entertainment

AKB48, sister groups to hold concerts to support Tohoku reconstruction

13 Comments

Mega-popular all-girl idol group AKB48 and its sister groups will hold special concerts on Wenesday night to support reconstruction work in the Tohoku region devastated by the March 11, 2011, disaster.

AKB48 and its sister groups SKE48, NMB48 and HKT48 will each hold a concert in their own theaters.

In 2011, right after the earthquake, the group immediately launched the fund-raising project “Dareka no tame ni” (For Someone) and has continued supporting the reconstruction effort by making donations and visiting the stricken area 46 times to meet and greet fans, as well as holding mini-concerts and seasonal events such as Christmas and Valentine parties.

The group has raised more than 1.5 billion yen for the Tohoku recovery effort since the disaster.

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13 Comments
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46 visits, 1.5 billion yen raised. That's incredible, even an AKB cynic has to admit that.

But my issue has never been with the fundraising efforts, it's what happens with the funds. There seems to be a bottleneck happening with getting the rights to build, the land to build, the contracts to build, the meetings to decide how to build without much being built.

What happens to all that money when it's burning a hole in people's pockets?

7 ( +10 / -3 )

harvey, you make an excellent point. I've always wondered why it's taken this long to restore the Tohoku region to prosperity when so much money is being funneled into its reconstruction. It's truly maddening to me.

However, may I just say that I am PROUD of AKB for doing so much to help out. They don't have to, and they aren't required by any means to give anything in this matter, but the fact that they've been doing it YEAR AFTER YEAR when so many others in Japan have just kind of pushed this whole event off to the side... well, that's incredible. You can say what you want about AKB, and we all know on Japan Today how people LOVE to bash this hard working group of idols, but I don't see ANYONE else in Japan or other parts of the world doing this much for the Tsunami relief efforts. Good for them, and one more reason why AKB rules the universe. YOSH IKUSHO!

3 ( +8 / -5 )

News (not JT) says people living in temporary housing is down 1/3 in the last 12 months. Can anybody, non-biased, shed light on this?

As for AKB48 and others, good job. Not a fan, they are cute in small doses. The important thing is they are helping.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Good work by the girls. The continued failure to make significant progress at Fukushima or in Tohoku is a national disgrace. Abe san's revitalised Japan shown to be a lie.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

However, may I just say that I am PROUD of AKB for doing so much to help out. They don't have to, and they aren't required by any means to give anything in this matter

It's not AKB, it's Akimoto and his propaganda machine at work to keep them in the spotlight. With the high turnover of the initial members people are not seeing AKB in the same way as before.

Mega-popular all-girl idol group AKB48

Mega popular? Hmmm....

Moderator: Once again, a poor contribution from you that has nothing to do with the topic. Please lift the level of your contributions.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The fact that they are doing this is a good thing (I think). betterthan anything the government appear to be doing.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

As much as I want to say cruel things about this group, I would conceive that they are doing this for a good cause. Good luck to them.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

The Girls have inspired many working tirelessly supporting and campaigning for the recovering families of the March 11, 2011, triple disasters of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown. They quite rightfully deserve the nations gratitude and recognition for their selfless dedication.

Hi ReformedBasher, with the benefit of hindsight lessons learned from this unprecedented crisis that decimated the Tohoku coastline, scaling back top heavy bureaucratic structures within central government’s Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare, that lead to dysfunctional administrative handling of the compensation scheme, so to increase the speed of reconstruction and clean-up to the worst affected areas. At close to $245 billion, this natural disaster holds historic significance as the costliest, wreaked havoc claiming the lives of 20,000 people, many of the children affected by the disaster are still struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I'm a hater too. . . But they are really doing some incredible work here. LoL @ Wakarimasen's comment- akb doin more than gov appears 2 b doing-

3 ( +3 / -0 )

A remarkable and commendable effort. Well done.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

I can take them or leave them with regards to their music, but I have to give kudos with regards to their work for the Tohoku region. When I read about the first fund-raiser they held, my cynical brain said, "Publicity stunt". The fact that they've kept going on this over the years makes me want to slap my cynical brain silly and say, "See?!"

Bravo Zulu, AKB48.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Mega-popular all-girl idol group AKB48 and its sister groups will hold special concerts on Wenesday night to support reconstruction work in the Tohoku region devastated by the March 11, 2011, disaster.

My compliments to the group and their management for not forgetting the victims and continuing to support them in this manner. What is a crime is that nearly 250,000 people are still in temporary shelters four years after the fact because the infamous Japanese bureaucracy cannot figure out how to move forward, and best utilize the funds that have previously been allocated.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

The fact that the group and the organization that manages them have continued for so many years after the disaster is what is most commendable. That indicates to me that their efforts are not a cynical ploy for increasing their popularity and sales. I do not think it is possible for them to be more well known so the motive seems to be pure. What happens with the money after it is raised is another matter.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

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