#understanding concepts

Every time I learn any small thing in a foreign language, I'm reminded that "I understand things well" isn't just a made up talent that's there to make me feel better about myself, I legitimately have a talent for gleaning meaning from the various clues presented to me. I can sift through your words, tone, inflection, body langue, and gestures, and come up with a rough translation.

Understanding After School Concepts Pt.2

Bang! concept comes straight from a movie that Kahi got caught up with: DRUMLINE

It's curious how some people (fans and non-fans) demerit this single as well as its concept, when it was one of the first admitted ever singles where Kahi actually contributed on its concept.

There was a blog she posted (that disappeared, sorry) where she wrote about the Bang! / Let's Do It meaning and experience.

She said that was meant to be their 3rd release (not counting Dreamgirl and not counting AMOLED, I guess, both were for CM purposes), but that when they were recording the song, the producers found something was lacking.

Since the track was up-beat and it reminded them of a cheerleading cheer, Kahi got the idea of trying something she wanted to do ever since she watched DRUMLINE (2002).

Then, the adventure of learning how to bang the drums started, as well as Pledis/Kahi started supervising the choreography that their US based choreographers sent them.

It sounds like a self-made tale, but I can promise you I read that blog translations (and went to the original too) and Kahi told how she didn't like what their US choreographers sent them first, so she requested them to change it.

I guess that movies like Bring It On might've play its own part on influencing Bang! (or maybe not?), but DRUMLINE was admitted as their main inspiration and to try the Let's Do It intro, the girls took longer than expected to come back. Not to mention they, apparently, postponed this release and came back with Because of You first, losing So Young and adding Raina and NANA.

It is said that Raina was the only new addition that was supposed to be in BoY, but the sudden decision (she got a couple of months to think it over, tho) of So Young to graduate, made them include NANA (another prove that the so-called Pre-School Girls aren't well exposed). This means that there's a previous recording of the song with So Young but without NANA, but I don't know if the second generation line-up got to record Bang! properly or what they did were just tests with the song.

Understanding some of After School concepts Pt.1

Today I've recieved my AS NEW SCHOOLGIRL single, which I obviously couldn't afford back in 2009, nor until now that I got a job after a year and 3 months without one.

I've been gladly re-assuring the fact that AS concept was the one meant to admit girls into the group as it was a School facility and its main point were the After School activites. The NEW SCHOOLGIRL single has the 'A.F.S.C. admission to a school' subtitle that would be inmediatly repeated in their first digital single and first come back with Uee joining the project. Pledis' CEO has explained a couple of times that their main role was Hello!Project's Morning Musume, assuming that they would aim for 9 members, at least (there was the 10th member audition but we all know what happened), but what they never fully admit, nor mention is how much they copy AKB48 and its sister units strategies. The pictures used are from MoMusu's 9th generation and AKB48's newest sub-unit: NO NAME. Like these groups, AS tried a couple of spin-off projects or sub-units: Orange Caramel, Kahi's solo release; and experimented with a splitting teams competing version: AS RED vs AS BLUE.

As well as tried different vocal roles for both their albums: Virgin (Korea), with songs featuring different members and even two Pre-School girls (one of them the transfered to HELLO VENUS, Yoonjo); PLAYGIRLZ (Japan) with two songs that split the current line-up in two teams (not named as the previous Korean release).

Of course, there's the uniform thing.

The uniform is really representative of several idol groups in Japan and other K-Pop groups wore it before and after (Wonder Girls, Girl's Day...), but the way AKB and its sister units portrayed is unique. Having different uniforms depending on the teams that form each unit, and also adjusting the image to every member.

Another point is their graduation system, which is currently held by more than just one group in Japan, and their Pre-school Girls who resemble the AKB's Kenkyuusei and the H!P Eggs. They're in between, since the trainees don't get that much exposure, and it hasn't been properly used. Until now we've known of 4 of them, 3 who've been transfered to HELLO VENUS (Yoonjo, Ara and Hyelim) and the rest of trainees we've known, had never been officially labeled as Pre-School girls.

In AKB, the kenkyuusei are meant to fill in for the regular team members whenever those cannot attend a stage, and they shall work their way to the regular teams.

In H!P Eggs, trainers train to become idols from the company, not necessarily Morning Musume girls. The first group ever from Eggs that debuted was s/mileage, who only a year after debut, started graduating and adding new members (first sub-members).