Atsuko Maeda

Atsuko Maeda

Atsuko Maeda performing at the Anime Expo AKB48 live in Los Angeles, 2010
Native name 前田 敦子
Born (1991-07-10) July 10, 1991
Ichikawa, Chiba, Japan
Occupation
Musical career
Genres J-pop
Instruments Vocals
Years active 2005–present
Labels King
Associated acts AKB48
Website www.atsuko-maeda.com

Atsuko Maeda (前田 敦子, Maeda Atsuko, born July 10, 1991, in Ichikawa, Chiba) is a Japanese singer and actress known for her work in the Japanese idol group AKB48. Maeda was one of the most prominent members in the group, and placed first among all AKB48 and sister group candidates in the group's general 2009 and 2011 elections, and second in the 2010 election. She also appeared on many of its album covers. On March 25, 2012, she announced her graduation from AKB48;[1] it was held on August 27.[2][3] She has since continued with a solo singing and acting career.

Career

AKB48

At age 14, Maeda became a member of AKB48's first group, Team A,[4] which composed of 24 girls and debuted on December 8, 2005.

In 2009, Maeda won the first edition of AKB48's annual general elections, which are described as a popularity contest. As a result, she was the headlined performer for the group's 13th single, "Iiwake Maybe".[5] The following year, she placed second overall, but still had a significant choreography position in the lineup for "Heavy Rotation".[6] Later that year, AKB48 employed a rock-paper-scissors tournament to determine the top spot of AKB48's 19th major single "Chance no Junban". Maeda placed 15th, which secured her a spot on title track.[7] Maeda would also win the group's third general election held in 2011.[8]

Maeda was one of the members who sang on every AKB48 title track since the group's inception. Her streak of A-side appearances ended in 2011, when she lost to Team K captain Sayaka Akimoto at a rock-paper-scissors tournament which determined the featured members for the group's 24th single "Ue kara Mariko".[9]

On March 25, 2012, during an AKB48 Concert at the Saitama Super Arena, Maeda announced that she would leave the group.[10][11] This caused a large buzz in the Japanese news, and spawned a rumor (later proved false) that a student from University of Tokyo had committed suicide over the announcement.[12] AKB48 later announced that Maeda would leave after the Tokyo Dome concerts;[13] For her final performance, there were 229,096 requests filed for seat tickets.[3] Her farewell performance and ceremony occurred on August 27 at the AKB48 theater,[2] and was streamed live on YouTube.[4][14]

Solo career

On April 23, 2011, Maeda announced that she would make her solo debut with her debut single "Flower", released on June 22.[15] It was met with commercial success in Japan, debuting at number 1 on the Oricon Charts with first week sales of 176,967 copies.

The follow-up single "Kimi wa Boku Da", released in June 2012, was Maeda's last solo single while still a member of AKB48. It debuted at number two on the Oricon charts and reached number one on the Billboard Japan Hot 100.

On June 15, 2013, at AKB48's handshake event held at Makuhari Messe, AKB48 announced that Maeda would appear as a special guest at the group's summer concert series at the Sapporo Dome on July 31.[16] There], she performed her third single, "Time Machine Nante Iranai" (タイムマシンなんていらない, I don't need a time machine), which was later released on September 18.[17] It was selected to be the theme song for the live-action adaptation of Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo (Yamada and the Seven Witches).[18] Maeda described the song as "cheerful and fun" and hoped it would liven up the show.[19][20] "Time Machine Nante Iranai" eventually peaked at number one on the Oricon Daily charts,[21] and number two on the Oricon Weekly chart.[22] On Billboard's Japan Hot 100, it debuted at number one and stayed there for just the week of September 30.[23]

Maeda's 4th single "Seventh Code" was released on March 5, 2014. It was used as the theme song of the movie "Seventh Code" in which Maeda herself starred in. It debuted at number 4 on the Oricon charts and reached number three on the Billboard Japan Hot 100.

On December 12, 2015, it was announced that Maeda's first album will be released later the next year. Eventually, the album is set to be released on June 22, 2016.

Acting career

In 2007, Maeda played a supporting role in the film Ashita no Watashi no Tsukurikata, which was her debut as an actress.[24] She starred in the 2011 film Moshidora[25] and appeared in Nobuhiro Yamashita's 2012 film Kueki Ressha.[26] She also starred in Hideo Nakata's 2013 horror film The Complex.[27] It was announced that she will co-star with Tony Leung Chiu-wai in Kiyoshi Kurosawa's film 1905.[28]

In 2013, Maeda starred in a series of 30-second station ID videos for Music On! TV where she played Tamako, a Tokyo university graduate who does not find a job and lives at home where she just eats and sleeps, over the course of the four seasons. This became a TV drama special, and has been developed into a full-fledged film, Tamako in Moratorium, the last of which is planned for a theater release in November 2013.[29][30]

Maeda starred in the film Seventh Code, in which she plays a Japanese woman in Russia who is trying to track down a guy she previously met. The film was shown at the Rome Film Festival in November 2013, and was released for a short theater run in January 2014. She released a single of the same name on March 5.[31]

In May 2015, it was announced that Maeda had been cast in the role of Kyoko Yoshizawa, the female lead of the anime and manga series Dokonjō Gaeru (The Gutsy Frog), in a live-action version of the story set to air on Nippon TV in July.[32]

In 2016, she took the lead role of the drama "Busujima Yuriko no Sekirara Nikki" on TBS. The first episode is set to air on April 20, 2016.

Stage units

A listing of Maeda's participation in AKB48's theatre programs, called stages:[33]

Discography

Solo singles

Title Release date Chart positions Oricon sales
Oricon
Weekly
Singles
Chart
Billboard Japan Hot 100
[34]
RIAJ Digital Track Chart
[35]
First
week
Total
"Flower"[36] June 22, 2011 1 1 5 176,967 213,787
"Kimi wa Boku Da"[37] June 20, 2012 2 1 4 136,212 170,944
"Time Machine Nante Iranai"[22][38] September 18, 2013 2 1 60,687 79,081
"Seventh Chord"[31][39][40] March 5, 2014 4 3 42,784 53,286

AKB48

Year No. Title Role[41] Notes
2006 Ind-1 "Sakura no Hanabiratachi" A-side
2006 Ind-2 "Skirt, Hirari" A-side, Center One of seven members who sang on the title track.[42]
2006 1 "Aitakatta" A-side
2007 2 "Seifuku ga Jama o Suru" A-side, Center
2007 3 "Keibetsu Shiteita Aijō" A-side, Center
2007 4 "Bingo!" A-side, Center
2007 5 "Boku no Taiyō" A-side, Center
2007 6 "Yūhi o Miteiru ka?" A-side, Center
2008 7 "Romance, Irane" A-side, Center
2008 8 "Sakura no Hanabiratachi 2008" A-side, Center
2008 9 "Baby! Baby! Baby!" A-side, Center
2008 10 "Ōgoe Diamond" A-side.
2009 11 "10nen Sakura" A-side, Center also sang on "Sakurairo no Sora no Shita de", Shared center with Jurina Matsui of SKE48
2009 12 "Namida Surprise!" A-side, Center
2009 13 "Iiwake Maybe" A-side, Center Ranked 1st in 2009 General Election
2009 14 "River" A-side, Center
2010 15 "Sakura no Shiori" A-side, Center also sang on "Majisuka Rock 'n' Roll"
2010 16 "Ponytail to Shushu" A-side, Center also sang on "Majijo Teppen Blues"
2010 17 "Heavy Rotation" A-side Ranked 2nd in 2010 General Election, also sang on "Yasai Sisters" and "Lucky Seven"
2010 18 "Beginner" A-side, Mint, Center Also sang on "Kimi ni Tsuite" as subgroup Mint.
2010 19 "Chance no Junban" A-side Placed 15th in rock-paper-scissors tournament.,[43] also sang on "Yoyakushita Christmas" and "Kurumi to Dialougue"
2011 20 "Sakura no Ki ni Narō" A-side, Mint, Center Also sang on "Kiss Made 100 Mile" as Mint.
2011 "Dareka no Tame ni – What can I do for someone?" charity single
2011 21 "Everyday, Katyusha" A-side, Center also sang on "Korekara Wonderland" and "Yankee Soul"
2011 22 "Flying Get" A-side, Center Ranked 1st in 2011 General Election, also sang on "Seishun to Kizukanai Mama", "Ice no Kuchizuke", "Yasai Uranai"
2011 23 "Kaze wa Fuiteiru" A-side, Center
2011 24 "Ue kara Mariko" B-side Did not participate in title song; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament;[44][45] She sang on "Noël no Yoru", and on "Rinjin wa Kizutsukanai" as Team A
2012 25 "Give Me Five!" A-side (Baby Blossom), Selection 6, Center Played rhythm guitar in Baby Blossom; she also sang on "Sweet & Bitter" as Selection 6
2012 26 "Manatsu no Sounds Good!" A-side, Center Did not participate in 2012 General Election.
2012 27 "Gingham Check" B-side Did not participate in title song. Participated in "Yume no Kawa" which was also her graduation song
2016 43 "Kimi wa Melody" A-side Marked as the 10th Anniversary Single. Participated as graduated member.

DVDs

Filmography

Films

Television dramas

Television shows

Documentaries

Radio shows

Bibliography

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result
2013 22nd Japanese Film Professional awards Best Actress Kueki Ressha Won[59]
2017 11th Asian Film Awards Best Supporting Actress The Mohican Comes Home Japan Nominated

Notes

  1. Team A would return to performing the 4th Stage program from April–October 2008

References

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  4. 1 2 "AKB48’s Maeda Atsuko graduates and how!". The Japan Daily Press. August 28, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
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  30. 1 2 "前田敦子が"残念な実家依存娘"に!山下敦弘監督「もらとりあむタマ子」11月公開決定 : 映画ニュース - 映画.com" (in Japanese). Eiga.com. August 20, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2013.
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  32. Ex-AKB48 Atsuko Maeda to Play Heroine Kyoko in "Dokonjo Gaeru" TV Drama Adaptation, Crunchyroll.com, 28 May 2015. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
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