℃-ute

℃-ute is an all-female Japanese pop group within Hello! Project. The character "℃" (degree Celsius) is substituted for "C" in notation for the purpose of expressing ardor—the hyphen does not have any meaning in particular. The proper pronunciation for this group in Japanese is kyūto (キュート) with pitch accents on both "ū" and "o". They have sold over 689,886, copies in Japan alone. C-ute's highest selling single is Tokaikko Junjou. C-ute's lowest selling single is SHOCK!.

2005
°C-ute was formed in the year 2005, consisting of eight girls from Hello! Project Kids who were not chosen to form the group Berryz Koubou. Berryz Koubou had originally been intended to be a group that's line-up alternated The group was officially announced on June 11, 2005, though its formation had been rumored for several months prior. Prior to the band's formation, some members worked with members of Morning Musume in such side projects as Aa! and ZYX, as well as the Mini Moni movie Okashina Daibōken.

2006
Later, in January 2006, Arihara Kanna, a Hello! Pro Egg, was added at the start of the Hello! Project Winter 2006 tour, as part of the Wonderful Hearts team. On October 31, 2006, Murakami Megumi left the group suddenly without any graduation ceremony. Like Morning Musume before them, at their debut concert each of the group's members were given a color used for merchandise, costumes, and the like. Those colors: Umeda Erika - yellow; Yajima Maimi - pink; Nakajima Saki - orange; Suzuki Airi - green; Okai Chisato - blue; Hagiwara Mai - purple; and Arihara Kanna - red.

2007
On February 21, 2007, °C-ute's first official single "Sakura Chirari" was released. On the first day it ranked third on the Oricon charts, a feat not even accomplished by Morning Musume (who had ranked 6th on their debut single). With their debut single, they became the youngest group (with the average age of 13) to rank in the top 10.

On December 30, 2007, °C-ute was chosen as "Best New Artist" by Japan Record Awards, 14 out of the 21 panel judges voted for them. Producer Tsunku received the award while the screen showed the girls crying at the dressing rooms after their performance.

2009
Umeda Erika graduated on October 25, 2009 to study on becoming a fashion model. This is the third member to leave the group but the first to have a graduation ceremony. EVERYDAY Zekkouchou!, released on September, was Erika's last single in ºC-ute. The single ranked #2 weekly and topped the daily charts with a #1 position in its first week, this is the first time for the group to reach #1 daily and currently ºC-ute's highest-charting single overall. At their First Event as a 5-nin Group each of the members were given a new color used for merchandise, costumes, and the like. Those colors are now: Yajima Maimi - red; Nakajima Saki - blue; Suzuki Airi - pink; Okai Chisato - green; Hagiwara Mai - yellow.

2010
C-ute announced on a live radio show that they would be opening up a blog. SHOCK!, ºC-ute's eleventh major single, was released on January 6, 2010. It topped at #1 for the daily charts and #5 for the week, selling 18,665 copies. This is the first a-side of a single to have all solo lines given to only one person (Airi) with the rest of the group singing only the chorus as well as their first single as a 5-nin Group. The following month on February 24, 2010, their 5th studio album, Shocking 5, was released. On April 28, 2010, ºC-ute's 12th major single, Campus Life ~Umarete Kite Yokatta~, was released. It ranked at #3 on the daily chart and #5 on weekly. ºC-ute's next single, Dance de Bakoon!, is scheduled to be released on August 25, 2010. During the C-ute 2010 concert Nakajima Saki dislocated her hip, was in intense pain, and unable to move. Saki will be out of C-ute activities for 3-4 months or less.

Current Members

 * Yajima Maimi (矢島 舞美) (L)
 * Nakajima Saki (中島 早貴) (S-L)
 * Suzuki Airi (鈴木 愛理)
 * Okai Chisato (岡井 千聖)
 * Hagiwara Mai (萩原 舞)

Former Members

 * Murakami Megumi (村上　愛) - unexpectedly retired on October 31, 2006 to continue schooling and lead a private life.
 * Arihara Kanna(有原 栞菜) - unexpectedly retired on July 9, 2009 after being absent for several months due to medical reasons.
 * Umeda Erika (梅田 えりか) - Graduated from ℃-ute and Hello! Project on October 25, 2009 to study to become a fashion model

Members Line-up

 * 7 Members Line-up (June 2005 - January 2006)
 * 8 Members Line-up (January 2006 - August 2006) with the addition of Arihara Kanna
 * 7 Members Line-up (August 2006 - April 2009) without Murakami Megumi
 * 6 Members Line-up (April 2009 - October 2009) without Arihara Kanna
 * 5 Members Line-up (Since October 2009) without Umeda Erika

Discography
The following CDs and DVD are released on the Zetima label.

Best of Albums

 * °C-ute Nandesu! Zen Single Atsumechaimashita! 1 11.18.2009

Awards and recognitions

 * The youngest group (with the average age of 13) to rank in the top 10.
 * Nominated for the "Best Newcomer Award" at 「ベストヒット歌謡祭２００７」, lost to ＲＳＰ.
 * 49th Japan Record Award: Newcomer Artist Award 2007
 * 49th Japan Record Award: Best New Artist Award 2007
 * Youngest group to win the Best New Artist Award
 * 50th Japan Record Award: Best Works of the Year Award 2008
 * Nominated for the "Excellence award" at 50th Japan Record Awards, lost to EXILE.

Trivia

 * Kōhaku Uta Gassen (紅白歌合戦) youngest participant – 11 year old Hagiwara Mai (58th Kōhaku on December 31, 2007)