Minami Takahashi (高橋 みなみ, Takahashi Minami, born 8 April 1991) is a Japanese singer, tarento and former member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48 under Team A. She became the first General Director (総監督, sōkantoku) of AKB48 and its sister groups. In an interview with Nippon Television in June 2010, AKB48 producer Yasushi Akimoto described her as the "eldest daughter of the 48 sisters". She is also regarded as "soul of AKB", and her motto "working hard would be paid" has inspired many members of AKB48. She is commonly part of the main lineup for the AKB48 singles. She is a member of the AKB48 sub-group no3b, along with AKB48 member Minami Minegishi and ex-member Haruna Kojima.