Former Johnny’s Jr. Nakamura Kazuya comes out and said he was also sexually abused by Kitagawa Johnny

More men who were former members of Johnny’s Jimusho are coming out to say they were sexually assaulted by Johnny’s Jimusho founder Kitagawa Johnny.

In an article with Bunshun, former Johnny’s Jr. Nakamura Kazuya (35) talked about how he was sexually assaulted by Kitagawa.

Nakamura looked back on his feelings when he first looked at the audience from the Tokyo Dome stage. The fun days with his peers, the effort he put into his lessons, and his ecstasy on stage. But what happened just a few hours later forced him to throw everything away.

Nakamura said, “It was October 19th, 2002 when I was assaulted. The reason why the date is clear is that there was a concert commemorating Tackey & Tsubasa’s debut at Tokyo Dome on this day”.

Nakamura also performed, and since there was the same performance the next day, I decided to stay at Mr. Johnny’s house. He recalls that about five people stayed there that day. He was sleeping next to three juniors in an upstairs room. Nakamura was in the middle. It was late at night.

“He entered the futon from my feet and immediately recognized him as Mr. Johnny. I was scared and couldn’t move. I was familiar with it, so I was also shocked. When I was being assaulted, I imagined that I was being assaulted by a girl and I just wanted him to finish. I feel that it was quite long. I think it was about 30 minutes. The next morning, I was having breakfast with Mr. Johnny and the other juniors. Under the table, his foot was rubbed against the top of my foot. That was terrifying again”.

Nakamura, who was in the third year of junior high school and was 15 years old, immediately left junior activities due to preparing for exams.

Nakamura said, “After that, one of my good friends, Junior, contacted me and said, ‘Come and stay here because Johnny is calling you,’ but I said, ‘I don’t want it. I told him that I was quitting”.

Nakamura has since left the entertainment industry and now runs a business.

On this same day that the article was released, former Johnny’s Jr. Nihongi Akimasa (39) responded to a hearing from the Constitutional Democratic Party in the Diet on the 31st regarding sexual assault by Johnny Kitagawa, former president of Johnny’s Office (died in 2019).

Nihongi said, “In the year and a half that I was enrolled in the office, I heard about a dozen victims, including those from Johnny’s Jr., who was about to enter the office”.

Nihongi recalled, “I used to share my experiences of sexual abuse with the juniors on a daily basis. There were also people who were subjected to acts that escalated”.

When asked why he was unable to report the damage to others while information was being shared among the juniors, he replied, “Since then, there have been books that expose the damage, and the general public has heard (rumours) about it. I think there were a lot of people who were harassed, but there was no movement in the media”.

Actor/director Kitano Takeshi who attended the 76th Cannes International Film Festival was asked by the Hollywood Reporter about the sexual assault problem of Johnny’s Jimusho and Kitano said, “This story has always been (in this industry).  The time has finally come for Japan to speak up about LGBTQ issues and sexual harassment”.

Director Kitano mentioned that there have been several influential entertainment agencies in Japan since the end of World War II, and that “these agencies treat talent like slaves, and that has continued to this day”.

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