How Old Is Johnny Kitagawa? Johnny Kitagawa Birthday
Johnny Kitagawa was born on October 23, 1931 and is 92 years old now.
Birthday: October 23, 1931
How Old - Age: 92
Johnny Kitagawa Death Fact Check
Johnny is alive and kicking and is currently 92 years old.
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Johnny Kitagawa - Biography
Johnny Hiromu Kitagawa (ジャニー喜多川, Janī Kitagawa) (born John Hiromu Kitagawa (喜多川 擴, Kitagawa Hiromu, October 23, 1928), is the founder and president of Johnny & Associates, a production agency for numerous popular boy bands in Japan. Kitagawa assembled, produced and managed more than a dozen popular bands, including SMAP, Arashi, Kanjani8, Hey! Say! JUMP, V6, NEWS and KAT-TUN. Kitagawa's influence has spread beyond music to the realms of theatre and television. Regarded as one of the most powerful figures in the Japanese entertainment industry, he has held a virtual monopoly on the creation of boy bands in Japan for more than 40 years.
In 1968, Kitagawa achieved wider success with a four-member boy band known as Four Leaves (フォーリーブス Fō Rībusu). The song and dance group met with success, as reflected by seven consecutive appearances on the annual invitation-only Kōhaku Uta Gassen (紅白歌合戦 Red White Song Battle), beginning in 1970. Four Leaves performed together for ten years before disbanding in 1978. Later, in 2002, Kitagawa oversaw the band's reunion.
Kitagawa went on to assemble, produce and manage many of the top all-male bands in the country, including groups such as Hey! Say! JUMP, SMAP, Tokio, V6, Arashi, Tackey & Tsubasa, Kanjani8, NEWS, KAT-TUN, KinKi Kids and among many others. Kitagawa was able to expand his sphere of influence to include television, as his performers regularly appear on television, with many appearing on their own variety programs. They also regularly act as pitchmen for commercial products, and appear in movies.
The success of Kitagawa's performers led to increased profitability, as Johnny & Associates generated 2.9 billion yen in annual profits at the height of the boy band boom. During 1997, performers belonging to the talent agency appeared in more than 40 television programs and another 40 commercials. The success of his company has made Kitagawa one of the richest men in Japan.
