Photo/Illutration Noriyuki Higashiyama, right, president of Johnny & Associates Inc., apologizes to victims of sexual abuse by agency founder Johnny Kitagawa at the beginning of a news conference in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward on Oct. 2. (Takeshi Iwashita)

Talent agency Johnny & Associates Inc. said Oct. 2 that it will drop the name of its sexual predator founder and be renamed “Smile-Up” tasked with compensating hundreds of abuse victims.

The agency will also establish a new company dedicated to managing its performers.

The existing company will be solely engaged in providing compensation for victims of Johnny Kitagawa’s sexual abuse starting in November. The name will be officially changed to Smile-Up on Oct. 17.

An external committee for victim relief set up by the agency said it has received reports from 478 sex abuse victims as of Sept. 30, and 325 of them are seeking compensation.

“We would like to properly create a framework that stands alongside the victims,” Noriyuki Higashiyama, president of Johnny & Associates, said at a news conference in Tokyo on Oct. 2.

Yoshihiko Inohara, president of subsidiary Johnny’s Island, and two lawyers also attended the news conference.

Former President Julie Keiko Fujishima, Kitagawa’s niece, was absent.

“I will dedicate myself to compensation and mental care of entertainers and will not engage in any other tasks,” Fujishima said in a letter read by Inohara. “I will step down as the representative director from all affiliated companies.”

Fujishima will continue to hold all shares of what will become Smile-Up. After the compensation process is complete, the company will cease operations.

Higashiyama will be representative director of Smile-Up while Fujishima will become a director.

Higashiyama, who will also be president of the new management agency, said its name will be selected from among proposals submitted through the fan club. Inohara will serve as vice president.

After persistent denials and cover-ups, Johnny & Associates on Sept. 7 acknowledged that Kitagawa, who died in 2019 at age 87, had sexually abused hundreds of boys signed by the agency over decades.

But at that news conference, the agency said it will retain the company name.

A number of companies then announced that they would stop using the agency’s idols in their advertisements. Many said the agency had not fully addressed the Kitagawa problem.

On Oct. 2, Higashiyama said about the earlier news conference: “That was indeed criticized as being inward-looking. We have since considered what a fresh start would entail.”

He said he chose the name Smile-Up, which the company registered as a trademark three years ago to promote projects for social contribution, to jump-start operations.

“While I understand that some people might find the use of the word ‘smile’ inappropriate under the circumstances, I believe that our societal responsibility is to provide support and compensation to those victimized as quickly as possible,” he said.

Asked about idol groups bearing the “Johnny’s” name, such as “Kanjani Eight” and “Johnny’s West,” Higashiyama said he heard that group members were considering name changes.

“These names have been loved by many fans, so I think the group members must be torn and made a tough decision,” he said. “Anything with Johnny’s in the name will be discontinued.”

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