KIMONOS ON MONDAY: I am still drawn to Yui Yokoyama!

… and who wouldn’t be? Actually this is a DRAWING of the lovely Yuihan wearing a kimono. The original drawing is by Rodolfo Cortez. You can view more of his drawings — AKB and otherwise — on his web page linked here. Yokoyama-san has very intense eyes. Do you think that he did a good job of capturing their intensity? I also like that little “48” clasp he drew on the kimono.

There are also some great paintings of Yui Yokoyama in kimono in her first photo book released earlier this year. The artist is Japanese painter  Yasunari Ikenaga. The photo books are mostly photographs, but there is this nice little part of about her making this kimono painting.

Here is Yui lying down on the kimono pattern, to see how it looks with her.

This is her kimono (yukata actually) that the painting is based on. Note the floral pattern and the obi-sash pattern below was used in the painting.

Guess what my favorite part of this photo is!

Here is the basic drawing before color painting.

I would have to say that the picture turned out well.

I sure would have to have this Yui panel in my tea room! It looks like Ms. Yokoyama also approves of the art …

I am probably even easier to please than Yuihan.

Even her painting is INTENSE!

The photobook is available from CD Japan linked here.

It only costs $12 … Gulp … so why can’t I have one?. (There is also a DVD-Blu-Ray photobook if you have a Japanese player.)

Starlight: The photobook was released February 2015.

What? You say you’re going to open a can of “WHOOP ASS”?

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Well … You might open your can of “whoop ass” but I am going to beat you down when I open my can of “Paruru”!!!

Asahi soft drink corporation has released new promotional commercials for their product line of “WONDA” coffee featuring AKB48!  WONDA promotional campaign spokes-idols are AKB48 members Haruka Shimazaki (島崎遥香), Mayu Watanabe (渡辺麻友), Minami Takahashi (高橋みなみ), Yuki Kashiwagi (柏木由紀) and Yui Yokoyama (横山由依).

They are pretty cute “Japan-is-crazy-type-commercials” which we all know and love. (But nothing as crazy as the music video at the end of the post.)

I actually liked the older WONDA cans when they had the photos of the members on the cans. Then, you could really “open up a can of Paruru”!

I’m gonna open me a can of Shimazaki-san !!!

Still, I would like to have the promotional poster!

You can see more commercials — one featuring each member for each day of the week — at the post by AKB48-Daily linked here.

Oh, and these commercial themes are also going to be worked into a new AKb48 music video.  Here is the “short version”. The record company does not trust me with the long version. It is still 1:30 of funny.

Starlight: From the Sun to Neptune. Not all that long this time!

Kimonos on Monday: Yui Yokoyama – Part III – Special Collection

This week we take a look at some of the other Yuihan kimono outfits. These are a few odds-and-ends which did not fit to the theme of the last two posts. This gallery will span several years, while my mind wanders …

This is young Yui soon after she joined AKB48. What a beautiful, fresh face. She would grow to be one of my favorites.

Ha ha. I really went back in time here. Yes, that is Yui! Here she is enjoying the bright sunshine in her little kimono outfit. I don’t know what kind of cookie that is.  Can someone tell me what she is eating?

This one is a little more recent (about three years ago).  This is probably my favorite kimono outfit of hers. I have a full-length shot of this kimono in my “No Politics” page (see my main pages).

Oh, goodness gracious! Do you remember how ravishing Yui looked in that “Kodoku na Hoshizora” music video? Here she is getting ready to perform in the video. Of course, a good foot rub between takes may help the young idol relax.

“Not Yet? If you say so Yuihan. I think you need that foot rub right NOW!”

Nice Zen-like perspective. Was it Yui who did the raking? I wish the photographer was less worried about showing the Zen gravel, and more interested in those tootsies. Perhaps I could be of service? LOVING THAT PURPLE!

That HAS to feel good Yui! … and might I suggest also a …. well .. you know …

I do not know the where and why of this shot. I know it is for a movie, and that is it. Of course Yuihan is “movie star beautiful” … maybe too beautiful for Hollywood.

On the web  site www.viki.com there is a program about Yui Yokoyama in Kimono.  During this recent special TV program, Yuihan takes the viewer on a tour of Kyoto … her birthplace city! Of course, there is A LOT of walking … which might make her feet tired … and so … you know …

“Follow your guide, AKB48’s Yui Yokoyama, as she takes you on a tour of the dazzling city. The unique colors of Japan have been expressed in its history, ever since ancient times. This history encompasses Kyoto’s culture and the colors of traditions that have been passed down. The vivid colors of cooking, the rich colors of architectural structures, the vibrant colors of shrine archways… Yui Yokoyama encounters various aspects of culture, artisans, and cuisine, all steeped in the beautiful colors of Kyoto. © KANSAI TELECASTING CORPORATION”

Dang it! I clicked on it …  The program is not available in my region!

(Denny kicks trash can, stubs toe, calls out in pain…)

OW .. now I’m the one who needs a foot rub … OUCH …

OK, right after this you can wear the next kimono Yui : )

Kimonos on Monday: Yui Yokoyama in Kimono – Part II

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More Yui Yokoyama in kimono! 

I am a “BIG FAN” of yours Yuihan!!!

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Yui Yokoyama is always lovely in kimono or yukata.  

Up for more Yuihan next week? Part III next time … 

PS: They did not have a Yui-in-kimono video on YouTube, but here she is dressed as a military man and courting Yuko Oshima in an old AKBINGO “Danso” sketch.

Kimonos on Monday: Yui Yokoyama … (gulp) … Yuihan Kimono Fantasy: Part I

Yui Yokoyama barefoot in kimono! Have I died and gone to Nirvanna?

Yui Yokoyama ( Yokoyama Yui 横山由依) is one of my favorites in AKB48 and NMB48.  Yuihan also dazzled fans in the AKB subunit Not Yet. Not Yet was my second favorite subunit (after the WH7), but they disbanded after Yuko Oshima graduated.  Here is a link to a Not Yet music video. Yuihan is so pretty. It is notable in that she is about the only dancer who could distract me away from Yuko’s butt, … but I digress …

Get used to calling her “Boss”!

On December 8, 2014 (which is also Miss Yokoyama’s birthday, born in Kyoto 12-8-92), it was revealed that she would succeed Minami Takahashi as General Director of AKB48! She will be second only to Akimoto-san — after Takamina graduates later this year. I think that Yokoyama-san will be up to the challenge of keeping the AKB girls in line. She is smart and tough.  Although, I would say that if Ms. Yokoyama were my boss, I would not mind it if I were ever “called on the carpet” … if you know what I mean.

Please enjoy this Yui Yokoyama fantasy … Part II next time!

 

“Kodoku na Hoshizora” by AKB48: Is it “art” … or do I just have a dirty mind?

AKB48 Team A  “Kodoku na Hoshizora” song and music video.

Watch the music video here on the wonderful Jpopsuki.tv web site.  A new window will open for Jpopsuki linked here.

http://www.jpopsuki.tv/category/video/AKB48-Team-A—Kodoku-Na-Hoshizora-%2528eng-subbed%2529/de348894133a1dd04cf3eea470170259/18

Edit: Jpopsuki is out of business — please see the new link below. Sorry no subs there.

https://vk.com/video-25293054_163576592

Make sure to view full screen in order to appreciate the period art!

click images to view full size

This was an amazing AKB video, and you will not find it on YouTube.  The story takes place during the Tokugawa Shogunate-era in Japan.  We are taken to a scene in the era’s Ukiyo (浮世, ) or “Floating World”.  This is the pleasure area, or “red light district” of brothels and tea houses in Edo.

The story centers on a character played by Mayu Watanabe.  She plays an Edo prostitute who is in love with another prostitute played by Rina Kawaei.  The haunting lyrics describe a desperate love that can never be.

When I first viewed this, I thought that the music video contained much more lesbian erotica than it actually does. There is much that is inferred, and the camera switches at particular moments.  There is A LOT of teasing (e.g., at time 2:26, Mayu leans forward as if to kiss Rina, but the camera switches to show that Mayu is just whispering a secret into Rina’s ear).  I daresay that the music itself has a very sexy and seductive sound … but then again, maybe I just have a dirty mind. One becomes open to suggestion here.  This music video is done very tastefully.  Upon later viewing. I was better able to enjoy the art, kimono costumes and lyrics.  There is no vulgarity, but it does tell the story of  lesbian passion and longing – something that is rarely told in popular music.  It is an elaborate music video, and is another reason why I like AKB48.  I liked the kimonos of course, and the tapestries, and I especially loved those “Sitka deer” statutes.  It is hoped that after viewing, readers will want to research more about this period of Japanese culture and history.

          “I beg you shooting stars …”

As always, Thank You to Stage 48 for providing a source of lyrical translations.  Thanks to Jpopsuki users “mochichan”,  “abilien” and “spacelion139” for lyric transcription and time setting.  You did an amazing job with the English Subtitles!  Thank you Mr. Yasushi Akimoto-san for being a creative genius.  His lyrics are wonderful:  They sound great sung in Japanese, and are still  mystically beautiful as translated into English below:

English Translation: “The Lonely Starry Sky”

While feeling around in the dark
I searched for a faint light
I’ve been lost in the forest of my heart
Since the day I met you

Please tell me, shooting stars
How long must I wait here?
For the sake of this irreplaceable love
I am now merely looking up at a time of solitude…

Near the thin purple dawn
I found hope in the sky
Even if you cannot embrace me
Having you by my side is enough

I beg you, shooting stars
Let this love shine for eternity
If love is enveloped by myriad clouds
My sigh will become the wind, an illusion that will reach it

For the sake of this irreplaceable love
I am now merely looking up at a time of solitude…

Loving one another
I do not want to call it a miracle

Nothing can be seen
That light is still far in the distance

Loving one another
Such a thing is always fate

The stars are silently
Waiting for that day to arrive

It took approximately one year for this starlight to reach my world.