JYP Entertainment’s girl group NiziU will be the voice of theme park Universal Studios Japan’s new campaign song “Memories,” according to its agency.
The collaboration will be the group’s second project with the theme park since its 2021 song “Festa” was released to commemorate the park’s 20th anniversary.
“Memories” sends a message of everybody enjoying and creating happy memories, the agency said.
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“Memories” will be available on music streaming platforms on Feb. 6.
Alongside the collaboration, the group is also set to have a song titled “Sweet Nonfiction” on the soundtrack for Japanese rom-com “Lovesick Ellie.” The film will be in theaters on March 15.
NiziU debuted in 2020 in Japan under JYP Entertainment. The group was formed as part of JYP Entertainment’s “Globalization by Localization,” a project to localize the K-pop system in overseas markets, through a joint audition program “Nizi Project” with Sony Music Entertainment in June 2020.
NiziU(니쥬) "HEARTRIS" M/V
— NiziU (@NiziU__official) October 30, 2023
💗 https://t.co/Hb3mSUtrvH#NiziU #니쥬 #PressPlay #NiziU_PressPlay#HEARTRIS #NiziU_HEARTRIS#니쥬_PressPlay_한국데뷔 pic.twitter.com/W0Dp8O5RwP
Members
| Stage Name | Birth Name | Birthday | Position | Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mako | Yamaguchi Mako (山口真子) | April 4, 2001 | Leader Main DancerLead Vocal*Sub-Rapper* | 1st |
| Riku | Oe Riku (大江陸) | Oct 26, 2002 | Lead Vocal* | 2nd |
| Rima | Nakabayashi Rima (中林里茉) | March 26, 2004 | Main RapperSub-Vocal* | 3rd |
| Rio | Hanabashi Rio (花橋梨緒) | Feb 4, 2002 | Main DancerSub-Vocal*Sub-Rapper* | 4th |
| Maya | Katsumura Maya (勝村摩耶) | April 8, 2002 | Lead Dancer*Sub-Vocal* | 5th |
| Miihi | Suzuno Miihi (鈴野みいひ) | Aug 12, 2004 | Lead Vocal*Lead Dancer* | 6th |
| Mayuka | Ogou Mayuka (小合麻由佳) | Nov 13, 2003 | Lead Rapper*Sub-Vocal* | 7th |
| Ayaka | Arai Ayaka (新井彩花) | June 20, 2003 | Sub-Vocal* | 8th |
| Nina | Nina Hillman (ニナ・ヒルマン) | Feb 27, 2005 | Main Vocal | 9th |
Who Is NiziU?
Pre-Debut
On February 7, 2019 J.Y. Park held a press conference to announce the Nizi Project. During the conference, Park announced that JYPE would be working alongside with Sony Music. Park further explained that the project aims to search for talents of various colors and to make “a group like a rainbow” to emit a beautiful light.
The audition applications opened in May 2019. Auditions were held during July and August in 8 cities in Japan (Sapporo, Sendai, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, and Okinawa), and in 2 cities in the United States (Los Angeles and Honolulu). A total of 26 candidates were selected for a 6-month training period.
During the first part of the Nizi Project reality show, the 26 girls would slowly be eliminated down to 14 girls. Those 14 girls would travel to Korea to train for six months.
On June 26, 2020, in the finale of the second season of the Nizi Project, the nine winners of the contest were revealed as the members of the group.
Four days later, on June 30, 2020, their pre-debut mini-album, Make you happy was released with Make you happy as the title track. The mini-album also included Baby I’m a star, Nizi Project’s intro song, and with both Boom Boom Boom and Beyond the Rainbow, both these songs were performed on Nizi Project.
Debut
n December 2, 2020, NiziU debuted with their single Step and a step. Their promotion for their debut started back in early October where teasers were posted on NiziU’s Twitter. The full track list was released on October 11 via a Twitter post.
On November 24, 2020, the music video for Step and a step was posted on the official NiziU YouTube Channel, with their full single being released on all streaming services and for purchase on December 2, 2020. The single includes four songs, Step and a step (title track), Joyful, Sweet Bomb!, with Make you happy reappearing as the last song on the album.
