Ai Takahashi
Ai Takahashi |
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Ai Takahashi (高橋 愛, Takahashi Ai, born September 14, 1986) is a Japanese pop singer associated with Hello! Project, best known as the current leader of Morning Musume and former member of its popular subgroup, Mini Moni.
Biography
Ai Takahashi joined Morning Musume in 2001 as part of the group's fifth generation, along with Makoto Ogawa, Asami Konno, and Risa Niigaki. Her debut with the group was on their single "Mr. Moonlight ~Ai no Big Band~", and her first appearance on a Morning Musume full-length release was their fourth studio album, the appropriately named 4th Ikimasshoi!. Her first appearance within a Hello! Project shuffle unit release was on the 2002 single "Shiawase Beam! Suki Suki Beam!" under the group name Happy 7.
In 2003, Takahashi replaced Mari Yaguchi in the Morning Musume spinoff group Mini Moni, first appearing in the group's movie Mini Moni ja Movie: Okashi na Daibōken! and its accompanying soundtrack. Her best-known nickname amongst non-Japanese fans, "Takitty", was derived from the cat suit (complete with tail) which she wears in the movie.
Later in 2003, she was part of the Morning Musume splinter group Morning Musume Sakuragumi, which performed mainly slower numbers on the group's two EPs, "Hare Ame Nochi Suki" and "Sakura Mankai", and the shuffle group 7Air, an R&B-inspired septet.
Takahashi's vocals became more prominent on the second and final Mini Moni album, Mini Moni Songs 2 (2004), as well as on Morning Musume's singles from their Spring 2004 release "Roman ~My Dear Boy~" onward. She also had a duet with Tsunku on the cover version of Tsunku and Ayumi Hamasaki's duet "Love ~since 1999~" on his solo album Take1.
In 2005, Morning Musume's first single release of the year, "The Manpower!!!", featured Takahashi in a prominent co-lead-vocal role, a role she has retained on subsequent singles since. In the summer of that year, she became part of the 2005 shuffle Group Elegies.
In 2006, Takahashi played the lead role, Sapphire, in the musical "Ribbon no Kishi The Musical" which was a collaboration work of Takarazuka Revue (a famous Japanese all-female musical group) and Hello! Project. The musical was based on Tezuka Osamu's manga and also starred v-u-den, Nozomi Tsuji, Aya Matsuura, and Natsumi Abe, as well as Marcia and Kaoru Ebira of the Takarazuka Revue. Soon thereafter, Takahashi released her first and only solo single to date, "Yume Kara Samete".
Following then-leader Hitomi Yoshizawa's graduation from Morning Musume on May 6, 2007, the current sub-leader, Miki Fujimoto ascended to the leader position, with Takahashi becoming the new sub-leader of the group. However, on June 1, 2007, after Fujimoto's resignation,[1][2] Takahashi took over as the new leader.
Takahashi is also captain of the Hello! Project kickball team, Metro Rabbits H.P..
In 2008 Takahashi became a member of Hello Project's new unit High-King,[3] a group created to promote Morning Musume's upcoming Cinderella the Musical, in which Takahashi will play the main character.
It was announced in July 2008, that Takahashi and fellow Morning Musume member Risa Niigaki would play the 80s J-Pop duo Pink Lady in the TV Drama Hitmaker Aku Yuu Monogatari.[4][5]
As of September 2008, she and Risa Niigaki have the second longest tenures of any member, with only Kaori Iida remaining in the group longer. She is also one of only four members to remain in the group for seven years or more (the others being Iida, Yoshizawa and Niigaki).
Discography and releases
Singles
| # | Title | Release Date | Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Yume Kara Samete" (夢から醒めて) | 2006 | Only released for digital purchase and download; later released as part of the Pucchi Best 7 compilation CD |
Photobooks
| # | Title | Release date | Publisher | ISBN | Photobook information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | 5 - Morning Musume 5 Ki Generation Member Shashinshū (5 モーニング娘。5期メンバー写真集) |
2002-08-13 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2721-3 | Photobook starring all of the 5th generation members. |
| 1 | Morning Musume - Takahashi Ai (モーニング娘。― 高橋愛) |
2002-12-09 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2741-8 | First solo photobook. |
| 2 | Alo Hello! Takahashi Ai (アロハロ!高橋愛) |
2003-12-17 | Kadokawa Shoten | ISBN 4-04-894253-0 | Second solo photobook. |
| 3 | Wataame (高橋愛写真集 わたあめ, Cotton Candy) |
2004-05-27 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2806-6 | Third solo photobook. |
| 4 | Ai Gokoro (高橋愛写真集 愛ごころ) |
2005-06-25 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2870-8 | Fourth solo photobook. |
| 5 | 19 (高橋愛写真集『19』) |
2006-01-27 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2913-5 | Fifth solo photobook. |
| 6 | Takahashi Ai Shashinshū Zenshu "ai" (高橋愛写真集全集『ai』) |
2006-10-27 | Wani Books | ISBN 4-8470-2961-5 | Compilation photobook. |
| 7 | Love Hello! Ai Takahashi Shashinshū in Phuket (ラブハロ！高橋愛写真集inプーケット) |
2007-03-14 | Kadokawa Publishing Group | ISBN 4-0489-4485-1 | Seventh solo photobook. Photographed in Phuket, Thailand. |
| 8 | Mizu (高橋愛写真集『水』) |
2007-10-26 | Wani Books | ISBN 978-4-8470-4049-8 | Eighth solo photobook. Photographed in Bali. |
| 9 | Mō Hitotsu no Ai (高橋愛写真集『もうひとつの愛』) |
2008-05-25[6] | Wani Books | ISBN 978-4847040887 | Ninth solo photobook. |
DVDs
| # | Title | Release date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alo Hello! Takahashi Ai DVD (アロハロ!高橋愛DVD) | 2003-12-17 |
| 2 | Love Hello! Takahashi Ai DVD (ラブハロ!高橋愛DVD) | 2007-04-11 |
Acts
Dramas
| Title | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| Angel Hearts | 2002 | |
| Mini Moni's Brementown Musicians (ミニモニ。でブレーメンの音楽隊) |
2005-01-10 | 2005-01-31 |
| Hitmaker Aku Yuu Monogatari | 2008-08-01 | |
TV shows
| Show | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| Hello! Morning (ハロー！モーニング。) | 2001 | 2007-04-01 |
| Tin Tin Town! (ティンティンTown!) | 2002-07-05 | 2004-03-26 |
| Sore Yuke! Gorokkies (それゆけ!ゴロッキーズ) | 2003-09-29 | 2003-12-26 |
| Futarigoto (二人ゴト) | 2004-04-21 | 2004-04-23 |
| 2004-07-23 | 2004-07-29 | |
| Majokko Rika-chan no Magical v-u-den (魔女っ娘。梨華ちゃんのマジカル美勇伝) |
2004-12-01 | 2004-12-06 |
| 2004-12-16 | 2004-12-17 | |
| Musume Dokyu! (娘DOKYU!) | 2005-04-04 | Still running |
| Haromoni@ (ハロモニ@) | 2007-04-08 | Still running |
Radio
| Program | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| MBS Young Town Dōyōbi (MBSヤングタウン土曜日) |
April 12, 2003 | Still running |
| Ishikawa Rika no Chanchaka Charmy (☆石川梨華のちゃんちゃか☆チャーミー!) |
2005-03-03 | |
| TBC Fun Fīrudo Mōretsu Mōdasshu (TBC Funふぃーるど・モーレツモーダッシュ) |
2005-05-16 | 2005-05-16 |
References
- ^ "Nikkan Sports News" (in Japanese). Nikkan Sports News. June 1, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-06-03.
- ^ "Yahoo! Japan News" (in Japanese). Yahoo Japan Corporation. June 1, 2007.
- ^ "Hello! Project New Unit "High King"" (in Japanese). UP-FRONT WORKS Co., Ltd. 2008-05-15.
- ^ "Ai Takahashi & Risa Niigaki are Pink Lady" (in Japanese). Nikkan Sports News. 2008-07-01. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
- ^ "高橋愛＆新垣里沙でペッパー警部よ…日テレ系「阿久悠物語」でピンク・レディー役" (in Japanese). The Hochi Shimbun. 2008-07-01. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
- ^ "Hello! Project Release Schedule" (in Japanese). UP-FRONT WORKS Co., Ltd. Retrieved 2008-05-22.