LDH Male Groups

LDH is a Japanese entertainment agency which is created by the original members of EXILE. Since then, the agency has grown and debuted various groups and having other artists joining them. Furthermore, they also has extended their scope with having actors and models, as well as creating dramas and films projects like HiGH&LOW, Prince of Legend, and Tatara Samurai.

As an agency which is initially founded by a male group, this post is dedicated specifically to the male groups in LDH which I have heard so far. As in, I listened to their music and have my opinions about them based on that. Without further ado, here are the male groups in the agency that I've listened to:

1. EXILE

The legendary group which was initially named as J Soul Brothers. Their discography as J Soul Brothers is kinda hard to find, not to mention that they already got plenty of recognition as EXILE. Initially, the group was formed as a dance group; but they have vocalists joining them later on. After that, they become a "dance and vocal group" where the vocalists and dancers can share the same stage without one being overshadowed by another.

To be honest, I haven't really heard most of their discography since TAKAHIRO joined the group since I tend to listen to their first releases when I'm interested to a musician. Their latest release which I've heard is Star of Wish, which is really good. I also like their early releases when they still had SHUN with them.

I think that I don't need to explain much about the Performers (dancers) since EXILE is on another level with their skills since they often give each of the Performers their own freestyle dance in their MVs & Lives. Freestyle is like the signature of LDH's groups, which also shows what kind of style each of the members have. ATSUSHI also had a year of hiatus to pursue more knowledge about singing in America. God bless his voice. This is also the only group where the vocalists only required to sing, because the vocalists in other groups occasionally dance as well without decreasing the quality of their voice.

I have huge respect for the original members of this group since they're the ones who founded the agency. The four original Performers also stayed in the group until their retirement when they've reacged the age of 40, although HIRO retired first due to his role as the C.E.O. of the agency. MAKIDAI is currently Dj-ing and in a music griup called PKCZ. MATSU is currently being an actor, and USA is still in the agency.

2. EXILE THE SECOND

The members of this group are the second generation of J Soul Brothers, excluding AKIRA who joined EXILE first. After their merging with EXILE, the group was initially named "THE SECOND from EXILE" in which AKIRA hasn't joined them. After making cameos in their MVs as EXILE THE SECOND, AKIRA eventually joined the group.

The combination of the vocalists' voices is really interesting. NESMITH has a nice deep voice while SHOKICHI also has nice techniques. But when he sings, sometimes SHOKICHI let out a sultry sexy voice like in his solo song BACK 2U. As a part of EXILE TRIBE, the Performers are also not disappointing. All in all, I don't have any problems with liking this group. I also think that it's nice for the group since the vocalists don't sing much as EXILE members since EXILE already have two main vocalists.

3. 三代目 J Soul Brothers from EXILE TRIBE (Sandaime J Soul Brothers from EXILE TRIBE)

Literally translated as "Third Generation of J Soul Brothers from EXILE TRIBE", the two leaders of this group were members of J.S.B.'s second generation. And this is probably the last of LDH male group which has a direct relation to EXILE and J.S.B.; since EXILE was J.S.B. before they changed their name, the revival of J.S.B. created the second generation, then they merged with EXILE and J.S.B. is revived by the current third generation.

I only begun listening to their initial releases after I was finished with J.S.B.'s second generation. I've listened to their first album, in which there's not much that I liked although I really like Kimi to Nara. I also like their other upbeat songs like R.Y.U.S.E.I., J.S.B. Dream, O.R.I.O.N., and Summer Madness. Ryuji's and Omi's voices really blends well together. Sometimes later, ELLY debuted as a rapper and he occasionally raps in J.S.B.'s songs like Feel So Alive and Rainbow.

4. GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE

This is my favorite group in EXILE TRIBE, which is also the original junior group debuted in LDH. Their concept is directed for younger audiences, and it seems like they targeted this group to have international fandom since all of their singles have English Versions. They also have one original song in English: Control Myself. I like that song. Mandy also rapped in that song.

The vocalists in this group are finalists for J.S.B.'s third generation. Yuta was also initially a member of GENE's support group (back dancers), but eventually got the chance to join. All of the Performers also auditioned to join EXILE, but Alan and Mandy are the only ones who made it.

As my favorite group, of course I like lots of their songs, including their latest single: Hira Hira. The group is also very interesting, in courtesy of their show named "GENERATIONS High School TV" where you can see their personalities. The MC, Hayato, is so talkative. Alan got the rep as "Fusei Leader" (leader who always mess around). He also really hates tomato. Ryuto is a contradiction of the other vocalist, Ryota, since he occasionally curse and act like a gangster whereas Ryota is the prince in this group. Yuta has a weird/alien personality. Reo, the youngest and cutest member but also cool considering he's a krumper. And Mandy, well he's the hilarious member who sometimes be the group's joke. What's more interesting is that they managed to have a World Tour even before they performed at Tokyo Dome. That's really cool.

5. THE RAMPAGE from EXILE TRIBE

This group has 3 Vocalists and 13 Performers, which reminds me of the resemblance of EXILE's current formation. One of the vocalists also occasionally raps in their songs.

Just like the group's name, their concept is more like a group of rampaging people. They're also the only group in EXILE TRIBE which has more than two vocalists (technically, so does EXILE but NESMITH and SHOKICHI don't always sing as EXILE, so...). Kazuma is the one who occasionally raps, and I have no problem with the way he sings and raps. Hokuto has sweet voice and can reach high notes easily. RIKU's voice is actually nice, but I don't like how he oversing the notes during Lives. It's like... I don't know. Kinda hard to explain. But he tends to overdo his vocals when he sings, while I like the balance and control of the other vocalists. Not too much, not too less either. Just perfect.

6. FANTASTICS from EXILE TRIBE

The junior group where one of the Performers passed away of stomach cancer. Sadly enough, he passed away before the group officially debuted.

I honestly don't have much to review since I've only heard their first single, which I honestly don't like. I'm gonna listen to their first album later in case if there are any more of their songs that I'll like. But I've heard Dear Destiny briefly, and I think I might like that song eventually.

7. BALLISTIK BOYZ from EXILE TRIBE

This group is different from the rest of EXILE TRIBE groups because all of the members sing, rap, and dance. The group is a collaboration between EXILE TRIBE and DOBERMAN INFINITY.

Like the previous group, I also haven't listen much to their discography. I only like several songs in their mini-album, and I'm gonna listen to the rest of their discography.

8. DOBERMAN INFINITY

Probably my favorite male group outside EXILE TRIBE. It's a bit sad that they're still sort of underrated. They're a Hip-Hop group which initially consisted of all rappers. When the group joined LDH, they added a vocalist who is a finalist for EXILE's Vocal Battle Audition which was intended to find a vocalist alongside ATSUSHI.

Because they're also my favorite group, I like lots of their songs. The rappers are definitely good. KAZUKI has an amazing vocal, period. God bless that voice. He also raps in some of their songs like Jump Around Infinity and 5ive. All in all, this is my favorite underrated group in LDH.

9. COLOR (DEEP)

The group is currently known as DEEP. But I haven't listened to their discography as DEEP, so....

This group was formed by ATSUSHI as a vocal group. Sometimes later; ATSUSHI left the group, they change the name to DEEP, and currently has only 3 members left. They also had an audition to look for other vocalists. The three winners and the remaining members formed a group called DEEP SQUAD, but I haven't found any discography from them.

I've only listened to their first two albums as COLOR. The quality of their vocals is so not disappointing. Their style at that time was more or less R&B. I have no problem liking their songs and I'm gonna listen to the rest of their discography.

Those are the male groups in LDH which I've listened to. I'm not sure if I'm gonna listen to HONEST BOYZ, ACE OF SPADES, and RED DIAMOND DOGS since it's difficult for me to follow lots of groups at a time. Not to mention that GENE is my favorite group. But anyways, the next post will be the female groups in the agency which I've listened to.

Learning Other Languages

Learning other languages can be difficult, or not, depending on each of our own abilities. But is that really all it depends on? In this post, I'm writing about my personal experience during my almost 23 years of learning two additional languages. Although, one is longer than the other.

My native language is Indonesian. Even though I'm half Chinese and half Javanese, I don't really understand those two languages like the natives or those who simply learn them. Despite of my father's attempt to let me learn Mandarin by enrolling me to Mandarin Course at school, my grade were terrible because I focused on the complications in learning that language and the fact that I wasn't really fond of learning it. At the same time, I was enrolled in an English Course and I managed to excel in it partly because Indonesian also has alphabets like English so I don't need to learn how to read different characters in a language. Exposure to medias which use English from childhood also helped me getting used to the language. I spent my childhood watching Disney Channel; and my teenage years were spent watching channels which use English like AXN and Star World.

I was so comfortable using English that I switched Indonesian novels to English novels. I also express myself more on the internet using English, although I rarely write in my native language. The same comfort also made my decision of my major for my Bachelor's Degree. The only major drawback that I experience with getting exposed to foreign language from childhood is a certain stereotype. Some people here stereotyped us who often use English as arrogant slash cocky. Usually, the reason is us using foreign language too often that we don't love our own language thus not loving our own country, which is such a foolish excuse because I'd change my nationality if I dislike my country. Due to how moronic that stereotype is, that doesn't stop me from using English whenever I want to. And it certainly doesn't stop me to learn other languages.

During High School, I was starting to get interested in Japanese music. Sometimes later, I started reading lyrics translations to understand their meanings. I also watched Japanese dramas & films with English subtitles, although I occasionally found Indonesian subs as well. I was lucky to find several PVs and Lives which have Kanji, Romaji, and English/Indonesian subtitles in it. Before I knew it, I was unconsciously learning Japanese; but I didn't want to stop because of my huge interest in their culture. Later on, I could memorize Hiragana along with several Katakana and Kanji. I can also type simple sentences in Japanese. My other form of self-learning is interacting with some Japanese native speakers from an online game. In the game, we interacted through text and I have to thank Google Translate for their scanning feature. As a language graduate myself, I know that the translation for full sentences can be incorrect or simply weird; so I read each of the words' translations and comprehend what they mean when each of them are combined. I also noted the translations of those words for future references, I'm thankful for being able to interact with the native speakers because interacting with them is really useful in developing my Japanese language, and we're still occasionally catching up with each other.

So far, my personal experience in learning two additional languages have different reasons of my ability to learn them. One being familiarity and exposure from childhood, and another being the interest of the culture which lead to the want to learn the language. With that, it can be concluded that there are other things which cause the success of learning other languages, apart from the individual abilities. Exposure from childhood and the familiarity with the native language may help. But when we learn another language as an adult, it might be more difficult than if we learn it from our childhood. In that case, one thing that can motivate us to learn the language is our own interest. If we have the interest to learn a language, we may be able to learn it regardless of the difficulty of the language itself. There are plenty of ways to Rome indeed, but we must decide whether we really wanna go there or not. Until then, which method we use to learn a language doesn't really matter because each of us have our own pace.

Sunflowers and Meteor Showers

Finally. Finally everything went back normal, at least for the earth. During that sunny day, she felt like driving. She grabbed her sunglasses and went to her convertible. She let the wind blew her hair as she drove on the long and straight road. Some times after that, she saw a bunch of sunflowers at the right side of the road. The road was empty, save for her own car, so she drove while gazing at the beautiful sunflower fields. They were tall and fully bloomed. They were all facing her as if they said hello to her. After the field ended, she turned her gaze back toward the road.

Soon she arrived at the city and found a wide and empty parking lot. The sun was setting, and she gazed at it lovingly. "Hey, I'm so glad that you come," a woman's voice said. She looked up and saw her best friend. Of course she came. It was the promise that they made. They simply promised to come to that spot after the bad thing ended. She felt the sunset was ending, and the sky went slightly darker. The sky was a deep blue hue, but something caught her eye. A twinkle that passed through the sky. "Oh, look! It's a meteor shower!" her friend said. She then began to comprehend that what she saw was a shooting star. Other identical meteors passed, and soon the sky was filled with plenty of them. Shooting stars, sometimes also called as meteor showers. "So pretty," she said, mesmerized at them. It was like the earth was happy again. And the earth would like her to know about happiness too, by showing her the sunflower field and meteor showers.

Musical Preference Superiority

I've been thinking about writing this kind of topic in my blog lately even though I've thought about it for awhile. As the title goes by, I'm going to write about my opinion about how some people feel superior regarding of their musical preference.

The feeling of superiority doesn't have to come in their musical preference, I know. Hell, it can come up with any kinds of reasons to feel superior. I just happen to love music so much that it's like a drug to me. I may go crazy if I don't listen to my beloved music at least once in a day. I meditate with music instead of the classical quiet mode. But as much as I love music, it doesn't mean I like every single genre that I like. We'll get to that later.

As we all know, there are mainstream music and not so mainstream music. The mainstream ones are easier to find and lots of people are listening to them, but it doesn't necessarily make non mainstream music bad either. I also found that the feel of superiority in regards of musical preference is found in both mainstream listeners and non mainstream listeners. One of the most popular mainstream music right now is K-Pop. Some of the listeners seems quiet superior which is shown in the internet. I even had a classmate which felt so superior about her preference in K-Pop that she threw lots of shade on 48G during their performance in M.A.M.A. before Produce48 was announced. I did mention some cause I also had friends who like K-Pop and they don't feel any kinds of superiority in their preference.

As for non mainstream listeners, I occasionally found them as well; bragging about how different their musical preferences are comparing to the mainstream, which indirectly say that mainstream is kinda low. I've been there before although I'm glad that I don't feel like that now. Somehow, my musical preference is always different with the majority of mainstream listeners and I truly hate the traditional music in my country. My teenage years were filled with MTV Asia where I discovered lots of western music. Even so, perhaps the only mainstream musicians that I liked were Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Beyonce, & Lady Gaga. I even stopped listening to Swift somewhere in my middle school and discovered new artists (at that time) like Pixie Lott & Little Boots. One mainstream musician that I hate the most at that time was J***** *****r, a.k.a. my hate at first sight. In short, I felt superior because I also listened to non mainstream musicians and used my hatred toward my "hate at first sight" and my distaste of dangdut to look down on their listeners.

Then I grew up. I still hate those I've mentioned above. And I still don't really listen to the mainstream music. I don't like K-Pop, but it doesn't necessarily mean that I hate them nor do they sucks. It's just that I currently prefer to listen to J-Pop and my nostalgic music. I also don't look down upon the mainstream listeners. As a music lover, I must say that music is one thing that is supposed to be enjoyed, not something to brag about. Just because one prefers indie and classic doesn't make them a genius and artsy. Just because one listen to mainstream music doesn't make them trendy and cool either. After all, it's just preference. We all have different ways to realize the beauty of music.

Music is a form of art that touch its listeners. Just like there are various things in this world, it has various kinds of genres as well. How one prefers a genre rather than another is completely their own preference. It has nothing to do with how one genre is better than the other. Better yet, it doesn't have anything to do with how rubbish one's musical taste is. Just like different kinds of flowers, each has their own lovers. But it doesn't neccesarily mean that one flower is uglier than another. Besides, the world is more colorful with various kinds of thing.

J-Pop Fandom Part II

Time has passed, so does my exploration in J-Pop fandom. I'm currently not into Perfume anymore regardless of how talented the girls are. It might have something to do with my distaste for their music producer: Yasutaka Nakata. The last album that I have is Cosmic Explorer, and I don't really like Mugen Mirai when it came out. He also seemed like neglecting his own unit, CAPSULE, as their last album was released in 2015. He was busy creating music for Perfume (which I don't really like anymore), Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, and Momo Mashiro. And I really prefer Toshiko Koshijima's voice rather than those two, so I'm pretty much upset that he neglected the unit although they still perform here and there.

MetaFive

I usually read infos related to Nakata from a tumblr page named fuckyeahystk. From the very same blog, I stumbled upon other artists like Towa Tei, Ami Suzuki, MetaFive, and Yellow Magic Orchestra. Ami has a really good voice but she hasn't released anything since 2013. As for Towa Tei, I found that he's a music genius although I admit that it's a bit difficult to find his complete discography. His first album "Future Listening!" left such a good impression on me, and he's one of the members of a Japanese Supergroup project MetaFive. The group is filled with legends like Yukihiro Takahashi (who was a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra) and Cornelius (Keigo Oyamada, who was a member of Flipper's Guitar). YMO was considered a pioneer for Japanese electronic music, and Flipper's Guitar was one of the most successful Shibuya-kei musical group back then. I also happen to like some of YMO's songs, as well as Yukihiro Takahashi's solo album "Saravah!"

Keyakizaka46 Logo

Some times later, I got into Sakamichi series since I was still following the 48G. I have to admit that my favorite Sakamichi group is Keyakizaka. Nogizaka's music is similar to 48G although a bit more feminine and elegant. Another notable difference is that I have never seen them releasing any summer singles with bikini, unlike their "official rival group". As for Keyaki, I really like their concept and their soulful lyrics like Silent Majority, Fukyouwaon, Eccentric, Glass wo Ware, Mou Mori he Kaerouka, and Kuroi Hitsuji (obviously). I'm not that interested in Hinatazaka, which used to be Hiragana Keyaki.

Arashi

I also happen to stumble upon "Shitsuren Chocolatier" when I was watching Waku Waku Japan. I got curious in the main male role, Jun Matsumoto. It turns out that he's a member of Arashi, and I listened to some of their songs from there.

Then there was that time when Produce48 came and AKB released "Teacher Teacher". While some commented that it sounded like a K-Pop song, I figured that the song might fit their mature sister group SDN48, if they didn't disband. I also remember one comment mentioned about another Japanese girlgroup: E-girls as their musical genre usually stays in dance/upbeat genre. I kinda sucks at explaining genres, so please bear with me.

GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE

The saying goes by "curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back". I was curious about E-girls; and now I'm pretty much satisfied to find them and their agency LDH Japan (short for Love Dream Happiness). I got to know how talented the groups in EXILE TRIBE & E.G.  Family, as well as their other groups like Doberman Infinity and DEEP (previously known as COLOR). I have a huge respect for EXILE as the founder of LDH, thanking them for debuting my favorite boygroup: GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE.

Happiness

Girls²

But I have to receive sad news last year from Flower's disbandment and E-girls is disbanding at the end of this year. I've read comments on how bad LDH is in managing their female artists, but I've read a source which stated that they're disbanding due to creative differences. Not surprising. The group initially has around 30 members and used a certain qualification to determine which members are in the single. Their formation was also intended as a joint project for the initial girl groups: Dream, Happiness, and Flower. 2018 was the first year they released an album as a group with solid 11 members, and they did not disappoint. Maybe it's just their fate. And with E-girls disbanding, LDH debuted a new girlgroup: Girls². I haven't really got into them, but it seems like I have an impression that their concept is similar with Japanese idol groups although their voices aren't like the usual high pitched "kawaii" girls. By all means, Happiness is the oldest girlgroup from LDH.

So, that covers pretty much about my current J-Pop fandom. I'm currently still an LDH Junkie since being in the fandom is like going back to my musical taste when I was a teenager. I may also write separate and more detailed posts for LDH and other groups since it's gonna be a long post if I write the detail here. But I haven't really decided on that yet. In the mean time, I'm still on the high for GENE's latest single (Hira Hira) and Sandaime J Soul Brothers' latest single (Movin' On).

A Blessing in Disguise

It has been a very heavy time for us humans lately. We are currently hit by a global pandemic which eventually took a toll for all of us. We have to make decisions which also come with a great consequence. And all of those decisions may depends on the views and conditions in each countries as well. Regardless, I feel like the title of this post suits really well with my thought about this pandemic.

I still remember how fast it all seemed to be, at least in  the country where I live. January was my graduation ceremony from university. February, I went out with my campus' bestie at one of the high-end mall in Jakarta to try Omikuji (Japanese fortune draw) at a Matcha Cafe. It was the end of February, so the beginning of March was still pleasant. I went to retrieve my graduation certificate with the same bestie, where I believe the beginning of the cases were increasing. At that same day, I saw someone wearing a green raincoat (instead of the medical protection suit) disinfecting a train station. Eventually, my neighborhood had a local quarantine at the end of March. And we're still in quarantine up until now.

It wasn't as tight as it is now at the beginning. Perhaps because some people are still fooling around and selfishly hang out just because they're bored. Before wearing fabric mask is a must, I could freely breathe the air whenever I go out to do something necessary. I also had my fair share of being upset toward those who wore mask, surgical mask, incorrectly. Like wearing them upside down or not even covering their nostrils, although I find that surgical mask is way more breathable than fabric mask. I could also still use online motorcycle ride service. But now the service is temporarily removed, and I have to wear a fabric mask whenever I go further than my neighborhood. I don't mind with using public transport, but the only uncomfortable thing about wearing fabric mask is the slight difficulty of breathing freely. Sometimes I have to release my nostrils out of their misery even though I know that the usage is intended for everyone's safety.

Regardless of how difficult the situation is, another thought about this pandemic came to my mind. It is about this planet where us humans currently live in. And how I thought that this pandemic may be, as goes by the title, a blessing in disguise. I remember seeing the sky when I was grocery shopping at that time. The sky was clearer than ever. I also saw the news which stated that air polution had been decreasing in several areas. The Himalayas are also visible from India. My next statement about another blessing in disguise may sound cruel for those who values each and every lives, but I can't help but think about it either. We are over-populating the earth. Death is an inevitable part of being alive. Not to mention that some of us selfishly destroy parts of the earth for their own personal gains and satisfaction. Thus, I had a thought that this pandemic is also a blessing in disguise in a way of how it teach us several things.

Controlling our selfishness. I understand that selfishness is in our nature and is useful for human survival. But the degree and reasons behind our selfishness need to be controlled. To an extent, bad case of selfishness has hurt both our relation with the earth, and our relation with each other. Human relations. And somehow, I also thought that breeding is a part of our natural selfishness to sustain human's existence in the earth. We may eventually got extinct if we stop breeding, but it doesn't mean that we have to do it overly. I strongly believe in quality over quantity. And look where this quantity has brought us to.

Another thing is learn to be more grateful, as this pandemic is something that strike us all of a sudden. Be grateful for everything which happened before this pandemic strikes, be it good or bad. At least we can learn something from all of the bad things we've experienced. Don't take anything for granted, strengthen the positivity of human relation, say sorry to Mother Nature, appreciate all things in life, keep your health and hygiene in mind, you get the idea. And most importantly, bask in all those things we can learn from this pandemic instead of 'saying yes and forget about all of them some times later'.

There are other trivial stuff we can learn from this pandemic in order to deal with our boredom. We can find new hobbies. Read a bock, knit, play musical instruments, dance, try that recipes which interest us, spend more time with pets, write something. In that case, perhaps I'm gonna update this blog more often during this pandemic. And I'm still gonna write any kinds of topics which comes to my mind.

Not Anymore

Breathing has been an automatic activity to me
There is no enjoyment in breathing anymore
I cannot tell how much dirt has filled my lungs,
But I can feel lots of them in me

Sometimes the sky will turn into a brilliant blue
With fluffy clouds in it
But now, I have to see them through my sunglasses
I cannot even remember when I started wearing it
All I know is my eyes cannot take the burning sensation anymore
So does my skin
As if my physical body cannot find any enjoyment in this place
Not anymore

Soon, my soul follows my body
No enjoyment, nothing

I want to set my eyes free again
I want to set my skin free again
I want to take a fresh air again
I want to set my soul free again
But alas, I cannot do that here
Not anymore