Favoring the bright, affectionate side of pop, AKB48 are an all-female Japanese theater troupe/musical unit. Created by producer Yasushi Akimoto, "AKB" is short for Akihabara, a Tokyo district where the group performs daily in their own theater, and "48" was meant to refer to the number of members, although it operates more as an approximation. They made their recording debut... Wikipedia