The Hello! Project 10th Anniversary Appreciation Thread

[Tom Rocket]

Lehua

Lehua Sandbo, real name Lehualani Ehukai Sandbo, was to be the last girl added to Coconuts Musume and barely edges out Danielle in time spent in the group.  According to a fan's interview with Lehua, she heard about the audition to join Coconuts Musume through an aunt and initally wasn't going to apply stating that she had "just finished doing a play" but soon reconsidered.  She submitted her resume after the primary auditions had already been held but she still found her way to finals and from there promptly chosen to be the next Coconut.

Oddly enough, her first single wouldn't be with Coconuts Musume but with the 2000 shuffle group Aoiro7 followed a few months later by her first Coconuts Musume single "Tokonatsu Musume."

Lehua would later be included in the 2001 shuffle group 7nin Matsuri followed with what appears to be the last Coconuts' single "Jounetsu Yuki Miraisen."  In either late 2001 or early 2002, citing that she wanted to attend college, Lehua would graduate from H!P leaving Coconuts Musume

Lehua is now married to professional surfboarder Kapono Nahina -what chicks see in these hunky, athletic beachcomber types I'll never understand- and has a daughter with him.  It appears Lehua is now a full-time mom but no indication as to whether she went forward with her academic ambitions or if she has a desire to work as a singer again.

Note:
The name "Lehua" is derived from the Hawaiian myth of Ōhia and Lehua.  Ōhia was once the object of desire of Pele, a goddess known for her bad temper, and was rejected by him.  She turned him into a tree out of spite leaving Ōhia's lover, Lehua, mourning his lost.  The gods took pity on Lehua and changed her into a flower and placed it on the tree.  It's said that when you removie the Lehua flower from an Ōhia tree, it will start to rain, representing the tears of the seperated lovers.  "Lehua" is also the name of a small uninhabited island among the Hawaiian island chain.

Links:
Wikipedia article on Lehua Sandbo
Fan interviews Lehua in 2003
Profile of Kapono Nahina

[LaJon]

RuRu Honda

Name
Honda Ruru (本多ルル)

Birthday
March 18th, 1976

Birthplace
Shenyang, Liáoníng, China

H!P Groups
Taiyo to Ciscomoon, Kiiro 5

Brief History
RuRu first entered Hello! Project through an audition on ASAYAN and became one of the members of Taiyo
 to Ciscomoon along with Inaba Atsuko, Kominato Miwa, and Shinoda Miho.  Originally from China, during
this time she became a Japanese citizen and Tsunku, producer of Hello! Project, gave her the name Honda
Ruru.  Near the end of her time in Hello Project, she also took part in the first summer shuffle groups in 2000
as a member of Kiiro 5.  RuRu has since left Hello Project to become a solo artist under the Avex record label 
and released her first solo album, Shoshin, in April of 2007.

My Take..
She is really something special.  Out of all of the voices I've heard in my life, she is one of the few who can
give me goose-bumps when she sings.  Like most of the talent that's come through Hello Project, though, she
didn't get a chance to show how great she was.  On top of this, Taiyo to Ciscomoon never became as popular
as the other groups within H!P despite having the largest concentration of talent and the most unique members. 
Despite it all, she left Hello Project once T&C disbanded, and signed to Avex later on to begin her solo career. 
Her album, Shoshin, has her covering a collection of her favorite songs and are always their equal, if not their
superior.  There aren't many people out there who can nail a Whitney Houston song like she has, after all.

[youtube=425,350]yaF_H08ax8w[/youtube]

[LaJon]

Heike Michiyo

Name
Heike Michiyo (平家みちよ)

Birthday
April 6th, 1979

Birthplace
Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan

H!P Groups
Kiiro 5, 7nin Matsuri, Sexy 8

Brief History
In 1997, Heike won the ASAYAN auditions to become the new vocalist for Tsunku's group Sharon Q. 
However, Tsunku shifted his attention over to the 5 "losers" of the audition who formed the group
Morning Musume.  As time went on, Morning Musume became H!P's main artists, and promotion of
Heike began to decline.  While being part of Hello! Project she hosted a reality/infotainment show
called Idol wo Sagase along with Nakazawa Yuko.  In 2002, Heike left Hello Project and continued
as a solo artist under the name Michiyo.  In early 2007, she announced that she was pregnant and
married the father of her child.  Near the end of this year, she gave birth to a baby girl. 

My Take..
This girl has talent in every way, and it wins her the ASAYAN auditions in 1997, but she still doesn't
get the attention she deserves.  One of the most powerful vocals that's ever come through Hello
Project, she always comes out strong in whatever she does.  Despite Morning Musume and other
subgroups taking the spotlight within H!P, she still released many great songs and performed them
beautifully.  Another artist who eventually left H!P, she has continued her solo career and is still active
to this day.  However, she recently gave birth to a baby girl, so I'm happy to see her become a mother. 
She never had the "kawaii" image you see in most of the Hello Project girls, and it could have played
a part in her poor promotion vs Morning Musume, but her powerful vocals and strong personality are
what keep the fans coming back for more.

[youtube=425,350]H_oyG-PjeLk[/youtube] [youtube=425,350]E4c_AY0pjRs[/youtube]

[SomethingWild]

When will this thread be finished? We're three months past the deadline 

[SomethingWild]

Sorry for the double, but I wanted to bump this.

Can we try to get this fully done? Maybe re-distribute the h!p members if the person who was going to write about doesn't have the time/will to do so anymore?

This is a great thread and I can't let it go to waste