| Mayu Watanabe | |
| Native Name Lang: | ja |
| Birth Date: | March 26, 1994 |
| Origin: | Saitama Prefecture, Japan |
| Genre: | J-pop |
| Years Active: | 2006–2020 |
| Label: | Sony Music (solo) |
| Past Member Of: | AKB48, Watarirouka Hashiritai |
is a Japanese former singer and actress. Watanabe started her career as a member of the idol girl group AKB48 under Team B. In the annual AKB48 General Elections event, she had consistently been voted by fans to rank among the group's top members. She has released five solo singles, many of which have peaked in the top ten in the Oricon charts, and one solo album. She left the group on the last day of 2017 and on the first day of 2018 and pursued as an acting career until her retirement from the entertainment industry in June 2020.[1]
Watanabe auditioned for AKB48's 3rd generation and was placed in the newly formed Team B, in which she had been the face of since formation. Her official nickname, Mayuyu, was coined by then fellow member Rumi Yonezawa.[2] Her selection on "Bingo!" marked the first appearance of a Team B member in an AKB48 single title track. She would go on to appear on all of the a-side tracks for AKB48's singles until her graduation, with the exception of line-ups determined by rock-paper-scissors tournaments.
In 2009, she placed fourth overall in the group's first general election to determine the line-up for the group's 13th single.[3] She placed fifth overall the next year for the group's 17th single.[4] [5]
She appeared on the cover of the December 2010 issue of UP to boy magazine together with Airi Suzuki from Cute. It was the first gravure collaboration between Hello! Project and AKB48.[6]
On May 13, 2011 she released her photo book, Mayuyu. She commented that the book "is filled with a lot of expressions that I haven't shown until now, it's a book I'm really pleased with!" Regarding her cover picture, she said, "Despite being embarrassed, I did my best on the front cover, so I want a lot of people to look at it!"[7] For AKB48's general election in 2011, Watanabe placed fifth overall.[8]
In 2012, Watanabe got her first lead role in the Japanese TV drama Saba Doru, where she played a 38-year-old high school teacher hated by her pupils, whilst having a hidden life as the highly popular idol Mayu Watanabe, based on her real-life self. On February 29, Watanabe released her debut solo single, "Synchro Tokimeki", which is also the opening theme for the drama.[9]
Watanabe participated as a voice actress in the anime series AKB0048.[10] In the anime, she plays a main character Chieri Sono,[11] and is part of the AKB48 subgroup NO NAME, which sings the opening and ending themes for the series. The series features a supporting character, Mayu Watanabe Mark 3, which is modeled after her likeness, and is voiced by Yukari Tamura. She reprised her role as Chieri Sono for the series' second season which aired in 2013.
Watanabe ranked second overall in the 2012 AKB48 general elections with 72,574 votes.[12] [13] On August 24, she was moved from Team B to Team A during AKB48's reorganization announcement at their Tokyo Dome concert.[14]
On July 25, she released her second solo single, "Otona Jellybeans"[15] which reached number three on the Oricon weekly chart.[16] Her third solo single "Hikaru Monotachi" was released on November 21, 2012, and reached number one in the Oricon singles chart. The single was released in five versions, including one that has an illustration book. Its b-side "Sayonara no Hashi" is the theme song to the anime film Nerawareta Gakuen for which she voiced one of the lead characters. In July 2013, she released her fourth solo single. "Rappa Renshūchū". A contest was held to determine the cover artwork for one of its editions.[17]
Meanwhile in AKB48, she received her first center position on the group's 30th single "So Long!", which was released on February 20, 2013.[18] On April 19, she released her second photobook Seifuku Zukan Saigo no Seifuku. In the AKB48 election for the members for their 32nd major label single, she placed third overall with 101,210 votes.[19]
In 2014, Watanabe became a regular on the television show Utage!, and a semi-regular on the TV show Renai Sosenkyo. In AKB48, she was transferred back from Team A to Team B in the "Daisokaku Matsuri". She performed an hour-long solo live concert at AKB48's Natsu Matsuri. She earned the center position for AKB48's 37th major label single, "Kokoro no Placard" after placing first with 159,854 votes in an election to determine the single's member line-up.[20]
In 2015, Watanabe received her first leading role in a prime-time TV drama, Tatakau! Shoten Girl, broadcast by Fuji TV and Kansai TV. This drama aired from April 2015, at 10 pm.[21] The theme song for this drama, "Deai no Tsuzuki", was sung by Watanabe, and was also released as her fifth solo single on June 10, 2015.[22] She held solo live concerts to support the single on September 19. In 2015, a web poll conducted by My Navi Student declared her the second Cutest Idol from both the men's choices and women's choices lists, behind Kanna Hashimoto of the idol group Rev. from DVL.[23]
On October 26, 2016, Watanabe released her third photobook Shiranai uchi ni.
On June 17, 2017, Watanabe announced at the 9th General Election that she would graduate from the group.[24] On October 31, Watanabe had her graduation concert.[25] Her last handshake event with the group was on November 18, while her last performance at the AKB48 theater was on December 26.[26] [27] Her last activity as an AKB48 member was a performance at the "68th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen" on December 31, 2017.[28]
Her results in the annual ranking:[29]
In January 2018, it was announced that Watanabe would play the titular character in the Japanese production of the Amélie adapted from the movie of the same title. The production ran from May 18 to June 3 at the Galaxy Theater in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and June 7–10 at the Morinomiya Piloti Hall in Osaka.[30]
In April 2018, Watanabe had her first drama post-AKB48 titled where she played an insurance investigator.[31]
In August 2018, Watanabe starred in the special drama, a continuation from the same series in 2017.[32]
Following two special dramas, Watanabe then had the lead role in a late-night drama in August 2018. Her character, Hikari, was a girl whose dream was to become a musical actress, but got her dreams smashed when her brother supposedly committed murder.[33]
In late 2018, Watanabe also endorsed the brand Yakult. The commercial was directed by Ikeda Kazumasa who has directed music videos for Keyakizaka46 and Nogizaka46, while choreography was by Sasao Isao who choreographed one of Keyakizaka46's singles. The commercial also features some 33 professional dancers and performers including Spinboy Aichi, SORI and HICKY of the dance team SHIFFLE!! among others.[34]
Watanabe also guested several music shows, namely Utacon and UTAGE. In Utacon, she sang musical songs, including collaborations with several famed musical actors.[35]
Towards the end of 2018, Watanabe was named the ambassador for JAL Honolulu Marathon.[36]
On June 1, 2020, Production Ogi announced her retirement from the entertainment industry for health reasons.[37] Her website was terminated amicably on the same day.[38]
Tokyo Mode describes Watanabe as a girl who used to be an "otaku obsessed with illustrations, anime, and special effects shows".[39] Her public appearances were often accompanied by life-sized animated characters and many fans wore such costumes at her meet-and-greet events.[40] In several episodes of the AKB48 variety show AKBingo!, she demonstrated her specialty of drawing various manga characters in seconds.[41] She also unofficially endorsed the character Pompompurin for the 30th Sanrio Character Awards in 2015.[42]
One of her favorite series is Hetalia. Her favorite character is France, and she says he is her ideal type. She also enjoys surfing the internet, and often used internet slang terms in her blog posts. According to Yuki Kashiwagi, Mayu's blog posts are 80% anime content on average.
She is a musical theater enthusiast and attends performances both in Japan and overseas. She has also performed with the all-female troupe Takarazuka Revue.
AKB48 Group producer and lyricist Yasushi Akimoto once commented that she was born for the sake of being an idol. In the early years of her career she was called "CG" or "cyborg" due to her classic, orthodox idol appearance. However, the nickname became less common as she grew older and her personality changed. A notable turning point was in 2012 when she stopped wearing her hair in her signature twintail style. Until then, she had been very particular about her hairstyle and took great care setting her bangs. Kikuchi Ayaka once shared that she would take up to two hours to set her bangs, and Nakagawa Haruka joked that "if you touch Mayu's bangs, you will be killed."
| Year | No. | Title | Release date | Chart position | Sales (Oricon) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oricon Weekly Singles Chart [43] | Billboard Japan Hot 100 | RIAJ Digital Track Chart | TWNCombo | First week | Total | |||||
| 2012 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 123,237 | 158,884 | ||||
| 2 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 14 | 87,993 | 109,309 | ||||
| 3 | 1 | 3 | 91,907 | 122,381 | ||||||
| 2013 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 67,329 | 95,379 | |||||
| 2015 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 48,240 | - | |||||
| Year | Title | Chart position< | -- ! colspan="2" | Oricon sales --> | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oricon Weekly Albums Chart | Billboard Japan Hot 100 | Total* --> | |||
| 2017 | Best Regards! | 5 | < | -- | TBA --> |
| Year | data-sort-type="number" | No. | Title < | --- title of A-side single ----> | Role[47] | Notes < | --- add other tracks that she participated in, references ----> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 4 | "Bingo!" | A-side | First single with Team B. | |||
| 5 | "Boku no Taiyō" | A-side | |||||
| 6 | "Yūhi o Miteiru ka?" | A-side | |||||
| 2008 | 7 | "Romance, Irane" | A-side | ||||
| 8 | "Sakura no Hanabiratachi 2008" | A-side | |||||
| 9 | "Baby! Baby | Baby!" | A-side | ||||
| 10 | "Ōgoe Diamond" | A-side | |||||
| 2009 | 11 | "10nen Sakura" | A-side | Also sang on "Sakurairo no Sora no Shita de" | |||
| 12 | "Namida Surprise!" | A-side | |||||
| 13 | "Iiwake Maybe" | A-side | Ranked 4th in 2009 General Election. | ||||
| 14 | "River" | A-side | |||||
| 2010 | 15 | "Sakura no Shiori" | A-side | Also sang on "Majisuka Rock 'n' Roll". | |||
| 16 | "Ponytail to Shushu" | A-side | Also sang on "Majijo Teppen Blues". | ||||
| 17 | "Heavy Rotation" | A-side | Ranked 5th in 2010 General Election. Also sang on "Yasai Sisters" and "Lucky Seven" | ||||
| 18 | "Beginner" | A-side | |||||
| 19 | "Chance no Junban" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament.[48] Sang on "Yoyakushita Christmas", and "Love Jump" (as Team B) | ||||
| 2011 | 20 | "Sakura no Ki ni Narō" | A-side | ||||
| – | "Dareka no Tame ni – What can I do for someone?" | – | charity single | ||||
| 21 | "Everyday, Katyusha" | A-side | Also sang on "Korekara Wonderland" and "Yankee Soul". | ||||
| 22 | "Flying Get" | A-side | Ranked 5th in 2011 General Election. Also sang on "Seishun to Kizukanai Mama", "Ice no Kuchizuke", "Yasai Uranai" | ||||
| 23 | "Kaze wa Fuiteiru" | A-side | |||||
| 24 | "Ue kara Mariko" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament.[49] [50] [51] Sang on "Noel no Yoru", and "Yobisute Fantasy" (as Team B) | ||||
| 2012 | 25 | "Give Me Five!" | A-side (Baby Blossom) | Played keyboard in Baby Blossom. Also sang on "Hitsujikai no Tabi". | |||
| 26 | "Manatsu no Sounds Good!" | A-side | Center Also sang on "Chōdai, Darling!"and "Kimi no Tame ni Boku wa...". | ||||
| 27 | "Gingham Check" | A-side | Ranked 2nd in 2012 General Election. Also sang on "Yume no Kawa". | ||||
| 28 | "Uza" | A-side | Also sang on "Kodoku na Hoshizora". | ||||
| 29 | "Eien Pressure" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament. Also sang on "Totteoki Christmas" and "Eien Yori Tsuzuku You ni" as OKL48. First single as member of Team A. | ||||
| 2013 | 30 | "So Long!" | A-side, Center | Also sang on "Ruby". | |||
| 31 | "Sayonara Crawl" | A-side, Center | This single had four centers.[52] | ||||
| 32 | "Koi Suru Fortune Cookie" | A-side | Ranked 3rd in 2013 General Election. | ||||
| 33 | "Heart Electric" | A-side | In main lineup with the nickname Elizabeth.[53] Also sang on "Kisu made Countdown" as Team A. | ||||
| 34 | "Suzukake no Ki no Michi de "Kimi no Hohoemi o Yume ni Miru" to Itte Shimattara Bokutachi no Kankei wa Dō Kawatte Shimau no ka, Bokunari ni Nan-nichi ka Kangaeta Ue de no Yaya Kihazukashii Ketsuron no Yō na Mono" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament.[54] Sang on "Mosh & Dive".[55] Sang on "Party is Over". | ||||
| 2014 | 35 | "Mae Shika Mukanee" | A-side | ||||
| 36 | "Labrador Retriever" | A-side, Center | Also sang on "Kyou Made no Melody" and "B Garden" | ||||
| 37 | "Kokoro no Placard" | A-side, Center | Ranked 1st in 2014 General Election. Also sang on "Sailor Zombie" as Milk Planet and "Oshiete Mommy". | ||||
| 38 | "Kibouteki Refrain" | A-side, Center | Center performer along with Sakura Miyawaki.[56] Also sang on "Loneliness Club". | ||||
| 2015 | 39 | "Green Flash" | A-side | Also sang "Haru no Hikari Chikadzuita Natsu" and "Hakimono to Kasa no Monogatari"[57] [58] [59] | |||
| 40 | "Bokutachi wa Tatakawanai" | A-side | Also sang "Barebare Bushi" and "Kimi no Dai-Ni Shou" | ||||
| 41 | "Halloween Night" | A-side | Ranked 3rd in 2015 General Election. Also sang on "Ippome Ondo" | ||||
| 42 | "Kuchibiru ni Be My Baby" | A-Side | Also sang on "365 Nichi no Kamihikouki" as Asa ga Kita Senbatsu, "Senaka Kotoba", and "Kin no Hane wo Motsu Hito yo" as Team B. | ||||
| 2016 | 43 | "Kimi wa Melody" | A-side | Marked as the 10th Anniversary Single. | |||
| 44 | "Tsubasa wa Iranai" | A-side | Sang on "Koi o Suru to Baka o Miru" as Team B. | ||||
| 45 | "LOVE TRIP / Shiawase wo Wakenasai" | A-side | Also sang on "Hikari to Kage no Hibi" and "Black Flower". | ||||
| 46 | "High Tension" | A-side | |||||
| 2017 | 47 | "Shoot Sign" | A-side | Also sang on "Kanashii Uta wo Kikitaku Natta" as MayuYukirn. | |||
| 48 | "Negaigoto no Mochigusare" | A-side | Also sang on "Maebure" which she is the Center. | ||||
| 49 | "
| A-side | Ranked 2nd in 2017 General Election. | ||||
| 50 | "11gatsu no Anklet" | A-side, Center | Last single to participate. Also sang on "Sayonara de Owaru Wake Janai" which is her graduation song. |
See main article: Watarirouka Hashiritai 7.