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Former Johnny's and Associates Members File Lawsuit in U.S. Against Talent Agency About Late Founder's Sexual Abuse
posted on by Alex Mateo
Junya Tanaka and Kyohei Iida, former members of the talent agency previously known as Johnny's and Associates, have filed a lawsuit in Clark County, Nevada against Johnny's. Tanaka claimed that the agency's late founder Johnny Kitagawa sexually abused him when he was 15 years old in March 1997 at a hotel in Las Vegas hotel. Iida claimed similar abuse from when he was 14 years old in August 2002. Tanaka also alleged regular abuse from 1997-1998, and Iida stated the same for 2002-2006. The two are each seeking US$50 million in compensatory damages and US$100 million in punitive damages.
The lawsuit holds Kitagawa's niece Julie Keiko Fujishima and other former executives responsible for not taking action despite knowing about the abuse.
Tanaka was a former member of Kansai Johnny's Jr. Iida was a former member and founder of the boy band Kis-My-Ft2.
The talent agency previously known as Johnny's and Associates changed its name to STARTO ENTERTAINMENT in in December 2023. The company's new president is Atsushi Fukuda, who was previously the vice-president of Sony Pictures Entertainment and also previously the president and CEO of Sony Digital Entertainment. The company had previously stated that it would establish a separate new entity to oversee talent management operations.
STARTO ENTERTAINMENT stated that in addition to the company's current services, it will launch three new initiatives: establishing a music streaming platform, "[increasing] global openness and overseas outreach," and entering the Metaverse.
Johnny's & Associates president Noriyuki Higashiyama announced in early October that the agency was changing its name to Smile Up starting in October 2023, as part of the company's "vision" to earn back fans' trust.
Smile Up is responsible for handling the compensation measures for sexual abuse victims of the agency's late founder Kitagawa, and started that process in November 2023. The company will shut down after the compensation measures are completed. Higashiyama is still listed as the president of Smile Up.
After the October announcement, idol group Johnny's West announced they have changed their name to "WEST." (with a period), removing the "Johnny's" from their name.
The former Johnny's and Associates agency publicly admitted for the first time in September 2023 that Kitagawa did sexually abuse a large number of aspiring pop star teenagers from the 1970s to 2010s.
In September 2023, then-president Fujishima stated she was retiring as president, but will remain the representative director and owner of the company. The agency stated it is taking measures to compensate for the damage caused and prevent reoccurrences.
Source: The Mainichi
