Idol Services

April 16, 2010 – Nagasaki, Japan

In the middle of the Arabian Desert, a golden tower splits the clouds. Written in giant letters of brick next to it stands a sign, Idol Services. The building has been obscured from virtually all published satellite photographs, and the ones in which it is visible are too low-res to distinguish any details beyond the obvious; located behind it is a large fenced field with dozens of military-fashioned tents set up.

There are two notable theories as to what this secretive company's purpose is; the one that accepts the official explanation – and expands on it by means of speculation – and the one that rejects it altogether. For you to make up your mind, first you must read the ”about” section archived from their now-defunct website.

''Idol Services was founded by top businessmen from several countries with the goal of creating a new source of happiness for citizens of the world. We engineer the base for deceased idol singers and allow their light to shine on from the hereafter by our trademark state-of-the-art vocal sampling technology. Bringing a smile to the masses since 1999!''

In addition to this, they used to have an ”orders” section from which you could buy numerous CDs purportedly recorded after the respective singers' deaths, along with ones written and produced for already split-up groups that were recorded in the Idol Services studio as special albums. There was much speculation as to how the unique styles of certain artists were captured by imitators – that is one of the main theories –, because the prospect of the company being what they claim to be sounds ridiculous to many. However, if one was to inspect the timelines of the artists who they claim to have recorded, it would be difficult to not see the potential reality behind their claims.

With the deceased's permission, I have done research on the last moments of singer Sayoko Aoame and unearthed a secret that was not meant to be known.

In late 2009, only weeks before her early demise at the age of 19, Ms. Aoame's manager was contacted by a foreigner who wished to record her. Even more unusual of an aspect of this call was that he did not specify any songs nor what record label he represented, if any. I interviewed her manager about this and he admitted to feeling somewhat puzzled by the oddly specific request; the foreigner wished to have Sayoko meet him alone at the Nagasaki airport. Denying this for safety reasons, her manager had convinced the man to allow her to be accompanied by security personnel at the meeting. The reason this deal was accepted to begin with was that the foreigner offered to pay more than double what would be usual for arrangements such as this.

She went to meet the foreigner, accompanied by two security guards and her manager. The man that came to meet them was tall and dark with a long brown beard, appearing Middle-Eastern; Although Sayoko's manager could not be certain of his nationality, he believed him to be either Saudi-Arabian or Emirati. He had introduced himself as Nabu al-Jabbar. He dressed in a neat velvet suit and wore sunglasses throughout the meeting, somewhat to the ire of both the singer and her manager.

Following the meeting, Sayoko had told him that he trusted the foreigner regardless of his slightly rude behaviour and that she was willing to record at his studio. A week later, she met again with the man, this time entering his private jet with her manager and flying off to Dubai. From there, they embarked into the desert on camels. The manager got sick and had to turn back with the guide, leaving Ms. Aoame alone with Nabu al-Jabbar. He still regrets his decision, feeling that if only he had stuck with her regardless of his illness, she may still be alive. Whether this is true or not, I can only speculate.

What is known is that Sayoko did in fact record an entire album worth of material at the Idol Services studio. I have heard the raw acapella recordings myself and can say for certain that it is her, having known her since she was a little girl. What I don't know is how she ended up in Amman, Abu Dhabi, Tokyo, Hiroshima, New York, Los Angeles, Helsinki and Imatra in pieces.

~

December 10, 2009 – Amman, Jordan

Two trucks were inspected by police and their drivers questioned. They were later arrested on suspicion of human trafficking and murder, though mainly under circumstantial evidence; the only concrete piece of evidence that they had was the single finger propped up in a glass container within one of the trucks. This ring finger belonged to Sayoko Aoame and it had been cut off while she was still alive.

December 12, 2009 – Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

A suspicious package arrives at a junior high school, dropped off by a man who eyewitnesses said appeared European. Inside were five toes, all cut from the left foot of the idol singer; Again, tests revealed that she had still been alive when they were severed.

December 13, 2009 – Tokyo, Japan

A businessman came home to find a package wrapped in plastic in his bed. He opened it and saw, to his shock, that it contained a human nose. This, too, belonged to Sayoko. It couldn't be determined whether she had been alive when it was cut or not as the tissue was too damaged, but I'm almost certain that she hadn't died yet.

December 16, 2009 – Hiroshima, Japan

Three schoolgirls saw a suspicious-looking Arab carrying a large black plastic bag towards one of their homes. The man broke in and the girl called the police, but he had already disappeared by the time they arrived. What they found inside the bag – which had been left in the girl's room – was a clitoris impaled on a fish-hook and a string with two nipples, three teeth and the toes of a right foot tied to it.

December 16, 2009 – New York City, United States of America

A homeless man found a finger in a dumpster. Tied to it was a string with three teeth, a clitoris and a lower lip. Tests showed that this also belonged to Sayoko, and that it had been cut off when she was still alive; Not only this, the clitoris and lip were that of an unknown female. The method in which they had been severed was surgical in nature based on the seams.

December 17, 2009 – Los Angeles, United States of America

A white van was inspected by police on suspicion of drug smuggling, only to find something much worse inside. A senior officer vomited at the scene. Ms. Aoame's tongue, fingers and intestines hung from hooks inside the van along with various other bodyparts belonging to eleven other girls. One was identified as an American pop singer who disappeared in 2008; Her uterus, ovaries and breasts were plastinated and attached to her microphone stand. An unknown woman's entire torso was also found inside the van with a fork and a knife stuck into the organs that had been revealed by a clear Y-incision.

December 20, 2009 – Helsinki, Finland

An art collector was arrested in the act of buying a stolen statue. What at first went unnoticed was that the statue had been broken and glued back together. Inside, investigators found Ms. Aoame's severed ribcage complete with lungs, heart and part of the large intestine strung up to it. They were too damaged to positively confirm what the cause of death was, but the medical examiner in charge was almost certain that it was drowning due to the distension of and ruptures in the lungs.

December 21, 2009 – Imatra, Finland

The Russian border patrol detained two women under suspicion of being heroin carriers. One of them confessed right away and was jailed, but the other one plead that she was innocent until a cavity search was performed. Stashed deep inside her rectum, there was a bag of heroin; but that wasn't all. The bag was tied with human hair and it also contained several teeth. There was already a small tear in the bag, leaking the drugs into the woman's body. Whether this was intentional or not couldn't be determined but she appeared genuinely clueless as to how they got there.

– published by the blogger Joichiro Haraguchi

~

December 18, 2014 – Nagasaki, Japan

Three years after the investigation, an idol magazine clipping was sent to me by a reader. Reading it, chills ran down my spine; Sayoko Aoame's manager had been found dead. His suicide note was three hundred pages long, detailing the gruesome torture of the singer that he had taken part in. It ended with the following words:

''Idol Services are releasing a brand new album by Sayoko Aoame, recorded earlier this year. I have heard the lead single and it is beyond anything you can imagine. As my last will, I will reveal the secret behind the company... It isn't true that they sample vocal recordings by singers. They tear out their vocal cords and attach them to machines. I know nobody will take me seriously, but this is how it is; I have seen it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. I can no longer live with the guilt of knowing this and being unable to do anything to help the poor souls gain rest. There are hundreds of idols who have already died, but yet they perform live to thousand-headed audiences as surgical dummies lip-syncing to robots.''

Even with this confession, theories abound. Had he lost his mind? Was any of it true? Could such a diabolical technology truly exist; And if so, who were the masterminds behind it? Why are the singers murdered, dismembered and sent off to cities across the world? What purpose do the tents behind the main building serve? Who were these singers that he mentioned? Could your favourite be already long-since dead?