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KLP48 blooms at Zepp KL as group celebrates first year anniversary with special concert, surprise announcements
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 — It's a fitting full circle moment for Malaysia-based idol group KLP48 as they celebrated their first year anniversary at Zepp KL over the weekend.
KLP48 is the tenth international sister group of the renowned Japanese idol's AKB48 and the first to be based in Malaysia.
Similarly to the '48' theme of having a large group of members, KLP48 boast a total of 13 members made up of both local and international idols including Yi Shyan, Salwa, Lucine, Amanda, Ann Drea, Tiffany, Khalies, Devi, Hillary, Haruka, Cocoa, Suzuha and Yurina.
Aside from their first year anniversary, last Saturday also marks exactly one year after their first single Heavy Rotation debuted and the group definitely gave nearly 2,000 fans a memorable evening during the KLP48 1st Anniversary Concert Bloom.
The concert starts with several opening acts including by Malaysian girl group COËX, actor and singer Ismail Izzani as well as an energetic performance by the Indonesia-based JKT48, which is also another sister group of AKB48.
Other sister groups such as MNL48 from the Philippines and BNK48 from Thailand were also seen congratulating KLP48 through video montages shown during the concert.
KLP48 delivers a memorable night for their first year anniversary concert which took place at Zepp KL last August 16. — Picture by Firdaus Latiff
Zepp KL illuminated with a sea of green LED light sticks as soon as the girls took centre stage, opening their performance with AKB48's hit single Oh My Pumpkin! before jumping to the ever-catchy tune of Aitakatta which had the audience going.
KLP48 also came with a few surprises for their fans — with the first one being the returning announcement of one of their members Lucine, who previously took a short break from the group's activities back in June 30 this year due to health related issues.
Nonetheless, the 20-year-old received a very warm welcome from fans, with some of them were heard chanting her name as she took the stage.
Another one of their surprises includes the announcement of KLP48's own theatre which will be located at Lalaport BBCC, however the official opening date of the theatre is still kept under wraps for now.
Fans can also expect the theatre to operate similarly as the famous AKB48 Theatre in Tokyo, where the venue would host live performances by different AKB48 teams and trainees on an almost daily basis.
The group also revealed that they will be releasing the Bahasa Malaysia version of AKB48's Green Flash as their fifth single which will be announced later.
After performing a slew of hit songs including tracks from their recently released mini album First Cry, KLP48 ended the night with another performance of Oh My Pumpkin! and this time, they are joined by JKT48 and it is safe to say that both groups ended the night with a bang.
The almost sold out concert also signals the growing appetite local fans had for these kinds of Idol groups and it has also attracted oversea fans.
45-year-old Japanese fan Pinkman (left) is a huge fan of AKB48 and he has been following the group and its sister groups for 11 years now. — Picture by Firdaus Latiff
Twenty-two-year-old Najwa first heard about the forming of KLP48 during a JKT48 concert a few years back and ever since then, she has been closely following the group via their social media.
'I was really excited when I heard that Malaysia will be getting our own Idol's group like JKT48.
'I'm so happy that we finally have our own KLP48!' Najwa told Malay Mail.
For 31-year-old Hidayah, seeing KLP48 for the first time was definitely a dream come true for her and for Hidayah who first knew of the AKB48 project through JKT48, felt represented when she heard about the forming of KLP48.
'It is really nice to know that Malaysia is being represented through KLP48.
'They have also released several songs in our native languages including Bahasa Malaysia and Mandarin. I can't wait for more of that,' she said.
Meanwhile, Pinkman, a 45-year-old fan who came all the way from Japan was thrilled to catch the girls live for the first time, describing the group as something fresh from the '48' groups.
He is also a big supporter of Yurina, who debuted with the AKB48 group back in 2014 before joining KLP48.
'She debuted at 15 years old and now she's 26 years old already. I've been following her for 11 years now.
'I'm proud to see her development and with her on the team, they can make KLP48 a prominent group as well,' Pinkman said.
AKB48 and all of its sister groups follow a rather unique concept of 'idols you can meet' which came from Japanese producer and founder of AKB48, Yasushi Akimoto.
Instead of presenting idols as untouchable, perfect celebrities, this concept focuses on accessibility, transparency, and a direct, personal connection where fans are not just passive spectators, but also act as active participants in the idols' careers.
