Why “big key players” who supposedly lost their power within Johnny’s’s are whispered to “continue to have influence”.

Noriyuki Higashiyama, 56, was announced as the new president of Johnny’s on September 7.

Although the press conference lasted 4 hours and 12 minutes and took questions from all the reporters who had raised their hands, there were many who said that the press conference was a failure and at the same time pointed out the mismanagement of the arrangements.

Because of the limit of two reporters from each media outlet, only about half of the 360 chairs provided were filled, and there was some wrangling between the staff and the reporter holding the camera during the pre-conference meeting. There were even some scenes of veteran reporters taking shots at the female presenter, who was clearly unfamiliar with the event.

If Shi-San had been there, none of this would have happened.

If Shi-San had been there, none of this would have happened,” grumbled an entertainment desk clerk at a certain TV station. Shi-San” refers to Suguru Shirahase, former vice president and representative director of the company, who was mentioned several times during the press conference.

Mr. Shirahase resigned as vice president at the same time as Keiko Fujishima, who was president and representative director. He was mainly in charge of public relations and advertising for Johnny’s, and was the “watchdog” of the late Mr. Kitagawa and the late Ms. Mary Kitagawa. If he had been in charge of that press conference, it would not have been so messy.

At the press conference,

At the press conference, I asked, “If Mr. Shirahase were here, wouldn’t he have been able to answer many of the questions?

“If Mr. Shirahase was here, wouldn’t he know everything?”

The reason why questions such as “If Mr. Shirahase were here, he would have been able to answer a lot of questions, wouldn’t he?

He was the point of contact for all the media outlets that dealt with Johnny’s talent, including the entertainment desks of the various stations, sports papers, women’s weekly magazines, idol magazines, fashion magazines, etc., so I asked, “What should I do if Shi-San is gone? Who do I talk to? It is a fact that there are voices from various sources such as, “What should we do if Shi-San is gone?

(A reporter for a sports paper mentioned above) “It is true that there are voices saying, ‘What should we do if Mr. Shirahase disappears? (A reporter for a sports newspaper). Although he has resigned as executive vice president, there is a possibility that he is still in a position of responsibility.

A staff member at a TV station who is known as a “janitor” called Mr. Shirahase and told him, “I want to quit, but I don’t think I can do it. I have to support Julie-chan (former president Keiko Fujishima) and Higashi (Higashiyama Noriyuki) behind their backs. I think he will continue to support them behind the scenes.

In other words, there is a possibility that his influence on the office will not change at all.

To be honest, I was right. If Shiranase’s words are true, even if he does not appear directly in negotiations, his familiarity with the Johnny’s representatives in the media, known as “jani-supporters,” will continue. On September 12, Takeshi Niinami, president of Suntory Holdings and chairman of the Keizai Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives), said in response to Johnny’s press conference on September 7, “I doubt whether he is sincerely reflecting on his actions,” which is absolutely true.

Higashiyama will hold a press conference on October 2, where he may mention the company name change and Julie’s 100% ownership of the company. On that occasion, he will also need to clearly verbalize and answer about the treatment of Mr. Shirahase.