Keigo Oyamada’s “Long Explanation Letter” Reveals His Desire to Return to NHK E

Keigo Oyamada, the musician who resigned from his position as a musician for the opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics because of his “boasting” about bullying in the past, is begging to resume his activities.

Oyamada gave an interview to “Shukan Bunshun” published on September 16, and on September 17, he mentioned the series of disturbances on the SNS of his solo unit “Cornelius”.

In past magazines, Koyamada has talked about the harsh bullying of his classmates, which he was afraid to put into words, but according to Bunshun and his explanations, he claims that he was only a “bystander” and not the perpetrator. In a 5,000-word statement on Cornelius’ social networking site, he wrote

“I made my classmates eat excrement and masturbate.

I did not make him do it or suggest it.

There is no evidence that I made them do it, suggested it, or forced them to do it.

He wrote. On top of that.

On the way home from elementary school, one of my classmates jokingly said he could eat dog shit on the street, picked it up, put it in his mouth and immediately spit it out.

It’s true that everyone there, including him, laughed. In the interview with the magazine, he said that he pretended that he had done it as part of his image strategy as an artist or because of the magazine’s editing.

On the other hand, for A, a classmate with disabilities

He’s one of my friends.
I honestly feel that it’s difficult to call him anything other than a friend.

On the other hand, in the August 1995 issue of “Quick Japan,” he took the liberty of publishing a New Year’s card sent by Mr. A. “Did you receive any New Year’s cards?

In the “Quick Japan” (August ’95 issue), the magazine took the liberty of showing a New Year’s card sent by Ms. A. “I received New Year’s cards and stuff, but when I got them, my mom drew a line on the postcard with a ruler and wrote ‘Happy New Year’ and ‘All the best for this year’ on it in pencil, in very dirty handwriting (laughs).

He laughed at me. (laughs)” It is questionable whether this is the kind of thing one would do to a “friend.

However, Oyamada is hoping that this interview with Bunshun and his 5,000-word explanation will settle the matter.

“The criticism was directed not only at Oyamada, but also at her son, who is also involved in music. As you can imagine, Oyamada was heartbroken and decided that it would be a bad idea if he didn’t put an end to it. His work has also all come to a halt due to the series of disturbances. It seems that he wants to use this statement to say that he has fulfilled his accountability and somehow pave the way for the resumption of his activities.

The only program mentioned in the statement is “Design Ah,” a children’s program on NHK E-TV, for which Oyamada is in charge of music. The program is currently off the air due to the controversy. In a letter of explanation, Oyamada told NHK

I regret that I should have apologized and explained to the public more widely.

Regarding the program he was involved in for 10 years, he said

I felt a sense of fulfillment as if my music had a connection with society for the first time, and I felt a kind of joy that I had never experienced just from creating my own works, being able to help stimulate children’s sensitivity.

He emphasized.

“For Mr. Oyamada, that program was his life’s work. It seems that he was more shocked by the suspension of “Design Ah” than by the fact that he would no longer be in charge of music for the Olympics.

The fact that he mentioned the program’s name in his statement and conveyed his message may have been a plea to E-television. They have a strong desire to be involved again.

NHK, to be honest, also wants to restart the program. The reason why the program is currently “on hiatus” rather than “canceled” is probably because they are watching for a change in the direction of the public.

“In fact, NHK has received many requests from households raising children to resume the program. If Oyamada’s actions were true, it would be terrible, but some people think that the work is different. There were many families for whom watching the program was part of their routine before going to school, and some of them said that their children were crying.

It’s not clear whether the statement is enough to convince them or not, but it does raise the question of how much “compensation” can be expected for past comments. How will the message from Oyamada and the show’s fans reach NHK?