“Could They Be Getting Married…?” Fans Are on Edge Over ‘King & Prince’ Ren Nagase’s Money-Making Tactics

A sales tactic that has fans scratching their heads

From September 8 to October 23, he will hold his first-ever fan meeting,“Nagase Ren 1st Fan Meeting 2026,” is scheduled to take place in five cities nationwide. On August 20, Ren Nagase (27) of “King & Prince” announced that an online scratch-off game exclusive to fan club members will go on sale starting at 12:00 PM on September 8.

“The scratch-off prizes range from Prize A to Prize D, and you can enjoy them as many times as you like during the event period!” (12:00 PM on September 8 – 11:59 PM on October 24), the promotion stated.“The lineup—Prize A: Blister-pack mini acrylic stand charm (1 design), Prize B: Marker charm (2 designs), Prize C: Mini drawstring pouch (1 design), and Prize D: Acrylic carabiner (5 designs)—is sure to have fans drooling,” said a sports newspaper entertainment reporter.

Each entry costs 800 yen (tax included; same applies below), and payment methods include credit card and deferred payment (Paydi). A separate shipping fee of 950 yen applies, and items will reportedly begin shipping at the end of December, after the sales period ends.

“These are items you’ll want to carry around with you, so I imagine there are quite a few people who’ll be thinking, ‘I want to get all nine.’On social media, while there are delighted comments like ‘There are so many items I want’ and ‘I’m happy that they’re all practical,’ there are also realistic reactions such as, ‘I want them all, but I wonder how much it’ll cost to collect the whole set. I’m afraid I’ll end up spending a fortune.’ Since it’s a scratch-off lottery, there’s no guarantee you’ll get the item you really want,” (ibid.)

Nagase is also set to release his “First Photo Book & Essay Collection: ‘Nichinichi Koi Ren’ (tentative title)” (Shueisha) in January 2027.A “Handshake Event & Talk Show” has been announced to commemorate the release. Those who pre-order the first-press limited edition Premium Box (which includes a chance to win entry to the handshake event & talk show and a serial code to watch the online talk show) on Tower Records Online during the specified period will be entered into a lottery to attend the event.

The photo book “handout event” and talk show featuring the artist herself will take place on January 23 of next year, but the pre-order period runs from 5:00 PM on July 14 of this year until 11:59 PM on August 17.The Premium Box is priced at 8,800 yen. Tower Records’ special website states : “Due to the nature of the lottery system, there is a purchase limit of 10 items per person per transaction,” and “Each pre-order counts as one entry into the lottery. If you pre-order multiple items, you will receive multiple entries.” Since the winners will be announced on September 4, you won’t know the result at the time of pre-order. Those who absolutely want to participate have no choice but to buy multiple items and hope for the best.

Fans’ Unfounded Worries

Meanwhile, last July, *Josei Seven* (Shogakukan) reported that Nagase was in a romantic relationship with actress Minami Hamabe (26).

“Although the two have never openly co-starred in a drama or anything like that, it was reported that after enjoying a secret date at a teppanyaki restaurant in Tokyo, they were seen heading straight by taxi to the apartment building where Nagase lives.It is said that Hamabe did not emerge from the apartment building that day. Photos of Nagase and Hamabe walking at a distance from each other were also published, shocking fans of both stars,” (ibid.)

A year has passed since the dating reports first surfaced, but no definitive photos of the two together have been taken since then. While it remains unclear whether they are actually dating now, Nagase’s fans seem to harbor a hint of unease over the succession of “money-making schemes.”

This is because Nagase’s fan club membership costs 660 yen per month, or 6,600 yen per year.There is also a high-priced plan costing 15,000 yen per year that comes with merchandise. In addition to this, more recently, dedicated Nagase fans have likely been facing a steady stream of expenses—including fan meeting ticket fees (6,800 yen), various fan meeting merchandise, photo books, and online scratch-off tickets.

“Some fans are worried, asking, ‘Is this a pattern where he just gets us to spend money on the scratch-off tickets, only to announce his marriage right around the time the prizes arrive?’ or ‘Ren-kun, with fan meetings through his personal fan club, photo books (including handout events), merchandise… he’s raking in a ton of money from fans—could he be planning to get married?’”

Kazuya Kamenashi (40), a former member of “KAT-TUN” who announced his marriage to freelance announcer and actress Minami Tanaka (39) this past June, is said to have held online raffles through his personal fan club in the past. “Isn’t he using the same sales tactics as Kamenashi-kun?”“I’m a little nervous about the scratch-off tickets because of what happened with Kamenashi-kun,” they say, clearly apprehensive,” (a record company source)

Incidentally, “King & Prince” established a new company, “King & Prince Co., Ltd.,” in May 2024. As a group, they currently have an agency contract with STARTO ENTERTAINMENT (formerly Johnny’s). Only Nagase has launched his own fan club, so he may be adopting a more flexible approach to his solo activities.

Will the fans’ concerns turn out to be unfounded?