AKB48 Primer - Team 8 East
Team 8 was formed in 2014 with 47 members, each representing a different prefecture of Japan. Their team colour is dark blue. They are sponsored by Toyota and have the concept of "idols that come to meet you", holding concerts all over the country.
There are currently 32 Team 8 members. Many members also hold a concurrent position in one of the other teams.
This page contains the profiles of Team 8 members from the Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kanto, and Chubu regions of Japan. You can find the members of Team 8 West here.
Team 8 are currently performing the shuffle stage
Sono Shizuku wa, Mirai e to Tsunagaru Niji ni Naru.
Twitter list
Thank you to Stage48, Loren, and 48Directory
for various resources and translations.
Sakaguchi Nagisa (Nagi)
Born December 24th, 2000
21 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Hokkaido Prefecture.
Also a member of Team 4.
Collects music boxes and snowglobes.
Has a pet turtle named Shira.
Feels most confident when she's working in her home prefecture of Hokkaido.
The absolute tiniest.
Centre for Ima, happy, Kegarete iru shinjitsu, Hoshizora wo kimi ni, and Ohayou kara hajimaru sekai.
Theatre units: Glory days, Wimbledon e tsureteitte, Candy, Kanojo, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Natto angel
Honda Hitomi (Hiichan)
Born October 6th, 2001
20 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Tochigi Prefecture.
Also a member of Team B.
Currently on hiatus as a member of IZ*ONE in South Korea.
Did cheerleading in high school and is good at acrobatics.
Known for her dancing skills and for picking up choreography quickly.
Cutest cheeks.
See her in IZ*ONE, or in NO WAY MAN, Nami ga tsutaeru mono, Nemohamo rumor, and more!
Theatre units: Kanojo, Kimi wa boku no kaze
Yoshikawa Nanase (Nanase)
Born July 21st, 1998
23 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Chiba Prefecture.
Also a member of Team B.
Thought she was allergic to shrimp for 10 years, but it turns out she wasn't.
Special skills include piano and gyaru impersonation.
Surviving COVID lockdown by making baking, and likes to promote Chiba Prefecture by cooking regional food.
See her in Ikiru koto ni nekkyou wo!, “Suki” no tane, Jitabata, and more!
Theatre units: Arashi no yoru ni wa, Candy, Locker room boy, 10 krone to pan, Maria, Junai no crescendo, Natto Angel, Suitei marmalade, Sakki made wa ice tea, Saigo ni ice milk wo nonda no wa itsudarou?
Hidaritomo Ayaka (Hidaaya)
Born July 29th, 1998
23 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Yamanashi Prefecture.
Also a member of Team K.
Enjoys figure and roller skating and she even wants to try dancing in roller skates.
Considered to be the best piano player in Team 8.
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Shuuden no yoru, “Suki” no tane, and more!
Theatre units: Kiseki wa ma ni awanai, Ashita no tame ni kiss wo, Candy, Fruit snow, Junai no crescendo, Suitei marmalade
Hashimoto Haruna (Harupyon)
Born May 25th, 2000
21 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Toyama Prefecture.
Also a member of Team K.
Bad with sports, scary things and rain.
Loves rabbits so much that they even feature in her introduction catchphrase.
The first cd she bought herself was by AKB48.
Big nerd who loves homework.
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Shuuden no yoru, and more!
Theatre units: Seifuku no resistance, Ashita no tame ni kiss wo, Candy, Maria, Kimi wa boku no kaze
Mitomo Mashiro (Macchan)
Born November 25th, 2005
16 years old
Joined in 2018.
Team 8 representative for Yamagata Prefecture.
A tiny lost child.
Had never been to Tokyo before joining.
Her dad encouraged her to audition, saying she should just have a go because they won’t be looking for perfection.
Her hobbies are improvising in her room, sleeping, chatting, and listening to music.
Theatre units: n/a
Shimizu Maria (Maria)
Born September 29th, 1997
24 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Gunma Prefecture.
Also a member of Team B.
Loves cooking; has a cooking licence and her own cooking show.
Named Maria because she was supposedly born posing as if in prayer.
Fan of Morning Musume and AKB48 before joining the latter.
Has a pet dog named Cookie.
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Atarashii chime, “Suki” no tane, and more!
Theatre units: Candy, Locker room boy, Maria, Kimi wa boku no kaze
Oguri Yui (yuiyui)
Born December 26th, 2001
20 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Tokyo Prefecture.
Also a member of Team A.
Ace of Team A and Team 8 (so powerful).
Was encouraged to audition by her grandmother
Wants to attract more female fans with her modelling work.
Centre for Teacher Teacher, Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Hotei sokudo to yuuetsukan, Romantic junbichuu, Jitabata, and more!
Theatre units: Ude wo kunde, Enjou rosen, Saboten to gold rush, Junjou soda sui, Sakki made wa ice tea
Utada Hatsuka (Hattsu)
Born July 8th 2002
19 years old
Joined in 2016.
Team 8 representative for Aichi Prefecture.
Also a member of Team 4.
Weirdly into watermelons.
Admires members who are good at dancing, since she considers it her weakness.
Loves playing table tennis.
Sets herself a new challenge every month, and lets her fans decide whether she has succeeded or not.
See her in Ikiru koto ni nekkyou wo!, Suki da suki da suki da, and more!
Theatre units: Glory days, Wimbledon e tsureteitte, Junjou soda sui, Fruit snow, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Mushi no ballad, Kimi wa boku da
Sakagawa Hiyuka (Hiyuka)
Born October 7th, 2006
15 years old
Joined in 2019.
Team 8 representative for Fukui Prefecture.
Hobbies are painting and drawing.
Her strength is being able to talk to anyone, but her weakness is that physically she’s very weak.
Says the appeal of Fukui is that it’s a place full of nature and delicious food.
Her charm points are her very curly eyelashes.
Theatre units: Hoshizora wo kimi ni
Takahashi Sayaka (Sayarin)
Born November 22nd, 2001
20 years old
Joined in 2016.
Team 8 representative for Nagano Prefecture.
Also a member of Team 4.
To combat her nerves about performing she thought to herself ‘I’m the cutest person in the entire world”.
Is confident in her singing, but considers herself a bad dancer.
Says she has no fashion sense.
See her in Neko allergy.
Theatre units: Glory days, Kono mune no barcode, Ame no pianist, Choco no yukue, 10 krone to pan, Itoshisa wo marumete, Junjou soda sui, Rider, Maria, Kimi wa boku no kaze
Okabe Rin (Berin)
Born November 7th, 1996
25 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Ibaraki Prefecture.
Also the captain of Team A.
Wants to become a core member of AKB48, but doesn’t think she’s the centre type.
One of the top handshake sellers, but still gets mad when she sees her fans exhibiting DD-like behaviour
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Tenmetsu pheromone, Position, Jitabata, and more!
Theatre units: Hoshi no mukougawa, 10 krone to pan, Rider, Saigo ni ice milk wo nonda no wa itsudarou?
Takahashi Ayane (Ayane)
Born December 30th, 1997
24 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Saitama Prefecture.
Also a member of Team 4.
The animal she described herself as being most like is an axolotl.
Likes animals in general, including orcas and wants to raise pet snakes and cliones.
Wants to become a cute and long-lasting grandmother someday.
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Neko allergy, and more!
Theatre units: Wimbledon e tsureteitte, Choco no yukue, Junjou soda sui, Fruit snow, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Warukii, Mushi no ballad, Tsuki to mizukagami, Kimi wa boku da
Oda Erina (Odaeri)
Born April 25th, 1997
23 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Kanagawa Prefecture.
Also a member of Team K.
One of the best singers in AKB48.
For her election video she overcame 3 things she hates: boiled eggs; ball games; and acting moe.
Considers herself to be a negative girl who’s good at pretending to be to be positive.
See her in Soredemo kanojo wa, Yume e no process, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Jitabata, and more!
Theatre units: Kiseki wa ma ni awanai, Kokoro no hashi no sofa, 10 krone to pan, Itoshisa wo marumete, Maria, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Sakki made wa ice tea, Saigo ni ice milk wo nonda no wa itsudarou?, Warukii, Mushi no ballad, Tsuki to mizukagami, Kimi wa boku da
Hattori Yuna (Yuna)
Born March 30th, 2001
20 years old
Joined in 2014.
Team 8 representative for Gifu Prefecture.
Also a member of Team B.
Was nervous about joining Team 8 a few months later than the original members, but was helped a lot by Honda Hitomi and together they formed the unit Fresshusshu.
Can play the trumpet (sort of).
Wants to try doing more mature and sexy songs and has around 500 gravure photos saved in her phone.
See her in Hoshizora wo kimi ni, Atarashii chime, and more!
Theatre units: Hatsukoi yo konnichiwa, Candy, Locker room boy, Itoshisa wo marumete, Fruit snow, Junai no crescendo, Kimi wa boku no kaze, Warukii, Mushi no ballad, Tsuki to mizukagami, Kimi wa boku da
Hirano Hikaru (Hika)
Born January 29th, 2003
19 years old
Joined in 2016.
Team 8 representative for Ishikawa Prefecture.
Also a member of Team 4.
Enjoys cooking, particularly making sweets.
Gets depressed easily and is most nervous during MCs.
Says that all of her emotions show up on her face immediately.
Has been adopted by Okada Nana.
Wants to become a model and a cool woman.
See her in Neko allergy.
Theatre units: Glory days, Ame no pianist, Choco no yukue, Rider