Why More and More Entertainers Are Becoming Hosts, Including Former Johnny’s Jr.

Recently, the number of celebrities who become hosts has been increasing.

One famous example is Hikaru, 31, a popular YouTube star with 4.86 million registered users, who made his debut as a host on his birthday in June this year. Although he was a limited-time host for only one day, he attracted not only fans who came from far away, but also celebrities and influencers who came to his restaurant one after another. Everyone poured down expensive champagne, and the store’s highest one-day sales of 67,390,000 yen were achieved.

In addition to these, the former YouTube star Tanaka of “Boku no Norikku no Boyomi” and the singer “S!N” also worked as hosts for a limited period of time. The host club had a system called “Last Song” in which the host with the highest sales in a day could sing karaoke, and having these highly skilled singers sing in front of you became an irresistible for fans.

Having celebrities as hosts for a limited time is a unique opportunity for the host clubs to advertise their services, but what are the real feelings of the current hosts who actually work there?

They are certainly able to attract a lot of customers, but I don’t know if any of the hosts who work at the host clubs actually like it. Some of the hosts who usually work at the clubs don’t like it.

Yukito (pseudonym, 22), an active host who has experience working with entertainers who have served as limited-time hosts, said, “Basically, on the day of the event, I’m the one who is supposed to be the host for the whole day.”

On the day of the event, we, the lowly hosts, basically work as helpers for the celebrities. The hosts are only paid out of the amount of money their own customers spend, so the helpers work for free and are even busier than usual. If the entertainer is a big name, sometimes they are short on staff and have to be sent out from affiliated stores. I don’t think people are too motivated to work there unless they have an ulterior motive, such as the chance to meet the celebrity or to be liked by him or her.

The hosts are treated as guests for the limited time they are there.

Recently, however, there have been a few former entertainers who have become serious hosts. One former Johnny’s Jr. who left the Johnny’s office in June of this year worked as a host for three months until September.

It seems that one of his fans kept going to his store as “the strongest ace,” and 80% of his sales in September were due to that ace. It is a miracle that his fans, who had supported him for years, continued to support his sales as a host after he left.

There are many other former celebrity hosts, but there is one who is a living legend in Kabukicho.

Shota Taira, the reigning host of the major host club “Leo” with annual sales of 200 million yen for three consecutive years, is a vocalist and musician from the Kansai region called “X4.” He was an entertainer in a Kansai-based vocal and dance group called ‘X4.’ When he graduated from the group in 2005, Taira became the fastest top player from no experience. A number of former talents and models have joined the host after admiring his success.

Although it is not an industry where one can sell easily just because one has a good face or a fan base, there is no doubt that former celebrities will become the talk of the town if they become hosts. In fact, rumors are circulating that a major actor who has appeared in numerous TV dramas will make his hosting debut in the near future. It seems likely that people of various genres will continue to appear in the host industry, which continues to be in a bubble.

Sasaki Chihuahua
Born in Tokyo in 2000. After attending an integrated school in Tokyo from elementary school to high school, he went on to Keio University. 15 years old, he has been going to Kabukicho and has a wide range of personal connections. At university, he is studying the sociology of the downtown area, including Kabukicho.

His book, ” Pien” to shakai” (“The Disease of ‘Pien’: Consumption and Approval of the SNS Generation”), is now on sale.