When you really stop and think about it, the concept of idol

singers is a little strange. At its core, the idea is to leverage

the performers’ good looks into higher sales than they

could achieve through their musical talents alone.

We realize that in face-to-face dealings, there’s very little a

guy won’t do for a pretty girl, if for no reason other than to

raise his chances of getting a date with her by even the

tiniest fraction of a percentage. But does it really make

sense for hard-core fans to try to impress their idol of

choice? Regardless of how many copies of your favorite

singer’s albums you buy, it’s not like she’s going to go out

with you or anything.

Unless, of course, you’re talking about the idol group

AeLL.

Formed in 2011, the four-member group’s name stands for

Activity eco Life with Love. While AeLL’s producers seem

to have only a hazy outline of how capitalization and

acronyms work, they’ve got a firm grasp on marketing

principles.

Ai Shinozaki, the most popular member of the unit who

made a name for herself as a gurabia swimsuit model, sat

down for a talk with interviewers before the start of the

string of Japanese holidays collectively called Golden

Week. When asked if she had any special plans, the 22-

year-old responded that she’d be working, but not in front

of a microphone or camera.

AeLL’s second album went on sale in early April, and fans

who bought a certain number of copies were eligible for

special prizes. This is a ploy that’s becoming more and

more popular in the idol music industry, with the most

common prize being access to events where the idols will

shake hands with their supporters.

Still, handshake events are becoming old hat, and AeLL’s

producers knew they’d need to do something a little more

dramatic in order to attract attention to their fledgling

group. To that end, they devised three unique prizes.

At the lowest rung, anyone who bought 30 copies of the

new album would receive a dish cooked by AeLL’s

members. As idol singers, you could debate whether

they’re first and foremost models or musicians, but in any

case, cooking would presumably be, at best, only their

third-most proficient field.

Would this toast taste any better if you knew it had been cooked by a girl

with a pretty smile?

Fans who stepped up and bought 50 CDs could get

something closer to the group’s raison d’etre, a one-hour

karaoke session with the quartet. This seems like it’d be a

lot of fun, since it would finally provide an answer as to

whether or not it’s actually possible to get a perfect 100 on

karaoke machines with a scoring system by having AeLL

sing their own songs.

Finally, the truly devoted who bought 100 copies of the

exact same disc received the privilege of going on a 90-

minute date with the AeLL member of their choice (plus the

group’s manager/chaperone). Ai Shinozaki told the

interviewers the album was priced at about 2,300 yen,

meaning the idol date cost 230,000 yen (US$2,277) right

off the bat. We’re assuming the fan would also be

responsible for picking up the tab for any food or

entertainment costs, as well.

Does the fan have to pay for the manager, too?

That was apparently a reasonable offer, though, for nine

fans made the necessary bulk purchase and asked out

Miss Shinozaki above, plus the unspecified number who

designated her bandmates.

“I’ve already gone on two dates. Yesterday we went to

Jojoen Yugentei,” Shinozaki told the interviewers, referring

to a popular Korean barbeque restaurant.

Ai Shinozaki admitted she was worried about fulfilling her

obligations, though not because of any fear of spending

time with someone whose infatuation runs far beyond

those of everyday fans. The consummate idol, Shinozaki

said she was concerned about whether or not she’d be

able to provide her supporter with a good time. “At the end,

I asked, ‘How was it? Did you have fun?’ and he told me,

‘I’m totally satisfied.’”

You can’t be an idol without charisma, and if Shinozaki has

so much that people are happy to spend more than 2,500

yen per minute just to sit together as her boss watches,

she just might have a future in the industry.