Smile-Up

Smile-Up is the name adopted in October 2023 by the Japanese talent-management company historically known as Johnny & Associates. The organization was founded in 1962 by Johnny Kitagawa and became one of Japan's most influential agencies for male singers, actors, television personalities and idol groups. For most of its history, the company combined artist representation with unusually extensive control over recording, publishing, concert production, merchandising, advertising and fan communications. Its roster helped define the Japanese male-idol system, particularly from the 1980s onward, when groups such as Hikaru Genji, SMAP, Arashi, KinKi Kids, V6, KAT-TUN, NEWS, Hey! Say! JUMP and other acts became major forces in music and television. The agency's operating model was built around recruiting young trainees, known as Johnny's Juniors, and developing them through singing, dancing, acting, stage performance and television appearances. Rather than treating performers solely as recording artists, the company cultivated broad entertainment personalities. During the 1990s, variety-show hosting and presenting became increasingly important, allowing members to remain commercially relevant beyond the conventional life cycle of a pop idol. The organization also created or controlled affiliated labels, publishing and production activities, a large fan-club network and live-event infrastructure. Its influence was consequently broader than that of a conventional record label or booking agency. Johnny & Associates was also known for strict management of publicity rights and the use of performers' likenesses. For many years, official websites and media partners limited the online publication of artist photographs, while the company maintained direct communication with fans through its membership-based Family Club and related services. The policy gradually loosened: approved images became more widely available, trainee groups received an official YouTube presence, and the agency later expanded onto streaming and social-media platforms. The company's reputation was severely damaged by longstanding allegations that Johnny Kitagawa sexually abused boys and young men connected with the agency. Allegations had circulated publicly for decades, but a 2023 investigation and subsequent public scrutiny intensified pressure on the company, its leadership and business partners. Kitagawa had died in 2019, but the company remained associated with his legacy and was criticized for failing to address the allegations adequately during his lifetime. Julie Keiko Fujishima resigned as president in September 2023, while Noriyuki Higashiyama became president for a transitional period. On October 2, 2023, the company announced a corporate separation. The existing entity was renamed Smile-Up and assigned responsibility for identifying victims, processing claims and making reparations connected with the abuse allegations. The talent-management business was transferred to a separate company, Starto Entertainment. As a result, Smile-Up no longer represents the former Johnny's roster as its principal entertainment agency. Its post-2023 identity is primarily associated with compensation, victim support and the winding down or administration of obligations inherited from Johnny & Associates. Charity and social-contribution initiatives formerly associated with the Smile Up! Project were later reorganized separately, including through the Mindful organization.

Johnny & Associates began in 1962 when Johnny Kitagawa formed the group Johnnys and established an agency devoted to developing male performers. In its early period, the business operated from premises connected with Watanabe Productions. Four Leaves became an important early success in the late 1960s, helping establish the agency's model of a male group whose appeal depended on coordinated singing, dancing, personality and stage presentation rather than instrumental performance alone. During the 1970s and 1980s, Kitagawa developed a trainee pipeline through which young performers entered the agency as Johnny's Juniors and received instruction and exposure before debuting. The strategy helped popularize the modern Japanese male-idol system. Acts including Masahiko Kondo and Hikaru Genji brought the company major chart and awards success. Hikaru Genji's 1988 chart performance demonstrated the commercial scale that a Johnny group could achieve, while Kondo's later recognition at the Japan Record Awards confirmed the agency's continuing influence in mainstream music. The business expanded beyond recordings. During the 1990s, the agency increasingly trained and marketed its performers as television personalities and variety-show hosts. This broadened the careers of group members and made the agency a central supplier of talent for Japanese television, film, advertising and stage productions. Johnny & Associates also launched Johnny's Entertainment as a record label in 1997 and maintained a strong concert business. Beginning in 1996, the annual Johnny's Countdown Live became a prominent New Year's Eve event broadcast from Tokyo Dome. The company maintained a distinctive degree of vertical integration and control. It participated in recording, publishing, concert production, merchandising and advertising, while fan contact was organized through the Family Club and related services. For many years, the agency restricted the online use of performers' photographs and managed publicity rights tightly. It also developed a reputation for limiting overseas distribution and keeping many official communications within its own controlled channels. These practices gradually changed: the agency permitted broader press use of approved photographs, created an official YouTube channel for selected trainee groups in 2018, and later expanded its use of streaming and social media. The agency experienced several major internal and public turning points in the 2010s. SMAP, one of its most prominent groups, dissolved in 2016 after an internal management conflict involving the group's manager and senior members of the Fujishima family. In 2018, the company began publishing more trainee content on YouTube. After Johnny Kitagawa died in July 2019, Julie Keiko Fujishima became president. Hideaki Takizawa was placed in a senior management role connected with trainee development, but he left the organization in 2022; Yoshihiko Inohara subsequently took a vice-presidential role. The most consequential crisis concerned allegations that Kitagawa had sexually abused boys and young men associated with the agency. Although allegations and reporting had existed for many years, renewed investigations and testimony in 2023 produced sustained domestic and international scrutiny. The company was criticized for its governance, its historical handling of complaints and the broader entertainment industry's dependence on its artists. Fujishima resigned as president in September 2023 and Noriyuki Higashiyama was appointed to lead the transition. On October 2, 2023, Johnny & Associates announced a two-company structure. The existing company changed its name to Smile-Up and assumed responsibility for identifying victims and making reparations. Starto Entertainment was created to manage the entertainment operations and the artists formerly represented by Johnny & Associates. Starto began its public activities in 2024 through concerts and related projects. Smile-Up's post-restructuring role is therefore not that of a conventional talent agency: it is principally an administrative and reparations organization dealing with the consequences of the former company's legacy. Separate social-contribution work associated with the Smile Up! Project was later moved toward the Mindful organization.

1. 2024Entertainment operations transferred to Starto

   Starto Entertainment began operating the talent-management side of the former agency, separating it from Smile-Up's reparations role.

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2. 2023Company renamed Smile-Up

   The former Johnny & Associates entity was designated to handle reparations and support connected with abuse allegations against Kitagawa.

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3. 2022Hideaki Takizawa leaves the company

   Takizawa departed from his executive role, and Yoshihiko Inohara replaced him as vice president.

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4. 2019Leadership changes after Kitagawa's death

   After Johnny Kitagawa died, Julie Keiko Fujishima became president and the organization revised its management structure.

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5. 2018Trainee YouTube channel launched

   Selected Johnny's Juniors received an official YouTube channel, marking a significant move toward online distribution.

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6. 2011Marching J launched

   The agency organized a fundraising initiative for victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and related disaster.

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7. 1997Johnny's Entertainment established

   The company founded an affiliated record label to support releases by its managed performers.

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8. 1996Johnny's Countdown Live begins

   The agency began its annual New Year's Eve countdown concert tradition, later associated with a live Tokyo Dome broadcast.

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9. 1988Hikaru Genji reaches major chart prominence

   Hikaru Genji became the first Johnny group to place three singles on the Japanese year-end Oricon chart.

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10. 1968Four Leaves becomes an early breakthrough act

    Four Leaves helped define the agency's early group-oriented model and became an important influence on later Japanese male idol acts.

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11. 1962Agency founded

    Johnny Kitagawa formed the first group Johnnys and established the talent agency that later became Johnny & Associates.

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Historically, Japan's dominant vertically integrated male-idol and entertainment-management agency; since 2023, a successor entity focused on reparations and support related to allegations against its former founder.

• Talent managementProfessional services1962

  The historic core service was the recruitment, training and representation of male singers, actors, television personalities and stage performers. The agency developed young trainees through singing, dance, acting and live performance before assigning them to groups or solo careers. After the 2023 restructuring, this activity was transferred to Starto Entertainment rather than remaining a principal Smile-Up business.

• Music and entertainment productionMedia and entertainment

  Johnny & Associates historically participated in recordings, publishing, concerts, stage shows, television appearances, films, advertising and merchandise. This integrated model gave the agency substantial control over how its performers were presented and monetized. The entertainment operations were separated from Smile-Up in 2023 and assigned to Starto Entertainment.

• Family ClubFan services

  The Family Club and related membership services served as the agency's principal direct communication channel with fans. It distributed information about artists, performances and memberships and reflected the company's historically centralized approach to fan relationships and publicity.

• Reparations administrationCorporate remediation2023

  Following the October 2023 restructuring, Smile-Up assumed responsibility for receiving and assessing claims, communicating with people who reported abuse and administering compensation and related support connected with allegations against Johnny Kitagawa. This function defines the company's post-rebranding role.

• 2024Noto Peninsula earthquake relief

  Japan

  Smile-Up announced donation boxes at selected concert, theater and pop-up-store locations and reported a contribution to relief efforts after the Noto Peninsula earthquake.

  Outcome. Donation collection and direct disaster-relief contribution.

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• 2020Smile Up! Project

  Japan

  The agency organized health and social-support initiatives during the COVID-19 pandemic. A temporary unit named Twenty Twenty released the song "Smile" to support the project, and later public-awareness videos promoted handwashing, mask use and other preventive measures.

  Outcome. Digital and physical music releases plus public-health messaging.

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• 2011Marching J

  Japan

  Artists and trainees participated in fundraising events for victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake. The program included public talk sessions, performances and a junior baseball event, while some planned concerts were cancelled or postponed and logistical supplies were redirected to relief work.

  Outcome. Disaster-relief fundraising and in-kind support.

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• 1998J-Friends

  Japan

  KinKi Kids, V6 and Tokio formed a temporary charity unit to raise funds for people affected by the 1995 Hanshin and Awaji earthquake. The project continued through several activities before ending in 2003.

  Outcome. Temporary charity project; concluded in 2003.

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• 2023Separate reparations from entertainment operationsStrategy

  The company faced sustained scrutiny over allegations against Johnny Kitagawa and criticism of its handling of complaints and corporate accountability.

  What changed. The existing company was renamed Smile-Up and assigned reparations responsibilities, while Starto Entertainment was established for artist management and entertainment operations.

  Aftermath. Smile-Up ceased to be the principal agency for the former Johnny's artists, whose entertainment activities moved to Starto.

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• 2018Expand trainee distribution through YouTubeStrategy

  The agency had historically restricted online access to performer images and content.

  What changed. It launched an official YouTube channel for selected Johnny's Junior groups.

  Aftermath. The move formed part of a broader gradual shift toward online video, social media and streaming distribution.

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• 2023Sexual-abuse allegations against Johnny KitagawaControversy

  Former performers and other individuals associated with the agency described sexual abuse by founder Johnny Kitagawa. Renewed investigation and testimony in 2023 led to intense criticism of the company's governance, its historical response and the wider industry relationships that enabled the agency to remain powerful. Kitagawa died in 2019, before the company announced its 2023 restructuring.

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• 2024Smile-Up announces support for victims of the Noto Peninsula earthquake

  The company announced donation boxes at selected concert, theater and pop-up-store venues and reported a donation to the Noto Peninsula earthquake relief fund.

  Other
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• 2024Smile Up! Project charity activities reorganized under Mindful

  The former charity initiative was reorganized through a new general incorporated association intended to continue social-contribution and support activities.

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• 2022Hideaki Takizawa leaves Johnny & Associates

  Takizawa resigned as vice president and departed the company; Yoshihiko Inohara subsequently took the vice-president role.

  Leadership change
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• 2019Johnny Kitagawa dies after decades leading the agency

  Founder Johnny Kitagawa died in July 2019, after which Julie Keiko Fujishima became president.

  Leadership change
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• 2018Johnny & Associates expands digital distribution and social media access

  The agency began easing long-standing restrictions on online photography and launched a YouTube channel for selected trainee groups.

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1. Johnny & Associates
2. Johnny's official website