Tsubaki Factory Divides Fans: Live-Band Guitar Solos and Excessive Fan Calls Spark Debate

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The story

Tsubaki Factory’s live shows sparked two hot debates at once on the 5ch Hello! Project board — the “band problem” and the “call problem.” At shows featuring live band arrangements, some fans cooled on hearing a live guitar solo from “some guy we don’t know,” while others fired back that “it’s sad to have a sensibility that can’t enjoy music,” leading to a debate where neither side really engaged with the other. At the same time, some pointed out that the sheer intensity of the fan calls (kakegoe) might be scaring off new fans, turning the discussion into a broader question of what “getting hyped” at a live show should even look like.

What people said

1AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:46
The Topics: The "Band Problem" and the "Call Problem"
3AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:48
>If you actually want Tsubaki to bring in new fans, they seriously need to rein in the calls.
The otaku are so loud it's grating on the ears.

Too many people act like they came to shout the calls, not to watch the live show — it's obnoxious.
8AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:50
Re: #3
Louder than "Moremi" (fan nickname, exact reference unclear)?
16AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:53
Re: #3
That's underground-scene energy — the mentality of fans acting like they're the main act.
6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:49
>I was shocked to see people saying they hate the band-arrangement shows.
Guess these are people who just like idols and don't actually like music~
It's honestly sad to have a sensibility that can't enjoy music…
Don't worry, I'll enjoy it and cry for you instead 😭
10AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:51
Re: #6
You mean metalheads (lit. "Met" — shorthand for Metallica fans)?
18AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:54
Re: #6
If that's the case, there are way better music scenes out there than Hello! Project.
67AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:46
Re: #6
If anything, it's precisely because they listen to music that the sparse, stripped-down band arrangements are hard to take.
9AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:51
>I don't like the band-arrangement shows because they change the original songs.
I'm paying money to see the idol I like, so watching some random guy's guitar solo just isn't fun for me — that's all.
And then I get told I "can't enjoy music" or that I'm just a "nonsensical person," lol
14AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:53
I thought the band arrangement of "Pas de Deux" was trash, but the flamenco arrangement of "Teion Yakedo" ("Low-Tone Burn") was amazing — so I guess in the end it really just comes down to the quality of the arrangement.
15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:53
Re: #8
Juice=Juice's and Rosy's are way more obnoxious.
17AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:54
Re: #8
That's just call-and-response filler anyone can join in on.
19AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:55
Tsubaki's calls aren't even that big a deal.
20AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:55
@Tsubaki's calls weren't demanded by overzealous fans — the members themselves came up with the calls at events and even made tutorial videos for them. Through repeated release events, they built the calls together with the fans, which is why they feel so unified. Thanks to the members' effort, the live shows became something that gets hyped across a wide variety of setlists.
21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:56
Having to enjoy some random middle-aged guy's guitar solo is exhausting.
22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:57
I can't find any post that's actually blowing up like that at all.
23AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:57
If you don't like the calls, just don't come — simple as that.
24AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:57
I'm so curious about King I can't stand it — gonna go check things out at Budokan myself.
30AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:04
Re: #24
Heads-up, King doesn't even have a solo part.
25AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:57
Otaku who love the calls just keep piling more on top of the vocals, making it more and more complicated.
If sheer numbers make something "right," then sure, it's right.
26AnonymousSep 26, 2026 22:58
That's fine, it just means new fans are coming in, right?
34AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:05
>Isn't this guitar solo basically the same as the original song?
I figured we'd get an even longer guitar solo than the original, so I was kind of let down.
So I guess the real issue is more like "point the camera at the idols, not the player."
But honestly, the members doing air guitar all look like they're having fun and it's cute — if I were actually there, I'd probably be watching them anyway.
36AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:10
Re: #34
It's cringe when the band guy starts showing off his own ego.
35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:07
>Of course they only like the idols — it's an idol group, lol.
Just like people who like bands listen to bands, people who like idols simply like the music as idol music.
We're enjoying it with good looks as a bonus, so quit pulling this "chin kishi" (lit. slang for a guy who fake-poses as a pure music lover to seem above it all) move pretending you're purely into the instruments.
46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:18
Re: #35
So defending the band guys now makes you a "chin kishi"?
37AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:11
Just going to hear Kasai and Yokaze sing is worth the price of admission alone.
41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:14
Re: #37
Well, they still can't beat the top vocalists from other groups on that front.
43AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:16
Kasai and Yokaze are the top vocal duo no matter where they go.
49AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:21
Re: #43
Sure, in your head-canon maybe.
47AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:20
It's not even that long, so just sit through some random guy's guitar solo already.
52AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:23
Re: #47
As entertainment though, those 10 seconds just tank the whole vibe.
70AnonymousSep 26, 2026 23:50
Just watched "Tsukiyo no Pas de Deux" on YouTube — Akiyama can really sing too lol
82AnonymousSep 27, 2026 00:02
Re: #70
I'm not even an Akiyama fan, but I think she's the best singer in Tsubaki right now.

Background and Key Points of This Debate

Band-format idol shows have become fairly common on the Hello! Project scene in recent years, and the live guitar solos and arrangement changes that come with a real band can clash with fans’ expectations of a faithful reproduction of the original song. This clash boils down to a mismatch between the “can’t you enjoy music?” camp and the “I came here to see the idols” camp — it’s less a matter of one side being right and more a difference in live-show culture. As for the other flashpoint, the excessiveness of the calls, it’s easy to overlook — as pointed out in post 20 — that the members themselves originally came up with and cultivated the calls, so it’s not simply a case of “fans running wild.” You could describe it as a structure where a performance choice made by the performers (the band) and a response culture built by the audience (the calls) have each grown bigger at the same time, raising the question of how well the two now fit together.

※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Tsubaki Factory’s SNS Is Buzzing Like Never Before lol.”

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