Final post for April which had a few less than March but the only real difference was that March had a few more days of having two posts. The days of having over 600 or even 700 posts in a year is a thing of the past though has mentioned often even if there's just 500 posts for 2025 which is my goal they contain more photos and info than those years with 700 posts! But I'm really not concerned with how many overall posts there are just as long as the ones I do are terrific which is usually the case and also that many are for my mega-mega-mega-mega favorite woman such as today's honoree!!!!
Hmmmm, when I finish this it could also be a slightly sad occasion for me. For I'm thinking after today there may be only one more post ever for Minami who doesn't have a huge amount of them but that doesn't matter as there can't be more than two women who I have adored more than her over the last dozen years. That final post would probably be for my third 'Top Twenty Faves of All Time' list, the first two were done in 2018 and 2022. So if I keep that schedule of doing a list every four years the next would begin around August 2026 and though the posts have been far and few between for Minami the last few years she would make the list and perhaps may become the only woman to do so for all three lists!!!! EDIT: Correct me if I'm wrong but think she is the only woman who I have done posts for who has all five vowels in her name.... why would I notice such a thing?!?!
The first pic of the post is the fourth time I have led off a Minami post with it, from about 2015 to mid 2019 that was my top photo of all time and when I first saw it my jaw dropped a few feet and still hasn't returned to it's original position!!!! But besides that photo you could almost call Minami my #1 bridesmaid here and check out these close yet no cigar numbers. In 2016 she finished third on the yearly faves list, the following year she was second plus had my second top photobook for 2017! Then on the first All Time Faves list for the third time she finished in the second position, even though the activities really decreased after that in 2022 she still was in the tenth position on the second All Time list. But Minami does have my number one gravure DVD of all time which was for her first and only photobook which came out in September 2017 when she graduated from Up Up Girls.
Speaking of Up Up Girls do recommend viewing that above video which is one of my all time favorites! Bet I've viewed that 200 times if not more(!) and have easily watched the 2017 DVD for her photobook more than that! UUG was a decent group and they had such upbeat rockin' tunes, I have two of their albums and if you're like me and enjoy the 'heavier' J-Pop tunes the group's old singles and albums are worth checking out but. They began in 2011 and even had two top ten hits but now all of the original members are gone so don't follow them too closely these days. Minami was their leader until graduating in September 2017 and hard to believe how quickly time has passed! She is their oldest ever member and UUG wasn't an official Hello Project group but were affiliated with them so would often open up concerts for the more popular acts such as C-ute and Morning Musume.
After Minami left the group 7 1/2 years ago she mainly did acting work, she appeared in too many stage plays from 2018 until 2021 to count! She also made a few guest spots on dramas and while with UUG did have the lead role in the 2013 movie "ADA" which I did review even though it wasn't subbed, there was also a sequel but haven't got to that yet but vow to. Very rarely do I do posts for woman who have gotten married, Minami did so in December 2021. Even more rarer is when there are posts for someone who is married with a child, her first and only to date popped into this world in December 2022. But starting in 2014 and continuing in for four years there hasn't been many if any who have been bigger faves to me than Minami and thought why not have at least one final post for her.
Besides being such a massive favorite of mine seems Minami does have some other fans here as most of her older posts now have over a thousand views. But one can never have enough fans and perhaps this will garner her a few more plus it does make me a bit sad at times when someone really likable becomes forgotten about and if you've been noticing I try to keep the memory of some of my older favorites alive. So for today mainly have some older things but some have never been posted before plus many viewers may have forgotten the ones that have been in prior posts. This may not turn out to be as large as I was hoping as there's been so few new photos from the past few years but the quality of all the pics will be at a zenith and in all honesty I have only done posts for 2-3 other women who are more alluring or have made my heart flutter out of control like Minami has!!!!
First off are these pics from Minami's IG page and am shocked at how few she posts. Maybe it's because she did start up a fan club two years ago and posts most things there, two pics below are from that site which to promote the her club birthday party and the bottom three are from a one-off event a month ago and it's rare to see an ex-Idol singing. The official date for birthday #34 is April 30th so am a day early but in Japan it will be the 30th.
Before Minami became a member of Up Up Girls she was a part of Hello! Project Egg which was a training program/test for Hello Project wannabes and she did pass but never did become an official member of a H!P group. During that time from 2007 to 2010 these H!P cards had been released and this is the first time I've ever posted them.
WOW(!), doesn't she look so darn young above and why not as those from 15+ years ago. Below are a few older birthday pics but as you can didn't find all that many. Minami was the first 'shortish' woman I posted about which seems to have become more common for me these days. For along time she said her height was 149.5 cm but back in 2020 did say 150 cm was hit and is that possible?
From 2013 until late 2017 Minami did appear in a good amount of magazines and will have a pair of spreads for today. The one negative for the older Idols I like so much is that they never had a chance to do digital books as those weren't nearly as common as they are these days and how I would have loved to see her appear in a few.... though then again could my heart have taken it?!?! This first oldie but goldie spread is from the February 28, 2014 issue of Young Animal, after the pics is a video from the photo shoot and though Minami didn't have a huge amount of gravure videos all get a grade of A++++ from me and as mentioned isn't it a shame when pics and videos such as these are forgotten about?
Second ultra fabulous oldie magazine spread is from the January 30, 2014 issue of Young Gangan so it came out just four weeks before the above spread and she was the cover girl for both mags.
Don't know why and perhaps it's because the user was banned but so many of Minami's gravure videos are no longer on YT. That happens often when a user gets banned or a video is deleted so luckily used to be in the habit of downloading many of my favorites. Did that for the above spread as that video is no longer on YT and took some stupendous screenshots from it, the video isn't as sweltering as the one for her "Kobito" photobook but is her best from a magazine photo shoot.
Speaking of Minami's "Koibito" book it was my second favorite one from 2017, below are some photos from it and what a shame we'll never see pics like these again.... added in a few screenshots from the DVD.
We've hit the finale for this overly superb post and I enjoy doing these kinds of posts which is like taking a trip down memory lane. Plus will once again say how it saddens me when some of my older faves tend to be forgotten about and do try to keep the memories of some women alive when possible. Did also say that there may be only one more post ever for Minami which would be in about sixteen months, though she never became a huge star she has had a decent career and seems to be happy so that also makes ol' Nao here a bit happyish. Will end off with some ultra perfect Minami pics and hope your heart is strong enough as mine does beat out of control gaping at them....
