W?
Just who are these people?
W (also known as Double You or Double U ('their' W is a combination of two letter 'U's) was a japanese pop duo under the H!P umbrella consisting of fourth generation Morning Musume members Nozomi Tsuji and Kago Ai. W was active from 2004 to 2006.
Tsuji Nozomi
Nono, Non, Tsuji-chan
Married Name: Sugiura Nozomi
Age: 21
Birthdate: June 17th, 1987
Years Active: 2000 - current
Currently: On Maternity Leave
Future: Would like to work again
Kago Ai
Aibon, Kago-chan
Age: 20
Birthdate: February 7th, 1988
Years Active: 2000 - 2007 (H!P), 2008 (Mainstream)
Currently: Working hard on her comeback
Future: Acting, perhaps singing once again
the path to W-ness
aka: I wanna know more! MORE!!
Tsuji and Kago first met at Morning Musume 3rd Addition Audition. Originally only Kago, Ishikawa Rika and Yoshizawa Hitomi were going to be selected for Morning Musume, but then tsunku added Tsuji in a surprise move. Quickly Kago and Tsuji became the "Two Top" and, because of their similar appearances and hyperactive personalities, were indistingushable for some time.
One of the most notable subgroups Kago and Tsuji were in (as well as one of H!P's most notable subgroups) was MiniMoni. MiniMoni was created in 2000 by second generation Morning Musume member Mari Yaguchi. Originally it was intended for girls of 150 cm or shorter, but the fourth member, Mika Todd of Coconuts Musume fame grew to over 150 cm, and then had to wear a different style of clothing from the shorter members. In March 2003, Yaguchi left the group to go to ZYX. Mika became leader and the height rule changed to let the 153 cm Takahasi Ai join. MiniMoni continued to be successful until Mika's graduation in Spring 2004 where MiniMoni disbanded.
After MiniMoni, the direction of Kago and Tsuji's careers was in question seeing as they also graduated from Morning Musume in 2004, leaving them to do what the wished. Quickly the two best friends were put together, and together, they are W!!
about W
SHEESH, about time!
Scandal! Scandal!
Uh-oh Aibon!!
Below is a translated copy of Kago's termination letter source
To whom it may concern:
Regarding our client Kago Ai and the article in the weekly magazine that went on sale on March 26th, the information in the article has been verified with Kago herself, to our regret.
One year ago, when Kago was 17 and the smoking problem happened, we still considered her future in this company, and as punishment, she was imposed to house arrest in her parents' home. Seeing how she had progressed over that year, it was decided to start from scratch and start preparing for a comeback by bringing her to Tokyo and having her do clerical and other office duties, starting on January 23rd. Although this worked out well for two months, there was another incident and the comeback plan was abandoned. After consulting with the family, as she is a minor, it has been confirmed, and she has been released from her contract.
We're very sorry that it has come to this, and accept full responsibility.
We feel a renewed sense of responsibility for the future, especially when it comes to minors.
2007/3/26 Kawaguchi Yuukichi, Representative Director, Up Front Agency
after W
where are they now?
After W, Kago and Tsuji both went their seperate ways.
Tsuji-chan
Where is she now?
Tsuji was put into the Gyaruru Unit under the TMX label until she went on maternity leave for her pregnancy with her husband (as of her 20th birthday, June 17, 2007) Taiyō Sugiura. She gave birth to a little girl named Noa (weighing around 6 lbs) at 12:45am on Monday, November 26th, 2007. The follow pictures are the only pictures we have seen so far of Noa:
Kago-chan
Whatever happened to..
Kago, however, is on a totally different and unknown mission. After she was released from her contract with H!P, she went back to her hometown in Nara. However, on August 25th, 2007, Josei Seven, a japanese magazine, released an interview they had with Kago's mother, who says that Kago has left Japan and is currently residing in New York City. It was also announced in October 2007 that Kago's mother, Kago Aki, will appear nude in a magazine. :O
Just recently, Kago was suddenly featured in an extremely enlightening five part interview with ohmynews.co.jp. After this, she opened a blog at her Biscuit Club fansite and has been posting regularly on it since (translations are available at Hello!Online). Kago has also filmed a movie in China! She is now just going about her business and trying to be as honest and natural as possible.
Kago Ai is going to have a comeback event in Osaka! Hopefully this will push her back into the levels of fame she had encountered while with Hello!Project.