Hearing from the idols themselves: Creating content in the era of idol fandom

In this era of fervent idol fandom, what do idols—those being supported—and the creators who produce content alongside them keep in mind? How do they connect with fans in the age of social media?

This series explores media, communication, and the very nature of entertainment through the lens of idols. In the final installment, content producer Yusuke Sato of Dentsu Inc. interviews Last Idol member Kazune Majima and choreographer akane-sensei to explore the current state of idols in the entertainment industry.

Idols are like a "food court" where you can enjoy various dishes

Sato: Thank you for joining us today. First, could you both introduce yourselves?

Kazune: I'm Kazune Majima from Last Idol. Last Idol is a group born from an idol audition program planned by Yasushi Akimoto, active since 2017. Its unique feature is how members are selected: auditions allowed "concurrent roles regardless of professional/amateur status," and the show featured member replacement battles where members competed for their debut spots. Those who lost the debut battles were given the chance to form a "second unit." I debuted as a member of that second unit, "Someday Somewhere."

akane: I'm choreographer akane. My notable work includes coaching the dance club at Osaka Prefectural Tomeoka High School and choreographing their performance of "Dancing Hero." I also handled choreography for their promotional video when the club was selected as PR ambassadors for the Hollywood film "The Greatest Showman." I've since retired as their coach and now work on choreography for commercials and artists, as well as radio DJing. I've been working with Last Idol since 2019.

Sato: Among the works you've created with Last Idol, is there any that particularly stands out in your memory?
 
akane: The single " Seishun Train," which was the first song I choreographed. Watching the music video now, I'm surprised myself at how complex and difficult the formation dance was. We spent three or four months building it with the members, and back then, everyone was practicing while crying. But I think it's precisely because we went through that experience with this piece that everyone now picks up choreography faster and practices go more smoothly.

Majima: "Youth Train" was truly a grueling project. Practicing dance from morning till night every day nearly drove us to the brink of exhaustion... Up until then, we mostly competed in unit battles, and we weren't yet accustomed to creating a single piece with all of Last Idol. There were misunderstandings between members, and the mindset of "Let's all fight together against other idol groups!" was still quite weak.

But after Ms. Akane, who has created so many teams before, joined us, a real "team spirit" gradually started to develop within Last Idol. Everyone sees Ms. Akane as one of the members.

Sato: Ms. Majima, what attracted you to the idol profession? What made you want to become one yourself?

Majima: I aspired to be an idol because I admired AKB48. When I was in third grade, I saw the music video for "Heavy Rotation" and thought, "I want to wear cute clothes like that and sparkle too."

It's really hard to describe "sparkle" in words, but idols don't just perform songs and dances—they also appear on variety shows and act in plays, right? I think idols are the only ones who can be these invincible beings who can try anything. And in a group, I think another appealing part is that each member's individuality gets recognized.

Sato: I see. But generally speaking, professional singers are better at singing, and professional actors are better at acting, right? In that sense, is the "imperfection" you mention, Ms. Majima, part of the appeal of "idols," something that makes people want to support them?

Majima: I think so. I see idols as being like a "food court." Eating high-end Italian every day would get boring, but a food court lets you casually go and enjoy various dishes. It might not be a perfected dish, but it still has the potential to become even more delicious, and the fact that the "flavor" keeps getting refined is also part of the fun, I feel.

Consciously incorporating "interactive elements" into choreography for fan communication

Sato: Ms. akane, I hear Last Idol was your first time doing choreography for idols professionally. Did you find it challenging?

akane: Last Idol has members from different regions, so we have very little time when everyone can practice together. That makes every session challenging. We have to memorize all the choreography and positions within that limited time, plus practice the songs. On top of that, the members have other commitments like streaming events, and I'm really impressed by how they give their all to everything.

Sato: Since working with Last Idol, have you personally discovered anything new or experienced any changes?

akane: Seeing Last Idol fans at live shows, I was truly amazed by their passion. The audience engages in call-and-response, waves glow sticks, dances along—communicating with the idols through these actions. It made me realize how crucial this mutual connection is.

Because of that, when choreographing for Last Idol, depending on the song's vibe, I aim for "performances that make it easy to communicate with fans." I think, "What kind of reaction will fans have to this choreography?" and create "interaction points"... Sometimes it works, sometimes people say it's weird, but whatever the reaction, it's always incredibly interesting and fun.

That's why I pay close attention not just to Last Idol during their performances, but also to "fans watching the performances" in general. I often watch live DVDs of other idol groups too, and I'm still studying idol performances every day.

Last Idol also gives the impression of challenging things other idol groups don't do. The atmosphere of each song is completely different, which makes choreography very difficult, but I personally want to create something new that no one has done before, so working with Last Idol is always incredibly fun.

For their 9th single "Nanbito mo," we incorporated dance sequences using stage combat. For their 10th single " Kimi wa Nan Karatto? " releasing April 28th, we're adding elements of Indian Bollywood dance. I always make sure to include at least one "first-time element" in the choreography for each release.

In today's SNS era, an idol's "self-production skills" are essential.

Sato: Now that you're in a position where idol fans actively support you, are there things you're careful about or consciously focus on?

Majima: I consciously try to suggest to fans "how they can support me." For example, when I appear on a music program, I might ask them to send feedback via the show's website, or to answer a magazine survey... While I'm incredibly grateful when fans buy tickets to attend handshake events or online events, I know it can be financially difficult for some. I actively share specific ways even those fans can support me.

Sato: When it comes to idols, there are also events where fans buy CDs to vote, right? What mindset do you bring to these "collaborative events" between idols and fans?

Majima: Collaborative events require asking fans for their support, so I always feel I need to work extra hard in return. But I remind myself that "our fans work three times as hard as we do." They manage their time to watch our streams or buy our CDs while juggling school or work... While we idols certainly have our challenges, I always try to remember that our fans are putting in even more effort to support us.

And for the fans who support us, I want them to experience that unity between "idol" and "fan." The content on SNS and our livestreams isn't just one-way communication; we try to make it so fans feel like they're "sharing time together." I'm still figuring things out myself, but I get the impression that girls who are good at this kind of "self-production" see their popularity rise steadily.

Sato: So, when idols themselves think about what they can do and give it their all, fans respond even more enthusiastically?

Majima: I think so. Precisely because we're in an era where SNS is thriving and individuals can actively share their content, I feel each person's self-promotion skills have become truly crucial. For our next single, "What's Your Carat?", the center position has been decided to be Honoka Nishimura, who won first place in the viewer vote for the "Last Idol, Yoroshiku!" program. She has a huge following on Instagram and Twitter and is incredibly skilled at self-promotion.

I think going forward, members like her—who combine strong performance skills like dance and singing with high self-promotion skills—will be selected for the group and chosen as center.

Idols and fans are equals. When their gears mesh perfectly, tremendous power is born.

Sato: Hearing all this, I feel idol culture is truly something created together by "idols" and "fans." Boosting the power of those who support them comes from the idols' own efforts, while boosting the idols' power comes from the fans' passion. This mutual equality might be a defining feature of today's idols. Finally, please tell us what challenges you both want to take on next.

Majima: I'm thinking about how we can further refine our approach to online live performances. One of the charms of idol live shows is that fans create the experience together with the idols through call-and-response during performances or by waving glow sticks. I feel that interactive communication is harder to achieve in current online live shows.

For example, using fans' real-time comments in stage effects, or changing pyrotechnics like sparks or smoke based on gifting volume. I hope we can create live shows where fans can actively participate going forward.

akane: I've always wanted to create a dance video with the Last Idol members someday. Having spent so much time with them, I feel like I know their best expressions and the moments I want people to see better than anyone else. That's why I believe we could create something truly unique that no one else could express.

Also, today's idols are constantly checking social media and keeping their antennas up for all kinds of things, so their ability to catch information is incredible. That's exactly why I'm also looking forward to lots of interesting ideas coming from them. I want to actively incorporate those opinions and continue creating songs and live performances together. I believe things created by incorporating the idols' own opinions will surely be enjoyed by the fans too.

Sato: When it comes to idols, in the past, the producer was absolute, and there was no room for fans to get involved. It was entertainment where you watched and enjoyed what was created for you on TV. But with the advent of social media, I feel we've entered an era where idols themselves produce themselves, not just being marketed through media and images prepared by adults.

Within this, idols themselves sometimes come up with ideas we never would have thought of before, or interesting concepts. Actively incorporating these from the management side will become increasingly important going forward, won't it?

And I believe that when everyone involved with the "idol" content—supporting fans, sponsoring companies, and others—aligns in the same direction, the idol's power multiplies many times over, leading to increasingly fascinating things emerging. Thank you both for today!