Tag - smap

 
 

SMAP

Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jun 19, 2017
Three former SMAP singers to leave talent agency in September
Goro Inagaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Shingo Katori, three former members of the ultrapopular boy band SMAP, will leave their management company, Johnny & Associates, in September, the agency said.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Dec 30, 2016
The top entertainment stories of 2016
The Japan Times newsroom selected these culture stories as the most important of 2016.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 25, 2016
Love 'em or hate 'em, the end of SMAP marks the end of an era
The Olympics have always been popular in Japan, and this year's games in Rio de Janeiro were no exception. While NHK was broadcasting the games in the early hours of Aug. 14, a breaking news message flashed across the screen: "SMAP to disband Dec. 31."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 18, 2016
Japan's pop music scene saw a power struggle in 2016
Media, both domestic and overseas, spent a lot of time focused on the streaming services arriving in Japan in 2016. Months of "Can these platforms thrive in CD-loving Japan?" speculation reached a climax in September, when global market leader Spotify finally debuted here. There was a big press conference,...
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Dec 5, 2016
Let's discuss SMAP's 'Kohaku' no-show
NHK announced the lineup for the next edition of its 'Kohaku' music contest, but SMAP was not on the list.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Nov 24, 2016
SMAP set to skip year-end 'Kohaku'
NHK announced the lineup Thursday for the 67th edition of its annual "Kohaku" year-end music contest, but the country's top boy band SMAP was not on the list.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Sep 12, 2016
Pop group SMAP to split up at year's end
Hugely popular boy band SMAP will break up at the end of the year, their management agency has announced.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Aug 14, 2016
It's true: SMAP to split up at year's end
After a quarter-century run, the Japanese boy band SMAP has decided to call it quits on Dec. 31, its management agency said in a press release Sunday, shocking die-hard fans in Asia and around the world.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jul 8, 2016
'I Absolutely Love You'; 'How Do You Do, I Love You'; Toyota
Love vs. career is the theme of the new drama series "Seisei Suru Hodo Aishite Iru" ("I Absolutely Love You"; TBS, Tues., 10 p.m.), which is based on a popular manga.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 17, 2016
Breaking into and out of Japanese show biz
Eiji Uchida's scabrous new comedy about the struggles of a down-and-out indie film director, "Lowlife Love" ("Gesu no Ai"), confirms what I have known for years: Japanese show business can be brutal to the weak or clueless. They end up used and discarded, like so many human Kleenexes.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Feb 15, 2016
SMAP's 2003 single tops chart
An old CD single by SMAP returned to No. 1 in the charts as fans alarmed by news of the group's apparently imminent breakup launched a campaign to show their support for the group.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 23, 2016
SMAP dodges bullet; Becky isn't so lucky
When media leaked intelligence on Jan. 10 that eternal boy band SMAP might be dissolving, the outpouring of fan emotion overwhelmed anything else that was happening in the show business world. One person who was probably grateful for the distraction was Rebecca Eri Ray Vaughan, the TV personality better...

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