Handshake event

A handshake event (Japanese: Akushukai) is an event where artists or celebrities shake hands with their fans, which is particularly popular in Japan and is a common event held by Japanese idol groups.[1] At present, the handshake event held by AKB48 is well-known and successful in the entertainment industry, and in recent years,[2] Taiwanese and Korean artists have also begun to follow suit.[3] In addition,[4] Japanese bookstores also occasionally hold handshake events between writers and gravure idols to promote new works.

In June 2013, at the Makuhari Messe, a handshake event was held to commemorate the release of AKB48's "Sayonara Craw" where participants lined up to shake hands with each member.

Introduction
Several tickets to SKE48's national handshake party at Makuhari Messe

The Handshake event is usually seen by record companies as an activity to increase the sales and popularity of their artists' works. Fans can obtain "tickets" to participate in the handshake event through various channels, such as purchasing records and photo books, attending concerts and theatrical sweepstakes, or online auctions.[5] Participants can exchange their tickets for official admission to the handshake event at a date and time specified by the organizer.[5] During the handshake period, they can shake hands with the artists and also engage in short-term verbal communication with them.[2] The handshake event usually has a time limit. Taking the handshake event of AKB48 as an example, the time allocated for each admission ticket is usually a few seconds and participants must leave immediately once their time is up, otherwise, they will be expelled by the staff.[6] Although each ticket allows only one entry to the handshake event, fans can still get a large number of tickets through repeat purchases, thereby getting more opportunities to interact with the artists.[5]

Japanese Handshake Club

AKB48
AKB48's 36th single "Labrador Retriever" national handshake event participation ticket

When AKB48 was founded, it was based on the concept of "being able to meet idols face to face". Therefore, in addition to the usual theatrical performances, it also held a handshake event, which allowed followers and fans to have the opportunity to meet and communicate with the idols face to face. The first AKB48 meeting was held on December 16, 2005. Due to problems with the theater stage equipment, the performance could not proceed. Therefore, the handshake meeting was temporarily started without prior arrangements.[6] On that day, only about 50 spectators participated, and the audience was also allowed to take photos and group photos with their favorite members, with stricter restrictions than today.[7]

The picture shows the theater disc of the AKB48 single "Kaze wa Fuite Iru" and some fans bought the same disc in large quantities to get a ticket to the handshake.

AKB48's handshake events were hosted by the record company King Records after becoming famous, and there were two types of events, "National handshake" and "Individual handshake", and there was a strict mechanism for participation.[8] The music released by AKB48 is usually sold in several categories, and fans can get the opportunity to enter the "National Handshake Event" by purchasing the "Limited Edition" version of the record that includes a ticket.[8] The members participating in the "National Handshake" were not revealed until a few days before the handshake, but most of them were members of the "selection group" who had participated in the production of the record.[9] Members will perform small-scale live performances at different venues throughout Japan for a period of time after the release of the single, followed by a handshake event.[5] Fans could exchange their tickets for official admission at the event at a date and time specified by the organizer, which allowed them to be assigned a seat and a handshake time.[10] Afterward, they can line up in different rows during the admission ticket allocation time and finally enter multiple temporary tents about 5 meters long to shake hands with members. The temporary tents built at the handshake event are arranged in different rows, with up to 20 rows when there are a large number of participants. The members shake hands with the participants in their respective tents at the same time, and the number of members in each tent also varies. The handshake time of the national handshake meeting is only 2 to 3 seconds, and the more popular members shake hands with up to thousands of people every day, with up to 10000 participants per event.[11]

In AKB48's "Individual handshake" (also known as "Big Handshake"), fans need to pre-order the "Theater Disc" version of the upcoming music works on the official website, and select the members to shake hands with by drawing straws. If they win, they will receive a CD of the "Theater Disc" version and a ticket for the member to participate, but each person can only purchase a maximum of three tickets.[9] Unlike the National handshake, all members of AKB48 (including " new members" who have not yet joined the team) will participate in the " Individual handshake ", and the day of the event is divided into multiple limited time periods (also known as "sections").[9] The handshake time of individual handshakes lasts longer than the national handshake, usually up to 5 to 10 seconds, and participants can use the three admission tickets to have intermittent conversations with members.[9]

AKB48 and its sister groups have also held handshake events overseas. Its members, Yuki Kashiwagi and Rena Kato, once held handshake events at the Dragon Centre in Hong Kong in February 2014.[12] The sister group SKE48 has also arranged handshake events for each of its members in the same place on several occasions.[13]

In the AKB48 handshake event, participants are not allowed to bring mobile phones, video cameras, or sound recording equipment into the venue, and must also have their hands checked by staff before shaking hands, and then disinfect them with ethanol and disinfectant wipes. In tightly guarded venues, each person's handbag is checked to ensure the safety and hygiene of the members.[3][11] Some participants will write a handshake report (握手会レポ) online after the handshake to share their experiences, and fans will also rate the performance of members.[14] Members who are more active and enthusiastic towards fans during the handshake will be referred to as "gods" (神対応), while those who lack smiles and communication will be labeled as "salt" (塩対応).[1]

Others

At present, in addition to AKB48 and its sister groups, many Japanese idol groups also hold handshake events,[15] such as the Morning Musume and the Momoiro Clover Z group.[16] Both Sexy Zone and SMAP owned by Johnny & Associates held their first handshake party as early as September 8, 1991.[17] On that day,[18] the group held their debut event at the Seibuen Amusement Park to promote its upcoming debut single "Can't Stop! -LOVING-" and held a handshake event with all the 10,000 supporters present.[19][20] In addition, the male singing and dancing group EXILE's "New Generation" (GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE) has also held a fan handshake event in Taipei.[21]

At the same time, some artists also hold individual handshake events, such as the idol group "Rev. from DVL", Kanna Hashimoto, who once held a separate handshake event at Fukuoka PayPay Dome,[22] and EXILE's lead singer and performer Shokichi, who also held a special public event with a handshake event in Osaka.[23] Some writers hold handshake and signature meetings at bookstores, while some gravure idols hold handshake meetings at bookstores to promote their photo collections.[24] In addition, the Japan Sumo Association holds handshake events and commemorative photo shoots for sumo wrestlers from time to time.[25] Several male clerks from a bookstore even organized a handshake event and launched a photo album,[26] taking photos and signing with customers.[27]

Virtual characters

At the "Niconico Super Meeting 3 Super Volcaloid Appreciation Festival" held at Makuhari Messe from April 26 to 27, 2014, a developer used VR reality glasses "Oculus Rift" and a 3D induction handshake device "Novint Falcon" to design an electronic handshake device called "Miku Miku Akushu" and transformed the device into the virtual character "Hatsune Miku" to hold a handshake event,[28] allowing visitors to shake hands with the character in the virtual space.[29] Previously, on April 12, the female protagonist of the animation "Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel", also used the same technology to hold a virtual handshake event at Cinema City in Tachikawa, Tokyo.[30]

Derivative issues

During the AKB48 handshake held at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture from September 10 to 11, 2011,[31] some participants insulted some members and raised their middle fingers, parked discussion in society about the handshake event.[32] In addition, the AKB48 handshake incident that occurred on May 25, 2014, shocked the Japanese entertainment industry.[33] Multiple groups of artists canceled the handshake event after the incident, including the sister group of Momoiro Clover Z, Shiritsu Ebisu Chugaku. Safety issues have received social attention.[34] AKB48 later announced that it would strengthen security at events and add metal detectors in the theater during the event to prevent similar incidents to happen again.[35] Moreover, the handshake event once caused hygiene issues.[36] Due to rumors that some crazy fans shook hands with members at an AKB48 handshake event with their hands stained with bodily fluids,[37][38] the organizers subsequently forced all participants in the handshake event to disinfect their hands and undergo examinations.[36]

Sales Impact

For AKB48 fans, the more records they purchase, the more opportunities they have to shake hands with AKB48 members. As a result, some fans purchase a large number of records in order to obtain more admission tickets. This promotional method has been criticized by some media as the "handshake voucher business method" of "squeezing otaku money".[39] The same example can be seen with Momoiro Clover Z. For example, their 11th single "Naite mo Iin Da yo" released in May 2014 did not include a handshake voucher, compared to singles released during the same period that included a handshake voucher, such as E-girls' "Diamond Only" (73,000 copies) and Morning Musume group 14's' Toki o Koe Sora o Koe / Password is 0 (119000 copies), which sold approximately 67000 copies, indicating a low sales figure. However, in March of the same year, the concert held by Momoiro Clover Z at the Japan National Stadium attracted 110,000 fans. The analysis indicates that this phenomenon is due to the consumption habits of the supporters of Momoiro Clover Z, most of whom only listen to the songs on YouTube, and then feel the atmosphere of the concert.[notes 1] On the contrary, they are not keen on buying albums without special offers, which shows that handshake coupons have a great impact on the sales of albums.[16]

See also

Notes
  1. This is a gift item enclosed in the record, such as a handshake ticket and a cover photo.

References
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