Mayu Watanabe

is a Japanese retired singer and actress. Nicknamed , her entertainment career was associated with the idol girl group AKB48 under Team B. In the annual AKB48 General Elections event, she had consistently been voted by fans to rank among the group's top members. She has released five solo singles, many of which have peaked in the top ten on the Oricon charts, and one solo album. She left the group on the last day of 2017 and the first day of 2018, and pursued an acting career until she retired from the entertainment industry in June 2020.

Career

AKB48 Watanabe auditioned for AKB48's 3rd generation and was placed in the newly formed Team B, serving as a key memberof the group. Her selection on "Bingo!" marked the first appearance of a Team B member in an AKB48 single title track. She would go on to appear on all of the a-side tracks for AKB48's singles until her graduation, with the exception of line-ups determined by rock-paper-scissors tournaments.

In 2009, Watanabe placed fourth overall in the group's first general election to determine the line-up for the group's 13th single, and ranked fifth the next year for the group's 17th single.

Watanabe appeared on the cover of the December 2010 issue of UP to boy magazine together with Airi Suzuki from Cute. It was the first gravure collaboration between Hello! Project and AKB48.

On May 13, 2011, Watanabe released her first photo book, Mayuyu. She commented that the book "is filled with a lot of expressions that I haven't shown until now, it's a book I'm really pleased with!" Regarding her cover picture, she said, "Despite being embarrassed, I did my best on the front cover, so I want a lot of people to look at it!" For AKB48's general election in 2011, Watanabe placed fifth overall.

In 2012, Watanabe played her first lead role in the Japanese TV drama Saba Doru, where she played a 38-year-old high school teacher hated by her pupils, whilst having a hidden life as the highly popular idol Mayu Watanabe, based on her real-life self. On February 29, Watanabe released her debut solo single, "Synchro Tokimeki", which was also the opening theme for the drama.

Watanabe participated as a voice actress in the anime series AKB0048. In the anime, she plays a main character Chieri Sono, and is part of the AKB48 subgroup NO NAME, which sings the opening and ending themes for the series. The series features a supporting character, Mayu Watanabe Mark 3, which is modeled after her likeness, and is voiced by Yukari Tamura. She reprised her role as Chieri Sono for the series' second season which aired in 2013.

Watanabe ranked second overall in the 2012 AKB48 general elections with 72,574 votes. On August 24, she was moved from Team B to Team A during AKB48's reorganization announcement at their Tokyo Dome concert.

On July 25, she released her second solo single, "Otona Jellybeans" which reached number three on the Oricon weekly chart. Her third solo single "Hikaru Monotachi" was released on November 21, 2012, and reached number one in the Oricon singles chart. The single was released in five versions, including one that has an illustration book. Its b-side "Sayonara no Hashi" is the theme song to the anime film Nerawareta Gakuen for which she voiced one of the lead characters. In July 2013, she released her fourth solo single, "Rappa Renshūchū". A contest was held to determine the cover artwork for one of its editions.

Meanwhile in AKB48, she received her first center position with the group's 30th single "So Long!", which was released on February 20, 2013. On April 19, she released her second photobook Seifuku Zukan Saigo no Seifuku. In the AKB48 election for the members for their 32nd major label single, she placed third overall with 101,210 votes.

In 2014, Watanabe became a regular on the television show Utage!, and a semi-regular on the TV show Renai Sosenkyo. In AKB48, she was transferred back from Team A to Team B in the "Daisokaku Matsuri". She performed an hour-long solo live concert at AKB48's Natsu Matsuri. She earned the center position for AKB48's 37th major label single, "Kokoro no Placard" after placing first with 159,854 votes in an election to determine the single's member line-up.

In 2015, Watanabe received her first leading role in a prime-time TV drama, Tatakau! Shoten Girl, broadcast by Fuji TV and Kansai TV. This drama aired from April 2015, at 10 pm. The theme song for this drama, "Deai no Tsuzuki", was sung by Watanabe, and was also released as her fifth solo single on June 10, 2015. She held solo live concerts to support the single on September 19. In 2015, a web poll conducted by My Navi Student declared her the second cutest idol amongst both men and women, behind Kanna Hashimoto of the idol group Rev. from DVL.

On October 26, 2016, Watanabe released her third photobook Shiranai uchi ni. On October 31, Watanabe had her graduation concert. Her last handshake event with the group was on November 18, while her last performance at the AKB48 theater was on December 26. Her last activity as an AKB48 member was a performance at the "68th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen" on December 31, 2017.

AKB48 General Elections

Her results in the annual ranking: Ranked 4th in the 2009 General Election (1st) Ranked 5th in the 2010 General Election (2nd) Ranked 5th in the 2011 General Election (3rd) Ranked 2nd in the 2012 General Election (4th) Ranked 3rd in the 2013 General Election (5th) Ranked 1st in the 2014 General Election (6th) Ranked 3rd in the 2015 General Election (7th) Ranked 2nd in the 2016 General Election (8th) Ranked 2nd in the 2017 General Election (9th)

Post-AKB48 In January 2018, it was announced that Watanabe would play the titular character in the Japanese production of the Amélie adapted from the movie of the same title. The production ran from May 18 to June 3 at the Galaxy Theater in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and June 7–10 at the Morinomiya Piloti Hall in Osaka.

In April 2018, Watanabe had her first drama post-AKB48 titled where she played an insurance investigator.

In August 2018, Watanabe starred in the special drama , a continuation from the same series in 2017.

Following two special dramas, Watanabe then had the lead role in a late-night drama in August 2018. Her character, Hikari, was a girl whose dream was to become a musical actress, but got her dreams smashed when her brother supposedly committed murder.

In late 2018, Watanabe also endorsed the brand Yakult. The commercial was directed by Ikeda Kazumasa who has directed music videos for Keyakizaka46 and Nogizaka46, while choreography was by Sasao Isao who choreographed one of Keyakizaka46's singles. The commercial also features some 33 professional dancers and performers including Spinboy Aichi, SORI and HICKY of the dance team SHIFFLE!! among others.

Watanabe also guested several music shows, namely Utacon and UTAGE. In Utacon, she sang musical songs, including collaborations with several famed musical actors.

Towards the end of 2018, Watanabe was named the ambassador for JAL Honolulu Marathon.

On June 1, 2020, Production Ogi announced her retirement from the entertainment industry for health reasons. Her website was terminated amicably on the same day.

Personal life

Tokyo Mode describes Watanabe as a girl who used to be an "otaku obsessed with illustrations, anime, and special effects shows". Her public appearances were often accompanied by life-sized animated characters and many fans wore such costumes at her meet-and-greet events. In several episodes of the AKB48 variety show AKBingo!, she demonstrated her specialty of drawing various manga characters in seconds. She also unofficially endorsed the character Pompompurin for the 30th Sanrio Character Awards in 2015.

One of her favorite series is Hetalia. Her favorite character is France, and she says he is her ideal type. She also enjoys surfing the internet, and often used internet slang terms in her blog posts. According to Yuki Kashiwagi, Mayu's blog posts are 80% anime content on average.

She is a musical theater enthusiast and attends performances both in Japan and overseas.

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RIAJ Digital Track Chart was established in April 2009 and cancelled in July 2012.

Solo albums Year Title Chart position Oricon WeeklyAlbums Chart Notes 2007 4 "Bingo!" A-side First single with Team B. 5 "Boku no Taiyō" A-side 6 "Yūhi o Miteiru ka?" A-side 2008 7 "Romance, Irane" A-side 8 "Sakura no Hanabiratachi 2008" A-side 9 "Baby! Baby! Baby!" A-side 10 "Ōgoe Diamond" A-side 2009 11 "10nen Sakura" A-side Also sang on "Sakurairo no Sora no Shita de" 12 "Namida Surprise!" A-side 13 "Iiwake Maybe" A-side Ranked 4th in 2009 General Election. 14 "River" A-side 2010 15 "Sakura no Shiori" A-side Also sang on "Majisuka Rock 'n' Roll". 16 "Ponytail to Shushu" A-side Also sang on "Majijo Teppen Blues". 17 "Heavy Rotation" A-side Ranked 5th in 2010 General Election. Also sang on "Yasai Sisters" and "Lucky Seven" 18 "Beginner" A-side 19 "Chance no Junban" B-side Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament. Sang on "Yoyakushita Christmas", and "Love Jump" (as Team B) 2011 20 "Sakura no Ki ni Narō" A-side – "Dareka no Tame ni – What can I do for someone?" – charity single 21 "Everyday, Katyusha" A-side Also sang on "Korekara Wonderland" and "Yankee Soul". 22 "Flying Get" A-side Ranked 5th in 2011 General Election. Also sang on "Seishun to Kizukanai Mama", "Ice no Kuchizuke", "Yasai Uranai" 23 "Kaze wa Fuiteiru" A-side 24 "Ue kara Mariko" B-side Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament. Sang on "Noel no Yoru", and "Yobisute Fantasy" (as Team B) 2012 25 "Give Me Five!" A-side (Baby Blossom) Played keyboard in Baby Blossom. Also sang on "Hitsujikai no Tabi". 26 "Manatsu no Sounds Good!" A-side Center Also sang on "Chōdai, Darling!"and "Kimi no Tame ni Boku wa...". 32 "Koi Suru Fortune Cookie" A-side Ranked 3rd in 2013 General Election. Also sang on "Kisu made Countdown" as Team A. 34 "Suzukake no Ki no Michi de "Kimi no Hohoemi o Yume ni Miru" to Itte Shimattara Bokutachi no Kankei wa Dō Kawatte Shimau no ka, Bokunari ni Nan-nichi ka Kangaeta Ue de no Yaya Kihazukashii Ketsuron no Yō na Mono" B-side Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament. Sang on "Mosh & Dive". Sang on "Party is Over". 2014 35 "Mae Shika Mukanee" A-side 36 "Labrador Retriever" A-side, Center Also sang on "Kyou Made no Melody" and "B Garden" 37 "Kokoro no Placard" A-side, Center Ranked 1st in 2014 General Election. Also sang on "Sailor Zombie" as Milk Planet and "Oshiete Mommy". 38 "Kibouteki Refrain" A-side, Center Center performer along with Sakura Miyawaki. Also sang on "Loneliness Club". 2015 39 "Green Flash" A-side Also sang "Haru no Hikari Chikadzuita Natsu" and "Hakimono to Kasa no Monogatari" 40 "Bokutachi wa Tatakawanai" A-side Also sang "Barebare Bushi" and "Kimi no Dai-Ni Shou" 41 "Halloween Night" A-side Ranked 3rd in 2015 General Election. Also sang on "Ippome Ondo" 42 "Kuchibiru ni Be My Baby" A-Side Also sang on "365 Nichi no Kamihikouki" as Asa ga Kita Senbatsu, "Senaka Kotoba", and "Kin no Hane wo Motsu Hito yo" as Team B. 2016 43 "Kimi wa Melody" A-side Marked as the 10th Anniversary Single. 44 "Tsubasa wa Iranai" A-side Sang on "Koi o Suru to Baka o Miru" as Team B. 45 "LOVE TRIP / Shiawase wo Wakenasai" A-side Also sang on "Hikari to Kage no Hibi" and "Black Flower". 46 "High Tension" A-side 2017 47 "Shoot Sign" A-side Also sang on "Kanashii Uta wo Kikitaku Natta" as MayuYukirn. 48 "Negaigoto no Mochigusare" A-side Also sang on "Maebure" which she is the Center. 49 "#Sukinanda" A-side Ranked 2nd in 2017 General Election.50 "11gatsu no Anklet" A-side, Center Last single to participate. Also sang on "Sayonara de Owaru Wake Janai" which is her graduation song.

with Watarirouka Hashiritai

Appearances

Stage units Team B 1st Stage

Team B 2nd Stage

Team B 3rd Stage

Team B 4th Stage

Team B 5th Stage

Team A Waiting Stage

(new units) Team Surprise 1st Stage

Team B 3rd Stage (revival)

Team Surprise 2nd Stage

Kizaki Team B Stage (original stage is Team A 4th Stage)

Variety AKB 1ji 59fun (2008) AKB 0ji 59fun (2008) (2008–2016 ) AKBingo! (2008–2017 ) (2009–2012) Naruhodo High School (2011–2012 ) Gachigase AKB (2012–) Kayoukyoku (2012–) GIRLS' FACTORY (2012) Generation Tengoku (2013-2014) UTAGE! (2014-2015) Momm!! (2015-2016) Tribecca (2016) Green & Blacks (2017)

Dramas Majisuka Gakuen (2010) – Nezumi (2011) – Herself Majisuka Gakuen 2 (2011) – Nezumi Saba Doru (2012) – Herself, Usa Shijimi So Long! (2013) – Herself Fortune Cookies (2013) – Herself Sailor Zombie (2014) – Member of idol group, Milk Planet; Mayu Majisuka Gakuen 4 (2015) – Nezumi (ep.10) Tatakau! Shoten Girl (2015) – Kitamura Aki Majisuka Gakuen 5 (2015) – Nezumi (ep.2) AKB Horror Night: Adrenaline's Night Ep.7 - Elevator (2015) - Mayumi Ōoku (2016) - Oshima Crow's Blood (2016) - Kaori Isozaki Chihoushi wo Kau Onna (2016) - Yukino AKB Love Night Koi Koujou (2016) - Amelia (ep.35) Cabasuka Gakuen (2016) - Nezumi (Utsubo) (ep.3) Sayonara, Enari-kun (2017) - Kiriyama Saori Meibugyou! Tooyama no Kinshirou (2017) - Otane Gan Shoumetsu no Wana ~Kanzen Kankai no Nazo~ (2018) - Mizushima Ruriko Itsuka Kono Ame ga Yamu Hi Made (2018) - Kitazono (Morimura) Hikari Meibugyou! Tooyama no Kinshirou (2018) - Otane Kishuhanshu Tokugawa Yoshimune (2019) - Ichi Natsuzora (2019) - Akane Mimura

Musicals Amélie (2018) - Amélie City of Angels (2018) - Mallory Kingsley

Radio (2008 – present, JOQR-AM)

Anime AKB0048 (2012) – Chieri Sono Nerawareta Gakuen (2012 film) – Natsuki AKB0048 Next Stage (2013) – Chieri Sono Pikachu, Kore Nan no Kagi? (2014) - Narration Maho Girls PreCure! (2016) – herself

Movies

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013) – Annabeth Chase (Japanese dub)

Photobooks Mayuyu (2011) Shiranai uchi ni (October 25, 2016)

Others MUSIC FAIR (2012-) - irregular guest appearances Jounetsu Tairiku (2015) N Kyo CLASSIC&POPS with SPECIAL ARTISTS (2016) Watanabe Mayu ~AKB48 Sotsugyou Made no 63nichi-kan ni Micchaku, Soshite Sono Mirai~ (2018)