



On August 19, it was announced that AKB48�s Maeda Atsuko, who will graduate from the group on August 27, will parade around the AKB48 stage in Akihabara around 3:30 PM on the 27th to say goodbye. Fans are expected to gather en masse around the parade route to catch their last glimpse of Maeda as a part of AKB48.



Maeda has been with the group for 6 years and 8 months since she joined in December 8, 2005, when only 7 audience members showed up at their auditorium meant for 250 people.� (Subsequently, the group was unable to make their public debut.) Persevering through difficult times, Maeda helped AKB48 become Japan�s foremost popular group and gained the nickname �Fixed Ace�. She will graduate in front of an audience over 30,000 times more than the group�s first stage as 229,096 applications (for tickets) have been sent in so far.



As the number of applications for tickets exceeded expectations, Maeda thought about fans who failed to be selected in the lottery and hoped, �It might be direct, but is it not possible for me to just greet them?� Subsequently, plans for her parade were made, and her final run with the group will occur on the route that runs from Tashiro Doori right outside the AKB48 theater to the overpass above Akihabara Station on the JR Yamonote line. She will bid farewell to fans on the route that will take her to the theater. Her final performance will begin at 6 PM on August 27.



Source and Image: Oricon