Chapter 153: Another Form of Idol

"By the way,"

Before parting, as he had done the last time, Eisho asked a seemingly out-of-the-box question: "Do the two of you like Asia?"

Asking about pandas had been a sudden whim of Eisho's, but asking about Asia was the exact question Yosui Inoue had posed to two young girls before writing a song for Puffy.

It was only after receiving the girls' enthusiastic "We love it!" response that the famous hit song *Asia no Junshin* (True Asia) came to be.

At this moment, although the person asking had changed and the setting of the question was entirely different, both girls replied without a moment's hesitation: "Of course we love it!"

Moreover, after saying "love," Yumi Yoshimura blinked, a sly look in her eyes as she deliberately added, "And by the way, Eisho-san, I really like pandas too."

"Is that so... Well, that's wonderful," Eisho said with a smile.

...

In the original history, Puffy was scheduled to debut next May. Even though they hadn't met their producer Tamio Okuda yet, the time for them to cross paths was likely not far off. Therefore, if Eisho wanted to secure Puffy for himself, he had to move fast.

Without a moment to delay, after bidding farewell to Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura, Eisho immediately contacted Okazaki Tadao, the director of Production Department One at Sony Music and the executive producer for Kazuyo Kawamoto.

Within a record label, a singer often had more than one producer behind them. Figures like Tetsuya Komuro, Takeshi Kobayashi, and the role Eisho was currently playing were strictly "music producers." As the name suggested, music producers were only responsible for the musical planning of a singer, such as selecting lyrics and composition, and determining the musical style and route.

Beyond that—such as the budget for Kazuyo Kawamoto's debut single, the exact debut date, the planning and cycle of the album release, the channels and quantities for distribution and stocking, as well as subsequent promotions—a whole series of non-musical powers were entirely controlled by Okazaki Tadao.

As a powerful figure in a major record company, getting to see him immediately upon request was somewhat difficult. After making an appointment in advance, two days after meeting Ami Onuki and Yumi Yoshimura, Eisho met with Okazaki Tadao in the small reception room inside his office.

"It's been a while, Eisho-kun." Okazaki Tadao held a very favorable impression of Eisho. Consequently, after getting acquainted, when they met privately or spoke on the phone, his address for Eisho had become much more affectionate. "Is this visit today also to discuss matters concerning Ms. Kawamoto?"

"Actually, I have a question I'd like to consult with Okazaki-san about." Eisho didn't answer directly, instead turning the question back on him: "How does Okazaki-san view the current idol market?"

"Idols, huh..." Okazaki Tadao mused for a moment. "To be honest, the current idol market is terribly difficult to navigate. On the male idol side, the momentum is on an upward trajectory, but the entire soil for male idols to survive has almost completely been penetrated by Johnny's. For other companies to try and step in is not only extremely difficult, but also carries the risk of offending Johnny's."

As for female idols, Okazaki Tadao offered a wry smile. "After experiencing the phase over the past few years where female idols were collectively hit by scandals and had their personas shattered, the so-called 'pure, neat, and beautiful' idols long ago became self-deceptive gimmicks in the eyes of the audience. If anyone wants to launch an influential female idol again, I imagine very few companies would be willing to do so."

The outside world has always been far more harsh toward women than toward men, and this was even more pronounced in the entertainment industry.

"That may be true," Eisho weighed his words, "however, the market's demand for idols definitely still exists. It's just that the way this demand exists is undergoing a transformation."

"I agree with that point," Okazaki Tadao nodded. "Although idols are currently in decline, I must admit that the packaging techniques used for idols in the past were actually very high-end and highly feasible methods. Therefore, when the company launches singers who aren't quite powerhouse vocalists, it still intentionally or unintentionally borrows packaging techniques from the idol playbook."

"So, even though the idol market is tough to work in, it isn't truly dead. It's just that going forward, the way they exist needs to shift along with the changing demands of the audience."

"Shift?" Okazaki Tadao asked. "You aren't suggesting using idol-packaging methods on people who possess talent, but not overwhelming talent, and taking the route of vague positioning, are you?"

"The second half is correct, but the first half isn't quite right," Eisho pondered. "I just thought of something while watching the rise of SMAP and Kinki Kids: there is no longer any need to mold idols according to the old templates. Or rather, today's SMAP and Kinki Kids are less 'idols' in the traditional sense and more 'artists'."

"However, making young girls play the fool or do comedy is not an easy trick to pull off; it might even backfire," Okazaki Tadao remarked.

Eisho corrected him, "A non-orthodox idol template doesn't necessarily mean acting foolish or doing comedy. Take the extravagant costumes of the past and the meticulously calculated, dreamy language—these things were not only distant from the general public, but after going through everything that happened recently, those 'out of reach' qualities have become a joke."

"Therefore, why don't we simply target the very things the public dislikes, and launch idols who freely speak their minds, wear whatever clothes they want, possess strong personalities, do not pander to the audience through their performances or forced personas, and whom teenagers can even aspire to copy? Of course, 'idol' here doesn't mean the Japanese *idol*, but rather a *star*. To be frank, launching a traditional idol during an idol ice age is simply asking for trouble, so even if the core is that of an idol, we must never use the name of an idol."

"That sounds quite interesting..." Okazaki Tadao nodded. "Still, why bring this up so suddenly? Surely you don't have some new idea regarding Ms. Kawamoto, do you?"

"Actually, a few days ago when I went to oversee a recording session for Ms. Kawamoto, I ran into two backing vocalists from your esteemed company in the studio. Both young girls are extremely cute, have decent vocal skills, and possess incredibly likable personalities, which made me think of all this. I believe it's definitely worth a try."

"That may be so," Okazaki Tadao gently reminded him, "are you planning to produce these two as well? While being scouted by you would certainly be good luck for them, Ms. Kawamoto hasn't even officially debuted yet."

"Indeed. Until Ms. Kawamoto's report card comes in, being skeptical about this is entirely justified," Eisho said quite frankly. "It's just that because I feel this concept is genuinely interesting, I couldn't wait to share it with Okazaki-san."