missjoongie ([info]missjoongie) wrote in [info]dbsg,
@ 2008-06-20 01:11:00
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Current mood: intimidated
Entry tags:question

Tohoshinki's popularity in Japan?
I was talking to some of my friends in Japan and they were saying Tohoshinki is still not really quite up there..
this makes me wonder how long Tohoshinki will be catching up with this going forth from Japan and Korea in the years to come. I have faith in Tohoshinki but I guess I'm a bit worried, I also hear things such as not a lot of japan residents listen to them because of their accent? Now I''m starting to wonder how BoA got so popular? Did she perfect her japanese accent or just appear on a lot of Japanese shows? How do you think our boys are doing in Japan?


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[info]chupark
2008-06-20 05:28 am UTC (link)
i don't think it has to do much with accent. for the most part, japan is pretty open minded. and the reason why boa got so popular was cause her songs were good. and she was good at performing. so it just takes something AMAZING to just sweep japan off their feet. and i don't think thsk has done that yet. because in my honest opinion, their japanese songs are just mediocre for me.

but as opposed to being known nationwide, they're still popular in japan. they have a pretty strong and decent fan base.

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(no subject) - [info]missjoongie, 2008-06-20 05:34 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]chupark, 2008-06-20 02:24 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]veggieincoma, 2008-06-20 06:46 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]cruel_disorder, 2008-06-20 02:14 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]chupark, 2008-06-20 02:31 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]veggieincoma, 2008-06-20 06:18 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]chupark, 2008-06-20 06:20 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]veggieincoma, 2008-06-20 06:26 pm UTC

[info]miszbee
2008-06-20 05:36 am UTC (link)
hmmm..I don't know what to say...
it's kinda sad after hearing what you said...
but to be honest...it's the truth...
yeah I have friends studying over there in Japan and not half of them know about Tohoshinki...
to think again...yeah they did attract many fans going to their concert and they said almost 400000 people came right??
but I think almost the same people came to the concerts...
I mean I knew someone who bought tickets like to almost 5 venues...
and sometimes the fan outside Japan were the one who came...
there's another girl I knew that went to all their 'T' tour..
but whatever it is..I really hope that Tohoshinki will do great in Japan!!!
because they did like everything they can and they deserve to be famous...
they really got the talent and of course looks *yummy*
Tohoshinki hwaiting!!!

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[info]clicheterms
2008-06-20 05:40 am UTC (link)
they're still pretty much considered foreigners, but i do believe they're getting there. i think it still comes as a bit of a downer for some of us 'cause the korean media continue to praise them like they've secured a spot on top already when all they did was top the oricon charts twice. a praiseworthy feat, but not the end of the road, y'know?
we just gotta give them time.

<3 tiffo

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[info]mishiro_san
2008-06-20 05:44 am UTC (link)
I agree with chupark on the accent issue. Japan is a very open market for example American albums are easy to find there and they play American music while I was shopping was in Osaka. You can find some korean music as well. If I remember correctly, my friend bought Super Junior's cd in Japan as well.

Anyway from what i heard when talking to my japanese friends last summer they are kind of popular but not really popular.

I think the boys are doing okay in Japan. I think they might need to work on their music a little bit more though. I'm still not used to listening to them in Japanese. To me they still sound kind of strange. Can't really explain it. But I love watching them on Japanese tv shows though.
Good luck to them in the future.

(Reply to this)(Thread)
(no subject) - [info]pirating, 2008-06-20 05:03 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]mishiro_san, 2008-06-20 05:54 pm UTC

[info]ibelieve
2008-06-20 05:47 am UTC (link)
Honestly, I prefer their Japanese songs over the Korean ones.

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(no subject) - [info]sheaux, 2008-06-20 07:30 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]yukidama, 2008-06-20 11:47 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]itsukanomelody, 2008-06-20 12:10 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]morethan_less, 2008-06-20 01:10 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]xxelinaxx, 2008-06-20 06:37 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]bellishness, 2008-06-20 07:41 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]machine_of_july, 2008-06-20 10:09 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]allstarvn, 2008-06-21 04:17 am UTC

[info]queen_eddie
2008-06-20 05:48 am UTC (link)
I was reading something (can't remember what) and they did a survay and they have like a 69% reconition rating in Japan. That means that almost 70% of the general population of Japan knows who they are. That is really good.
You also have to consider that they didn't really start going on many japanese shows till early last year because they were still learning the language.
I think that one of the reasons that Boa got popular so fast is that she already knew Japanese when she first went to Japan so she could promote herself right away. She also didn't have the same issues that tvxq had. They had to work on breaking away from the idol image because in Japan JE idol groups rule.
I think that they have not really gained big popularity till earlier this year with Purple Line and their T album.
True, they may not be the top group in Japan like they are in Korea but they are still refeared to as Asia's top group even in Japan.

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[info]unnamedangel
2008-06-20 06:13 am UTC (link)
To me it's simply because of JAPAN itself. Japan has their own style and taste.Beside they already have JE boys.
A DBSK fan was critizing me when I said THSK is NOT more popular than JE. It's true, JE boys are all over the place, drama, CM, music, tv shows, magazines. THSK still has a long way to go to top JE, but this year they managed to get at least the same level as JPOP artist [not JE 'though], and I'm proud of our boys.

Off topic: in Asia L'arc en ciel is also very popular ne? but the fact is, in Japan, they are not number one. And some Laruku fans I knew had a hard time to accept this fact.

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(no subject) - [info]revezauxetoiles, 2008-06-20 07:16 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]unnamedangel, 2008-06-20 07:19 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]noirecoulisse, 2008-06-20 12:59 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]azurehook, 2008-06-20 01:51 pm UTC

[info]psychedelicred
2008-06-20 06:35 am UTC (link)
i think it has to do with the gender thingy. boa is a girl and just how many female soloist are there in japanese? also there are too many pretty boys in japan! too many!!! besides if you think about it, tvxq's appeal is very different from the JE boys. I dont really listen to japanese music, the only songs i know are from tv dramas. all i can say is i prefer our korean boys music!

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(no subject) - [info]im4evaraqt, 2008-06-20 06:49 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]psychedelicred, 2008-06-20 07:26 am UTC

[info]emma_sky
2008-06-20 06:52 am UTC (link)
imho, they're popular in Japan, more so this year. of course not as popular as the JE bands because that is their home ground, who can compete with that.
however, I think the demographics in Japan are very different. Their main fans are women in their 20s, 30s, 40s. and so yes, I can understand if the popularity question was directed towards fans on the younger side, the answer probably would not be a positive one.

In one HMV, they were in the Jpop section. and I've heard instances of some Trick singles being sold out at Tsutaya. They may be mostly in the world section but they've made it to the chart toppers section with Purple Line and Beautiful You. and Beautiful You has crossed the 80k mark, that single is hot cakes. maybe coz of Sennen Koiuta, dunno. and they're all over the magazine section. and they and their songs are on the radio quite a bit.

In the week before the finale of T tour, the front row seats of the last show was going in Japan Yahoo auction for as much as, I believe, KAT-TUN concerts. It was insane.

Bigeast fanclub is growing rapidly, and I believe some members have mentioned it's getting increasingly difficult to get into the fan events.

just my two cents.

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[info]sari_prix
2008-06-20 07:01 am UTC (link)
I don't think the accent is a problem cos i think boa's accent is worse lol
and they are pretty popular in japan i think, but JE is always there, being pretty and doing lovely fan service.

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[info]yuxo
2008-06-20 07:08 am UTC (link)
It's insanely hard to compete with JE: this is a fact.

If we're talking about talent, I think DBSK have already more than proved themselves. This is about decades of taste and preferences ingrained into a society.

So 5 years? I think they've already far exceeded everyone's expectations for success in Japan. They're amazing like that. =] And we know they'll just keep going. ♥

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[info]crazymyv
2008-06-20 07:20 am UTC (link)
They've been already on the top of the oricon charts so many times...
I think they're on a good way if they keep up~
and the accent is not a problem I guess, japan is all in all not very open minded when it comes to foreigners e.e

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[info]perriwynkkle
2008-06-20 07:28 am UTC (link)
I teach and live with Japanese girls, and from what I garnered from them is that they are popular in certain areas of Japan. In Osaka, where many of my girls are from, they said THSK isn't as "out there" as they are in Tokyo and Nagoya and the smaller cities surrounding.

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[info]dbskxlove
2008-06-20 07:32 am UTC (link)
Junsu said it took them two years before they could go on television shows, so basically, they weren't really exposed to the public until recently. They're not as popular as JE groups, but I'd say they're doing one hell of a great job in Japan.

If only they could appear on Music Station. That'll be sure to give them some exposure.

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(no subject) - [info]queen_eddie, 2008-06-20 07:43 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]tvxqjjang, 2008-06-20 08:41 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]dongbangnie, 2008-06-20 06:53 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]wanderingreen, 2008-06-20 08:56 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]extraenchanted, 2008-06-20 03:57 pm UTC

[info]sheaux
2008-06-20 07:37 am UTC (link)
and i think the boys are more reserved when appearing on japanese tv shows, as compared to korean tv shows~ honestly, i think on top of being able to sing, dance well, the boys are also glib and witty, and they can really act!

perhaps it's easier for other bands like Arashi, KAT-TUN, Kanjani8 to gain popularity cause they ARE in their own homeground, PLUS, they have waaaay more exposure than TVXQ does in Japan.. by exposure i'm referring to acting in dramas, appearing on gameshows, magazines etc.

i've been watching alot of jap dramas lately, and it doesn't fail to amaze me, how the members from boybands appear in soooo many different dramas.

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(no subject) - [info]dongbangnie, 2008-06-20 07:11 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]clicheterms, 2008-06-20 08:30 pm UTC

[info]wanderingreen
2008-06-20 08:54 am UTC (link)
^^ for a korean male group they're doing amazingly well. But are they as popular as other male groups like JE or EXILE are in Japan? Definitely not. I wouldn't blame those FCs for not seeing DBSK as competition in Japan, because those artists sell wayyy more on the average. Now if you're talking about the international/asian arena, that's a whole other ball game 8D

So I'd say THSK aren't insanely popular but they aren't obscure artists either in Japan. Right now they have a sizable fanbase that's built up through the years and I hope it only gets bigger with time =D

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[info]kimishim
2008-06-20 09:12 am UTC (link)
they're actually doing pretty well i think ^^ they've performed in all the places that new artists perform in when they finally are popular enough like the bokudan place (or however you spell it) and when you look at like the top 30 artists in japan in a magazine, the boys are always on there :D not to mention they're usually somewhere in 1-10th place when a new song comes out. and i don't think fans would be interested in them just because their accents, you see fans everywhere they go in japan now too

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[info]aredhel_87
2008-06-20 10:51 am UTC (link)
I second what someone else said. They're still considered foreigners, and the competition with JE artists is not easy (most of their singles or albums debut at n°1 and stay there a few weeks).
And it's not like they could do phtotobooks to get popular the same way girls can do if you think I'm talking about Leah Dizon, you're right.
And just consider how many singers and groups there are already, I don't think they're doing bad!

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[info]chenyan
2008-06-20 11:26 am UTC (link)
they started out as new artist. so i believe it takes alot of effort to make such a status like that. but their not that up yet, all i know is that people in japan know them now as tohoshink,about accent i don't think so. maybe is just of their hard word. that people in japan like their musics.
so i don't think it as to do with accent.

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[info]satomi_hearts
2008-06-20 11:49 am UTC (link)
They're never going to be as popular as any of the Japanese groups, unfortunately. Their Japanese is HEAPS better than before, when they did "O", my (Japanese) friends and family didn't even listen to them because their Japanese was a bit... weird. Now they think they're okay, but as [info]perriwynkkle said, they're only really popular in certain parts of Japan. Plus, their image is different to KAT-TUN and Arashi, I don't know how to explain it, other than that they're not Japanese. That's not to state the obvious, but if you look at SE7EN and TVXQ!, they're not Japanese, and so they're never going to be at the top of Japanese entertainment. I think it's amazing they even managed to collaborate on a song with Kumi Koda, and appeared on Music Station. AND they featured a lot in the PV. It's incredibly surprising. My (Japanese) partner just said he prefers Japanese bands simply because they're Japanese. And that even if he likes their songs, he'd still opt for a Japanese band because they're... Japanese.

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(no subject) - [info]satomi_hearts, 2008-06-20 11:52 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]heliomax, 2008-06-20 12:11 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]satomi_hearts, 2008-06-20 12:23 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]heliomax, 2008-06-20 12:25 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]cool_mint_ka, 2008-06-20 01:53 pm UTC

[info]heliomax
2008-06-20 12:11 pm UTC (link)
you have to consider that japan is a place in love with pop and rock. the boys are seen and marketed as a vocal group. vocal artists in japan are highly respected but are not as popular as your pop idol groups. thats just how things are.

i'd say it has a little to do with them not being japnese as well with the vocal group aspect and their music not quite being the typical japanese sound which is loved so much there.

then again...there are japanese artists who have been around forever and still don't quite get the recognition they deserve. *shrug* It's a hard market and for them to have the level of popularity they have is an achievement. give it time....they cant take over the whole world in a year (even though that would be hot....rulers of the world...aaah nice). ^__^

aaaand....I wish people would stop comparing them to je groups because they arent the same...two different kinds of artists

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[info]ajumma
2008-06-20 12:15 pm UTC (link)
They're still foreigners in the end and there's no way they can compare to the local JE groups. I wonder if appearing on variety shows and drama will boost their popularity. Dramas do wonder. Look at Bae Yong Jun and his legion of ajumma. But seriously, I think they'll get there eventually. I can only say that the Japanese are being fortunate without knowing it. I told this to Japanese fans over there when I was in Nagoya.

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[info]tsuyogari
2008-06-20 12:19 pm UTC (link)
I think the accent thing is one part of it. All the Japanese people I know said they didn't listen to BoA at first because her Japanese was accented/not that great. But as her Japanese improved (and she released more, etc.), they listened to her more.

Another thing is, yes, they are foreigners. And yes, Japan is rather xenophobic, even though that has sort of diminished in more recent years in major cities. Ethnic Koreans in Japan still get the short end of the stick. Just because they're all Asian doesn't mean it's a free ticket to stardom.

Solo artists (especially female) tend to have much more success in Japan. JE has a veritable choke-hold on the boy band market and they are EVERYWHERE. What THSK is facing is coming in as nobodies trying to compete with (in an American equivalent) *NSYNC or something. It's gonna take serious work, publicity, and time.

And my own personal feeling is that their Japanese work is mediocre at best. Heart, Mind, and Soul actually made me stop listening to them until "O" came out, and that was very cautiously (and I've been listening to them almost since debut!). If they want popularity, I think they're going to have to step it up a notch and really how their true potential. What I've seen is the same ballad-y pop stuff (minus Purple Line and a few others) regurgitated over and over.

Edited at 2008-06-20 12:20 pm UTC

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(no subject) - [info]satomi_hearts, 2008-06-20 12:27 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]ciarain, 2008-08-11 01:24 pm UTC

[info]r_hr_maniac
2008-06-20 01:05 pm UTC (link)
I'm not going to say anything on this matter, since I think everything's been mentioned but...people, am I the only one, who doesn't care if it's their Korean songs or Japanese songs? I don't know the reason...might be because I started with j-pop first, then got to love DBSK's Korean music and then found out their Japanese songs. I mean...I still think that their Korean songs are a bit better. But I think that's actually because they couldn't release GOOD songs until they became at least a little confident in Japanese AND comfortable with Japan. "T" is much better album than for exmp. Heart, Mind and soul. And, take Maze. For me? Probably the best Jaejoong's solo song, sharing the first place with Insa.

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(no subject) - [info]kairi_jaganshi, 2008-06-23 07:57 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]r_hr_maniac, 2008-06-23 09:44 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]miyathy, 2008-07-03 06:56 pm UTC

[info]shou_un
2008-06-20 01:45 pm UTC (link)
Pretty much all has been mentioned.
Just thought I would add a bit more on how being Korean could be a kind of stumbling stone... told a Japanese friend my age about THSK, and she didn't like them. When I asked why, she said it was because "they're Korean".
Though hopefully their increasing fanbase shows not so many people think that way, or no longer think that way, because the boys have pretty good vocals. :D

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