[TRANS] Arashi's last Kouhaku appearance

Also on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/arashickarened/status/1343400632514879488?s=20

Arashi's last Kouhaku appearance is in the first half of the show

Will the transmission be at the end of the first half or the start of the second half?

It is getting probable that for the 71th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen on New Year's Eve (7:30pm JST), Arashi, which has appeared on the show for 12 years consecutively, will for the first time perform in the first half of the show. 

This being their last stage before hiatus, they will be the highlight of the first half instead of the usual second half of the show.

We hear from various insiders that Arashi will make their appearance during the first half of the show with a special medley. The Kouhaku show has always ended its first half by 8:55pm JST and started the second half from 9:00pm JST onwards.

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The concert starts at 8pm JST, so perhaps they will do Kouhaku before the concert starts? It'll be hard to time it precisely as the last act of the first half and coordinate with the Kouhaku side.

[TRANS] Viewership ratings of the final episode of Arashi ni Shiyagare

Also on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/arashickarened/status/1343409391651807234?s=20

Summary of article at : 「嵐にしやがれ」18・3％の高視聴率で有終の美　ラストの生歌唱シーンで瞬間最高21・2％― スポニチ Sponichi Annex 芸能

Household viewership rating* for the 4hr SP final ep of Arashi ni Shiyagare on 26 Dec averaged 18.3%, which is just second to the 18.5% achieved by the episode aired on 25 Sep 2010.

The household viewership rating peaked at 10:41pm, 10:48pm and 10:49pm, reaching 21.2%. 

Those were for these respective scenes:
1) At the end of the 5-person trip where Riida closed with, "Let's walk the remaining 50 days together";
2) The live performance of Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi at the end of the show. 

In terms of individual viewership rating*, the episode achieved 11.9%, which is the highest in the program's history.

The 4hr SP final episode of VS Arashi which aired on 24 Dec achieved an average household viewership of 15.2%.

*Household viewership rating uses each household as a unit. Individual viewership rating uses each person (each device) as a unit.

[TRANS] Nikkan Sports: Arashi's last interview before hiatus 27/12/2020

Also on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/arashickarened/status/1343560836455882754?s=20

Translation of the article by Nikkan Sports here: https://www.nikkansports.com/entertainment/news/202012260001085.html?Page=1

My thoughts

This was a difficult article to translate, not just because of its length and word choices (sorry, not a native speaker), but also because it felt so heavy that I had to take myself away from anything Arashi-related at intervals. Nonetheless, this was worth my time reading and translating. I walked away with these thoughts:

優しい
心配しなくてもいい
They are so thoughtful
We don't have to worry about them

Also, with respect to one of Sho's responses in the interview - There was a period during their early years when Arashi too was worried about poor sales, so it's not that numbers are not important. But for a group like Arashi, where the numbers are kind of guaranteed, it's not so much of the numbers that they are concerned about, but the intangible legacy they leave behind. Reading this article made me once again appreciate all that they have been doing in the past year and the thoughts they carried with them as they approach the end of this shiny chapter in their life.

I'm really glad for this interview. The questions were well thought out and a good way to close the year. It felt so grounded in their beliefs and boosted my confidence that they will manage, and take us along with them, regardless of what the future holds.

I tried my best to translate, and hope my fellow Arashians feel the same pangs of emotions I did when I read their responses. If there are mistakes or typos, I apologise in advance (not a native speaker!)

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