Produce 101 Japan The Girls


Produce 101 Japan The Girls is the third season of the reality competition show Produce 101 Japan, the Japanese version of Produce 101. The show brings together 101 contestants with the intention of producing a permanent eleven-member girl group.
The show premiered on October 5, 2023, and is broadcast on Lemino every Thursday at 21:00 JST. Each episode is rerun on YouTube with English subtitles the following Monday at 21:00 JST and each episode will be available for a week before being switched to private and replaced with the next episode. Additionally, the final episode aired on TBS.
The top 11 winners debuted under the name Me:I in 2024.
TikTok produce101japan_official

Promotion and broadcast

On April 20, 2023, it was announced that Produce 101 Japan would be renewed for a third season, this time featuring all female contestants. The show is being produced by NTT Docomo Studio & Live, Inc., a newly-formed joint venture between NTT Docomo and Yoshimoto Kogyo. The show is being exclusively distributed by NTT Docomo's streaming service Lemino, with exception of the final episode, which will also be broadcast by TBS. The episodes are receiving a limited overseas distribution with English subtitles through Produce 101 Japan's official YouTube channel, where they will stay available until a week after their release.
Applications were open from April 24 to May 24, 2023. Any female aspirants aged 15 and up who had no current ties to a talent agency and completed compulsory education were eligible. There were no restrictions regarding nationality or country of residence. Approximately 14,000 candidates applied, more than twice the amount as for the first season. Two rounds of auditions were held for successful applicants from June 3 to June 25, 2023. Individuals who passed the second round were allowed to participate in the show.
On September 2, 2023, this season's theme song "LEAP HIGH" was released. The following day, the profiles of 96 out of the 101 contestants were revealed. The remaining five trainees had already withdrawn from the program and their identities were not disclosed. On September 26, a press conference was held with the contestants, trainers, National Producer Representative Kaela Kimura, the show's ambassador actress and former singer Nako Yabuki, and MC Moemi Kushiro.

Cast

The show is being presented by singer Kaela Kimura as the National Producer Representative. Actress and former IZ*ONE and HKT48 member Nako Yabuki serves as the show's ambassador. Chanmina appeared as a guest on Episode 7 to mentor the trainees performing her song "Bijin". Former IZ*ONE members and soloists Choi Ye-na and Jo Yu-ri appeared as surprise guests on Episode 10 to give the trainees advice.
;Vocal trainers
;Dance trainers
;Rap trainer

Contestants

;Color key
Final debut members of Me:I
Contestants eliminated in the finale
Contestants eliminated in the third elimination round
Contestants eliminated in the second elimination round
Contestants eliminated in the first elimination round
Contestants left the show

Rankings

Top 11

The top 11 contestants are chosen through popularity online voting through the Produce 101 Japan voting page on Lemino's website and audience live voting. Furthermore, National Producers can receive an additional vote per day by downloading the Lemino app. The results were shown at the end of each episode.
New Top 11
Comeback to Top 11

First voting period

The first voting period took place from October 5, 2023, at 21:00 JST, to October 26 at 23:59 JST. National Producers were allowed to vote for eleven girls a day. Eliminations were based on individual total points. In total, 34,141,349 votes were cast for the 1st Ranking Announcement Ceremony.

Second voting period

The second voting period has started on November 2, 2023, after the broadcast for Episode 5 had finished, and will end on November 16 at 23:59 JST. National Producers can vote for eleven girls a day. Eliminations are based on individual total points.
In Episode 6, only the names, not the ranks of the top 11 contestants were shown. The top 11 for the episode included Rin Aita, Ran Ishii, Tsuzumi Ebihara, Momona Kasahara, Kokoro Kato, Nano Kenmotsu, Miu Sakurai, Kokona Sasaki, Keiko Shimizu, Ayane Takami, and Suzu Yamamoto. The results of Episode 6 were shown in Episode 8.

Third voting period

The third voting period took place from November 23, 2023, after the broadcast for Episode 8 had finished, and will end on November 30 at 23:59 JST. National Producers can vote for two girls a day. Eliminations are based on individual total points.
Between Episodes 8 and 9, an interim ranking was published alongside a preview video of the Concept Evaluation performances, revealing the current ranking for six trainees. Ayano Kamio ranked 26th, Kagura Kato ranked 25th, Joa Aramaki ranked 24th, Serina Saito ranked 23rd, Yuuki Tanaka ranked 18th, and Nano Kenmotsu ranked 17th.

Post-Competition

  • Me:I released their debut single "Mirai" on April 17, 2024.
  • * Kokona Sasaki, Shizuku Iida, Ran Ishii, and Kokoro Kato left the group on December 31, 2025 after terminating their contracts.
  • Some trainees formed/joined groups:
  • * Rino Sakaguchi, Rin Aita, Yuuki Tanaka, and Nano Kenmotsu signed with Lapone Entertainment as trainees and were revealed in March 2024; it was then announced that the girls will debut as Is:sue under Lapone Girls and will have their debut performance at KCON Japan. Is:sue debuted with their first single "1st Is:sue", on June 19, 2024.
  • * Koto Tanaka and Yui Ando debuted in new girl group MYERA with their first single "Lie Lie Lie Lie / Be Naked", on January 1, 2025.
  • * Haruka Sakuraba signed with ASOBISYSTEM and was revealed as a member of Kawaii Lab.'s girl group Cutie Street in July 2024. Cutie Street debuted with their first single "Kawaii Dake ja Dame Desu ka?", on November 13, 2024.
  • * Serina Saito and Nagomi Abe signed with 143 Entertainment as trainees and were revealed in May 2024; the girls debuted in Madein with their first mini album Rise, on September 3, 2024.
  • * Joa Aramaki signed with Pony Canyon and was revealed as a member of the girl group UN1CON in August 2024. UN1CON debuted with their first single “A.R.T.”, on October 30, 2024.
  • * Ayano Kamio and Hana Yoshida signed with NTT Docomo Studio & Live and debuted in new girl group Cosmosy with their first single "zigy=zigy~", on December 31, 2024.
  • * Hina Takahashi and Rin Uchiyama signed with POPROD Production on July 29, 2024, followed by Karin Tanabe on November 1, 2024. They later debuted in new girl group RealRomantic with their first EP "Blooming" on April 16, 2025.
  • * Sakura Kitazume, Ayaka Hosoi and Nonoka Okabe signed with SOENSHA and formed new girl group RIRYDAY with their self-titled pre-debut single, on September 6, 2024.
  • ** RIRYDAY went on indefinite hiatus on September 13, 2025.
  • * Chiharu Ando and Shion Mogi were revealed as members of the girl group Ettone. Ettone debuted with their first single "U+U" on September 10, 2025.
  • * Ayaka Fujimoto and Honoka Kurokawa signed with SOENSHA and formed new girl group VIGU with their stage debut on October 17, 2024.
  • ** VIGU went on indefinite hiatus on April 15, 2025.
  • * Miyu Kanno, Aruha Oda, and Hana Iyota were revealed as members of Nü FEEL under CURE LAND PROJECT. Nü FEEL debuted with their first single "KIRA KAWAII" on December 10, 2025.
  • ** Miyu left the group on November 1, 2025.
  • * Moe Kamada was revealed as a member of the new girl group Pixel Ribbon in February 2025.
  • * Runa Kawagishi was revealed as a member of Kawaii Lab.'s girl group Fav me on February 14, 2025.
  • * Honoka Nakayama, Ameli Sato and Sae Kobayashi signed with BUZZ PRODUCTION and debuted in new girl group Hyperstella, which was renamed to Neo Stella on April 2, 2025.
  • ** Ameli and Sae left the group in February 2025.
  • * Sayaka Furuhashi was revealed as a member of Be Girls.
  • Some trainees signed with labels:
  • * Ema Akiyama signed with Twin Planet.
  • * Nana Tabata signed with WakeOne.
  • * Runa Kawagishi and Konomi Kato signed with ASOBISYSTEM as trainees and were revealed as members of Kawaii Lab.'s trainee group Kawaii Lab. Mates on September 8, 2024. Aiko Hamasaki also joined the label as a trainee and was revealed as a member of the trainee group Kawaii Lab. South on October 11, 2025.
  • ** Runa graduated from the group on February 22, 2025 after it was revealed that she would debut in fav me.
  • Some trainees left the idol industry or entered new careers in the acting/entertainment industry:
  • * Kotone Sakata signed with Trapeziste as a model.
  • * Rimika Mizukami signed with N.D. Promotion as a model on October 1, 2024
  • * Mitsuki Yamazaki signed with Muku as an actress.
  • * Sakura Sudo appeared in the live-action film adaptation of Koi o Shiranai Bokutachi wa, which premiered on August 23, 2024.
  • Some trainees participated in other survival shows:
  • * Rio Kitazato, Yurara Sutani, and Riko Kino participated in TBS's SEVEN COLORS -girls life memory-, which premiered on October 2, 2024. Riko was eliminated in the final round, while Rio and Yurara passed the final round and debuted in the winning group Moxymill under NTT Docomo Studio & Live.
  • * Momoka Takabatake, Kokona Nakano, and Sayaka Furuhashi participated in BMSG's No No Girls, which premiered on October 4, 2024. Sayaka was eliminated in the 5th round while Nakano was eliminated in the final round. Momoka passed the final round and debuted in the winning group Hana under B-RAVE. Hana debuted with their first single "Rose" on April 23, 2025.
  • * Karen Otsubo and Mimi Ueki participated in the audition show Produce Quest, which premiered on August 5, 2025. Both passed the final round and will debut in the girl group Lv. Charm under Pluster in early 2026.
  • * Ayaka Fujimoto, Fuka Bando, and Emi Oyanagi participated in the audition show Black & White, which premiered on June 27, 2025. Ayaka withdrew prior to the show's premiere due to visa procedures in South Korea, while Fuka ranked 10th-16th and was eliminated in the final round. Emi ranked 9th and will debut in the "White" themed group MilMoon under VOLVE CREATIVE.
  • * Nana Tabata participated in Mnet's I-Land 2: N/a, which premiered on April 18, 2024. She was eliminated in the show's fifth episode.