Sexy Zone, from which Kento Nakajima graduated, is now “timelesz”! …Why the reaction to the first delivery was so subtle

On April 1, Sexy Zone announced that the group would change its name to “timelesz” (timeless) and hold auditions to recruit new members.

At the end of March, Takeru Sato will graduate from the group, leaving the group with three members, Fuma Kikuchi, Katsutoshi Sato, and Satoshi Matsushima. It seems that the group intends to welcome new members in order to increase its power, but there has been a string of protests from fans.

In November 2011, the group made its CD debut with the title “Sexy Zone,” the same title as the group’s name. The group was originally a five-member group, but after the graduation of Mariusuha (who retired from show business on December 31, 2010) and Nakajima, Kikuchi, Sato, and Matsushima were expected to join the group from April of this year.

On April 1, Kikuchi and the others held a live broadcast on the group’s official YouTube channel. “On April 1, Kikuchi and her colleagues held a live broadcast on the group’s official YouTube channel, where they reported that the new group name had been decided to be timelesz and that the three members would be going on their first arena tour starting in June. The number of posts on the chat section of the live distribution increased rapidly, and comments of joy flowed in one after another” (entertainment writer).

However, after that, Kikuchi said, “We are holding an audition for new members to join timelesz to make timelesz more exciting together with us! and then came the shocking statement, “No, no. We’re auditioning new members to join timelesz!

The chat column was filled with negative comments such as “No,” “We don’t want any new members,” and “We want the three of them.” Some even suspected that it was an “April Fool’s” joke, since it was April 1.

However, Kikuchi, Sato, and Matsushima spoke to their fans with serious expressions. I wanted to make it an audition program,’ Kikuchi confessed, ‘in order to convince the fans what kind of thoughts we have in mind when we bring in new members. Kikuchi also said, “We came to this decision because we felt that a major reform was necessary to make a big leap forward.

The special website for the audition for new members states the following qualifications: “Applicants must be males between the ages of 18 and 30 who are able to work in Japan and who do not belong to any entertainment production companies or other organizations engaged in entertainment activities (junior members are welcome to apply). Inexperienced applicants are also welcome. No self-recommendation is necessary” (original in Japanese).

They are also looking for people who have “respect for Sexy Zone’s past activities.” The audition schedule will be announced on the special website in May or later.

The audition schedule and other details will be announced on a special site in May or later. But in the chat room, there was a lot of confusion and reticence.

In the meantime, senior members of the same STARTO ENTERTAINMENT group mentioned the timelesz member recruitment on social networking sites, with KinKi Kids’ Koichi Domoto posting on Instagram Stories, “32 years in the arts, 45 years old, not eligible to apply for new member?　Can’t I hang on?” and threw in a few words on the timelesz side. KAT-TUN’s Yuichi Nakamaru and Tatsuya Ueda also wrote on Instagram, expressing their willingness to participate in the audition,

Koichi, you’re too funny!
You’re so funny, Koichi!
The seniors are setting an interesting mood, and I can feel their love for timelesz.

I could feel their love for timelesz.

However, despite the support of their friends, many people on social networking sites are thinking of “getting off” from timelesz,

I’m not going to the tour because I’m getting out of the band.
I’m not going to go to the tour anymore. Thank you for everything.
I can’t support them without the three of them. I might quit the fan club after this tour. If I don’t win the ticket, I’ll probably get out at that point.
If I’m going to get out of the fan club, it will be at this point. If I drag it out until the tour, it will be even more painful when a new member joins the group.

Negative comments such as “If we drag it out until the tour, it will be even harder when a new member joins. After this major reform, will there be a bright future for the timelesz members and their fans?