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Johnny Kitagawa’s death in 2019 made front-page news.
Photo: Yuichi Yamazaki/Getty Images
For decades, Johnny Kitagawa’s name was synonymous with success. His talent agency Johnny & Associates, more commonly known as Johnny’s, launched Japan’s most famous boy bands. He was undeniably the most powerful man in Japan’s entertainment industry — before his death in 2019, Kitagawa held the Guinness World Records for the most No. 1 artists, the most No. 1 singles, and the most concerts produced by an individual. Yet over the course of his long career, Kitagawa also faced allegations that he groomed and sexually assaulted the underage boys and young men who hoped to become stars with his agency. His influence was so pervasive that major domestic media didn’t cover the claims; a Japanese entertainment reporter told the New York Times in 2000 that Johnny’s stars were so dominant in popularity that the agency could make an outlet’s ratings “plummet” simply by withdrawing access to its talent.
Kitagawa denied wrongdoing and was never charged with a crime, but his sex-abuse allegations attracted both national and international scrutiny when they resurfaced this year. His agency has since apologized to victims, officially acknowledging that the late music mogul committed numerous sexual assaults during his long career in show business. Here’s what you need to know about what his victims have been promised, why mainstream Japanese media didn’t cover the story sooner, and how broadcasters and businesses that work with Johnny’s performers are responding to the scandal.
John Hiromu Kitagawa created his first musical group in 1962 with baseball players from a team that he coached. After founding his male talent agency Johnny’s, idol boy bands became his business. Johnny’s recruited trainees and launched groups that became household names in Japan, including Arashi, SMAP, SixTones, Shonentai, TOKIO, KinKi Kids, KAT-TUN, and Snow Man. In 2000, the New York Times reported that Johnny’s represented “virtually every young male star” in Japanese music, television, movies, and commercials, noting that the agency’s founder and longtime president was one of the wealthiest people in the country. When Kitagawa died at age 87 after suffering a stroke in 2019, his death was widely mourned: Japan’s prime minister at the time, Shinzo Abe, sent a telegram offering condolences, and more than 150 Johnny’s entertainers reportedly attended a memorial concert for the man who was often affectionately called “Johnny-san.”
Kitagawa was accused of grooming and sexually assaulting underage boys and young men who aspired to become Johnny’s stars. Per Rolling Stone, allegations about “lewd” acts committed by Kitagawa were raised as early as the 1960s. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, several former Johnny’s performers or trainees published books that included allegations against Kitagawa. One alleged that he had been molested by Kitagawa at just 11 years old, while another accused Kitagawa of raping a boy in a shared agency dorm. In 1999, the weekly magazine Shūkan Bunshun published a series of articles detailing more abuse allegations against Kitagawa, who sued for libel. Kitagawa initially won the case, but an appeals court overturned part of the decision the next year, ruling that the reporting on sexual assault allegations was actually not defamatory. (The magazine was held liable for claims that Kitagawa enabled underage smoking and drinking.) In 2023, an independent three-month investigation commissioned by Johnny’s concluded that Kitagawa had sexually abused several hundred people over the course of his career.
In March, the BBC released Predator: The Secret Scandal of J-pop, an hour-long documentary that features interviews with several people who accused Kitagawa of sexual abuse and assault. The hour-long documentary prompted more victims to come forward with allegations, notably including former Johnny’s trainee Kauan Okamoto. According to the BBC, he alleged in an April press conference that he had been abused up to 20 times at Kitagawa’s penthouse between 2012 — when Okamoto was 15 years old and Kitagawa was in his 80s — and 2016. Okamoto claimed that Kitagawa would come to his bed at night, remove his clothes, and perform oral sex. He said that while it was never explicitly stated that performers had to accept Kitagawa’s behavior in order to succeed, the founder’s “favorite first picks would make it.” Okamoto suggested that all of the boys who stayed at the penthouse were abused, and his allegations helped bring more attention to the growing scandal. The Asahi Shimbun reported that more than 16,000 fans of Johnny’s idols signed a petition submitted on May 11 that demanded a third-party investigation into the claims.
On May 14, the agency posted a video and a written statement from then president Julie Keiko Fujishima, who is Kitagawa’s niece. In the video, Fujishima apologized to accusers who came forward and for causing “disappointment and anxiety.” According to a Rolling Stone translation, she expressed regret “for the social problems caused by the sexual assault cases of Kitagawa, our founder.” However, her written statement noted that the agency could not comment on whether individual allegations were true since it would be impossible to confirm with the late Kitagawa. Fujishima also claimed that she hadn’t known about the alleged misconduct.
That response didn’t seem to satisfy the public. The allegations against Kitagawa went on to attract attention from the likes of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and visitors from a United Nations group. Johnny’s commissioned a three-month external investigation that concluded in an August 29 report that Kitagawa had sexually abused boys since the ‘50s and had targeted hundreds of people. Investigators also found that Johnny’s as an agency did not properly investigate the allegations.
On September 7, Johnny’s held a four-hour-long press conference. The agency said it was aware that Kitagawa had committed sexual assault. It also apologized to victims and committed to financially compensating them. Fujishima personally apologized for not taking action while Kitagawa was alive and announced that she would step down as president (though according to AP News, she remains on the board and still owns 100% of the private company).
Multiple big brands have distanced themselves from Johnny’s stars in the wake of the allegations against Kitagawa. The Asahi Shinbun reported that Asahi Group Holdings, Kirin Holdings, and Suntory Holdings — which are behind some of Japan’s top beer and soft drink brands — said they will stop putting Johnny’s entertainers in ads once existing contracts expire. McDonald’s Japan, Japan Airlines, Nippon Life Insurance, and Nissan Motor also announced that Johnny’s stars will not be booked for any new commercials.
Some companies suggested that they chose to cut ties because Johnny’s did not outline a satisfactory plan for addressing its wrongs in its September 7 press conference. “In light of our group’s human rights policy formulated in 2019, we would be tolerating human rights violations if we continue business (with the agency),” Atsuhi Katsuki, the president of Asahi Group Holdings, said in a September 11 interview. “We should not book sales, even 1 yen, at the expense of human rights.” Japanese research firm Teikoku Databank reported on September 15 that 16 out of 65 major, publicly-traded Japanese companies had either pulled ads with Johnny’s stars or announced that they would not renew promotional contracts with the agency in the future. And per the Japan Times, some companies are also reconsidering their sponsorship of TV programs that star the agency’s entertainers.
Johnny’s announced on September 13 that it will financially compensate current and former talent or trainees who were sexually assaulted by Kitagawa. (Testimonies from people who were not affiliated with the agency will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.) Victims can submit a confidential online form with details about what they experienced. The exact amount of compensation will be determined by an independent committee of three judges, who will review victim reports and may reach out to conduct interviews or request further information.
Johnny’s has committed to not taking performance fees for the next year. Instead, according to the September 13 statement, payment for advertisements and appearances on shows will be given directly to performers. The company also noted that it is taking measures to prevent similar incidents, including the creation of an external chief compliance officer position, the development and expansion of a whistle-blowing system, and enhanced training on topics such as human rights, sexual assault, and harassment. It remains to be seen if these moves will be enough to convince advertisers that have already cut ties with Johnny’s to change their minds.
The external investigation suggested that Kitagawa’s abuse went unchecked in part because mainstream media outlets didn’t cover the allegations. One accuser told the Japan Times that a group of Johnny’s idols had actually attempted to publicly share their allegations against Kitagawa in the late 1980s. He said Japanese news outlets at the time weren’t interested in coverage, and their claims were ultimately written off as rumors. The New York Times also reported that major news outlets in Japan similarly chose not to cover the allegations in Shūkan Bunshun’s 1999 exposé. At the time, a Tokyo journalism professor told the Times that a weakness of the Japanese media was its cautiousness to report on “sensitive subjects” like sex.
Fear of retaliation was likely also a factor. The New York Times reported that Johnny’s effectively “declared war on” Shūkan Bunshun by denying the magazine and its sister publications interview and photo opportunities with his agency’s acts. “If you’re a television station and you don’t comply with [Johnny’s] wishes then all the popular stars will be withdrawn from your programs, your variety shows will not get any interviews with celebrities, and your ratings will plummet,” a Japanese entertainment reporter explained to the Times. “The same thing goes for publications.” The agency has been accused of trying to exert influence over media outlets before — in 2019, a government regulator issued a warning over suspicions that Johnny’s was pressuring broadcasting stations to blacklist members who left the agency’s boy band SMAP. (Johnny’s denied that it violated anti-monopoly law.)
Noriyuki Higashiyama, a singer and actor who has been with Johnny’s since 1979, replaced Kitagawa’s niece as president on September 7. The 56-year-old said he was never a victim of Kitagawa’s, but said he had heard rumors of the founder’s behavior and done nothing. But Higashiyama himself faces his own abuse allegations. At the press conference announcing his appointment, journalists brought up allegations that he had massaged the crotches of boys, exposed his genitals, and told them to “eat my sausage.” According to the BBC, when asked if the allegations were true, Higashiyama replied, “I don’t remember clearly. Maybe it happened, maybe it didn’t. I have trouble remembering.” He also addressed claims that he bullied younger performers by stating that it was possible he had been stricter with them, and that he may have done things in his teens and 20s that he would not do now.
It’s not clear. Kōhaku Uta Gassen is a New Year’s Eve television special in Japan that showcases the most popular music of the year, which means that the program is usually packed with Johnny’s artists. Public broadcaster NHK, which airs the annual event, has not yet released its 2023 lineup. However, the company issued a statement noting that it will now take into consideration whether agencies “respect human rights” when picking performers. NHK is among several Japanese broadcasters that said they intend to monitor the talent agency’s victim relief efforts and measures to prevent similar situations moving forward.
Kitagawa’s accusers, meanwhile, are adjusting to the long-awaited acknowledgment of and consequences for the allegations. Per Reuters, Yukihiro Ohshima, who is part of a group for Kitagawa sexual-assault victims, said that he felt that former Johnny’s president Fujishima had “sincerely apologized” for what happened. “It’s not like the emotional scars are gone,” he said, “but I think out of 100 points things have gotten a little easier by about 10.”
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