How does Hibiki afford being an idol?

[Bro]

Just a small question that I've been mulling over.
Hibiki is only 15 in her first appearance in iDOLM@STERS SP, working as a no-name idol. Yet, she affords living alone, feeding 10 animals, (And likely has a large space to house them all) not to mention the trip from Okinawa. She's never been alluded to having a rich family either. How do you think she affords it?

I always assumed it was a hefty sign-on bonus... though, I'd love to see someone argue that Hibiki is just reeeally reeeallllyy good with money to afford it all. (Especially feeding 10 animals, including an alligator!)

How do you think Hibiki affords being an idol, at the beginning?

[Accoun]

I'd say the rent is being paid by the agency (you know, like record labels *sometimes* pay for hotels when artist tours, so they can sleep in beds, not in bus/van) or they had other sort of agreement.
Maybe she doesn't spend much for herself, most of the money she gets, goes for animal food.

In the anime they showed her place for a short while, right? I didn't really look like it was very huge or anything (but then again, I don't know what japanese standards are)...

[Bro]

I'd say the rent is being paid by the agency (you know, like record labels *sometimes* pay for hotels when artist tours, so they can sleep in beds, not in bus/van) or they had other sort of agreement.
Maybe she doesn't spend much for herself, most of the money she gets, goes for animal food.

In the anime they showed her place for a short while, right? I didn't really look like it was very huge or anything (but then again, I don't know what japanese standards are)...

Yeah, that sounds likely but... could Kuroi be that generous? Or would 765 Pro have the budget? I mean, it doesn't sound like Hibiki is a very highly valued idol to be worth the extra trouble. Then again, 765 Pro did have that underwhelming application response... and Miki

Maybe it came down to desperation, poor Hibiki.

That's true though, her place (Apartment? House? I believe it was an apartment in SP, in a translated video I saw Hibiki was doing an episode about her life at home.) certainly did seem quaint. Still...

Any other opinions to ring in?

[Idol_Hearts]

She probably has some family that gives her money to live on. And since she's an idol, she probably gets payed for working.

[animagic4u]

She probably has some family that gives her money to live on.

I think this too.

I also think she runs a secret circus act in her spare time. Well just a theory.

[Elixir]

through the power of anime

[Bro]

She probably has some family that gives her money to live on. And since she's an idol, she probably gets payed for working.

That's a weird theory... why would she be paid?

Try and keep this topic serious, please. Or at least try to explain oddball guesses like this... >_> idiot

[Elixir]

lol, you wanted this thread to be taken seriously? It isn't documented anywhere, and the portable games (SP and DS) have notably poor writing. Hibiki was dragged out of the ditched idol category from Bandai Namco's Arcade planning, way back in 2003, as an incentive for people to purchase the SP version.

You could pretty much ask the same question of other idols. There's a ton of unexplained stuff about their personal lives.

[Idol_Hearts]

That's a weird theory... why would she be paid?

Try and keep this topic serious, please. Or at least try to explain oddball guesses like this... >_> idiot

First off, my theory wasn't a oddball guess. First theory: family giving her money. She has to have relatives of some kind that would support her. Second Theory: getting paid. An idol is a job like doctors, teachers, cashiers, etc. And everyone knows this: WITH A JOB, YOU GET PAID!

You could pretty much ask the same question of other idols. There's a ton of unexplained stuff about their personal lives.

Agreed. We really don't know much about the idols' personal lives. We do know some things like the death of Chihaya's brother. Anyway, back to Hibiki. My opinion is that her personal life is more private than the other idols (Takane's too).

I think this too.

I also think she runs a secret circus act in her spare time. Well just a theory.

She has all those animals, so why not put them up to good use and start a circus act? Now that would be fun to see!

[animagic4u]

First off, my theory wasn't a oddball guess. First theory: family giving her money. She has to have relatives of some kind that would support her. Second Theory: getting paid. An idol is a job like doctors, teachers, cashiers, etc. And everyone knows this: WITH A JOB, YOU GET PAID!

Actually wait. I disagree with this.
Idols BARELY get paid. I mean seriously they don't get much money at all it's mostly publicity.

[Idol_Hearts]

Actually wait. I disagree with this.
Idols BARELY get paid. I mean seriously they don't get much money at all it's mostly publicity.

Ok, cross my second theory out. >.< That's kinda ridiculous that they don't get paid

[RisingStar]

So it seems the only answer we agree on is that her family is supporting her, right? It doesn't sound so bad, really believable.

Or she could have a very kind landlady cutting her a deal because she's living by herself with so many animals. But then again, theories are theories.

[Yodudes0]

I'm pretty sure idols make a decent income. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to support themselves while working on a job that takes so much time. There are adults who live off the money they make from being idols, so it's probably enough to rent or mortgage an apartment, if not more. Also, being an idol is a really stressful job as the anime shows us in episodes 11 and 23, so I don't think so many people would want to be idols without decent wages. Then again, many people do admire idols, so it could be that many girls want to fulfill their dreams and become idols anyway.

[TheTanStar]

So it seems the only answer we agree on is that her family is supporting her, right? It doesn't sound so bad, really believable.

The major problem with this is Hibiki's story: She ran away from home and stated that she wouldn't return until she became a top idol (paraphrased, of course). Why/How would her family be sending her money when she ran away from home?

As for her pets, it's explained at the end of SP that 961Pro employees were feeding them. Takagi jokes(?) that Producer would have the pets fed out of his paycheck.

Just like any celebrity/artist under a(n) agency/label, the company takes most of the money (This is why most artists don't care about albums being downloaded for free, they don't get any real money out of it. Live concerts are where they make the real money). It's not that much of a stretch to assume that the production company would pay for Hibiki's living expenses.

[Cael K.]

The major problem with this is Hibiki's story: She ran away from home and stated that she wouldn't return until she became a top idol (paraphrased, of course). Why/How would her family be sending her money when she ran away from home?

Because they're her family and her parents love her?

As for her pets, it's explained at the end of SP that 961Pro employees were feeding them.

... I know what you mean, but I read this in the worst way possible. O_o