Momota Kanako
百田 夏菜子
ももた かなこ
「Cinderella of the Tea Plantations」, normally called by fans as Kanako (Knk)
Also commonly called, 「leader」, 「deko-chan」, or just simple 「red」
One of the easiest members to tell apart from the others, with her unique triforce of dimples, large forehead, and canine teeth (八重歯)
She has a very bright smile that is so infectious one can’t help but to smile or laugh along with her.
One of her favorite ways of acting cute is to wink at the camera and then giggle to herself.
I’ve read somewhere that Kanako is pretty self-conscious of her looks, and doesn’t really like her appearance. I guess one can’t exactly fault her for that line of thinking- it is pretty rare to have large foreheads and canine teeth in the entertainment industry. But I will say that her looks grow on you more and more as you become familiar with her. Everyone has personal taste’s I guess, lol
Kanako when she still looked very childlike
I must say she grew up beautifully, but one thing she’s retained is her smile
And who might THIS lady be? XD
By all means, she is the village idiot in this place we call Momoclo, with her lack of common sense being the butt of many jokes within the girls and the general fandom at large. Specifically, her inability to read Kanji has been the source of much entertainment. Regarded as one of the two big bumbling idol captains along with AKB48’s Minami Takahashi, the two have been pitted together frequently in the show 「Shin Domoto Kyodai」 with impromptu competitions testing their knowledge (Currently, the score is 2:1 in Minami’s favor)
Seriously though, how do you come up with 「base x height ÷ 3.14」to find the area of a trapezoid? rofl
As leader, she is the frequently the representative of Momoclo in various programs and shows, resulting in the highest exposure out of all the members. Although Momoclo are pretty good with sharing screen-time and promoting each member equally, Kanako has always had the most popularity amongst all of them.
With that said, Kanako actually has a fairly shy personality, preferring to work quietly from the sidelines. Throughout her childhood, she has always rejected positions of leadership, and she was very unwilling to be Momoclo’s leader at first. If you observe Momoclo during the early years, you’ll find that in many situations, when it’s the time for Momoclo to make a statement as a whole, all the members will look towards Kanako, while Kanako herself looked towards Akarin (now departed sub-leader). Put simply, she shied away from these situations as much as possible.
So why did management push the role of leader onto Kanako? According to the agency, although Akarin was the most mature of all of them, they felt that Kanako was the type of person who would thrive under pressure, thus putting their bets on her potential.
As of now, I think we can safely say this was the correct decision. After Akarin left, Kanako gradually eased into her role of leader, showing strong resolve and willpower as the face of Momoclo, whether it be on camera or on stage. As center, she has also performed admirably in her solo parts within songs.
Perhaps it is also because of her absent-minded nature that she is is able to naturally express her feelings, and provide many iconic quotes which are held dear by Mononofu’s at large, with some examples being 「Don’t let go of this hand」, or 「We’re not aiming for the top of the entertainment industry, or to be the top idol group. Rather, we aim to bring forth a world of smiles」
However, in relaxed situations one can still find traces of her tendency and content to melt into the background, most noticeable in Momoclo Chan episodes.
In nearly all Momoclo songs, the most important solo segments (normally found at the bridge of the song) are performed by Kanako, and typically she handles them very well. Her natural voice is very unique, showing traces of wailing while she sings. This makes her voice hit-and-miss for a lot of people, and you either come to love it or hate it.
I feel that she performs much better in high tempo songs rather than slow ballads, easily projecting her voice in a solid tone. This is in part because of her large lung capacity, allowing her to perform at high levels even with the exhausting choreography that is so common in Momoclo’s songs. (E.g. 「PUSH」)
In contrast, although she can easily belt out power sections (e.g. 「Shiori Kaze」, I feel like she still needs work in slow songs where control is emphasized over power (e.g. 「Sora no Curtain」)
Kanako has said that falsetto is not something natural for her, which results in her forcing her voice out on higher notes. Although this is very impressive to watch, I do hope for her sake that she doesn’t hurt her voice doing so.
Kanako also boasts the best athleticism out of the girls, being very active since she was a child. She started learning gymnastics since she was 3, and started taking dance lessons in elementary school. She was also part of the girl’s basketball team in middle school. Her mom has said that she once considered training Kanako to become a professional athlete. (So….a classical example of no brains, all brawl? XD)
Kanako’s signature move, the legendary Ebizori Jump (reverse shrimp jump)
Because she took lessons in dancing, her mom decided on a whim to send her basic information to Stardust in hopes of an audition, where to everyone’s surprise she passed and became a trainee under the agency.
From various interviews, Kanako has confessed that she is a person who like to handle things herself, preferring to not show weakness in public. She is the type that will gladly work out problems herself instead of adding trouble for other. In my opinion, this might be because of her sense of responsibility as the leader of Momoclo, adding unwanted pressure to herself. On the other hand, Kanako has also revealed herself to be very independent and headstrong since her youth. The difference is easily shown during more emotional circumstances, where she would be holding back tears in contrast to someone like Momoka or Reni who turn into sobbing messes.
However, Kanako has professed that she has gradually eased up, and allowed herself to show more emotion in public. (circa the end of 2013)
As we near the end of 2014, it seems obvious she is much more comfortable showing her weak-side publicly. In fact, she’s probably cried more on camera in this year than she has for the past 2 and a half years.
So I guess for fans everywhere, we can breathe a sigh of relief that our beloved leader Kanako is indeed, opening her heart.
For me, Kanako represents the「energy/fire」 of Momoclo, showing their endless drive into the future.
Momoclo Plaza 