Johnny & Associates renamed SMILE-UP. to focus on victim compensation

On 17 October 2023, the Tokyo talent agency Johnny & Associates announced that it would change its name to SMILE-UP. The decision followed the company's admission that its late founder, Johnny Kitagawa, had sexually abused many young male trainees and performers over decades.

The agency had long been one of Japan's most powerful entertainment businesses, managing major boy bands. Allegations against Kitagawa, who died in 2019, had circulated for years but received little mainstream coverage in Japan. Pressure grew in 2023 after a BBC documentary and public accounts from former members, and an outside expert panel concluded that the abuse had occurred. Julie Fujishima, Kitagawa's niece, resigned as president in September, and Noriyuki Higashiyama, a former member of the group Tokyo-based agency's own talent, took over.

Under the plan, SMILE-UP. would keep operating mainly to compensate victims, while its entertainers would move to a separate new management company. The change removed the founder's name from the business and set up the compensation process that victims' groups and the company later negotiated over.