My Inspirations (Matsui Rena-sama graduation post)

Frankly speaking, I am very calm and relaxed today. On this day where tears are streaming freely in a form of waterfalls and rivers, I am as calm as one can be. Maybe slightly sad and somewhat lost as what the future brings, but still, relaxed. I have a smile on my face, despite the commotion around me. On this day, when someone moves forward and takes a turning point in their life, the one they always dreamed of… I can only smile and feel very proud to have followed them till the very end. However, this is not the end. This is just the beginning. Beginning of Matsui Rena. Not as an idol. As an actress.

I was always asking myself…what made me fall completely under her spell from day 1? I mean, now I know her thoughts, personality, goals, charms, voice, features, but then…the girl didn’t stand out much amidst other SKE48 members and really, most of the time she was behind others or in a shadow/corner… Yet I instantly fell in love. She has very beautiful eyes, they are sharp yet have such a weird feel to them, as if you can look deep into her soul through them. Her smile is so captivating and her energy goes off the roof. Then I didn’t care she is not as good at dancing, they all were just starting their journey as part of SKE48, but…something about her clicked within me.

Matsui Rena was, is and will always be my KamiOshi. Same with Ooshima Yuuko. And people probably don’t understand two things. Either they don’t get the whole idol thing and what’s so great about them, or they wonder how one can have more than one oshimen. Well, let me break it down to you.

When I got into AKB48, there were Team A and Team K only, and I instantly fell in love with Ooshima Yuuko. Since that day I never found anyone as charming and amazing and inspiring and hard working as her – not to say that others do not possess such qualities or do not work hard – she simply was ALL in ONE. Up till this day she is No.1 in my heart, despite not being an idol anymore. You ask about the term idol? I tell you it is a road, or more like a helping step for people to achieve their goals. You want to be an actress? Fine. You become idol, work hard, get known, then graduate and become an actress. Of course, it can go many different ways, but this is like a simplest example of it. When you are an idol, you do not just sing, dance or be cute. You get to act in various movies and dramas, you do variety, comedy, learn skits and MCing, you get to do handshake events, perform in theater, various concert halls and meet a lot of fans. It’s everything and even more. Photobooks, magazine shoots, DVDs, various collaborations, you name it.

And then the term KamiOshi, or oshimen. To me, KamiOshi and Oshimen are terms a bit different. KamiOshi means someone you admire that is of god/goddess level. Oshimen is simply someone you admire, your No.1. Yuuko-sama was always my KamiOshi, same goes for Rena-sama. And it will never change. They have a lot in common, that is what I realized when following all 48G. They both always aspired to be actresses since day 1, they always worked really hard, sometimes carrying the weight-load alone, they both didn’t graduate right away when they wanted, first they taught their juniors all they could and pushed them to front, making sure to leave 48G in younger CAPABLE generation’s hands. Inspirational for sure.

And the people that are now left in 48G, I have an oshimen who is as exceptionally awesome and wonderful as if she was the child of Yuuko-sama and Rena-sama. Yokoyama Yui. That girl is not to be reckoned with. I believe Takamina made a right choice picking Yuihime as the next Soukantoku and I am more than proud to have followed Yuihime since 9gen days. While writing this, I realized one thing. I always say how Watanabe Miyuki is on par with Yokoyama Yui in my rankings, but honestly speaking… It’s not quite so. Mirukii has the charm to mesmerize you and she is an amazing dancer, her voice is to die for and her personality is cheerful and she is hardworking – damn that’s a long sentence here… However, I realized Yuihime is above her in mostly all aspects. So I know now that Yuihime is officially my No.1 in 48G now that Rena-sama has graduated.

But as I was saying, Yuuko-sama and Rena-sama (and you could include Maeda Atsuko) are the ones that are above them all. I think I could talk the same way about Hello!Project C-ute’s Suzuki Airi, she is also somewhat like a child of Yuuko-sama and Rena-sama. But honestly, these idols inspire me to move forward with my life and do my best every day, no matter what obstacles come my way. If you think idols are nothing but cute girls who cannot dance or sing, you are very wrong. They are all round performers and I am more than happy to be a fan since the very beginning.

I wish all the best to Matsui Rena on her journey to become one of the best actresses. I do think she is one of the best if not the best – though I gotta give it to Yuuko-sama – actresses and I will continue supporting her no matter what. After all, she is my KamiOshi 🙂

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