The Identity of the “Traitor” Who Drove SMAP to the Edge of the Cliff Immediately after Their Debut
Akio Nakamori's Theory of Johnny's Desire Chapter 2: It All Started with the "Breakup of SMAP" (3)
In the previous article, “[On the Eve of SMAP’s Birth] The Fearless Ability of ‘Shonen-tai’ and ‘Hikaru Genji’ to Fulfill Janie Kitagawa’s Ideals,” we discussed the two groups that brought the Johnny’s office to its peak just before SMAP’s debut.
‘SMAP Can’t Dance.’
SMAP were abandoned children. They were not Johnny’s’s elite. They were dropouts.
Six members were selected from the members of the Skate Boys, who danced in the background at the height of Hikaru Genji’s popularity, and formed in April 1988. Here is a list of the members at that time in order of age.
Masahiro Nakai (15 years old)
Takuya Kimura (15)
Goro Inagaki (14)
Katsuyuki Mori (14)
Tsuyoshi Kusanagi (13)
Shingo Katori (11)
Nakai and Kimura were just after entering high school. Katori is still in elementary school. The group gives the impression of being not only disparate in age, but also disjointed.
The name “SMAP,” an acronym for “Sports Music Assemble People,” does not ring a bell at all, to be honest. At first, it seemed to be a meaningless symbol.
On New Year’s Day 1991, three years after their formation, SMAP held their first concert at the Nippon Budokan. The three performances, day and night, were fully booked. But …….
By the third time on stage, they were out of tune and their dancing was disjointed. Their smiles were drawn back. She had no stamina. However, the record company representative gave her a cruel warning. She was scheduled to make her debut in April, but the company told her that they would not be releasing her. The songs were too bad.
(Nakagawa, Usuke, “SMAP to Heisei” [SMAP and Heisei], Asahi Shinsho)
In the beginning, it was often said that SMAP could neither sing nor dance well. Later, Masahiro Nakai’s tone-deafness even became a topic of conversation. Even in 2015, the year before the breakup, Mary Kitagawa publicly stated, “SMAP can’t dance,” according to the January 29 issue of Shukan Bunshun (weekly magazine).
SMAP were abandoned children. What on earth had abandoned them?
