Morning Musume (モーニング娘。 Mōningu Musume.) is a Japanese girl group, whose act generally revolves around singing and dancing to upbeat melodies. Sometimes referred to as Momusu (モー娘。 Mōmusu.), they are the lead group of Hello! Project, which is masterminded by Naoki Yamazaki[1] and managed by producer Tsunku, who composes nearly all the lyrics and melodies of their songs. Currently, they hold the record of having the highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon charts.[2]
Musume (娘), in this context, means girl. The group is particularly well-known for its ever fluctuating line-up, with "graduations" and auditions occurring nearly each year; however, 2008 was the only year so far in which no line-up changes occurred. Over the years, the group produced several splinter groups, and have often worked with other Hello! Project acts, which includes, but not limited to, Country Musume, Berryz Kobo, Melon Kinenbi, and v-u-den.
Since their expansion into the Chinese market in 2007, the group officially adopted the name Jou An Sao Nu Jou (Zao An Shao Nu Zu, Traditional Chinese:早安少女組。).
History
Japanese producer Tsunku started the group in 1997 through an audition for a female rock vocalist for his band Sharan Q. The audition was held on the Japanese TV show Asayan. The winner was Heike Michiyo, later to become a soloist under what would eventually become known as Hello! Project. However, Tsunku decided to form a girl group consisting of five of the runners-up: Yuko Nakazawa, Natsumi Abe, Kaori Iida, Asuka Fukuda, and Aya Ishiguro. They were issued a challenge to sell 50,000 copies of their demo single, "Ai no Tane," with just five days of promotion events. They managed the feat in four promotion days (spread out over November, 1997), in a very grassroots manner, and Tsunku began his mission to create the most famous all-girl group in Japan.1998
In early 1998, the girls were ready with their first official single, "Morning Coffee."[4] The success of this single (hitting #6 on the Japanese pop charts) brought them three new members known as the Second Generation: Kei Yasuda, Mari Yaguchi, and Sayaka Ichii, bringing the total member count to eight. The second single, Summer Night Town,[5] was the first single of the new lineup—a mature pop tune about unsuccessfully attempting to hide one's true feelings. Their third single, "Daite Hold on Me!,"[6] continued in the same vein musically as Summer Night Town, and managed to hit #1 on the charts. During this time, leader Nakazawa started her solo career.
First Time[7] was released in July 1998, featuring the singles "Ai no Tane" and "Morning Coffee".
This year, Tsunku also formed Tanpopo, the first subgroup of Morning Musume, with Kaori Iida, Aya Ishiguro, and Mari Yaguchi. Tanpopo touted slower, more mature songs.
1999
1999 kicked off with the group's fourth single "Memory Seishun no Hikari,"[8] failing to hit #1 but managing to snag #2 on Oricon (GLAY's "Winter, again" was #1 for the week, with 1st week sales of 955,780 copies, while Morning Musume's Memory Seishun no Hikari's was 195,720). The song contained a rap section and intense vocal harmonization on the girls parts. This was Asuka Fukuda's last single with Morning Musume, making her currently the shortest-lived member at 2 years. Asuka claimed that she was leaving in order to focus on her studies, only to drop out of school soon after.
"Manatsu no Kōsen"[9] was released in May and was a summer tune. It went to #3 on the charts (the sales were halved from Memory Seishun no Hikari); Morning Musume's chart position was visibly lagging at this point in time, their sixth single, "Furusato,"[10] only sealing the fact. "Furusato" was entirely sung by Natsumi Abe; the other members harmonizing discreetly. This single was #5, and the sales numbers were once again halved.
Second Morning[11] was released in July 1999, and contained the singles "Daite Hold on Me!," "Memory Seishun no Hikari," "Manatsu no Kōsen," and "Furusato." "Daite Hold on Me!" and "Manatsu no Kōsen" were remixed.
Eager to add new life to the group, Tsunku held auditions for the Third Generation of Morning Musume. Expectations for the Third Generation audition were to admit two girls to the group, but ultimately only Maki Goto was added. Goto was thirteen when selected, making her the youngest member of Morning Musume at the time. The group's seventh single, "Love Machine,"[12] sold 1,646,630 copies, making it a major hit; it is still their highest-selling single to date. The song touted an image of Japan as the future "envy of the world" and cheered the masses during a period of economic recession. It was Maki Goto's first single and Aya Ishiguro's last. Its wild success dramatically increased the popularity of the group.
Soon Goto was paired with Kei Yasuda and Sayaka Ichii to form the subgroup Petitmoni (also known as Pucchi Moni). Petitmoni's first single, "Chokotto Love," rivaled the success of "Love Machine," selling over 1,123,610 copies.
2000
2000 first saw the release of "Koi no Dance Site,"[13] which hit #2 and sold over a million—400,000 copies away from reaching Love Machine's success. The single had the highest 1st week sales than any other Morning Musume's singles, an enormous amount of 600,860 copies. Even with this large number, the single did not reach #1 because Southern All Stars's biggest hit single, TSUNAMI, which sold total of 2.93 million copies, was released at the same date as Koi no Dance Site. Aya Ishiguro left the group before the single was released in order to marry Shinya, drummer of rock band Luna Sea, leaving the group with seven members.
The second event of 2000 was the creation of "shuffle units," in which all members of Tsunku's then 16-member family, Hello! Project, were shuffled around to form three one-time groups: Akagumi 4, Kiiro 5, and Aoiro 7. The idea was to battle for the highest single sales. This was achieved by Akagumi 4 which, to no surprise, boasted Maki Goto as the lead vocals.
In March, their third studio album, 3rd -Love Paradise-[14] was released. Despite having "Love Machine" and "Koi no Dance Site" on its track list, it did not manage to claim the #1 spot, but did sell more than 800,000 copies, making it Morning Musume's highest-selling studio album to date.
This year also brought a new generation search. The Fourth Generation consisted of Rika Ishikawa, Hitomi Yoshizawa, Nozomi Tsuji, and Ai Kago, lending a completely different feel to the group by adding the 12-year-old duo of Tsuji and Kago. After their debut single, "Happy Summer Wedding,"[15] (continuing the legacy of #1 hits with 990,950 copies sold,) Sayaka Ichii graduated to pursue her own music career. She became the vocalist of Japanese group Cubic Cross and later married fellow member Naoki Yoshizawa (no relation to Hitomi Yoshizawa).
With Ishiguro and Ichii gone, both Tanpopo and Petitmoni revised their lineups—Hitomi Yoshizawa joined Petitmoni, and Ai Kago and Rika Ishikawa were added to Tanpopo. Meanwhile, Mari Yaguchi had started performing informally with Ai Kago and Nozomi Tsuji in concerts as Mini Moni, a group tailored towards younger audiences with all the members being less than 150 cm (about 5 ft) tall. Mika Todd of Coconuts Musume was later added into the group and Tsunku made them official. Their debut single, "Minimoni Jankenpyon!," was a #1 hit on the Oricon.
As an idol group, they were extremely successful, drawing comparisons to the popularity of former girl idol group Speed. "I Wish"[16] and "Renai Revolution 21"[17] (Yuko Nakazawa's last single) continued the trend of happy pop songs becoming staple hits for the group. Morning Musume also began their tradition of performing in musicals each year, breaking new ground as idols with their hit musical, Love Century -Yume wa Minakerya Hajimaranai-.
2001
In April 2001, group leader Yuko Nakazawa graduated to concentrate more on her solo career (stating her age as a factor as well—she felt it was limiting her ability to meet the physical demands of the group's activities) making Kaori Iida and Kei Yasuda Morning Musume's co-leaders. During this time, the Rika Ishikawa was "lent" out to the rather inactive group, Country Musume. She did not officially join, but she sang with them for a short period of time.
By July 2001 the string of #1 hits had yet to be broken with the release of the single "The Peace!."[18] The Peace! was another somewhat bizarre pop tune, beginning with an almost fight song-like call and response, and featuring Rika Ishikawa as the lead. She had a dialog in the middle of the song, many solo lines, and took center in the dance and the cover shot. The promotional video echoed the song's strangeness by placing the group in the middle of what appeared to be a gigantic public bathroom, displaying the girls dancing amongst the urinals and posing for photographs in the stalls; supposedly as a response to hidden camera footage of the members that had recently surfaced, filmed from a toilet in their production offices.[19]
At the end of January 2001, the best selling Hello!Project album to date, at 2,259,510 copies, was released: "Best! Morning Musume 1."[20] It featured 15 tracks, the only original song being "Say Yeah! -Motto Miracle Night-."
At the end of 2001, four new members joined the group as the Fifth Generation through the audition "Love Audition 21:" Ai Takahashi, Asami Konno, Makoto Ogawa, and Risa Niigaki, bringing the roster to 13 girls. Their first single "Mr. Moonlight ~Ai no Big Band~,"[21] (done in the style of big band) featured Fourth Generation member Hitomi Yoshizawa as the central focus and main vocalist of the song.
2002
In February, "Souda! We're Alive,"[22] another hit, was released. It featured many different styles combined into one song, centered on Mari Yaguchi.
In July 2002, "Do it! Now"[23] was released. This single finally broke the line of #1 hits and came in at #3—a surprising fact to many, considering it was Maki Goto's last single.
Morning Musume's fourth studio album, 4th Ikimasshoi![24] was released in March 2002 after a two year wait. It is the first studio album from the group to reach #1 on Oricon. It featured the singles "Renai Revolution 21," (rerecorded with the current 13-person formation,) "The Peace!," (in a 'full', longer version,) "Mr. Moonlight ~Ai no Big Band~," (with added dialog at the beginning,) and "Souda! We're Alive."
Late 2002 was marked by the graduation of Maki Goto and a mass re-shuffle of the sub-units. Tsunku removed Kaori Iida, Mari Yaguchi, and Ai Kago from Tanpopo, adding in Asami Konno, Risa Niigaki, and Ayumi Shibata of Melon Kinenbi to join Rika Ishikawa. Tanpopo only released one single with this lineup before the group was put on an indefinite hiatus status. Makoto Ogawa and Ayaka Kimura of Coconuts Musume joined Hitomi Yoshizawa in Petitmoni to replace Kei Yasuda and Maki Goto, but the group did not even release a single, only performing in concerts. Their song "Wow Wow Wow" was later released on the Hello! Project's compilation CD Petit Best 4. In Mini Moni, Mari Yaguchi was replaced by Ai Takahashi and the new lineup went on to put out several singles and a second album until member Mika Todd graduated in May 2004, adding Mini Moni to the list of "indefinite hiatus" subgroups.
In October "Koko ni Iruzee!"[25] was released, a fast-paced, feel-good song about making the most of life and music's ability to unite the world. It was #1 on Oricon.
2003
The unique child-like tune "Morning Musume no Hyokkori Hyōtanjima"[26] was released in February 2003 as the group's seventeenth single. It is significant because it was a cover song, marking the first time Tsunku did not write a single's lyrics.
April brought the notably successful single "As for One Day"[27]—a synthesizer-driven song about lost love—which sold 129,893 copies and hit #1 in Oricon charts, and was the last time a Morning Musume single got #1 until "Aruiteru" (released late 2006). This single was the last for Kei Yasuda.
Before the Sixth Generation auditions were held, the group released the album No.5.[28] It was unique in a few ways. It was the last studio album to feature Kei Yasuda and Natsumi Abe as full members of the group. It was also the first Morning Musume studio album to feature a former member, as Maki Goto guests on "Megami ~Mousse na Yasashisa~" and "Ganbacchae." It only featured two singles: "Do it! Now" and "Koko ni Iruzee!."
In mid-2003, four new girls were added as the Sixth Generation: Miki Fujimoto, Eri Kamei, Sayumi Michishige, and Reina Tanaka. After she pulled off a successful appearance on the New Year's music program "Kōhaku Uta Gassen" with several Morning Musume members dancing as backup, Tsunku also added in Miki Fujimoto (originally an up-and-coming solo singer under Hello! Project) as part of the Sixth Generation. Their debut concert was also Kei Yasuda's graduation concert, and Tsunku has said that this one-time 16-member group is the largest Morning Musume will ever be.
The Sixth Generation's first single was "Shabondama,"[29] which featured "break-up" lyrics, a seemingly spontaneous dance routine, and rolled "r"s.
Mari Yaguchi became Morning Musume's sub-leader after Kei's graduation and was also put in charge of training and assisting the trainee group of Hello! Project Kids, eventually forming a group with 5 of them, known as ZYX.
Later in 2003, Morning Musume was split into two subgroups so that it could tour more cities (especially smaller cities that could not support a 15-member troupe). Morning Musume Sakuragumi, which focused on slower and more traditional love songs, included Natsumi Abe, Mari Yaguchi, Hitomi Yoshizawa, Ai Kago, Ai Takahashi, Risa Niigaki, Asami Konno and Eri Kamei. Morning Musume Otomegumi, which had more upbeat pop songs with a slight rock flavor, featured Kaori Iida, Rika Ishikawa, Nozomi Tsuji, Makoto Ogawa, Miki Fujimoto, Sayumi Michishige, and Reina Tanaka. Sakuragumi released two singles: "Hare Ame Nochi Suki" and "Sakura Mankai," and Otomegumi released two singles as well: "Ai no Sono ~Touch my Heart!~" and "Yūjō ~Kokoro no Busu ni wa Naranee!~."
The last single of Morning Musume in 2003 to feature the entire group was "Go Girl ~Koi no Victory~,"[30] which had the members girlishly proclaiming the victory of their love.
2004
In January 2004, Natsumi Abe (known as "the face of Morning Musume" to the general public) graduated to pursue a soloist career. Her last single was "Ai Araba It's All Right,"[31] Morning Musume's last song to sell more than 100,000 copies. "Ai Araba It's All Right" had uplifting lyrics (as would be expected, with the title), and a cheery dance sequence.
The group soon released another single, "Roman ~My Dear Boy~."[32] The song showcased an almost rock flavor and centered its lyrics around offering "a dance" to a boy. This was followed by their twenty-third single, "Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari,"[33] which is unique in that it was actually about the Morning Musume girls themselves—each member got a verse about their personality. This song would later be remade several times as "Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari 2" and "Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari 3," included in their sixth and seventh album respectively. This single also marked the graduation of Fourth Generation members Nozomi Tsuji and Ai Kago in August, to focus on "W", their new duo group.
In mid-2004, Morning Musume's second best-of album, Best! Morning Musume 2[34] was released and featured "Yah! Aishitai" as the only new track. It had a lukewarm reception at best, compared to their first best-of compilation.
Seventh Generation auditions (named "Lucky 7" to commemorate the Seventh Generation, the seventh year of Morning Musume, and seven auditioning locations across Japan) were held in various Japan cities in late 2004, resulting in six finalists. However, on January 9, 2005, Tsunku surprised everyone by announcing that no one in the Lucky 7 audition would be added to Morning Musume, citing that he had set his expectations extra-high this year in hopes of finding an "ace." This was the first time an audition had ended with no new members.
In November 2004, Morning Musume released "Namida ga Tomaranai Hōkago,"[35] a ballad that featured Asami Konno, Sayumi Michishige, and Rika Ishikawa.
Following this single Morning Musume Early Single Box[36] was released. It was a 9-CD set containing their first eight singles with a bonus track on each one, as well as a karaoke CD of some of their more popular tunes from the early years.
Finally, at the end of 2004, the group's yearly album was released. Their sixth studio album, named Ai no Dai 6 Kan,[37] hit stores in December. It contained three singles: "Roman ~My Dear Boy~," "Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari," and "Namida ga Tomaranai Hōkago." This was Ai Kago, Nozomi Tsuji, Kaori Iida, Mari Yaguchi, and Rika Ishikawa's last credited studio album.
2005
On January 30, 2005 - then-leader and last First Generation member Kaori Iida graduated to pursue a solo singer/artist career, with Mari Yaguchi taking on leadership role with Hitomi Yoshizawa as subleader. Her last single was "The Manpower!!!,"[38] which sung about the abilities of the human race and was also the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles theme song. The beginning of 2005 also saw the beginning of Musume Document 2005, which covered behind-the-scenes material, historical footage, and interviews.
In February 2005, Tsunku started another audition for Morning Musume's Seventh Generation. He noted that he was still intent on finding an "ace." This audition resulted with Koharu Kusumi finally being chosen as the sole "miracle" member of the new generation.
On April 10, 2005, photos were taken of Mari Yaguchi with Shun Oguri (scheduled to be published in a gossip magazine Friday! on the 15th). On April 14, 2005, Yaguchi announced that she would "retire" from Morning Musume and would continue on with solo activities. In her public statement, Yaguchi said that due to the scandal and its publicity, she could no longer sustain an "idol" image befitting of Morning Musume. Because of the nature of her departure (resignation rather than graduation), Yaguchi did not receive a graduation concert. Sub-leader Hitomi Yoshizawa took over as the leader of Morning Musume, and Miki Fujimoto became sub-leader as of July 15, 2005.
Just days after Yaguchi resigned, on April 27, 2005, the group's twenty-sixth single, "Osaka Koi no Uta"[39] was released. The final version featured Yaguchi still, presumably because they did not have enough time to rerecord and remix it. The lyrics are in an Osaka dialect. This single was also Rika Ishikawa's last. She graduated on May 7, 2005 to assume full-time leadership of the Hello! Project trio known as v-u-den.
Kusumi's first single with Morning Musume was July's "Iroppoi Jirettai,"[40] a flamenco styled song, which was considered to be the biggest hit of the year—selling around 20,000 more copies than anything else. A 3 city handshake event was organized for the promotion of this single.
Morning Musume's last single of 2005 was "Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita Sakana wa Ookiizo!~,"[41] which was a remake of a previous album-only song about the importance of using your intuition and not taking good things for granted. "Koi wa Hassō Do The Hustle!" was going to be the title track for the single, but due to poor preview results, became the coupling track instead.
On December 31, 2005, graduated Morning Musume members Mari Yaguchi, Kaori Iida, Natsumi Abe, Yuko Nakazawa, Ai Kago, Nozomi Tsuji, Rika Ishikawa, Maki Goto, and Kei Yasuda joined the current lineup of Morning Musume to perform the band's signature hit "Love Machine" on the 2005/2006 edition of Kōhaku Uta Gassen.[42] The performance was Yaguchi's first since leaving Morning Musume eight and a half months earlier.
2006
On January 16, 2006, it was announced that Morning Musume had won a Kanagawa Image Up Award in recognition of Hello! Project's support of an anti-pollution campaign. Yoshizawa, Fujimoto, and Takahashi represented the band to accept the award.[43][44]
In February, the group released their seventh studio album, Rainbow 7.[45] It was the first album for Kusumi and the last for Konno and Ogawa. The album features "The Manpower!!!," "Osaka Koi no Uta," "Iroppoi Jirettai," and "Chokkan 2 ~Nogashita Sakana wa Ookiizo!~" (in a remixed form). Kaori Iida, Rika Ishikawa and Mari Yaguchi are not credited anywhere in the liner notes although their vocals appear. Three of the songs on the album are performed by smaller clusters of several group members, and are credited in the liner notes to the featured members involved, rather than to the entire group.
In March 2006, "Sexy Boy ~Soyokaze ni Yorisotte~" was released. It featured an easy-to-learn dance and a parapara style. It was considered to be a relative success.
On April 28, 2006, it was announced by Tsunku from his official website that Fifth Generation members Asami Konno and Makoto Ogawa were going to graduate. Konno graduated on July 23, 2006 to attend University and Ogawa graduated on August 27, 2006 to study English abroad. Both left Morning Musume, but only Konno left Hello! Project entirely; Ogawa intended to return after completing her studies, and is still pictured as a soloist on Hello! Project's official website.[46][47][48] However, as of 2007, Konno returned to Hello! Project to join the new group Ongaku Gatas, making it the first time ever that a girl who left Hello! Project actually returned. She will remain an active member within the agency and Ongaku Gatas while continuing her university studies. Ogawa, on the other hand, returned in June 2008 by appearing on an episode of Morning Musume's television show Haromoni@.
Konno and Ogawa's last single was "Ambitious! Yashinteki de Ii Jan",[49] which, yet again, featured a parapara type arrangement, with a rock 'n' roll flair. It was the group's 30th single, and a limited-edition CD of all past 30 singles mixed into a thirteen-minute track was included on the first pressing. Unfortunately, sales did not add up to the hype or the significance, and Ambitious! clocked in as Morning Musume's lowest-selling single yet.
In mid-2006, the group performed the musical Ribbon no Kishi. Ai Takahashi took the main role; the secondary role was played by alternating members. There was also a mini-concert at the end of each performance, which served as Ogawa's real "graduation concert"—the Wonderful Hearts 2006 concert was initially intended for Konno's graduation only, although Ogawa wore a special outfit and read her graduation comments as well. (A last minute decision that fans were unaware of before the concert began). As for Ribbon no Kishi, an album with a selection of songs was released: Ribbon no Kishi The Musical Song Selection.[50]
Also in mid-2006, the Eighth Generation audition for Morning Musume was announced by Tsunku, called Morning Musume Happy 8 Audition. The audition started on August 27, 2006 and ended in Tokyo on October 22, 2006. On December 10, 2006's Hello! Morning, it was announced that the only new member was Aika Mitsui.[51] The show had a piece of audition footage each week leading up to December 10, 2006.
The last single release of 2006 was "Aruiteru,"[52] which was a huge hit. It was the first single at the #1 spot after 3½ years (their last #1 hit being "As for One Day.") The song's lyrics were credited for its success, with lines like "walking, you're not alone because everyone's here with you, praying for peace."[53] It was a bit of a turn from the hyperactive singles the group had been releasing. Tsunku's group, Sharan Q, also made a rock cover of this song.
Their first mini-album, 7.5 Fuyu Fuyu Morning Musume Mini!,[54] was released in December. It featured five tracks by solo and/or smaller combinations of band members. It also featured the single "Aruiteru."
2007
In early 2007, Morning Musume Tanjō 10nen Kinentai, a unit consisting of Kaori Iida, Natsumi Abe, Maki Goto, Risa Niigaki, and Koharu Kusumi, was created to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Morning Musume. They released a commemorative single called "Bokura ga Ikiru My Asia".[55] The members chosen symbolize the beginning of the group; how they had five members ranging in age from 13–24. Additionally, each member was from an odd-numbered Generation (Kaori Iida and Natsumi Abe from the First Generation, Maki Goto from the Third, Risa Niigaki from the Fifth, and Koharu Kusumi from the Seventh).
On January 2, 2007, an announcement was made during Hello! Project's 2007 Winter concert: the group's leader up until then, Hitomi Yoshizawa would graduate from Morning Musume on May 6, 2007, the last day of Morning Musume's 2007 spring tour. The concert was at the Saitama Super Arena, in Yoshizawa's hometown of Saitama.[56]
In February, the first single with Eighth Generation member Aika Mitsui was released, "Egao Yes Nude."[57] This was the first PV of Morning Musume to appear on the Dohhh!Up site (a streaming website of Hello! Project media). The single went up against tougher competition than "Aruiteru" had, only landing them a #4 spot, although it sold relatively the same number of copies. The song has a funky, disco feel, and is highly-reminiscent of some of the oldest songs of Morning Musume, most notably Summer Night Town.
On the March 11, 2007 edition of the weekly TV show Hello! Morning, producer Tsunku revealed he would make an important announcement the following episode. Several days later, on March 15, he announced that two other Eighth Generation members would be joining the group—Li Chun and Qian Lin, both Chinese nationals, were to join as "exchange students."[58] Tsunku stated the two new members would be an important key for their group's planned expansion into Asia and gave them the stage names "Junjun" and "Linlin" respectively. The two made their stage debut on May 6, at Saitama Super Arena, during current leader Yoshizawa's graduation.[59] This is notable, as they are the first non-Japanese members of the group.
On March 21, 2007 the group's eighth studio album, Sexy 8 Beat was released.[60] It was the first album for Aika Mitsui and the last album for Hitomi Yoshizawa and Miki Fujimoto. It featured the singles "Aruiteru," "Egao Yes Nude," "Sexy Boy ~Soyokaze ni Yorisotte~," and "Ambitious! Yashinteki de Ii Jan."
In late April, Morning Musume released their 33rd single, "Kanashimi Twilight."[61] The song style was a huge departure from almost anything Morning Musume had released prior to it, displaying a loud, rock arrangement and the angriest lyrics since Shabondama.
With the success of Kanashimi Twilight, on May 1, 2007, Morning Musume became the "Best Single Selling Female Group in Japan" with 11,085,000 copies sold—their fifth Oricon record. The achievement surpasses the previous record set by Pink Lady of 11,037,000 copies sold.[2]
On May 6, 2007, Hitomi Yoshizawa graduated. Miki Fujimoto took her place as leader and Ai Takahashi replaced Fujimoto as sub-leader.
As of June 1, 2007, Miki Fujimoto resigned from Morning Musume, due to the tabloid magazine Friday running an article depicting Fujimoto and comedian Tomoharu Shoji in a relationship.[62][63] Ai Takahashi replaced Fujimoto as leader (a position the latter occupied for the briefest period in the band's history—26 days), and Risa Niigaki became subleader.
Morning Musume's 34th single Onna ni Sachi Are was released on July 25, 2007. It features the debut of new Eighth Generation members from China Junjun and Linlin. This was the first time that girls from another country entered the group. The single reached #2 on the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart, with sales of 43,364 copies.
On October 26, 2007, Ai Takahashi, Risa Niigaki, and Koharu Kusumi visited Korea to promote their singles collection album Morning Musume All Singles Complete ~10th Anniversary~, which was released on October 24, 2007.[64] Also, Takahashi and Niigaki appeared as special guests in a Korean radio show called Maybee's Turn Up the Volume (메이비의 볼륨을 높여요). Later that same month, on October 29, 2007, all nine members traveled to Taiwan for three days to promote the album.[65] This was the first time Morning Musume held a non-Fan Club promotional event as a group outside of Japan. During their visit, they attended press conferences, appeared for radio and TV show recordings, and held the first-ever public handshaking event outside of Japan.[66]
November 21, 2007 marked the release of Morning Musume's 35th single, "Mikan". Initial sales were poor for the song, which became the group's lowest-selling single, (even lower than the initial indies release of "Ai no Tane", which sold 50,000 copies), both in terms of first week sales and absolute sales figures. As a result, unlike all previous singles, Mikan failed to appear on Oricon's Top 5 Chart, breaking the group's previously held record.
On December 31, 2007, Morning Musume performed in the 58th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen with a remixed version of their song "Love Machine" along with °C-ute and Berryz Kobo. Similar to the previous Kōhaku, the red team (females) lost to the white team (males) after attaining votes from the viewers and judges.
2008
Ai Takahashi, Eri Kamei, Sayumi Michishige, and Reina Tanaka participated in the musical Ojigi 30 Degrees at the Shinjuku Theater from February 26 until March 2. Morning Musume's 36th music single, "Resonant Blue," had been announced for release on March 5, 2008 but was postponed until April 16, 2008 because of the group's busy schedule during the Winter/early Spring season. Multiple promotional videos were released to stimulate sales. With the original, Another ver., a Studio Dance Shot version, a Night Scene version, and a One-cut Dance version, it makes the most PVs ever released for one single. Also notable is the smoky eye make-up used on the members, a daring new look for Morning Musume as they attempt to expand into Asia.
The group held a concert at Taipei Nankang Exhibition Hall, Taiwan on May 24, 2008. This was their first time ever to have a concert outside Japan.
On April 5, 2008, Morning Musume’s Aika Mitsui complained of a stomachache after the concert performed at Hachiōji Citizen Hall. After a medical examination, she was diagnosed with acute appendicitis and must rest for two weeks. Mitsui missed the April 12 and April 13 Morning Musume concerts due to her condition.[67]
"Resonant Blue" was released on April 16, 2008. This marked the release of the group's 36th single after it was delayed due to the group's hectic schedule. The single debuted at #2 and finished third in the Oricon Weekly ranking. Overall, this single marked a rebound from poor sales of their previous single, "Mikan." In its first week, it sold 48,086 copies, 20,004 copies more than "Mikan" and around 5,000 more copies than Onna ni Sachi Are.
From August 6, 2008 through August 25, Morning Musume performed with several members of the all-female Takarazuka theatre troupe in a version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. Ai Takahashi starred in the main role of Cinderella, with Risa Niigaki as the Prince, and Eri Kamei and Reina Tanaka as the stepsisters. The other members participated as fairies and guards.
Morning Musume's 37th single, "Pepper Keibu",[68] was released on September 24, 2008. Unlike past singles (with the exception of Morning Musume no Hyokkori Hyōtanjima), this song is actually a cover of Pink Lady's debut single, released in 1976. Sales figures for the first week after its release indicate Morning Musume sold approximately 10,000 copies less than Resonant Blue and 10,000 copies more than Mikan.
Berikyū! and Haromoni@ finished their run and both are replaced with Yorosen! (よろセン!). It started on October 6, 2008. The show stars Morning Musume, Berryz Kobo, and ℃-ute.[69]
2008 was the first year in which there were no changes in Morning Musume's lineup.
2009
Morning Musume released their 38th single on February 18, 2009. This was their first single of 2009, titled "Naichau Kamo". The title is translated to "I Might Cry" and was released in two limited versions A and B, each including a DVD.[70] On March 18, 2009 they released their ninth studio album called Platinum 9 Disc (プラチナ 9 DISC).[71]
In March 2009, all Morning Musume singles and albums (past and present) became available through JapanFiles.com via digital MP3 format in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It started with "Naichau Kamo" and the simultaneous Japan and USA release of their 9th album Platinum 9 Disc on March 18.[72] Japanfiles hopes to also sell Morning Musume CD's and Merchandise later this year as well.
Morning Musume released their 39th single, "Shōganai Yume Oibito", on May 13, 2009,[73] attaining a rank of #1 on the Oricon weekly chart, the first time since their "Aruiteru" single in late 2006.[74] It also became the group's first #1 single to feature 8th generation members Aika Mitsui, Junjun, and Linlin.[75]
Following the success of Shōganai Yume Oibito[76], the group has been scheduled to release their 40th single on August 5th, which is the third single in 2009.
