Onyanko Club History
In 1985, a producer at Fuji TV, Yasushi Akimoto had the idea to create a large scale girl group. The concept was to have a girl group with a girl for everybody. The more members in a group, the more chances of finding a favorite member. He called this group Onyanko Club,with onyanko being Japanese for kitten, and started the group of with a foundation of eleven members, each one assigned a number. Before the release of their first single they began hosting their own show on Fuji TV titled "Yuyake Nyan Nyan" (Sunset Meow Meow) which was a variety-type show in which the girls would showcase their various talents, perform skits and interview guests. The show had only been airing for two weeks when the tabloid magazine "Shukan Bunshun" published photographs of six members smoking outside the studio. The girls in the photograph were all under age which meant what they did was illegal and had to be dealt with accordingly. Fuji TV swiftly replaced the six girls and moved the show from Monday at 5:00 pm to Friday at 5:00 pm, which was considered to be a worse time slot. The show also switched from being broadcast nationally to locally. The six girls who were fired came to be refered to by fans as the "phantom kittens" due to their complete disappearance from the entertainment business and how little is known about their post-Onyanko Club lives.Despite the negative press surrounding the scandal, Onyanko Club bounced back with the release of their first single "Sailor Fuku wo Nugasanaide" (Don't Make Me Take Off My School Uniform). Their popularity sky rocketed and their show was switched back to a national broadcast.
Onyanko Club's next single was titled "Oyoshininatte Teacher" (Be Good, Teacher) and the next year they released a single titled "Otto Chikan" (Uh-Oh, Pervert) The Japanese public was being to notice a pattern and Onyanko Club songs became somewhat infamous for having strong sexual tones. The girls sang about quite a few taboo subjects, such as students flirting with their teacher in order to increase their grades or the pressure girls feel to lose their virginity, but they would sing these songs from a young persons point of view in a non-preachy way. This style was relatively new at the time, brought in to vogue by such hits as Momoe Yamaguchi's "Aoi Kajistu" and Akina Nakamori's "Shoujo A". Today songs of this style are quite common, as anyone who is familiar with AKB48's discography can tell you, but at the time it was pretty controversial. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, their singles released at the height of their fame never failed to hit number one on the charts.
By far the biggest appeal in Onyanko Club was the quantity of it's members. Every young person in Japan had a favorite "Nyan-Nyan" (member) who they would support. Onyanko Club mania took over Japan; fans would buy piles of posters, photobooks and merchandise of the group or their favorite member, nearly every idol magazine released in the mid eighties had a Nyan-Nyan somewhere within it's pages, their TV show ratings were through the roof and they were frequent invited to be guest stars on other TV shows. They even released a movie in 1986 called Onyanko the Movie: One Shot Danger!
Reaching a grand total of 54 members, a lot of Nyan Nyans never really got the chance to shine, so the concept of sub groups were developed. "Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi" was a duo featuring Mamiko Takai and Yukiko Iwai. " Nyangilas" was a four member group featuring Aki Kihara, Mika Nagoya, Rika Tatsumi, and Mako Shiraishi. And last but not least was "Ushirogami Hikaretai" featuring the three Nyan Nyans, Akiko Ikuina, Shizuka Kodo and Makiko Saito.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end. In 1987, just three short years after they had formed, Onyanko Club shocked the nation by announcing they were breaking up. With many members aiming towards solo careers and the interest of the Japanese public turning away from bubble-gum pop music in favor of heavier rock, the time was right for the girls to go their seperate ways. Onyanko Club and the three sub groups performed one last time together in September of 1987. It was an emotional moment for the band and the audience. The group ended their concert appropriately with the song "Jaa Ne" which translated means "See Ya". Since then, many members have moved on to successful solo careers while others opted to lead a normal life. All the members are currently alive and well, with some continuing to record songs.
Onyanko Club's next single was titled "Oyoshininatte Teacher" (Be Good, Teacher) and the next year they released a single titled "Otto Chikan" (Uh-Oh, Pervert) The Japanese public was being to notice a pattern and Onyanko Club songs became somewhat infamous for having strong sexual tones. The girls sang about quite a few taboo subjects, such as students flirting with their teacher in order to increase their grades or the pressure girls feel to lose their virginity, but they would sing these songs from a young persons point of view in a non-preachy way. This style was relatively new at the time, brought in to vogue by such hits as Momoe Yamaguchi's "Aoi Kajistu" and Akina Nakamori's "Shoujo A". Today songs of this style are quite common, as anyone who is familiar with AKB48's discography can tell you, but at the time it was pretty controversial. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, their singles released at the height of their fame never failed to hit number one on the charts.
By far the biggest appeal in Onyanko Club was the quantity of it's members. Every young person in Japan had a favorite "Nyan-Nyan" (member) who they would support. Onyanko Club mania took over Japan; fans would buy piles of posters, photobooks and merchandise of the group or their favorite member, nearly every idol magazine released in the mid eighties had a Nyan-Nyan somewhere within it's pages, their TV show ratings were through the roof and they were frequent invited to be guest stars on other TV shows. They even released a movie in 1986 called Onyanko the Movie: One Shot Danger!
Reaching a grand total of 54 members, a lot of Nyan Nyans never really got the chance to shine, so the concept of sub groups were developed. "Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi" was a duo featuring Mamiko Takai and Yukiko Iwai. " Nyangilas" was a four member group featuring Aki Kihara, Mika Nagoya, Rika Tatsumi, and Mako Shiraishi. And last but not least was "Ushirogami Hikaretai" featuring the three Nyan Nyans, Akiko Ikuina, Shizuka Kodo and Makiko Saito.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end. In 1987, just three short years after they had formed, Onyanko Club shocked the nation by announcing they were breaking up. With many members aiming towards solo careers and the interest of the Japanese public turning away from bubble-gum pop music in favor of heavier rock, the time was right for the girls to go their seperate ways. Onyanko Club and the three sub groups performed one last time together in September of 1987. It was an emotional moment for the band and the audience. The group ended their concert appropriately with the song "Jaa Ne" which translated means "See Ya". Since then, many members have moved on to successful solo careers while others opted to lead a normal life. All the members are currently alive and well, with some continuing to record songs.