Tanpopo

Tanpopo (タンポポ, "dandelion"), formed in November 1998, was the first official subgroup of Japanese pop idol girl group Morning Musume. While the main group Morning Musume features predominately upbeat songs with a fast tempo, Tanpopo featured slower tempo, sentimental and retro-style songs.

For other uses, see Tanpopo (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Tampopo.
Tanpopo
タンポポ
Tanpopo#
タンポポ#
OriginTokyo, Honshū, Japan
GenresPop
Years active1998–2003
2009–2011 (as Tanpopo#)
LabelsZetima
Associated actsMorning Musume, Mini Moni, Otomegumi, Sakuragumi, W, Melon Kinenbi, Berryz Kobo
WebsiteHello! Project.com
Past membersAya Ishiguro
Kaori Iida
Mari Yaguchi
Ai Kago
Rika Ishikawa
Asami Konno
Risa Niigaki
Ayumi Shibata
Eri Kamei
Yurina Kumai
Chisato Okai
Aika Mitsui

As of 2009, Tanpopo has been revived as Tanpopo#, their latest activity being in 2011 as a three-member unit following Eri Kamei's graduation in 2010. Despite all of the members currently still being in Hello! Project, it is unknown of Tanpopo# will have further activities.

History

The group was founded in November 1998, consisting of three Morning Musume members: Aya Ishiguro, Kaori Iida, and Mari Yaguchi. After the formation, the group immediately released their first single, "Last Kiss," which was used on the anime Sorcerous Stabber Orphen. The single has a "sexy" vibe that they used on their second single and first album. However, they created a fresh image when they released "Tanpopo". This new image did not become as popular as the first image they had created.

After the release of the group's fourth single, Aya Ishiguro graduated from Morning Musume and left the group. The remaining members continued performing their songs in concerts as Generation 1.5 Tanpopo.

In June 2000, Morning Musume 4th Generation members Rika Ishikawa and Ai Kago joined Tanpopo, making the two-member group a four-member group. The style of their songs changed also when the four released "Otome Pasta ni Kandō." The style of this song became analogous to the songs Morning Musume had released. They also used this style on their next singles, which became popular and reached the number one spot on Oricon, and their second (and last) album.

On July 31, 2002, it was announced that Tanpopo was going to be completely reformed. Kaori Iida, Mari Yaguchi, and Ai Kago graduated from the group and were replaced by Morning Musume 5th Generation members Asami Konno and Risa Niigaki, with Ayumi Shibata of Melon Kinenbi. This newly formed group only released one single before they went on indefinite hiatus. All members except Niigaki graduated from Hello! Project as part of the Elder Club graduation concert in early 2009, rendering the group completely inactive.

In 2009, the Tanpopo name was revived as Tanpopo# (read "Tanpopo Sharp"), with the new group consisting of Eri Kamei and Aika Mitsui of Morning Musume, Yurina Kumai of Berryz Kobo, and Chisato Okai of Cute. The sharp symbol was chosen to represent the kanji "井", read "i", which is the second character in each of the new members' surnames. Their first song was a cover of Seiko Matsuda's "Akai Sweet Pea", released on the Champloo 1: Happy Marriage Song Cover Shū album. Their next song, "Umbrella", was released on the Petit Best 10 album.

Members

First generation

Second generation

Third generation

Revival (Tanpopo#)

Discography

Albums
#TitleRelease date
1Tanpopo 11999-03-31
2All of Tanpopo (All of タンポポ)2002-09-04
3Petitmoni/Tanpopo Megabest (プッチモニ／タンポポ　メガベスト)2008-12-10

Singles
#TitleRelease date
1"Last Kiss" (ラストキッス)1998-11-18
2"Motto" (もっと)1999-03-10
3"Tanpopo" (たんぽぽ)1999-06-16
4"Seinaru Kane ga Hibiku Yoru" (聖なる鐘がひびく夜)1999-10-20
5"Otome Pasta ni Kandō" (乙女　パスタに感動)2000-07-05
6"Koi o Shichaimashita!" (恋をしちゃいました!)2001-02-21
7"Ōjisama to Yuki no Yoru" (王子様と雪の夜)2001-11-21
8"Be Happy Koi no Yajirobee" (Be Happy　恋のやじろべえ)2002-09-26

DVD

Appearances

Photobooks
TitleRelease dateCompanyISBN
Tanpopo Photobook (タンポポPhoto Book)2001-07-05Wani BooksISBN 4-8470-2654-3

Radio
ProgramRadio stationStart dateEnd date
Tanpopo Hatake de Tsukamaete (タンポポ畑でつかまえて)Nippon Hōsō1999-10-092000-03-25
Tanpopo no Konya mo Mankai (タンポポの今夜も満開)2000-03-302001-04-12
Tanpopo Henshuubu Oh-So-Ro! (タンポポ編集部 Oh-So-Ro!)TBS2000-10-032003-09-23
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