History

1997–1999
Morning Musume's origins began with Sharam Q's auditions to find a female vocalist, broadcasted on ASAYAN. Although the winner was Heike Michiyo, band member Tsunku called back five of the finalists - Nakazawa Yuko, Ishiguro Aya, Iida Kaori, Abe Natsumi, and Fukuda Asuka - and proposed to them a challenge. If the five could sell 50,000 copies of their debut single, "Ai no Tane", in five days, they will be given a record deal, and their group is named Morning Musume. The challenge was completed, and the group began preparing for their major debut, starting with the single "Morning...