Johnny’s Fans Stir Up Controversy Over “GENERATIONS” Sano’s Dance Performance

The behavior of a certain celebrity in the dance segment of an annual music program is causing a bit of a stir.

The music program “Music Day” was broadcast on TBS on July 13. The program featured a dance battle as in ’23. Many dance groups appeared on the program, transcending the boundaries of their offices, and the excitement on SNS and other social networking sites surpassed that of the previous show. The slot itself became an hour long, and even though it was held for the second time, it has become a major presence in the program.

This year’s event was not just a dance performance, but also a battle of the dancers. In addition to group competitions, there was also a “1-on-1 Dance Battle” in which solo dancers competed against each other, resulting in a rich variety. It may have been the program’s intention to showcase a variety of dances, but dance culture is still relatively unfamiliar in Japan. However, the way in which the dances were presented was a little lacking in consideration.

The “1-on-1 Dance Battle” was a hot topic. The topic of discussion was the “1-on-1 Dance Battle,” in which members from each group who were particularly confident in their dancing danced one-on-one. Sano, just before the dance began, hit Nakamura on the head and made a pushing gesture.

This was of course part of the performance, and Sano and Nakamura had no ill feelings toward each other, but to fans who are not used to seeing dance battles, it was seen as “violent.

Sano performed Krumping, a genre derived from hip-hop. It is one of the most violent and provocative dance genres, and when the intro music began to play, Sano and Nakamura glared at each other. It is evident that Nakamura felt Sano’s seriousness and responded accordingly.

However, some fans of STARTO ENTERTAINMENT started a series of condemnatory posts about Sano’s performance.

Even though I understood that it was a battle, the dance was extremely offensive.
Was it really necessary to put that kind of violent performance in the show?

Sano’s own fans were also very displeased with the show. In response, Sano apologized on his blog. The result was not good for Sano, who had just given a wonderful performance.

However, it was not Nakamura’s fans who expressed their displeasure and voiced their criticism on social networking sites.

Most of the people who voiced their criticism were fans of other groups belonging to STARTO ENTERTAINMENT. This is because Travis Japan itself has performed at many outside events, such as the live events of the large-scale dance and vocal project “D.U.N.K.,” and is familiar with such scenes. Fans of other groups who are not used to such scenes went out of control, and Sano had to apologize.

Sano has been paying attention to Nakamura’s dancing skills since last year, and showed on SNS that she was happy to see Nakamura again at this year’s Music Day. On the other hand, Nakamura also said on Instagram Stories after the show, “I really appreciate you for seriously bumping into me as a dancer,” showing a glimpse of mutual respect.

With the dance scene on the rise, “battles” between groups are necessary for future development. Without friendly competition, it is difficult to grow.

In addition to the dance battles between the dancers themselves, it may be important in the future to cultivate an eye for external “battles” so that they do not detract from the performance.