Since myself and others have discussed about the difficulty of the early game, after installing the latest patch I wanted to start a new game and try a different strategy:

My usual strat is Manager Office+Dance Studio+Recording Studio+Office, hiring 3-7 idols, and then pumping out a digital single within that first month of the game.  After 5 singles, organize concert and finally have a little cash. This usually necessitates a loan at the latest by the first concert, which should happen in around December/January/February. I've used this strategy for the past several playthroughs, and while it helps navigate the early game well enough, I decided to try a new strat this playthrough: No loans. Someone in the ideas thread noted that taking a loan seems like the only way to play, and while I agreed, I wanted to explore other options as well.

This time, my first purchases on Day 1 were a Manager Office+2 Offices+a Break Room.  I hired 6 idols. I first had my office workers research photoshoots and digital release and then set them on auto-business deal. My Manager researched one of the Media genres and then immediately began making a full-group Internet show. I made sure to hit the Promotion tool every day. With only 6 idols and the Break Room, my group was pretty much always near full health.

While photoshoot offers were inconsistent, with two workers on them, I was pretty likely to get at least two a week, offsetting the salary expenses.

I would end up not releasing a single until January, 6 months into the game. By that point, I had enough money to add a dance studio and recording studio on the second floor without taking a loan. That first single sold 2.5k and made 500k, which is probably on pace, or even greater than, where I usually am releasing a single every month until January from the start of the game. It obviously was the best first-single I'd ever had, which had never broken the two-digit sales range in the time I've played. I continued with monthly releases, hired five more idols in July, and added another Break Room and a doctor's office. My first concert would happen in October 2019, over a year from the start of the game. It had the best gross of any first concert I organized, with a ticket price of 10k.

By this point it had been over a year in-game, and I had been able to avoid taking a loan.

What conclusions can be drawn from this?

Well... I dunno if anything can be interpreted from this, when it comes to whether the early game is too hard. But I did notice some things:

1) How idols react to being in an unsuccessful/inactive group+How the Graduation mechanic affects idols

I've never played a game where the idols were... Hostile to the manager, lol. Every graduation socialization over those first six months for my first six idols revealed new dialogue about how they were unhappy in the group and wanted to blow the place ASAP. I also had my fastest graduation ever at 10 months (With a rude, yet funny, send-off).

Once the single releases began and the group/idols began gaining fans and fame, I saw their graduation dates quickly get thrown back to upwards of ten years for some of the girls.

2) The game runs about the same pace as long as you're gaining fans

I wasn't negatively effected by not releasing as many singles, if anything, it helped my money last longer. Between the Internet show and promotion tools helping me out before the first single, I still ended up about where I would have been anyways had I taken a loan.

3) This strategy necessitated using the policies

I've never tinkered with them so much up until now. Whether it was using pushes or Vibe, I manipulated them liberally so I could get a good windfall in order to rise out of a negative balance.

This is what I've been doing! Pretty much creating a modeling agency first and foremost and a music group second LOL. 

However, I believe the idols acting unhappy and leaving the group is a new addition to this update (?) I've never seen idols act unhappy about not having music and concerts. Very interesting! When I did this in past updates the idols were happy to sit there and work as models more or less. I am kind of excited to see them start acting like actual people rather than money-making robots in upcoming updates haha. 

I also feel the newer update has made things like releasing singles and concerts more expensive. In the past, I'd be sitting on piles of cash once I started having monthly concerts. Now, it can be really hard to upgrade to the next concert venue size even when I have some cash sitting around.  Releasing physical single + concert + election is really expensive too! 

So, to summarize it: hire a bunch of idols, have them pose for photoshoots all the time, give them a break room so they can rest every so often, PROFIT.

Yup, sounds good to me. Good job getting out of that bottomless pit of debt without the help of a loan!

Do you recall how long it took the internet show to become profitable?

I was always suffering from a lack of funds in the early days of my game, but after reading your article, my business start-up has become much more stable. thanks for the Topic by 8thPrince!