<p>In the previous article, <a href="https://friday.kodansha.co.jp/article/326728">&#8221; <span data-sheets-value="{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;ジュリー社長自らが登場し…ジャニーズ事務所の存在価値を揺るがした「人間宣言」の重すぎる中身&quot;}" data-sheets-userformat="{&quot;2&quot;:513,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;12&quot;:0}">President Julie</span> Fujishima <span data-sheets-value="{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;ジュリー社長自らが登場し…ジャニーズ事務所の存在価値を揺るがした「人間宣言」の重すぎる中身&quot;}" data-sheets-userformat="{&quot;2&quot;:513,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;12&quot;:0}">herself appeared&#8230;the too-heavy substance of the &#8216;human declaration&#8217; that shook the value of</span></a> the Johnny <a href="https://friday.kodansha.co.jp/article/326728"><span data-sheets-value="{&quot;1&quot;:2,&quot;2&quot;:&quot;ジュリー社長自らが登場し…ジャニーズ事務所の存在価値を揺るがした「人間宣言」の重すぎる中身&quot;}" data-sheets-userformat="{&quot;2&quot;:513,&quot;3&quot;:{&quot;1&quot;:0},&quot;12&quot;:0}">&#8216;s office&#8217;s existence</span></a>, <a href="https://friday.kodansha.co.jp/article/326728">&#8220;</a> we discussed how the release of a video in which President Julie Fujishima admitted the issue of sexual assault by former President Kitagawa of the Johnny&#8217;s The article discussed how the value of the office&#8217;s talent has changed drastically since the release of the video in which President Julie Fujishima admitted to sexually assaulting the office&#8217;s talent. In fact, part of the problem may have been that idol culture itself has characteristics that are easily associated with &#8220;sexual assault.</p>
<h2> The Danger of &#8220;Work to Make People Like You</h2>
<p> No, in fact, it is not limited to Johnny&#8217;s s idols. Kawasaki criticizes the &#8220;system&#8221; as an &#8220;externalization of desire,&#8221; and he also considers female idols to be a legitimate part of this &#8220;system.</p>
<p> If this is the case, then I, for example, who was involved with AKB48 in various capacities during its peak, would also be considered an &#8220;accomplice&#8221; to this system.</p>
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<p> If one were to take Kawasaki&#8217;s argument head-on, that would be the case. As I see it, this is not just another scandal, but a full-blown denunciation of and fierce criticism of Japan&#8217;s idol culture itself. As an idol critic, I too must think about this.</p>
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<p> What is an idol?　I once wrote that it is a job to make people like them.</p>
<figure id="attachment_327297" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-327297" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="2b9eaab8"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/08/fcf7cb3b307172454b7b5398e0644f7b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-327297" class="wp-caption-text"> Hello! Project has produced many popular group idols.</figcaption></figure>
<p> The words &#8220;guessing&#8221; and &#8220;guessing activity&#8221; have become popular, but in idol culture, the fans have a strong sense of ownership. The producer of an idol is the first fan to fall in love with the idol, and then produces the idol so that the fan will fall in love with the idol even more.</p>
<p> This &#8220;liking&#8221; can be called &#8220;guessing&#8221; or even &#8220;love. Yes, &#8220;love&#8221; is at the core of idol culture. However, as mentioned earlier, this &#8220;love&#8221; seems to be connected to the issue of sexual assault.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Rising to the status of national producer"></div>
<h2>Although recognized as &#8220;the world&#8217;s greatest producer.&#8221;</h2>
<p> Janie Kitagawa is a great legend. He founded Johnny&#8217;s in 1962 and remained at the top for 57 years. When he passed away in 1919 at the age of 87, a grand farewell party was held at the Tokyo Dome, and a &#8220;national&#8221; memorial service was held.</p>
<figure id="attachment_327304" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-327304" style="width: 730px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="16e2b7eb"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/08/ea4dc2012fbbd8ca1d04656dcb549708.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-327304" class="wp-caption-text"> Janie Kitagawa&#8217;s farewell party held at Tokyo Dome on September 4, 2007.</figcaption></figure>
<p> The postwar entertainment industry would not be complete without the idols of Johnny&#8217;s, the agency he worked for. Even today, not a day goes by without seeing one of the agency&#8217;s idols on TV. It is an amazing thing.</p>
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<p> No, his great reputation is not limited to Japan. In 2010, Janney Kitagawa was recognized by Guinness World Records as the &#8220;Person who produced the most concerts&#8221; and &#8220;Person who produced the most #1 singles. Yes, he became the number one producer in the history of music entertainment in the world.</p>
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<p> (Ironically, both Guinness World Records, which certified Janney Kitagawa as a world record holder, and the BBC Broadcasting Corporation, which opened the floodgates for reporting on sexual assault, are British organizations.)</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The number of victims is estimated to be over 2,500..."></div>
<h2>The meaning of Noriyuki Higashiyama&#8217;s pondering</h2>
<p> The accusations of Yoshitsugu, the second son of Ryoichi Hattori, a nationally known composer, shocked the public. He said he was sexually abused by Janney when he was in the second grade of elementary school, along with several classmates. This was about 70 years ago. It was around the time Japan emerged from the occupation after the defeat in World War II.</p>
<p> If we believe the testimony that Janney Kitagawa continued to sexually assault his children from then until his later years, how many more victims must there be?　It is mind boggling. Some said the number of victims was in the hundreds&#8230;&#8230; or even in the thousands. (Junya Hiramoto, the accuser, estimates the number to be &#8220;more than 2,500. &lt;(Mr. Junya Hiramoto, the accuser, estimates &#8220;more than 2,500 people&#8221; (Nikkan Gendai DIGITAL, May 17, 2011)).</p>
<p> He is one of the greatest legends in the illustrious entertainment industry, having introduced numerous popular idols to the world, produced hit songs, and set world records. Yet he is now being accused of being a horrific sexual abuser who has caused an enormous number of victims over more than half a century. This intense light and shadow would have been within a single person, a single personality &#8211; a dizzying reality that makes you tremble in the face of it.</p>
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<p> And so it is not Janie Kitagawa&#8217;s alone, but rather the light and shadow inherent in the (my beloved!) idol culture of this country itself. I shudder at the assumption that this is not Janie Kitagawa alone, but the light and shadow inherent in the idol culture of this country (which I love!).</p>
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<p> Johnny&#8217;s is going away, maybe. For a while, it was said that the name would disappear and change. The name is now clearly branded as a sexual predator. In the end, the name of the office will be retained for the time being.</p>
<figure id="attachment_327305" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-327305" style="width: 1280px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="bb53e80e"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/08/5020808be396debcb2549519e7bf4f41.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-327305" class="wp-caption-text"> Noriyuki Higashiyama even referred to the &#8220;renaming&#8221; of the Johnny&#8217;s&#8217;s office.</figcaption></figure>
<p> Noriyuki Higashiyama, currently the oldest talent in the agency, apologized on the program he anchors (&#8220;Sunday LIVE!&#8221;) and said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know why I said &#8216;Johnny&#8217;s&#8217; in the first place. in which he himself anchors (&#8220;Sunday LIVE!&#8221;), he apologized and asked whether the name &#8220;Johnny&#8217;s&#8221; should be kept alive in the first place. Yes, Higashiyama is the one who has announced that he will become the new president of the agency.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The true nature of &quot;desire&quot; swirling in the idol world"></div>
<h2>What it means to talk about &#8220;Johnny&#8217;s of Desire&#8221; now</h2>
<p> I would like to talk about Johnny&#8217;s now. I would like to discuss the idols of the great empire he built by looking directly at both the light and shadow of Janie Kitagawa.</p>
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<p> As a citizen, I cannot tolerate sexual assault. It should be condemned. As an idol critic, however, I have a different perspective. If there is a (fundamental) sin associated with &#8220;loving&#8221; idols, I would like to take on that sin.</p>
<p> Yes, I will speak as an &#8220;accomplice.</p>
<figure id="attachment_331501" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-331501" style="width: 2840px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="e984a2aa"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/08/67d69b35d3c645f1f526005dbb071ad4.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-331501" class="wp-caption-text"> At the press conference held on September 7, management apologized for the situation.</figcaption></figure>
<p> The word &#8220;desire&#8221; was found in Daisuke Kawasaki&#8217;s argument. Idols &#8220;desire&#8221; to shine. Fans &#8220;desire&#8221; idols. And producers also &#8220;desire&#8221; them (and here lies the problem of Janie Kitagawa).</p>
<p> Idol culture is a place where such diverse &#8220;desires&#8221; intersect. I would like to discuss the promotion, love, and desire for idols &#8211; the glorious and the horrifying, the light and the shadow &#8211; without looking away from any of them.</p>
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<p> &lt;I will call it the &#8220;Johnny&#8217;s Theory of Desire.</p>


 Akio Nakamori

 Kazuhiko Nakamura, Ippei Hara, Kyodo News

 Being an idol is a job to be loved. However, this assumption may be the reason for the sexual assault problem. Idols are subjected to a horrifying level of "desire" from producers, fans, and even from themselves.

The “Deep-seated Disease” of Johnny’s’s That Plagues the New President, Noriyuki Higashiyama

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