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The story
Speculation spread on X that Hello! Project group Juice=Juice might appear on NHK’s year-end Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Battle), sparking debate on 5ch’s Hello! Project board as well. Hello! Project hasn’t appeared on Kohaku since the 2007 “Hello! Project 10th Anniversary Kohaku Special Squad,” a 19-year absence. Thread posters clashed over whether Juice=Juice’s streaming numbers and Billboard Japan Hot 100 performance fall short compared to groups that have already appeared on Kohaku — CUTIE STREET, FRUITS ZIPPER, and =LOVE — versus those defending the group based on their songs and music-show track record.
What people said
@(Calm Otaku A)
You don't actually have numbers solid enough to call it "confirmed," do you?
CUTIE STREET can't get in unless they beat FRUITS ZIPPER and =LOVE
Juice=Juice sings better than FRUITS ZIPPER and =LOVE, so they should get in
as the "Hello! Project 10th Anniversary Kohaku Special Squad"
https://contents.oricon.co.jp/upimg/news/20071230/50895_200712300239434001198965307c.jpg
2007 → 2026
Hello! Project's comeback — a genuine feat
Sure, Juju's "Morezuri" clip (a flattering-photo/selfie trend) is going viral, but their streaming still falls way short of last year's Kawa-Lab and this year's =LOVE (and even CUTIE STREET, who's in that same ballpark, still didn't make Kohaku). In terms of turnout, they obviously can't touch Nogizaka, let alone =LOVE or FRUITS ZIPPER. Putting them in the same league as those two groups is way too much blind favoritism.
@(Blind Otaku)
Wrong. It's not favoritism — Juice=Juice just makes you want to favor them.
That's some next-level blind favoritism lol
No matter how hard you all argue, it's the NHK bigwigs who actually decide anyway
can't stop obsessing over the year-end Kohaku after all lol
Good to know
You're pretty sketchy yourself for monitoring this thread this closely lol
Anyone who says "who cares about Kohaku" basically isn't Japanese
Seriously, NHK's Kohaku has run for half a century — it's THE year-end tradition of postwar Japan
I can't even name a single idol group that was on last year's show
That's Juice=Juice for you lol
You say "if they can't get in with this, no one can," but their Billboard Japan Hot 100 performance isn't even in that conversation, and their streaming numbers aren't growing either. They do get booked on music shows for their talent and good songs, but back in 2025 CUTIE STREET put up numbers on par with the #1 spot and still didn't make Kohaku — so it's really not "if they can't get in with this, no one can."
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HSnj3SyaYAAtAKT?format=jpg
>They do get booked on music shows for their talent and good songs
More like they got lucky invites just because they're not doing the oversaturated "cute" concept everyone else is running lol
The next year decides whether they end up like =LOVE or like Tokimeki Sendenbu — this year doesn't even matter
They won't become either
More like the DA PUMP route (the group famous for a surprise late-career comeback hit after years of low profile)
Might be bait, but whether they make Kohaku this year or not is night-and-day for how things go from here
Would love to see it performed at Kohaku
Have you heard CANDY TUNE sing live? It's unbearable — there's zero unison, no harmony blend at all
Can you really call it "going viral" when it's mostly a storm of harsh backlash?
Background and Key Points of This Debate
NHK’s Kohaku Uta Gassen airs on New Year’s Eve, and an appearance is considered to carry special significance for any artist. Hello! Project’s last Kohaku appearance was the “10th Anniversary Kohaku Special Squad” in 2007, meaning the group has been absent for 19 years since. The thread’s core divide is between those who argue, based on Juice=Juice’s streaming numbers and Billboard Japan Hot 100 performance, that the group hasn’t yet met the bar, and those who expect an appearance based on the strength of their songs and their track record on music shows. One post claims their spot was “already locked in back in August,” but it’s worth noting this is presented in the unverified-insider-info style typical of 5ch and is not an official announcement. CUTIE STREET and FRUITS ZIPPER also come up as points of comparison — both are themselves relatively newly formed groups, suggesting that the question of who gets to appear on Kohaku is a live debate across the idol industry right now.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project) thread “Juice=Juice fans’ blind logic totally falling apart on X is wild lolololololololololololololololololololololololol.”
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