Hitomi Yoshizawa
This year also brought a new generation search. The fourth generation consisted of Rika Ishikawa, Hitomi Yoshizawa, Nozomi Tsuji, and Ai Kago, lending a completely different feel to the group by adding the 12-year-old duo of Tsuji and Kago. After their debut single, "Happy Summer Wedding", (continuing the legacy of number one hits with 1,370,000 copies sold,) Sayaka Ichii left to pursue her own music career. She became the vocalist of Japanese group Cubic Cross and later married fellow member Naoki Yoshizawa (no relation to Hitomi Yoshizawa).