“Last Idol” was an idol audition television program that aired in 2017 and was created by idol producer and lyricist Akimoto Yasushi. A group was formed from the show of the same name, but in March 2022 it was announced that the group would disband due to the impact of COVID-19 on their activities. Auditions for a new version of the group have been announced, and this time they will be done through closed auditions instead of through a program broadcasted on TV. Only 7 members will be selected and the group will be produced by Yuki Ichinomiya of Blowout Entertainment. In recent months, Ichinomiya has also been revealed to be forming a new idol group through an audition program that is a collaboration with AKB48 and Nippon Television called “OUT of 48.”
Many netizens feel that it is unfair that the group name “Last Idol” is likely to stay the same despite the original group disbanding. Even former members have even expressed their dissatisfaction with the entire situation on social media.
Miho Takagi via Twitter: “Last Idol was Last Idol because of its history…The group lived in everybody’s hearts with good memories. Right now I feel like I’m being dragged through the mud. With all this criticism, who is going to support this new group?”
Yuuki Okamura via Twitter: “We didn’t want to disband. What was wrong with us? Was it the members’ fault?”
