[2010.08.11] Japanese Debut Single [Mister]


yuda

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welcome leftys_rock, pleased to have you here in kh.

& what a first post you have made. ;)

your mentioning of "at least year stay in japan" will probably cause some concerns to some here. hahah.

i'm cool with either, as long as i still get to see & hear them on my monitor.

raising popularity in asia is my next wish for the girls, everything else is second.

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Thanks red4summer! :) Ah, I didn't mean for it to be that long actually, but as I typed more, more things came to mind. :lol:

And yea, I know that many Kara fans won't be happy if they were to stay in Japan for such a long period of time, but I think it would make them have more of an impact on the Japanese market since they'll be able to experience Japanese culture better, be more comfortable with the language, and appear on more shows and thus promote themselves more. Although in reality I don't think the long term stay will happen because Universal Music Japan doesn't normally have parameters set for its artists to release a certain amount of material in a year, so they wouldn't have to stay in Japan for as much time? I follow more Avex artists so i'm a bit more used to the way they release in Japan, and I think this is a major difference because like BoA and TVXQ (and The Grace but we haven't heard much from them sadly) had to stay in Japan for lengthy periods of time. I don't know the specifics of TVXQ's contract with Avex, but I know with BoA that she is required to release at least 2 new singles and one full length album each year, and in order to do preparations and promos for those, she would HAVE to stay in Japan for at least a period of time. As far as I know, Universal Music Japan doesn't have this sort of thing? So I don't think Kara fans who will miss their Korean activities have to be as worried about a lengthy hiatus from Korea. :P

I personally don't mind either way since I live in America and don't speak Korean or Japanese, so either way, for me to follow Kara's activities would require translations and they're both very far away from me in terms of the time difference so it doesn't really make a difference to me as a fan which country they're in. :lol:

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^

Hi leftys_rock, nice to see your post .. :thumbup1:

About at least 2 single and 1 album, I think it's applied for all Japanese artist. So I think KARA would have to do the same in Japan. Actually BOA release 3-4 single per year which is common in Japan.

The same idol group under UMJ, 4Minutes, didn't spend much time in Japan. I don't know would KARA do the same as 4Minutes, which I think it's not enough and didn't give much impact in J-Pop world.

UMJ has never had an idol group in their artist list, Momoiro Clover which have just debuting is their first, then 4Minutes. So I think this year they start joining into idol world in Japan.

And It's easier and less risk if they just import the Idol Group and try out Momoiro Clover for their pilot. Momoiro Clover did pretty good for their first single, but not for 4Minutes, and I think it's because the didn't spent enough time for promotion.

My thought is, if KARA wants to enter Japan, they have to do it totally. Don't do it the same as 4Minutes and being smoked by a child idol group like Momoiro Clover. I really wish KARA will sell their first single at least as much as Momoiro Clover did.

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Thanks eyeless! :D

Ahh, ic. I guess that does make sense. (in fact, I think releasing 2 singles and an album in a year is probably considered a pretty inactive year?) And I think BoA has slowed down her releases considerably within the past year since she used to put singles out all the time and tbh she's been half-assing her single releases for about a year now. :/

I think the way 4minute is doing Japanese releases is definitely not going to achieve what they want in the Japanese market because I really don't think that just releasing a single and giving like 1 performance is going to be enough promotion for people to know that the release is coming up. And plus I think the fact that their Japanese wasn't so great also contributed to their lack of an impact.

I agree with what Kara has to do if they want to enter the Japanese market. Even if that means they would have to stay in Japan for a long period of time, I think they should do that because this is a really good opportunity for them since the Japanese music industry is so big and it would really be worth it for them to have success there. :)

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^

For me, the same like you, I don't mind at all if they totally concentrate in Japan. I don't know both language and I'm also into J-Pop. But I know some of the member here wouldn't be happy with it :lol:

I'm gonna talk about the music, about the differences between K-Pop and J-Pop.

K-Pop music is often said to be autotuned, artificial and synthesized a lot, while J-Pop is more harmonic, pure and traditional. Which somehow I kind of agree with that. Not applied to all, but the majority of the music is commonly said like that.

K-Pop got much influence from the West, you see like hip hop, RnB etc, while J-Pop maintain their original music a lot, a melodious tone.

On Oricon Chart top 30, only less than 10% the music is electro pop, RnB or Hip Hop. That's why 4minute's Muzik didn't got much attention.

Actually I'm more into J-Pop music than K-Pop, andI listen to both. But KARA, their music is like a synthesized J-Pop, especially Honey and Pretty Girl. "We're With You" is really sounds like a J-Pop song with Korean tunes, very harmonic and I like it so much. They sounds like Japanese and look like Japanese :sweatdrop: so they have a great opportunity in music wise. And probably, their 2nd Japan single would be composed by a Japanese. So, J-Pop music + K-Pop performance/dance would be epic :thumbup:

I've talked a lot in a few previous pages, about how big Japan's market, how an idol girl group can sold half million copies. I don't say that KARA could be in that level yet, but success in Japan would mean the best for them.

Edited by eyeless
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Ah yea, I would agree about the differences in the styles between the two. I think also because the J-pop industry is so big, there are more genres of music within it, so not all of the market would be influenced by Western music. (it's one of the reasons why I like J-Pop, because there's usually something for everyone in it :))

I listen to both too, but i'm not as familiar with J-Pop girl groups since I listen to mostly the female soloists and some guy groups. :lol: But like you, i've always thought that Kara had more of a Japanese flavor than the other Korean girl groups and i've always wondered what they would sound like in Japanese. xD Some songs transition languages pretty well and I thought Pretty Girl and Honey sounded pretty natural in Japanese which is a good sign (Wanna on the other hand I thought sounded kind of forced in Japanese :lol:). Mister i'm actually not sure of how it will sound in a different language but I think it's catchy enough to be a decent debut song. And I think them being able to dance will help in Japan as well because I don't think they emphasize dancing as much in Japan compared to Korea so it will help them stand out from other girl groups.

Ah yea, I don't think it's wise to expect Kara to sell amazingly well at the beginning, since it's not easy for debuting artists to sell a lot. I mean TVXQ were sometimes barely hitting 10K for their first few years in the Japanese industry and now they're topping charts for every release. I mean I hope Kara doesn't take as long to achieve success but even if their first few singles don't sell well, I hope they stick with the J-Pop market because I think it will be worth it for them. And if they do succeed in Japan, I think that success will lead to even more popularity in Korea when they return so it's even more incentive to try it. :)

I'm not sure if this is a topic that should be for a more chat related thread :lol: , but what other J-pop artists do you listen to, eyeless?

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guys, borrow bit space here & back to the single debut, didn't dsp decide mister was to be included into the special premium box too? it was only when the umj signing news broke out then the change of plan. i believe mister in japanese was recorded but not released together with the rest as promised & as a result promoted it as the official single debut. frankly speaking debuting with a new japanese song is still the best bet because it fetches more enthusiasm & excitement which generate sales better. i suspect maybe due to lack of time, they decided to test the market with the popular & tested mister. so my question, is umj already planning for the second single? in jpop, do they wait for the 1st single response before they decide the next step? i honestly believe the dsp contract with umj isn't a simple one which is to get kara into japan with only mister. something like some singles & an album mentioned earlier. even if the first single sales isn't any encouraging, they should regroup accordingly to their plan & to promote even more aggressively. furthermore with 4minute as the frontier, i hope umj can sense & navigate their moves better inorder to choose the best plan to promote the girls. girl group, that's what i hope kara is to be recognised with in japan.

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Usually, releasing a single entails that you will be releasing more material (aka more new singles or an album) later, so I do believe that Universal Music is planning on more releases later. Actually, seeing that Mister's Japanese release is set for August, i'm hoping Kara can release another single before the end of the year in Japan if they aren't too busy in Korea because there will be enough time in 4 months for promotions for another Japanese single. But as to whether those releases are just remakes of Korean songs or new, original songs i'm not quite sure. :/ Hoping very much for new songs because those still promote much more interest in Japan as well as in Korea (even though for Korean fans, they'll be singing in a foreign language, but i'm sure they'll still buy Japanese singles to support) than rehashed Korean songs. Actually, re-recorded Korean songs wouldn't be bad for B-sides on singles, but I do hope the A-sides they release after Mister are all (or at the very least mostly) original.

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didn't dsp decide mister was to be included into the special premium box too? it was only when the umj signing news broke out then the change of plan. i believe mister in japanese was recorded but not released together with the rest as promised & as a result promoted it as the official single debut.

I never knew this before about the plan to include Mister into premium box, but i guess UMJ tried to take the safer plan by using Mister as KARA's debut single in Japan. Since the song and the dance have made them really popular in Korea, UMJ is gonna try it as a pilot to test the market in Japan. It's quite practical in business to test first before planning any further.

I'm not sure if this is a topic that should be for a more chat related thread :lol: , but what other J-pop artists do you listen to, eyeless?

I think it's OK, since if we discuss it too serious would scare away others in this forum to post anything :D

I listen to quite a lot variation in J-Pop, cause I'm always hunting down any song charted in oricon top 30 :D

From Soloist like Namie Amuro, Aya Kamiki, Kaela Kimura, hitomi (which I liked a lot but already inactive) and some of Ayumi Hamasaki (I don't really like her recent music) but I don't know much about male soloist :D just Joe Inoue.

Bands like L'arc~en~ciel, Glay, Stereopony, Ikimono-Gakari, High and Mighty Color, UVERworld, SCANDAL, Maximum The Hormone, Flow .. and many more.

and also Idol groups like Arashi, V6, AKB48, Morning Musume, Idolling, Momoclo etc

But if you see my avatar and signature, I'm quite a big fan of AKB48 :thumbup1: and KARA if we can already consider them as J-Pop artist :D

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I think it's OK, since if we discuss it too serious would scare away others in this forum to post anything :sweatdrop:

I listen to quite a lot variation in J-Pop, cause I'm always hunting down any song charted in oricon top 30 :thumbup1:

From Soloist like Namie Amuro, Aya Kamiki, Kaela Kimura, hitomi (which I liked a lot but already inactive) and some of Ayumi Hamasaki (I don't really like her recent music) but I don't know much about male soloist :sweatdrop: just Joe Inoue.

Bands like L'arc~en~ciel, Glay, Stereopony, Ikimono-Gakari, High and Mighty Color, UVERworld, SCANDAL, Maximum The Hormone, Flow .. and many more.

and also Idol groups like Arashi, V6, AKB48, Morning Musume, Idolling, Momoclo etc

But if you see my avatar and signature, I'm quite a big fan of AKB48 :thumbup1: and KARA if we can already consider them as J-Pop artist :)

Ah yea, nobody else has posted besides us 3 in a few days. :lol:

We seem to have quite different tastes in J-Pop :sweatdrop: I think the only artists we both listen to are Namie Amuro (i'm so excited for her new single in July btw :D), Ayumi Hamasaki (she has a new single in July too), and Arashi.

The other people I listen to are BoA (if you can't tell already i'm a BIG BIG BIG fan of hers :lol:), EXILE (I love them a lot too), AAA, TVXQ, ICONIQ, KAT-TUN, NEWS (I actually like them more than Arashi or KAT-TUN but they're not as popular), YUI, Utada Hikaru, Koda Kumi, Ai Otsuka, and Daichi Miura (he's the only male soloist I listen to). I also listen to the other Korean artists that release in Japan.

I'm really excited for J-Pop in July since Ayu, Kuu, Hikki, and BoA are all releasing singles a week after each other during that month so yay for some (hopefully) exciting music. :D

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dont be shy in discussing things seriously. its very interesting to read.

dont think this has been posted yet, JJ-JJ.net has two articles up on KARA.

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=14

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=15

more and more exposure for KARA. i really, really hope they do well in Japan since they have a bigger market and bigger market = more money for the girls to spend the rest of their lives living on.

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Thanks for posting those! I can't read those since I don't speak Japanese but at least one of the articles seems to be introducing them which is good. Getting their names out there and grabbing more exposure will always help with sales since it gets more people to know about them. As the date to their single release gets closer, increasing publicity will always help let more potential buyers know of a new single coming up. Kara is already incredibly lucky to have been basically endorsed by a well known comedian and be featured on an Arashi show, so they definitely need to take this opportunity to garner as much (positive) publicity as possible in the lead up to the release.

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dont think this has been posted yet, JJ-JJ.net has two articles up on KARA.

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=14

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=15

Thanks, nice to have KARA featured on those. Do they put this KARA articles on the magazine as well? If so, I might buy that JJ

The other people I listen to are BoA (if you can't tell already i'm a BIG BIG BIG fan of hers :lol:), EXILE (I love them a lot too), AAA, TVXQ, ICONIQ, KAT-TUN, NEWS (I actually like them more than Arashi or KAT-TUN but they're not as popular), YUI, Utada Hikaru, Koda Kumi, Ai Otsuka, and Daichi Miura (he's the only male soloist I listen to). I also listen to the other Korean artists that release in Japan.

had something I forgot, I also like AAA and ... YUI, how could I forgot about her :D , she's such a great singer and composer

I listen to some of NEWS song, but I like Yamapi's dramas more :thumbup1: . I watched all of his drama since Dragon Zakura + Stand Up.

also listen to some of BoA's single, but I like her past single more.

And you don't listen to any J-Pop girls idol group at all? at least you should visit AKB48 thread as they are the hottest right now :P

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had something I forgot, I also like AAA and ... YUI, how could I forgot about her :sweatdrop: , she's such a great singer and composer

I listen to some of NEWS song, but I like Yamapi's dramas more :thumbup1: . I watched all of his drama since Dragon Zakura + Stand Up.

also listen to some of BoA's single, but I like her past single more.

And you don't listen to any J-Pop girls idol group at all? at least you should visit AKB48 thread as they are the hottest right now :sweatdrop:

Yea, YUI is amazing! I love her voice. :D

I'm actually not much of a drama watcher for either Japanese or Korean dramas. :lol: Maybe I should start at some point. xD

Ah yea, I think BoA's early material was still the best. Valenti is still an amazing song even though it's 8 years old. :lol: Her voice changed a bit after her Meri Kuri stage and I didn't like it as much after that. But it seems to appeal to more people than her previous voice since it got more nasally and etc.

Oh I forgot to mention that I listen to some songs by Speed and Perfume and I have some Morning Musume songs but I only listen to their older singles. I'll give akb a try then. :lol: I'm pretty sure i'm not going to be able to learn all their names though; 48 is A LOT of people. :sweatdrop: I watched their River performance at the MAMA last year (I think that was the song they sang? :mellow: ) and I liked the song. :D I never bothered following up on the group though. :sweatdrop:

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^

Welcome back xichigo, it's been a while since the last time you post here :sweatdrop:

I'm actually not much of a drama watcher for either Japanese or Korean dramas. laugh.gif Maybe I should start at some point. xD

Yamapi's drama Code Blue is amazing, It's not a typical romantic drama but it really is amazing :sweatdrop:

Korean drama is too long, Japanese is just perfect for me since I got bored easily :sweatdrop:

no KARA members have been in drama, haven't they? In Japan, at least a member of idol group usually play drama, it's good for promotion for the member and the group it self. I know SNSD's member been playing on drama as well

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Yamapi's drama Code Blue is amazing, It's not a typical romantic drama but it really is amazing :lol:

Korean drama is too long, Japanese is just perfect for me since I got bored easily :ph34r:

no KARA members have been in drama, haven't they? In Japan, at least a member of idol group usually play drama, it's good for promotion for the member and the group it self. I know SNSD's member been playing on drama as well

I shall check that out then :D Now I need to find a J-drama subbing website to get that from. xD

Ah I don't think so, besides like the drama parodies they do on shows lol. Now is probably not the best time for a drama for them though? Unless they're planning for a long term stay in Japan starting in August, but I don't think they're comfortable enough with the language yet to take one on.

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no KARA members have been in drama, haven't they?

Gyuri was a child actor before, but that was years back ))): I'd like her to get a role in a drama so we can see her acting skills. The same goes for Hara.

JAPANESE DRAMAS! Can't live without them. <3

Yupyup Code Blue is really good! I watched the first season, haven't gotten around to the second season yet. Some other good ones are.. Nodame Cantabile, Gokusen II (well I watch it for the cute guys... the plot's pretty similar to Gokusen I), Hana Yori Dango (I and II), and a lot more~

As for Kara starring in Japanese dramas... I think we'll have a long way to go before that happens. Korean dramas first!

Any Japanese news about Kara lately?

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Gyuri was a child actor before, but that was years back ))): I'd like her to get a role in a drama so we can see her acting skills. The same goes for Hara.

JAPANESE DRAMAS! Can't live without them. <3

Yupyup Code Blue is really good! I watched the first season, haven't gotten around to the second season yet. Some other good ones are.. Nodame Cantabile, Gokusen II (well I watch it for the cute guys... the plot's pretty similar to Gokusen I), Hana Yori Dango (I and II), and a lot more~

As for Kara starring in Japanese dramas... I think we'll have a long way to go before that happens. Korean dramas first!

Any Japanese news about Kara lately?

Gokusen! I know that one since my friend loves it. xD I've only watched a little bit of it though. Nakama Yukie is pretty awesome. She's a really great actress. :lol:

Oh and speaking of her, since she's been the host of Kohaku a few times, it would be AMAZING if Kara could ever be invited to the Kohaku Uta Gassen at some point. Obviously they have a long way to go before they could think of being invited, but it would definitely show that they've made it in Japan if they do get the opportunity to go.

I don't think there's been any new news since the JJ articles on the website that ᴅᴀᴇᴃᴀᴋ posted. And about Kara news in Japan, is there any other info known about their Japanese release besides the fact that Mister will be their first single? No info about what the B-side to that will be or anything?

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no KARA members have been in drama, haven't they? In Japan, at least a member of idol group usually play drama, it's good for promotion for the member and the group it self. I know SNSD's member been playing on drama as well

Sadly no....and I don't understand why DSP have not tried it until yet because Drama sure bring lot of exposure.

But as xichigo said, Gyuri did it when she was younger because she actually debuted as a child actress before becoming a singer.

And Seung Yeon has appeared on several dramas (like Star in My Heart) when she very young but nothing important.

I also love drama ! And if I prefer K-pop over J-pop, I actually prefer so far J-drama over K-drama.

My favorite actors are japanese and my favorite singers are korean lol.

dont think this has been posted yet, JJ-JJ.net has two articles up on KARA.

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=14

http://jj-jj.net/modules/bulletin_anyo/ind...&storyid=15

Thank for the links ! Even if I can't understand what is saying, It's still more exposure for KARA.

Since they are planing to release Mister in less than 2 months, I wonder when UMJ will really start KARA 's promotion.

KARA is quite inactive right now...but in the same time they need some rest before going to Japan.

I just think KARA need more exposure in Japan if they want make people be curious and buy the single lol.

About the long stay in Japan : as I said before, I also think UMJ should not promote KARA as they did with 4minute

I agree KARA need to stay for some good months if they want to make a real impact.

However, the most question is DSP ! Is it ready to let KARA stay in Japan.

DSP hasn't lot of artists and only two of them are popular...and bring money : SS501 and KARA.

For yet, SS501 is active but they will only promote for one month and I don't think they will comeback soon.

Moreover they have to settle the contract issue.

So officially, DSP has no plan for this summer with KARA in Japan and SS501 promotion stop.

Ok...I can see Rainbow serious promotion coming in fact lol. But it's impossible to least more than 3/4 months.

That's the reason I think DSP has plan to make KARA comeback and can't let KARA stay too long in Japan.

And about Kara news in Japan, is there any other info known about their Japanese release besides the fact that Mister will be their first single? No info about what the B-side to that will be or anything?

OK...I may sounds a little stupid but what is exactly A-side and B-side ?

I knew this things exist in Japan but have never understood what it is lol.

And also...when I check Japan singles...why are there so many version of one single ?

I was also very surprised seeing my sister watching so many differents version of a same MV.

Edited by Solin
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Thanks Curbs for making this ^^

Well, Japan is where a lot of Kpop groups can easily go because... it's near korea.

WAH, how I wish...I could go. T____T

But anyway, good luck to them ^^

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OK...I may sounds a little stupid but what is exactly A-side and B-side ?

I knew this things exist in Japan but have never understood what it is lol.

And also...when I check Japan singles...why are there so many version of one single ?

I was also very surprised seeing my sister watching so many differents version of a same MV.

It's totally fine, I didn't know about what those things meant until I started following J-pop like 3 years ago either! :lol:

A single in Japan is generally a CD with 2 or 3 original songs on it and the A-side to that is the promoting song. In Kara's case for their debut, it would be Mister. A music video would be made for that. The B-side to that single would be the other song(s) on that CD that aren't promoted on the TV shows. There usually isn't a pv for B-sides and sometimes those songs aren't included in the album containing that single. Usually those songs aren't as popular anyways except for in rare cases. B-sides could include remixes. In some cases, the single could be a double A-side (or triple A-side), which means that 2 songs on that single (or 3 for the triple) are promoted. For example, in Junsu's recent single, Intoxication, it was a triple A-side, and the 3 songs on that single (Intoxication, 悲しみのゆくえ, and 君がいれば ~Beautiful Love~) are all being promoted. And also in TVXQ's Stand By U single, Stand By U would be the A-side for that, while the songs Tea for Two, Sky, and the Stand by U: Luv Behind the Mld Mix would be the B-sides to that single.

And the many versions of a CD are usually to increase sales. :lol: Generally Japanese buyers really like collecting CDs, so they would buy more versions of the single and thus increase sales. Usually at the bare minimum, a single will have a CD only version and a CD+DVD version, which is more practical for people who want to buy it but don't have enough money for the DVD. And the multiple versions of a music video also contribute to that, like some versions of a single could have all versions of the music video while some would only have half and etc. This is why if Kara was to go to Japan, even if their releases don't sell incredibly well, they would probably make a whole lot more money than even great sales in Korea. :lol:

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^

thanks for the clarification but now i'm really interested in the b-side content. basically all kara songs are included in the premium box & the 3 of the hottest songs were re-recorded in japanese. so what're left to be included for b-side? since it is for lesser popularity or remix, then lupin shouldn't be included too. & the probabililty of a double a-side with lupin is zero too. wow i'm getting too eager to check with them on what's in the pipeline. earlier there was a mentioning that a kara dvdbox (3 tv shows) will be released in japan too. so probably it's going to launch together with the single to boost sales?

However, the most question is DSP ! Is it ready to let KARA stay in Japan.

DSP hasn't lot of artists and only two of them are popular...and bring money : SS501 and KARA.

For yet, SS501 is active but they will only promote for one month and I don't think they will comeback soon.

Moreover they have to settle the contract issue.

So officially, DSP has no plan for this summer with KARA in Japan and SS501 promotion stop.

Ok...I can see Rainbow serious promotion coming in fact lol. But it's impossible to least more than 3/4 months.

That's the reason I think DSP has plan to make KARA comeback and can't let KARA stay too long in Japan.

sorry i don't really understand here. dsp is letting umj to manage kara activities in japan, with their single release in july/august & subsequent promotion activities. if their (dsp & umj) plan is to keep kara for 3-4 months long enough to cause an impact, aren't they kept busy throughout this summer? but having said this, (can't remember where) i suddenly recalled that the girls did say to anticipate their comeback (or next album) soon.

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