MOMONA 101 [ME:I 2nd Single "Hi-Five" on 8/28 ; #1 on Billboard HOT 100]

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ME:I members introduce themselves on their TikTok

Kasahara Momona
https://www.tiktok.com/@official_me_i_/ ... 9542260999

She has the lowest amount of views and likes for her video

But on youtube, she has the most

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It seems that prior to Produce 101, Kasahara Momona, Shimizu Keiko, and Aoki Yuka passed the "KPOP Idol Audition Course" at the KPOP ART SCHOOL (KAS) and were selected to be trainees in Produce 101. It is a KPOP study abroad program for foreign students.
https://jp.kpop-artschool.com/

The school acknowledges them becoming trainees for Produce 101 Japan.

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The KPOP ART SCHOOL acknowledges Kasahara Momona and Shimizu Keiko on making their debut with ME:I

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The even use Shimizu Keiko's picture to promote their next KPOP Study Abroad program

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https://twitter.com/produce101jp_/statu ... 4540459248

FLY UP SO HIGH (lyric video with CC English subtitles and romaji)


SOZOIJO (lyric video with CC English subtitles and romaji) *Kasahara Momona is Main Vocal

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The members of ME:I are asking fans to post their questions on Twitter for an upcoming Q&A

This one is for Kasahara Momona

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ME:I is looking for questions to ask Kasahara Momona.

#ME_I_QandA
#笠原桃奈

Please post your questions here with the above two tags!

period
12/20(Wed) 11:00am~12/22 (Fri) 23:59

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Each member of ME:I each wrote a handwritten thank you message

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Momona is the only one who can write Japanese at an angle like that. It is difficult to read. *tilts head*

[Shabranikuduu]

The final episode with English subs. What a journey!

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Someone had the time to calculate all of the votes accumulated (including the bonus votes) from each round. If they didn't receive any bonus votes, the total for each round is the same. These totals are just for fun brag, and didn't determine the finale rankings. If they did use it this way, Momona would still be #1. Glad they didn't.



Kasahara Momona 5,466,347
Ishii Ran 5,018,893
Kato Kokoro 4,693,885
Sakurai Miu 4,639,607
Yamamoto Suzu 4,108,312
Ebihara Suzumi 3,875,431
Sasaki Kokona 3,784,269
Takami Ayane 3,773,378
Shimizu Keiko 3,099,171
Murakami Rinon 2,770,690
Iida Shizuku 1,892,043

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Today, ME:I had an interview with the media















ME:I," whose members were selected for the survival audition program "PRODUCE 101 JAPAN THE GIRLS" (a.k.a. "Nippu Girls"), attended a press conference held in Tokyo on December 21st. They showed a warm, family-like atmosphere.

The 11 members of ME:I are Kasahara Momona (20), Murakami Rinon (17), Takami Ayane (18), Sakurai Miu(21), Yamamoto Suzu (17), Sasaki Kokona (17), Iida Shizuku (19), Shimizu Keio (18), Ishii Ran (19), Ebihara Tsuzumi (16) and Kato Kokoro (23) (*in rank order). The name of the group means "future idols" representing a new generation in Japan.

"PRODUCE 101 JAPAN THE GIRLS" is the third installment of the popular survival audition program "PRODUCE 101 JAPAN," which has produced the global boy groups JO1 and INI. The 101 trainees were chosen from among approximately 14,000 applicants from all over Japan, the largest number of applicants in the history of the program, and they competed fiercely in various missions such as dancing and singing, receiving a total of 90 million votes from viewers.

The first-place finisher, Kasahara, won with a total of 1,116,716 votes, a whopping 400,000 votes ahead of second place. On the day of this event, she cheerfully led the members in a speech, declaring, "I want to be a cheerful and joyful father to everyone. I'm in charge of calling out, 'Let's go,'" she said, bursting into a smile.

On the other hand, Kato, the oldest member of the group, answered calmly, "I would like to be in charge of watching over everyone." Sasaki smiled quietly and said, "I think I can look at things calmly, so I will be in charge of keeping a cool head." Shimizu, who often made the audience laugh during the press conference, came forward with the following words of encouragement : "I hope to be in charge of rapping, and I hope to be an energizer who can inject energy into everyone."

The press conference proceeded in a "family" atmosphere from start to finish. Sakurai raised expectations : "We have strong personalities, but we are also considerate, so I think we will fit in well together, and since we have different personalities and skills, I think our strength is that we can do a variety of songs."

The group has an advertising contract with NTT Docomo in the works and plans to hold a fan meeting in March.


https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2304497/full/

While each of them revealed their beauty secrets, Sakurai Miu, who works out six times a week, came forward as the "Muscle Training Leader."

We asked the members, who have not only improved their skills but also their beauty through the audition program, about their beauty secrets.
"I try to eat fermented foods" (Yamamoto), "I like to eat, and if I have to endure it, I get stressed, so I eat in moderation" (Murakami), and "I get cold easily, so I soak in a bathtub with hot water when there is a bathtub" (Takami), "At home, I try to take a bath in a bathtub for one hour" (Sasaki), "I used to do yoga, so I do it after my bath" (Kato). I try to take a bath for an hour" (Sasaki).

Murakami, whose trademark is long black hair, responded, "I often receive compliments on my hair, but that is because I maintain it properly and use a good hair dryer, shampoo, and iron." Iida, whose "de-classic" blonde hair was the talk of the town, added, "When I get out of the bath, I do my hair before my skin care. In the morning, I brush my hair before my face and apply oil to my hair. Ebihara shared, "I put on a face pack after my bath. In the morning, I use a small facial roller to remove swelling." Shimizu said, "I never wipe my face with a towel after washing. Wiping clean with a tissue prevents pimples from forming."

Sakurai added, "When I was a trainee, I had a routine of muscle training six times a week. I maintained it even in the first training camp, and I have three abdominal routines and five aerobic routines," she said, revealing her stoicism. Ran and I are the muscular types on the team, but when we do muscle training together, I would like to use my routine," she said, claiming to be the muscle training leader. Ishii also revealed, "I do as much stretching as possible and muscle training as well, while keeping a good balance between the two.

Kasahara, on the other hand, was adamant that she had no specific hair or skin care regimen. I think it's more fun if I smile, so the best care is to talk with my favorite members.


https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2307710/full/


Members appealed to their own strengths and ran for their respective positions.

ME:I appeared in front of the press with a nervous look on their faces, and freshly greeted the audience with "We are ME:I!" and greeted them freshly. During the interview session, they appealed their strengths and predicted their future responsibilities within the group.

Kato, the oldest, replied, "There are many young girls, so I would like to be in charge of looking after them all," while looking out over the members with a kind smile. Ishii commented, "Since dance is my strong point, I would like to be able to lead the performance like a main dancer."

Iida said, "No matter how hard things have been, I have worked hard with a smile on my face, so I will try to be a healer for everyone."

Ebihara said, "I think I can be the youngest of everyone who is energetic. I want to be a cheerful main vocalist. Sakurai said, "I hope to be in charge of the team's language skills. I would like to be able to show my strength when working with people from overseas."

Murakami then added, "I am the positive princess of the team! I will continue to do my best with my Rinrin mindset." Kasahara said, "I'm a happy father to everyone. There are people who watch over us, so I will be in charge of talking to them," replied Kasahara, looking Kato in the eye. Takami then added, "I'm often told that I have a distinctive voice, so I want to be a vocalist who can sing phrases that can be heard on the station's face," and Yamamoto added, "I really like dancing, so I want to make the performance as exciting as Ran-chan's," showing respect for the members and full of enthusiasm. Yamamoto was enthusiastic, showing her respect for the members.

https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2307711/full/

The 11 members selected to make their debut reflected on their survival training camp.

Looking back on the grueling training camp period, when asked what was impressive, Ishii replied, "In the final evaluation, (trainer) YUMEKI-san had given us strict lessons so far, but when he saw our final performance, he cried. He said that although he had given us many tough and scary impressions, he could feel the growth of each one of us, and I was glad to know that he had given us guidance with so much love."

Takami, who boasts of her one and only singing ability, said, "The recording was the most memorable part of the concept battle. It was the first time for me to do an original song for this project, and I had no experience in recording, so it was fresh. Although it was my first time, I was able to learn a lot and enjoy the recording process. Yamamoto, who excels at dancing, looked back on her memories of the first camp: "I remember the scene where we practiced the signal song 'LEAP HIGH' until late at night, sweating."

They also shared some memories with the trainers. When Shimizu was asked about what she was able to overcome, she mentioned "a little bit of being nervous." She said, "At first I was a little bit agoraphobic... When I talked to Rino (Nakasone) about it during the group battle, she said, 'You are nervous because you are feeling anxious.' I realized that I didn't believe in myself, and when I went on stage, I implied to myself that I could do it, and I was able to give a good performance without being nervous at all, and since then I have not been so nervous," she said.

Kasahara, who won first place, said, "The way I face myself," and added, "For better or worse, I am too hard on myself. Rino said, 'You keep challenging yourself,' and Thelma said, 'I understand that people rely on you a lot, but you have to face them without neglecting yourself,' and through the program I realized how clumsy I am," she added.

Murakami, who came in second but had no experience in dancing or singing, said, "Of course I improved my skills, but I had been singing and dancing whenever I wanted, so this was my first time singing in a group with other people. When I was struggling with how to fit in with others, YUMEKI told me, 'It's okay for Rinon to be just as she is.' Through the camp, I learned that it is okay to be just as I am now, and that I should never forget to be myself in the future."

Sakurai said, "I was evaluated that my practice and experience I have been doing in terms of performance were negative or, on the contrary, that I was confining myself. I tried my best to change that somehow, and I think there are still many things I can improve on, but I think I have gradually disappeared from having myself in a negative way with each passing session. "I've often been told to 'forget about my desire for my own performance.' I remembered a few days before the finals that I wanted to improve my own performance. I don't know if I was able to overcome it, but it was the most important thing I noticed and was able to improve," she said, feeling that she had grown.

The 11 members, still full of freshness, were somewhat nervous, but they participated in the photo shoot with sparkling and dazzling smiles on their faces.

https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2307712/full/

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There is also a video interview with all the members just after the finale

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Photos from the finale

https://twitter.com/produce101jp_/statu ... 2978624699

SOZOIJO team

https://twitter.com/produce101jp_/statu ... 7581654111

Their performance has reached 2.3 million views on youtube

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Momona's letter translated

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Kasahara Momona went out to take purikura with some of the eliminated trainees.

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We never got to see how Momona became friends with them on the show.