From our other sites
The story
The thread kicked off with the question, “Where did ‘EBiDAN’ suddenly come from?” Replies explained that EBiDAN is an umbrella term for Stardust Promotion’s male idol groups — covering roughly 10 groups and about 70 members total, including Chotokkyu, M!LK, and SUPER★DRAGON. Others noted the name’s origin: the agency is based in Ebisu, making it a male counterpart to the agency’s girl group Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku (“Ebichu”). The conversation widened into Johnny’s declining industry clout, splitting between an optimistic “now’s the chance” crowd and more cautious voices pointing out that former Johnny’s groups like Snow Man and SixTONES are still dominant.
What people said
EBiDAN = Hello! Project = Kawaii Lab
that much you can figure out easily
the long-running girl idol group is Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku (Ebichu)
and now the newly coined name for the boy idols is EBiDAN
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HMYF0PPbQAAz9fA.jpg
M!LK
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNg3CTTbAAA5WoR.jpg
SUPER★DRAGON
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNguDSJawAAiwu7.jpg
Sakurashimeji
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNfwG25a8AAeNj_.jpg
ONE N' ONLY
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNgwU6VaQAAMG0m.jpg
Genin wa Jibun ni Aru ("The Fault Lies in Myself")
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNfj72bb0AA5vSG.jpg
BUDDiiS
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNg1pFIbgAAahNw.jpg
ICEx
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNflD8wbsAAUJ94.jpg
Lienel
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HNfnGHYa0AA2j-t.jpg
iiONDO
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HS38y1LaEAA-ZFp.jpg
• Chotokkyu (9 members)
• M!LK (5 members)
• SUPER★DRAGON (9 members)
• Sakurashimeji (2 members, duo)
• ONE N' ONLY (5 members)
• Genin wa Jibun ni Aru (6 members)
• BUDDiiS (9 members)
• ICEx (8 members)
• Lienel (6 members)
• iiONDO (8 members)
Add it all up and that's it — a roughly 70-person roster, Hello! Project scale
That's a good thing
Also, Mrs. (Mrs. GREEN APPLE) counts as idols these days too
that's basically SMAP
Kitamura Takumi and Morisaki Win too
• Yokohama Ryusei (early member, broke out as an actor)
• Nakano Taiga (actor)
• Kitamura Takumi (DISH// leader, actor)
• Morisaki Win (formerly of PRIZMAX, actor/singer)
• Miyase Ryuto (formerly of M!LK, actor)
• Itagaki Mizuki
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
The name EBiDAN is said to come from the fact that Stardust Promotion’s office is located in Ebisu, coined as a male counterpart to the agency’s long-running girl group Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku (“Ebichu”). It’s an umbrella term for existing groups active since around 2010, like Chotokkyu and M!LK — not a newly formed group, which is a common point of confusion. Where opinions in the thread diverged was over whether the decline of Johnny’s influence following the 2023 sexual abuse scandal has actually been a tailwind for EBiDAN acts. Against the optimistic view that “with Johnny’s gone, now’s the chance,” others pushed back that former Johnny’s groups like Snow Man and SixTONES are still dominant — suggesting a generational gap in how much this industry shakeup is actually being felt. Worth noting too: the board this thread was posted on is a Hello! Project board, and EBiDAN itself belongs to a completely unrelated agency with no connection to Hello! Project — an easy mix-up given how similar the names sound.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project board) thread “Where did “EBiDAN” suddenly come from?.”
Leave a Reply