The members of Tokyo Girls' Style have a lot to juggle in the next couple of months. This Saturday, the five-member pop group will perform a solo show at Japan's storied Budokan arena — a huge milestone for any musical outfit here. About a month later, their third album "Yakusoku" ("Promise") will hit stores. On top of all that, the teenage performers have to stay on top of their schoolwork.
"Sometimes I study or do my homework on the shinkansen after a show," member Yuri Nakae tells The Japan Times at the offices of her label, Avex Group. She sits with the rest of her bandmates who are all wearing matching floral dresses.
Balancing life in the J-pop spotlight with the common demands of adolescence is an issue Tokyo Girls' Style isn't facing alone. The girls are part of a new wave of young female idol groups that have become the dominant face of mainstream Japanese music over the past few years. Tokyo Girls' Style, created on the outset of this trend, is starting to gain steam. It has done so by being unafraid to blur stylistic boundaries and collaborate with some unlikely acts.