“Ooh,” Choroko says with a little hum, “that’s tough. There are so many to like.”
Ichiko nods solemnly. “From vision, lyrics, production, technique, subjects, it’s a tricky choice.”
“Hm…” Osoko smiles sheepishly, “I know, she’s a classic, everyone’s got some song of hers stuck in their heads, but they call Seiko Matsuda ‘The Eternal Idol’ for a reason! She’s a real talent, and her longevity is really, like… refreshing. She’s never lost her girlish charm and her polish and professionalism are amazing.”
Karako props her chin on her hand. “I’ve only recently gotten into pop, actually. Like… most of my childhood was rock, then I was all Takarazuka in my teens and twenties, and now I don’t even know what my taste is. Everything, I guess. Lately, I’ve been pretty into FEMM and Studio Killers? But that’s just, like, in the past week.”
Choroko doesn’t slam the table so much as lightly pat it for emphasis. “I don’t care what anyone says, Hatsune Miku still counts and you can fight me. Anyone can.” She adds on, “To specify female producers and songwriters that make her sound so good, OSTER Project and HitoshizukuP are excellent.”
“I like many female artists, and I change my favorites by the minute, yet they’re… all my favorites at the same time?” Ichiko needs a moment, and just before they were about to skip and come back to her, she blurts out “Su-Metal from BABYMETAL, Edith Piaf, Danielle Haim, and Yuju from GFriend are my favorites right this moment.”
Jyuushiko, thanks to that pause, has her answer ready right away. “Todoko and I both like Momoiro Clover Z, and I don’t wanna step in on her pink turf. But that’s fine, because Reni is my favorite! She’s a little anxious and shaky, but she’s got enough energy for ten girls her size and she isn’t afraid to look goofy! She’s gorgeous in photo spreads, though! And Momoka, but she left the biz, I wish her all the best, yadda yadda et cetera and such.”
Todoko fistpumps, just barely missing the end of Jyuushiko’s sentence, “And I love Ayaka Sasaki so much it makes me sick! She’s adorable, multitalented, she used to do ballet, she’s cute whether she’s dressed in more boyish things or pretty frilly things, and she’s doing so good for herself and taking more creative control, and I love her so much I could die.”
“Wait.” Osoko holds one finger up. “Totoko and Nyaa-chan.”
They dissolve into a cooing, fangirly mess, and all of them have changed their rankings to have both tied for first. (When they’re in their usual staff positions, they love all their clients so much.)