Kansai dialect, dance (Jazz), piano, imitation
Hobby: Studying Korean and Chinese, eating delicious things, watching movies
Favourite Food: Ice cream, things that are chewy
Tenure: June 2018 – Present
Status: Active

Twitter  |  Instagram  |  

Bio:

Claiming to be the groups most energetic member, KYOKA’s original activity within the entertainment industry began with musicals and modelling from the age of 6 before her debut as an idol in LONDON BLUE. Since joining the group she has taken part in radio broadcasts and showcased her talkative and energetic side as a performer. So far she has only participated in one release with the group, LONDON CALLING.

Past works that KYOKA has participated in include the film Minami kara kita Shounen (2011), the stage musical for Anne of Green Gables as well as the stage play Hoshikuzu Doomsday, and more. Of all the current members, KYOKA has the longest tenure in the industry, having been active since 2004.

Name: Fujii Rinka (藤井凜華)
Stage Name: RINKA

Nickname: Rinka
D.O.B: August 12th
Age: 17
Hometown: Kanagawa
Blood Type: O
Height: 160cm
Member Colour: Purple
Special Skill: Calligraphy, illustrating, 
Hobby: Collecting pastel coloured things, cosplay
Favourite Food: Omelet rice
Tenure: June 2018 – Present
Status: Active

Twitter  |  ACIN Project Profile  |  LINE Sticker store

Bio:

As the youngest member of LONDON BLUE, RINKA is probably the least seasoned of the five, however she has been a part of the industry as an aspiring actress since 2014 and has a few TV, film and stage roles under her belt. Since debuting with LONDON BLUE RINKA has participated in the groups radio show. So far, she has participated in one single with the group.

RINKA’s past acting credits include parts in Survival Family (2017) as well as supporting roles in four of ACIN project’s own short films (2015 – 2016). RINKA also has her own LINE stickers that she draws exclusively for SunCafe, which she is an active part of.

Former Members

(L)* marks leader status

1st generation:

MIDORI (Debuted September 2013 – Withdrew April 9th 2014)
HIKARI (Debuted September 2013 – Withdrew April 9th 2014)
(L) 
AKANE (Debuted September 2013 – Withdrew July 15th 2014)
(L) MISAKI (Debuted September 2013 – Graduated November 4th 2017)

2nd generation:

KAORU (Debuted January 2014 – Graduated January 16th 2018)

3rd generation:

RIYO (Debuted July 2014 – Graduated January 16th 2018)

4th generation:

MIKOTO / 3510 (Joined December 2017 – Graduated May 27th 2018)

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