Hitomi Tanaka Covers for Kokubun’s Blunder at TV Tokyo Music Fest—Seen Unwinding at Chinese Diner
She perfectly filled the gap left by Taichi Kokubun!
“It’s finally over~~”
That’s likely the kind of conversation she was having with her colleagues. Even with a smile on her face, there was a hint of fatigue in the expression of TV Tokyo announcer Hitomi Tanaka (28).
On July 9, a live broadcast of TV Tokyo Music Festival 2025 – Summer – was held at the TV Tokyo Tennozu Studio (Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo).
“This music program has been airing since 2014 as a large-scale annual music show by TV Tokyo. It’s structured in two parts—first and second halves. The very first edition in 2014 featured George Tokoro (70) as the main host, with Taichi Kokubun (50) hosting the second half. From the second edition in 2015 onward, Kokubun took over as the main host, and out of the 16 broadcasts to date, he’s hosted 13 of them. He also served as main host in the November 2024 edition,” explained a TV magazine writer.
“This time, he was also scheduled to host. However, on June 20, Nippon TV announced that Kokubun would step down from The! Tetsuwan! DASH!! due to past compliance issues. On the same day, his hiatus from activities was announced, and on June 25, the disbandment of TOKIO was revealed. Following that, TV Tokyo also announced Kokubun’s removal from this program.”
As a result, the broadcast went ahead without a replacement—an unprecedented decision to air the show with no main host. Since February 2022, announcer Hitomi Tanaka has served as the lead presenter, and this time she handled the entire program on her own. The show ran for a whopping 4 hours and 24 minutes, from 5:30 PM to 9:54 PM. At the beginning of the program, she greeted viewers:
“We’re joined by all the artists and supporters who make the TV Tokyo Music Festival possible! Thank you for being here!”
At that moment, the participating artists smiled toward the camera, as if in collective support of Tanaka.
With additional support from comedy duo New York, the broadcast went smoothly without major issues. Just 30 minutes after the show ended, Tanaka appeared outside the studio accompanied by several staff members. Wearing a polka-dot dress and carrying large bags on both shoulders, she looked relaxed—but understandably, a bit worn out.
You might have thought she’d head straight home, but instead, she entered a small nearby izakaya (Japanese pub). Shortly after, a location bus arrived, and several people who appeared to be staff joined her inside. It seemed to be a wrap party.
No doubt, the drinks that night tasted especially good.
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Announcer Hitomi Tanaka during her appearance on the November 2024 broadcast of “TV Tokyo Music Festival Special 1964→2024 60 Years of Hit Songs! The Shocking Music Footage Best 100 (from her official Instagram @hitomi_tanaka_9).
