So I was lurking on AsianJunkie, and I saw an interesting conversation...

[DocumentaLy]

They had a post about Nishino Kana's crap new video (which everyone hated, surprise surprise). One of the conversations caught my eye, and I wondered if the people here had any answers?

 

R: Aside from Namie, haven't all the established women in J-Pop been mailing it in for a pretty long time now? Kana's so bored, she couldn't even be bothered to stand up for her PV filming.

 

P: It ain't just the established women. It's also the 100+ member girl groups. I can't remember the last J-pop song I actually liked; it's prob been years. This prob explains why some Japanese people have been flying to Korea to make it in kpop since they do put a bit more effort into trying to make catchy music (compared to Japan currently). But I will still always be interested in J-pop and their celebrities because they are often all just so pretty (and it's often their natural born faces, of course there are exceptions like Tomomi Itano).

 

M: screaming @ Tomomi Itano. I also wouldn't save at least half of the Johnny boys, but when there are people that label Aiba Masaki as an "ikemen"... well... yeah. There was a discussion going on Arama in a recent post (the one about the Brave Bro j-pop group) questioning how there are so many new producers surfacing showing how to do great and innovative stuff in their respective genres and that they should be hired work with the mainstream acts/J-pop genre more often and I agree, but unfortunately we all know it's not really about music in the end...

 

P: Yeah, what has happened to J-pop???? How did it all become so terrible???? Can someone provide some analysis on this? Me want to know. I mean, yes it's all about profits blah blah. But there used to be a time when J-pop was profitable AND good, and actually exported to other countries as a cultural good.

 

A: well...there's JuJu, and Band-Maid, and SCANDAL and Gogo Nana ni San Ni Rei. I'd say they're making good musics...

 

 

 

R2: Yeah, only E-girls have really been doing it for me of the late.

[Jeffrey Jung]

Lmao @ Tomochin's diss

[Ureshige]

So they basically just sum up Jpop as boring by just watching a few mainstream music videos.

[SeeYaWithYou]

5572320 is literally an idol group

 

http://www.jpopsuki.tv/video/Go-Go-Nana-Ni-San-Ni-Rei---Hanseiki-Yuutousei/c618e887ff3241ce7cd14f4feba5d920

 

is

 

 

[Hello Bubble]

They must have phD in all J-Pop artists for getting at such conclusion

[SEWER RAT]

KOUMAI WILL SAVE JAPAN FROM UGLY NO TALENT IDOLS

 

https://vimeo.com/157009236

[midorinomeme]

I'm going to go out on a limb here.  The only Jpop I like anymore is Koda Kumi (barring her crazy antics and women's womb opinion incident).  Other than that, I sometimes enjoy Perfume but the rest feels like utter crap anymore.

 

Kuraki Mai and Utada Hikaru, come save us! 

 

Excuse me while I go put Secret of My Heart on repeat for a few hours

[buffybubbles]

I agree e-girls have been stellar as of late

otherwise they probably just need to branch out

[Mankanshoku]

Instead of calling the entirety of jpop terrible maybe they should ask/look around for some new content that they would like????

I'm sure it's not that hard.

 

[SAYAKA]

mainstream jpop IS boring right now and when i say mainstream i mean the groups that very casual fans would know. There are songs ive been liking this year but not enough casual songs. 

[Sun☼Shine]

 

mainstream jpop IS boring right now and when i say mainstream i mean the groups that very casual fans would know. There are songs ive been liking this year but not enough casual songs. 

 

 

I'm going to agree with this.

It's like the surface (what the public sees or what seems popular) is incredibly boring, at least for international fans.

If I'm looking for feel good fun songs (that aren't of the bland variety), they're not there.

But there are a lot of groups doing fantastic, innovated music.

Sometimes you need fluff. But even fluff has to have some standards.

5572320 is literally an idol group

 

http://www.jpopsuki.tv/video/Go-Go-Nana-Ni-San-Ni-Rei---Hanseiki-Yuutousei/c618e887ff3241ce7cd14f4feba5d920

 

is

 

 

 

Is 5572320 ever going to comeback?

I need another single from them.

[MimiB]

E-girls, Dream, and Flower hasn't really done enough for me but I'm starting to really like Happiness songs because they're getting solid imo

[correcaminos20]

They had a post about Nishino Kana's crap new video (which everyone hated, surprise surprise). One of the conversations caught my eye, and I wondered if the people here had any answers?

 

 

Exactly what about that conversation interested you?

As I see it is just someone stating the obvious about female singers, and the rest just being nostalgic about past times.

 

If Shiina Ringo counts as an established woman in J-Pop then she's doing better than any other early 2000 female singer right now.

[Midna]

Mainstream hasn't been good since, like, 2012.

 

Im happy with the indie acts I've discovered though.

[partaymaker]

Mainstream jpop is awful not even going to lie

[DocumentaLy]

 

mainstream jpop IS boring right now and when i say mainstream i mean the groups that very casual fans would know. There are songs ive been liking this year but not enough casual songs. 

 

 

 

Mainstream hasn't been good since, like, 2012.

 

Im happy with the indie acts I've discovered though.

 

 

I agree.

 

 

Exactly what about that conversation interested you?

As I see it is just someone stating the obvious about female singers, and the rest just being nostalgic about past times.

 

If Shiina Ringo counts as an established woman in J-Pop then she's doing better than any other early 2000 female singer right now.

 

The question about what happened to JPop is what interested me most, and I wanted to get the opinions of others.

 

Ringo is never really counted by international fans among that group, even though even though she was very successful then and is doing better than pretty much all of them now. Like if you go to a site like JPC or AHS, there is more activity in the threads for people who are hasbeens or never weres than in her thread, even though she is quite active right now and having success.

[CoconutJump]

LDH is the future of JPOP!!!! 

GO E GIRLS AND EXILE TRIBE GROUPS!!!!!!!!!!!

[Hemlock]

Mainstream hasn't been good since, like, 2012.

 

Im happy with the indie acts I've discovered though.

Must be why 99% of your profile is mainstream artists 

[correcaminos20]

The question about what happened to JPop is what interested me most, and I wanted to get the opinions of others.

Well, I can't really tell since it's only been 6 years since I know the mainstream J-Pop scene and it hasn't changed much. Before 2010 I was mostly into anime related bands like AKFG, UVERworld, etc which are/were mainstream anyway, but I didn't have the full view of the scene. 

Anyway looking at the Oricon year rankings I don't see much difference besides some change of names: AKFG/Tokyo Jihen/Uverworld/Orange Range to Sekai no Owari/Gesu/Back Number or SMAP to Arashi; Morning Musume to AKB48, etc.

Besides most of the complains about today's scene come from people who want Ayumi Hamasaki to be popular again, so basically only one artist making a comeback would be enough to change their opinion.

 

Mainstream hasn't been good since, like, 2012.

 

Example? 

[eyeless]

Is 5572320 ever going to comeback?

I need another single from them.

 

[Midna]

Must be why 99% of your profile is mainstream artists

But it's only like a few? I only follow the ones I've liked from before and then I just listen to songs from the early 2000s and stuff.

[Midna]

Well, I can't really tell since it's only been 6 years since I know the mainstream J-Pop scene and it hasn't changed much. Before 2010 I was mostly into anime related bands like AKFG, UVERworld, etc which are/were mainstream anyway, but I didn't have the full view of the scene.

Anyway looking at the Oricon year rankings I don't see much difference besides some change of names: AKFG/Tokyo Jihen/Uverworld/Orange Range to Sekai no Owari/Gesu/Back Number or SMAP to Arashi; Morning Musume to AKB48, etc.

Besides most of the complains about today's scene come from people who want Ayumi Hamasaki to be popular again, so basically only one artist making a comeback would be enough to change their opinion.

 

 

Example?

For me it's mainly the genre I guess. There were a lot more pop tunes I liked back then. I just find it harder to get into songs now and I only stick to acts I know and likes before. I haven't liked anyone new since then that's purely mainstream? i could just be super lazy though lol

[MMC]

of course there are exceptions like Tomomi Itano).

 

M: screaming @ Tomomi Itano.

Tomomi Itano is not Namie, but at least she tries to (and often struggle to) bring catchy music to the table. Hide & Seek is not bad, for example. It could have been a very good single with a less cheap and more polished production.  

 

Anyway, what ruined the mainstream pop scene is the idol (or boyband, girlband, call it whatever you want) boom. The labels have stopped lunching new soloist popstars for years now, and that's why most people are still stuck with all the has-beens. Kana is the last Japanese popstar and she's became more predictable than an AKB48's bikini PV in may.

The mainstream scene lost its edge which is what appealed to the international audience. Nobody's looking for boring or predictable music. And nobody's is looking for Western produced B-sides or rejects neither. J-pop used to take the Western trends and make it their own. Today nobody's doing this except for the indie acts which is where all the new talented producers are, but the mainstream acts don't work with them.

[choa501]

I think what happened is that these people got into J-Pop when urban was the trend so it was easier for them to find those Westernized catchy bops they seek so much, but Japan has since moved more and more towards rock and folk.

 

Another thing is that what these fans basically want is more Kodas and Namies singing and dancing top 40 like songs like Korean idols and soloists like Hyori and Hyunna(?) do. That's why even if there are Japanese songwriters producing and selling those songs they don't stan them. They like what they're doing and appreciate the effort but that's the end of it.

[Midna]

I think what happened is that these people got into J-Pop when urban was the trend so it was easier for them to find those Westernized catchy bops they seek so much, but Japan has since moved more and more towards rock and folk.

 

Another thing is that what these fans basically want is more Kodas and Namies singing and dancing top 40 like songs like Korean idols and soloists like Hyori and Hyunna(?) do. That's why even if there are Japanese songwriters producing and selling those songs they don't stan them. They like what they're doing and appreciate the effort but that's the end of it.

And then all our urban faves started making boring cellphone ballads...