W (duo)

Last updated
W
W (Double You).jpg
W, 2005
From left: Kago and Tsuji
Background information
Origin Tokyo, Japan
Genres J-pop
Years active
  • 2004 (2004)–2007
  • 2019
Labels Zetima
Spinoff of
Past members

W was a Japanese duo formed in 2004 by Up-Front Promotion and associated with Hello! Project. The members consisted of Nozomi Tsuji and Ai Kago, former 4th generation members of the idol girl group Morning Musume. Tsuji and Kago had previously achieved fame through being in the group and the sub-group Mini-Moni.

Contents

W's formation was announced at the same time as Tsuji and Kago's planned departure from Morning Musume. Prior to their official departure, they debuted with several cover versions of kayōkyoku songs, including their debut single, "Koi no Vacance" (2004) and their first album, Duo U&U (2004). After leaving Morning Musume, W released their first original song, "Aa Ii na!" (2004), followed by "Robo Kiss" (2004). In 2005, W starred in their first musical, Mysterious Girl Detectives Cara & Mel: The Case of the Stolen Dangerous Violin (2005). They reprised the roles of their characters with the release of "Miss Love Tantei" (2005).

In 2006, W's activities were halted after Kago was suspended for underage smoking. W was scheduled to make a comeback in 2007, but after media reports of Kago dating and smoking again surfaced, her contracted was terminated and Up-Front Promotion announced that W had disbanded.

In 2019, W briefly reunited to make a concert appearance celebrating Hello! Project's 20th anniversary, and their previously cancelled releases, "Dō ni mo Tomaranai" (2019) and W3: Faithful, were released in the same year.

History

2004: Formation and debut

In 2004, W's formation was announced not long after Nozomi Tsuji and Ai Kago's graduations from Morning Musume. Tsuji and Kago had previously worked together in one of Morning Musume's sub-units, Mini Moni, as a side project. Both members had been known as the "Twins" and had been some of Morning Musume's most popular members since joining the group at age 12. [1] Tsunku, Hello! Project's producer, had selected the name "W" because the origin of the name meant "two Us" and "gave off the feeling of two You's", symbolizing Tsuji and Kago's dual nature. [2]

W released their debut three-song EP, Koi no Vacance , the title track being a cover version of The Peanuts' 1960 song. The EP was followed a few weeks later by their debut album as W, Duo U&U , which contained covers of other Shōwa period female duo songs exclusively. One of the other groups covered by W on the first album was Pink Lady. Pink Lady were invited to perform with W on Japanese television as a one-time four-piece ensemble.

Kago and Tsuji performed their graduation concert (final performance as members of Morning Musume) in August 2004; a week later, their second single "Aa Ii na!" was released. Not only was it the duo's first release since they departed Morning Musume, it was also the first W single to feature an original composition by Hello! Project founder and producer Tsunku. A third single of original material, "Robo Kiss", followed three months later.

In December 2004, W joined their fellow Hello! Project members on the 2004 shuffle unit single "All for One and One for All", credited to the H.P. All Stars. W also began joining Morning Musume onstage at concerts during this period to perform Kago and Tsuji's final Morning Musume single, "Joshi Kashimashi Monogatari" together with their former bandmates.

2005: Rise to popularity

W's second album, 2005's 2nd W , released in March 2005, contained Shōwa period J-pop cover songs as well as original songs. Afterwards, they released "Ai no Imi o Oshiete!"

In the spring of 2005, W starred in their first stage musical, Cara & Mel: the Case of the Stolen Dangerous Violin, at Yokohama Blitz in Yokohama and Ikebukuro Sun Shine Theater in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, from March 18, 2005 to April 10, 2005. In September 2005 the duo released their 6th single "Miss Love Tantei". The video, which features Kago and Tsuji playing multiple roles, including a reprisal of their stage musical roles of Cara and Mel. In addition to their musical career, W continued to appear on Hello! Project's weekly TV show Hello! Morning, often in tandem with Morning Musume.

2006-2007: Hiatus and disbandment

On January 11, 2006, the release of a new single, "Dō ni mo Tomaranai" on February 22, followed by their third full-length album, W3: Faithful on March 15, was announced. However, they were pushed back [3] after photographs of Kago smoking underage were published in Friday in February 2006. [4] Hello! Project issued a press statement saying that Kago and W's activities had been suspended indefinitely. [5] Kago was put under house arrest for a year and was not allowed to contact Tsuji.

In January 2007, Kago returned to Tokyo and did assorted clerical work at her agency's office while the company was making preparations for her comeback. Not long after, photographs of Kago smoking underage for a third time, as well as going on a "dirty weekend trip" to an onsen with a 37-year-old man, began circulating in the media, completely tarnishing her reputation. Kago was dismissed from the company, and W disbanded as a result. [6]

Post-W activities

Kago posted on her blog in 2014 that she and Tsuji were in contact again. [7] In 2018, Tsuji and Kago were invited as guests at Hello! Project's 20th anniversary summer concert, leading to both their names trending on Twitter; they were scheduled to perform together, but Tsuji dropped out from maternity leave. [8] In 2019, they were announced as performing guests at Hello! Project's spring concert and were releasing their previously cancelled works, "Do ni mo Tomaranai" and W3: Faithful, on March 30 as digital releases; "Do ni mo Tomaranai" would be bundled as a double A-side single with "Choi Waru Devil." [9] At Hello! Project's spring concert, the two performed together in front of a crowd of 5,000 people for the first time in 13 years. [10] [11]

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected chart positions, sales figures and certifications
TitleYearAlbum detailsPeak chart positionsSales Certifications
JPN
Oricon
JPN
Hot

[lower-alpha 1] [13]
Duo U&U 2004
  • Released: June 2, 2004
  • Label: Zetima
  • Formats: CD
4
  • JPN: 85,017
2nd W 2005
  • Released: March 2, 2005
  • Label: Zetima
  • Formats: CD
11
  • JPN: 27,534
W3: Faithful2019TBA21TBA
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Video albums

TitleDetailsPeak chart positionsSales
JPN
W no Satsuei no Sekai vol. 1 [14]
  • Released: October 14, 2004
  • Label: Zetima
  • Formats: DVD
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Singles

TitleYearPeak positionSales
JPN
"Koi no Vacance"20041039,226
"Aa Ii na!"741,581
"Robo Kiss"530,239
"Koi no Fuga"20051220,922
"Ai no Imi o Oshiete!"1121,408
"Miss Love Tantei"10 [15] 39,226
"Dō ni mo Tomaranai" / "Choi Waru Devil" (どうにもとまらない/ちょい悪デビル)2019
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.

Filmography

Television

YearTitleRoleNetworkNotes
2004-2005 Hello! Morning Themselves TV Tokyo Morning Musume's variety show
2004-2005 Oha Suta Themselves; Cara and Mel TV Tokyo Appeared as Cara and Mel from January 11-September 8, 2005

Theatre

YearTitleRoleNotes
2005Mysterious Girl Detectives Cara & Mel: The Case of the Stolen Dangerous Violin (ふしぎ少女探偵 キャラ&メル 魔のヴァイオリン盗難事件)Cara and Mel [16]

Tours

Publications

Notes

  1. The Billboard Japan Hot Albums did not exist until June 4, 2015. [12]

Related Research Articles

Morning Musume Japanese girl group

Morning Musume '22, formerly simply Morning Musume and colloquially referred to as Momusu, are a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales on the Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most top ten singles with an amount of 64.

Ai Kago Musical artist

Ai Kago is a Japanese actress and former singer. In 2000, Kago debuted as a 4th generation member of the idol girl group Morning Musume. During her time in the group, she was also part of Mini-Moni and other Hello! Project sub-groups. In 2004, Kago departed from Morning Musume and became part of the duo W with Nozomi Tsuji.

Nozomi Sugiura, known professionally by her birth name Nozomi Tsuji is a Japanese media personality, singer, and blogger. In 2000, she began her career as a singer for Japanese girl band Morning Musume. Tsuji later found success with related groups Mini Moni and W. She has participated in the shuffle groups 10-nin Matsuri, Odoru 11, and 11Water, H.P. All Stars, as well as being a member of the Morning Musume splinter group Morning Musume Otomegumi

Hitomi Yoshizawa Japanese singer and actress

Hitomi Yoshizawa is a Japanese former singer and actress. In 2000, Yoshizawa debuted as a 4th generation member of the idol girl group Morning Musume and became their leader in 2005 until leaving the group in 2007. Following her departure, Yoshizawa continued to appear in several music projects, including Hangry & Angry, Abcho, and Dream Morning Musume.

<i>Ai no Dai 6 Kan</i> 2004 studio album by Morning Musume

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Mini-Moni Japanese idol girl group

Mini-Moni was a sub-unit of the Japanese idol girl groups Morning Musume and Coconuts Musume. It was formed by Up-Front Promotion in 2000 and associated with Hello! Project. The group was founded by Morning Musume members Mari Yaguchi, Nozomi Tsuji, and Ai Kago, with Coconuts Musume member Mika later added as a member. After Yaguchi's departure in 2002, Morning Musume member Ai Takahashi was added into the group.

Roman (My Dear Boy) 2004 single by Morning Musume

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Mini-Hams no Ai no Uta 2001 single by Minimoni

"Minihams no Ai no Uta" is the third single of the Morning Musume subgroup Minimoni. It was released on December 5, 2001 and sold 325,440 copies, reaching number three on the Oricon Charts.

Mini-Moni Jankenpyon! / Haru Natsu Aki Fuyu Daisukki! 2001 single by Minimoni

"Minimoni Jankenpyon!/Haru Natsu Aki Fuyu Daisukki!" (ミニモニ。ジャンケンぴょん!/春夏秋冬だいすっき!) is the first single by Morning Musume subgroup Minimoni. It was released on January 17, 2001 and sold 763,380 copies. It peaked at number one in Japan on the weekly Oricon chart, charting for seventeen weeks.

Mini-Moni Telephone! Rin Rin Rin / Mini-Moni Bus Guide 2001 single by Minimoni

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Mini-Moni Hinamatsuri! / Mini Strawberry Pie 2002 single by Minimoni

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Aīn Taisō / Aīn! Dance no Uta 2002 single by Minimoni

"Aiin Taisō/Aiin! Dance no Uta" (アイ〜ン体操/アイ〜ン!ダンスの唄) is the fifth single of the Hello! Project subgroup Minimoni. It was released on April 24, 2002 and sold 212,230 copies.

Genki Jirushi no Ōmori Song / Okashi Tsukutte Okkasi! 2002 single by Minimoni

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Mini-Moni Kazoe Uta (Ofuro Version) / Mini-Moni Kazoe Uta (Date Version) 2003 single by Minimoni

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Up-Front Group Co., Ltd. is a Japanese holding company for various entertainment companies. Its subsidiaries include the talent agency Up-Front Promotion and Up-Front Works, a music production and sales company that manages such record labels as Zetima, Piccolo Town, and Hachama.

References

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  13. Peak chart positions on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums:
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