Haruka Shimada

is a Japanese businessperson and former singer and actress. She is a former member of AKB48, and has founded two companies aiming to provide second career options for aspiring and active entertainers.

Biography Shimada joined AKB48 in 2009. In April 2017, Shimada announced that she would graduate from the group in September 2017 and retire from the entertainment industry. Her graduation live concert was held on November 13, and she released her photo book the same month. She posted her farewell message on her official Twitter and Instagram accounts on December 31, 2017 and stated that she will only maintain her Instagram account going forward.

In 2018, Shimada moved to London and lived there for about a year to learn English. She worked at an advertising agency after returning to Japan, and went on to establish the company Dct Inc. in May 2021. Drawing from her own experiences, the company offers courses to prepare Japanese idols for the general workforce should they decide to retire from the entertainment industry, considering that they often start out while in school and have little or no work experience outside the industry such as part-time work, although they might have an advantage in communication skills. She later established a second company named Clover Academy, which offers a combined course of performing arts training and child care qualification for high school graduates who aspire to enter show business, similarly to provide an option for a second career should they later retire.

Shimada also helps manage her family's ryokan, Tachibana, in her hometown of Atami. After the 2021 Atami landslide, she launched a crowdfunding project for reconstruction of the affected areas, which managed to collect 3,331,000 yen.

Personal life On November 22, 2023, Shimada announced her marriage to a general businessman. On May 12, 2024, she gave birth to her first child.

AKB48 participation Singles Single Song Member of Ref. "Ponytail to Shushu" "Boku no Yell" Theater Girls "Chance no Junban" "Fruits Snow" Team Kenkyūsei "Sakura no Ki ni Narō" "Kogane Center" "Everyday, Katyusha" "Yankee Soul" "Anti" Team Kenkyūsei "Flying Get" "Seishun to Kizukanai mama" "Kaze wa Fuiteiru" "Vamos" Under Girls Bara-gumi "Tsubomi-tachi" Team 4+Kenkyūsei "Ue kara Mariko" "Hashire! Penguin" Team 4 "Give Me Five!" "Hitsujikai no Tabi" Special Girls B "Manatsu no Sounds Good!" "Gingham Check" "Ano Ni no Fūrin" Waiting Girls "Uza" "Scrap & Build" Team K "Eien Pressure" "Watashitachi no Reason" "So Long!" "Waiting room" Under Girls "Yūhi Mary" Oshima Team K "Sayonara Crawl" "How come?" Team K "Heart Electric" "Sasameyuki Regret" "Mae shika Mukanee" "Konjo" Talking Chimpanzees "Labrador Retriever" "Itoshiki Rival" Team K "Kibōteki Refrain" "Hajimete no Drive" "Kuchibiru ni Be My Baby" "Onēsan no Hitorigoto" "Tsubasa wa Iranai" "Aishū no Trumpeter" "High Tension" "Better"

Albums Year Title Member of Koko ni Ita Koto "High school days" Team Kenkyūsei"Koko ni Ita Koto" AKB48+SKE48+SDN48+NMB48 1830m "Chokkaku Sunshine" Team 4"Aozora yo: Sabishikunai ka?" AKB48+SKE48+NMB48+HKT48 Tsugi no Ashiato "Ponkotsu Bruce" "Kyōhan-sha" Team KKoko ga Rhodes da, Koko de Tobe! "Conveyor" Yokoyama Team K0 to 1 no Aida "Ai no Shisha" Team K

Other songs Year Title Notes 2011 "Hatsukoi wa Minoranai" Member of Ojarumaru Sisters

Stage units Title Song Notes Kenkyūsei: Idol no Yoake "Itoshiki Natasha" Kenkyūsei: Renai Kinshi Jōrei "Heart Gata Virus" Kenkyūsei: Theater no Megami "Arashi no Yoru ni wa" "Candy" Team B 5th Stage: Theater no Megami "Romance kakurenbo" Zenza Girl"Arashi no Yoru ni wa" Under Miho Miyazaki"Candy" Under Tomomi Kasai"Locker Room Boy" Under Rie Kitahara Team A 6th Stage: Mokugeki-sha "Miniskirt no Yōsei" Zensa Girls"Enjō Rosen" Under Aki Takajo Team K 6th Stage: Reset "Remon no Toshigoro" Zensa Girls"Seifuku Resistance" Under Tomomi Itano Team 4 1st Stage: Boku no Taiyō "Boku to Juliet to Jet Coaster" Himawari-gumi 1st Stage: Boku no Taiyō "Himawari" Team S 2nd Stage: Te o tsunaginagara "Glory days" Team K 5th Stage: Gyaku Agari "End Roll" Team K Waiting Kōen II: Saishū Bell Ganaru "Return Match" Team K 7th Stage: Reset "Ashita no tame ni Kiss o" "Kiseki wa Maniawanai" Unit under Haruka Kodama Masahiro Tanaka: Boku ga koko ni iru Riyū "Seishun no Ki More Yō" No3b "Kimi shika" track song, Minami Takahashi or Haruna Kojima's position Team K 8th Stage: Saishū Bell Ganaru "Gomen ne: Jewel" "22-Ri Shimai no Uta" Unit under Minami Minegishi, Aki Takajo, Mariya Suzuki"Return Match" Unit under Shinobu Motegi Revial Kōen: Boku no Taiyō "Himawari" Mariya Suzuki, Mihimo Nishino's standby Team 4 4th Stage: Yume o Shina seru wake ni ikanai "Kioku no Dilemma" Under Rina Izuta

Filmography

TV dramas Year Title Role Network Notes Ref. 2010 Majisuka Gakuen Majisuka Gakuen student TV Tokyo Final Episode 2011 Majisuka Gakuen 2 Docchi 2012 Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou Anne Miyata NTV Majisuka Gakuen 3 Uruseeyo TV Tokyo 2013 So long! NTV Episode 3 2015 Majisuka Gakuen 4 Shimada Episode 10 2017 Tōfu Pro-Wres Yuko Shimada TV Asahi

Variety Year Title Network Notes Ref. 2010 Ariyoshi AKB Kyōwakoku TBS Irregular appearances Shūkan AKB TV Tokyo Occasional appearances AKBingo! NTV Irregular appearances AKB48 Neshin TV Family Gekijo 2011 AKB48 Conte: Bimyō Hikari TV Channel 2012 AKB48 no anta, Dare? NotTV Irregular appearances Bimyō na Tobira AKB48 no Gachichare Hikari TV Channel AKB Ko Usagi Dōjō TV Tokyo Occasional appearances 2013 HaKaTa Hyakkaten 2-gōkan NTV AKB Kanko-Taishi Fuji TV One AKB48 Conte: Nani mo soko made... Hikari TV Channel Irregular appearances 2014 Renai Sō Senkyo Fuji TV Tentoumu Chu! No Sekai o Muchū ni sa semasu Sengen! NTV SKE48 Ebi Calcio! AKB Shirabe 2015 Bokura ga Kangaeru Yoru Fuji TV Irregular appearances AKB48 Tabi Shōjo NTV AKB48 no Konya wa o Tomari''' Sashihara Kaiwaizu'' Fuji TV

Other TV programmes (mainly tennis related) Year Title Network Ref. 2015 Sunday Sports NHK-G Kei Nishikori: Chōten no Chōsen ATP Tennis Tour Final Chokuzen Tokushū NHK BS1 The Nonfiction (documentary)Fuji TV

Stage Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2016 Kenran toka Ranman toka Sue Kobayashi

Radio Year Title Network Notes 2011 AKB48 Konya wa Kaeranai... CBC Radio Irregular appearancesKakedase! NHK Radio 1, NHK World Radio Japan 2012 AKB48 no All Night Nippon NBS Irregular appearances 2013 Listen? Live 4 Life NCB

Films Year Title Role Ref. 2012 Ultraman Saga Hina Hamamatsu

Events Year Title 2012 Haruka Shimada no Mike 1-Pon Shōbu!! Urusakattara Gomennasai87th Nikke All Japan Tennis Championships ceremonial first pitch

Internet Year Title Role Website Notes 2015 Majisuka Gakuen 5 Unnamed student Hulu Episode 9AKB48 Team 8!! 2015 Natsu: Zenkoku Jūdan! Shimada-Nakamura-Nakanishi no Team 88 Latch!! LoGirl