It all started when Miri, SnM's producer was thinking of summer shuffles in November of last year. Event after event built up her imagination, and finally, PRESENTING... the Sekai no Melody summer 2008 extravaganza... Idol KiSS! THE STORYLINE: It's another typical day at the Academy for Aspiring Idols, a prestigious academy that feeds directly into the superlabel Sekai no Melody. If the young guys and girls at the Academy can successfully pass their courses, they are offered the chance to join SnM for a lifetime of fun and fame. You are one of those young aspiring starlets, practicing your dances and songs, when suddenly a voice comes onto the intercom and announces that this summer, there will be a huge event to allow all students the chance to participate in the Idol KiSS event. "Idol KiSS?" you wonder. "What could that be?" Well, Idol KiSS is a new annual event in which the entire school is split off ("shuffled") into eight groups and work on promoting their own respective group. If they can win the admiration of fans, produce successful singles and radioplays, and make the best impression at their debut concert, they will be offered automatic acceptance into SnM. The Idol KiSS contest traces the life of the students as they prepare for their first debut concert. It's half roleplay, half singing, and another half EXTREME FUN. Here are the schedules for the upcoming months, just to give you a taste of what's in store! Round #01 - debut single - each team will release their own debut single and compete for "best released" based on votes (aka "copies sold"). Releases will occur from May 23rd to 30th (moving backwards along the line, from Onyx to Ruby). Round #02 - promo poster - completed! Round #03 - radio show - members will create a radio show or two that feature most if not all members. They will advertise their upcoming singles, their concert, their progress, etc. Round #04 - spriting challenge - remember those cute little Sailormoon sprites everyone used to customize and stuff? well now each team gets to create little sprite versions of themselves and submit them into a contest! Round #05 - second single - another single to futher promote the teams! Round #06 - fan hunt - time for the members to go out and look for "fans"! In this case, Miri will be hiding little sprites of various people around the site for them to "find". The group who finds the most sprites will win. Round #07 - KiSS pocket guide - members will create a "pocket guide" for their group (instructions will be given when the time comes) with a page for each member. They may also add in additional features such as submitted writings, artworks, etc. Kind of like a scrapbook/photobook. Round #08 - costume design contest - every member of each group will get to design their own "outfit" to wear at the debut contest. Groups will be graded on how matching their outfits are, how they fit their theme, and in general how nice they look. Yes, elouai's lovely doll maker will be used. Round #09 - third single - another single and the last one before the huge debut concert! Round #10 - debut concert - each team will release debut concert of 25 tracks, including the huge group concert at the end. Releases will run (tentative) from September 1st through 10th, starting from Ruby and working right towards Onyx.