AKB48 members Mayu Watanabe and Yuki Kashiwagi visited the governments of seven Setouchi prefectures (Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Ehime, Hyogo, Okayama, Tokushima and Kagawa) between them to promote the auditions.

[2] On February 22, it was announced that Nana Okada of AKB48 and Rino Sashihara of HKT48 would be concurrent members of STU48 and respectively hold the positions of captain and theater manager.

and hosted by the comedy duo Maple Chōgōkin (Kazlaser and Natsu Ando), started airing on Nippon TV.

[16] The group also participated in the AKB48 single "Jabaja" released in March, performing the B-side "Pedal to Sharin to Kita Michi to".

[26] The music video for the title song, "Kaze wo Matsu" (風を待つ, "Waiting for the Wind"), was shot as one long take by quadcopter drone in Onomichi, Hiroshima and released earlier on December 26, 2018.

The event was live streamed on Showroom and attended by Hiroshima Prefecture governor Hidehiko Yuzaki and other government officials.

[32] STU48's second original stage set list, titled "Bokutachi no Koi no Yokan" (僕たちの恋の予感, "Premonition of Our Love") and produced by then captain Nana Okada, was performed for the first time at the STU48 Theater on the STU48-go on January 11, and included the song "Teokure Caution" (手遅れcaution, "Missed Chance Caution") by =LOVE, an idol group produced by former STU48 and HKT48 member Rino Sashihara.

[33] In several interviews, various members commented that the stage play was "interesting" and "difficult to express" since there are several songs with themes unfamiliar to the group, such as "queens and slaves" (dominance and submission) and yuri, but also a good learning experience.

[36] The fourth single title song, "Mubō na Yume wa Sameru Koto ga Nai" (無謀な夢は覚めることがない, lit.

[38] On March 28, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, STU48's third anniversary celebration was held via live streaming on the video service Niconico, where the fifth single was announced to be released on May 27.

'Let's Create A Memorable Love'), was filmed at the Mitarai preservation district in Kure, Hiroshima and released in two versions for the full members and trainees.

[40] The single would include ballots to vote for members of a new subunit called the Setouchi PR Unit, which results were announced on October 18.

[49] On January 15, 2021, STU48 appeared in its first concert at the Nippon Budokan, where they announced the release of their sixth single on February 17 and performed the title song live for the first time.

1 Singing Ability Contest, including the top three: Nana Okada (1st place), Yura Ikeda (2nd), Honoka Yano (3rd), Sara Shimizu (5th), and Mitsuki Imamura (7th).

[67] The remodeling of STU48-go was carried out at the Japan Marine United facilities in Onomichi, Hiroshima[68][69] with technical support from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, especially concerning safety measures.

[70] Several STU48 members visited the shipyard during the process, and Azusa Fujiwara and Honoka Yano personally painted the ship's name on her bow.

[71] On January 22, 2019, the group released a music video for the song "Shukkō" (出航, "Setting Sail") from their then upcoming second single, which was shot on the ship and unfinished onboard theater and performed by all 33 members and trainees active at the time.

[77] On July 9, 2020, the STU48 management announced that the shipboard theater would be decommissioned in the spring of 2021, and that performances would be held around the Setouchi Region with no fixed venue.

[80] In a January 23, 2019 article, Tokyo Sports remarked that STU48 has the "highest level of stage performance" in the AKB48 Group, and that many of its members have a "neat" image similar to that of Nogizaka46.

The article also predicted that the NGT48 assault scandal, which came to light earlier that month, might cause that group's fans to switch to STU48, in part due to captain Nana Okada's "dislike of disturbance" and "ability to keep the members disciplined".

[83] The theme of "girls' journey" refers to literally visiting Setouchi tourism destinations and promoting them domestically and overseas[84] and exploring the world of beauty and fashion.

[87] Anna Kawamata, Rika Muneyuki, Rinko Yoshizaki, Momoka Rissen, Miho Tanaka (concurrently with pin MiKER!)

Yura Ikeda, Aiko Kojima, Himeka Sako, Sara Shimizu, Ayaka Suzuki On November 15, 2018, Imamura and Miyuna Kadowaki were two of the three 48 Group members (the third being Hijiri Tanikawa of AKB48) selected to become the lead performers for the "No Way Man" live performance in Best Hits Kayosai, replacing the members who transferred to IZ*ONE (namely Hitomi Honda of AKB48 and Sakura Miyawaki and Nako Yabuki of HKT48), after passing the dance audition held by Yomiuri TV.

[89][90] On November 3, 2018, Kai, Takino, and former Seto 7 member Maiha Morishita participated in the 38th Hiroshima International Peace Marathon.

[94][95] Yūka Oki Yumiko Takino Akari Fukuda Hina Iwata Miyuna Kadowaki (#1) Fū Yabushita (#5) Membership into this unit was based on fan voting using the ballots included with the fifth single.

[41] Yuka Oki Akari Fukuda Serika Osaki Mai Nakamura Rinko Yoshizaki Sayaka Takao The voting for the second Setouchi PR Unit took place from April 13 to May 2, 2022, using ballots included with the eighth single.