Masaki Aiba’s Ratings Reign Returns, Surpassing “Snow Man”

Popular group “Snow Man,” affiliated with SMILE-UP. (formerly Johnny’s Entertainment), set a new record for “YouTube Live simultaneous connections” recognized by the Japan Record Certification Association, with over 1.33 million simultaneous connections during their live stream on New Year’s Eve last year.

While the group is the only one within its agency to have a regular program in the golden prime time slot (7:00 PM to 11:00 PM, hereinafter referred to as the GP slot) with “Sore Snow Man ni Yarasete Kudasai (Sore Snow),” airing on TBS on Friday evenings at 8:00 PM, despite the highly successful live stream, its viewership ratings are known to struggle.

“Originally, ‘Sore Snow’ started as a special program in the late-night slot. It moved to Sunday afternoons in April 2021 and advanced to the GP slot in April last year. When it was broadcast in the daytime slot, it had a relaxed atmosphere with many interesting segments. However, after moving to the GP slot with a more substantial budget, it seems that many of the segments did not resonate with viewers. The average household viewership ratings for January broadcasts were 4.3% on the 12th, 4.9% on the 19th, and 5.1% on the 26th (according to Video Research, Kanto region). It consistently ranks fourth among the key commercial networks in the same time slot. If things continue like this, there might be another time slot change.” (TBS insider)

Currently, among other former Johnny’s groups, Arashi’s Masaki Aiba (41) holds regular programs in the GP slot. He took over the time slot of Arashi’s flagship program, “VS Arashi,” with “Ki7◎×Bu” (Fuji TV, Thursdays at 7:00 PM), and also hosts “I LOVE Minna no Doubutsuen” (NTV, Saturdays at 7:00 PM), which succeeded the late Ken Shimura’s show “Genius! Shimura Zoo.” Additionally, outside of the GP slot, he appears as the host of “Aiba Manabu” (TV Asahi, Sundays at 6:00 PM).

Sho Sakurai (42) of Arashi originally took over the time slot of Arashi’s flagship program, “Arashi ni Shiyagare,” with “Zenkoku Gotouchi News Variety: 130 Million People’s Show Channel” (NTV, Saturdays at 9:00 PM). He also appears as a regular on “Sakurai Ariyoshi The Night” (TBS, Thursdays at 10:00 PM), alongside comedian Hiroshi Araki (49). Additionally, following “SHOW Channel,” the sequel to the leading drama, “Shin Kuko Senkyo” (NTV, Saturdays at 10:00 PM), is currently airing.