International idols in Japan

Japan has no shortage of idols and fans who adore them, both inside and outside the country. However, some of those international fans take their passion one step further, making the journey to Japan with hopes of breaking into the idol scene. Yet others inspired by the Japanese idol scene become performers in their own countries. But for those who end up in Japan, many roads lead to the idol stage. Some first come to Japan as students, enthusiastic about Japanese subculture, and either through cosplaying, building a presence on video-sharing platforms, working in maid cafes, or other routes, they find an opportunity to perform at events. Sometimes, they are recruited by an entertainment agency and make their debut in an idol group.

Some examples are Manx businesswoman, YouTuber, singer and dancer Beckii Cruel, who was in a band called Cruel Angels in 2009, Austrian YouTuber and cosplayer Keeki-hime, who joined the idol group Tone Jewel in 2012, American designer Amina Du Jean ("Aminyan") who joined the idol group Chick Girls in 2015, and Canadian twins Ally & Sally, who joined Japanese idol unit SeiSHUN Gakuen in 2017 and founded its Canadian sister group Seishun Youth Academy in 2018.

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Idol International

If you're interested in seeing a great example of multinational idols performing, there is an excellent opportunity to do so coming up on December 14th at Shin Koenji Loft in the Koenji neighborhood of Tokyo. Even if you can't be there in person, the event will be streamed and archived.

This event will feature the first and last performance of the multinational idol group Kurofune-chan!

The one-time group was formed by Alice, who hails from Saint Lucia. A former member of idol group EMBRACE and previously a member of indie idol unit Maidoremi, she has enjoyed her time as an underground idol in Japan. However, much to the chagrin of her fans and friends in this country, she has decided to move to the UK.

We reached out to Alice to find out more.

Before saying goodbye, she wanted to have one last concert. "Since I’m leaving Japan and this I my last chance, I sent messages to the girls I wanted in the group and kurofune-chan was born."

In addition to Alice, Kurofune-chan is composed of Mexican cosplayer りりあ Riria, cosplayer 眠夢ヰらあや Raaya Nemui, who has both British and Japanese heritage, American idol, model and voice actress Heidi, who also used to work at famous maid cafe At-home, and finally, Italian cosplay celebrity, promotional model, YouTuber and actress ユリコ・タイガー Yuriko Tiger, who is affiliated with TwinPlanet.

"Riria was a member of both of my previous groups, so we’ve been performing together for two years now. The other members all had idol/performance experience but had never met each other before now," explains Alice.

But what about the name Kurofune-chan? "I came up with it for this group - other than it being the word for the first boats that arrived from America to Japan, it’s also used for things from overseas that get popular here. I thought it would be funny and it was - the jp fans think it’s hilarious."

@yurikotiger アイドルする事になりました✨。#黒船ちゃん #日本と海外の違い #アイドル #idolgroup #自己紹介 ♬ グッバイ宣言 - Chinozo

Here are the members of Kurofune-chan practicing:

We were also curious about the cute costumes featured in the photos. According to Alice, they are specially customized for this specific occasion!

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Event Details

• Name: アイドル International | Idol International
• Date: December 14th, 2021
• Venue: 新高円寺LOFT X | Shin Koenji Loft X (Google Maps)
• Time: Venue opens at 18:00, Show begins at 19:20 JST (convert to your timezone)
• Door charge: 2,500 JPY + 1 drink
• For those attending in person, reserve tickets in advance using this form to get a free random cheki of your favorite member!
• Livestream: 1,000 JPY / Tickets
• Note: Livestream should be archived for two weeks after the event