Photo/Illutration It is announced during a concert held at the Pia Arena MM in Yokoyama on March 17 that three AKB48 members--from left, Haruka Kurosu, Yurina Gyoten and Suzuha Yamane--will transfer to the Kuala Lumpur-based KLP48. (Ryujiro Komatsu)

Three members of AKB48, an all-female idol group based in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, and one from its sister group STU48, will join KLP48, their first sister group in Kuala Lumpur.

Yurina Gyoten, Haruka Kurosu and Suzuha Yamane will transfer to KLP48, it was announced during an AKB48 concert at the Pia Arena MM in Yokohama on March 17.

Gyoten, 25, from Kagawa Prefecture, made her debut in 2014 as a founding member of Team 8, a subgroup of AKB48 comprising one representative from each of Japan’s 47 prefectures.

Kurosu, 23, from Saitama Prefecture, and 23-year-old Yamane from Hyogo Prefecture, joined the group in 2016 as 16th-generation members.

The trio will officially join KLP48 in June.

“I’m excited because it is my first time to work overseas and create a group as a first-generation member,” Kurosu told the audience. “Although we will be physically away, our hearts are always close to you, and we hope to see exciting landscapes together.”

The following day, STU48, which is based on the seven prefectures along the coast facing the Seto Inland Sea in the Setouchi region, announced that its member Kokoa Kai will leave the group to join KLP48.

Kai, 20, from Hiroshima Prefecture, joined STU48 in 2017 as a founding member.

She made a voluntary decision to leave the group for its Malaysian sister group.

Kai will move to the Southeast Asian country before becoming its official member in June.

“I’ll do all I can to energize the local community, just like members of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp (professional baseball team),” Kai said.

The formation of KLP48 was announced in January this year, with the group set to make its debut in August.

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