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All five members of popular boy band SMAP lined up on a stage at Akasaka Sacas this week to promote Softbank Mobile’s new commercial. It was the first time in more than 10 years for all five members to attend a PR event.
The last time all of the group assembled for a PR event was in May 1999, when they lined up to announce an upcoming tour. This time they announced they had finished production of a commercial for Softbank Mobile, and that it was filmed in New York.
When Masahiro Nakai, 37, commented on the comforts of flying first class to and from New York, Shingo Katori, 32, who traveled separately to take part in a musical, appeared surprised and belted out: “I wasn’t in first class!”
The group also declared their “SMAP SHOP 09” open for business. It is the fourth time their limited goods store will open, and this time will be open until Jan 11. Takuya Kimura, 37, said that when he visited the store last year, the staff’s reaction was funny, and Nakai said: “I took my niece and nephew and they bought lots of things, but I was shocked when then the bill came and it was about 100,000 yen.”
The theme of this year’s store is “CHAN TO SHI NAI TO NE,” meaning something to the effect of conducting oneself properly. Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, 35, said he wondered if this year’s theme had anything to do with his unacceptable display of public indecency in Hinokicho Park in Tokyo back in April. He apologized four times during the event, drawing laughter from the crowd.
The new commercial started airing on Saturday.
© Japan Today
28 Comments
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noborito
ratings down men?
LoveUSA
Takuya Kimura and Shingo Katori are my favourites.
hellhound
of course they will attend that event... as long as they get payd it is all good.
blvtzpk
"Smap members get together to advertise advertisement"
Now I'm waiting for
"Smap members get together to advertise advertisement of new advertisement"
Bizarro
Can they really still be called a "boy band" when members are in their late 30s?
LoveUSA
their softbank advertisment is pretty cool
peachy871
lol...good point Bizarro! Perhaps it is time to start referring to them as a "singing" group or just group...ahem... After all, the youngest of them is 32.
Btw...anyone know what musical that Shingo took part in? Was he actually in it or was he a part of it because he was an audience member??
NationalistRE
Best Ojisan group?
ashika1009
The . . . uh . . .boys? . . . are making the rounds. Need that cash, cow!
GW
this is full of pathetic crap, pls put this smap thing out to pasture, I am begging you..........aagghh
Azrael
Hadaka ni natte, nani ga warui! XD! I'll NEVER, EVER forget that. I should have bought a T-shirt with that on Rakuten when it was on sale.
Potsu
Boyband ?? middleaged men band more like it.
nylex4
is there a word for 'disband' in japanese??... someone needs to give them the hint...
Mark_McCracken
If the New York commercial is the colorful one on youtube that ends with a giant Rubik's cube in Times Square, it's kind of lame compared to the dancing-parade one they did earlier this year.
tigerguy
I'm surprised they're not prancing around naked and drunk...
Patricia Yarrow
I still like these guys. Something refreshing about them, and beguiling.
LoveUSA
I agree. But the guys here are a little bit jealous to recognize the success of SMAP in sustaining their high ratings for a long period in a country where new artists come and go without a trace.
Del Ihle
SMAP is fine - we enjoy their music and their acting in JDRAMAS. I hope they are around for a long time. Especially Kusanagi. In the states, isn't the Four Seasons and the Four Tops still touring? How about Jay and the Americans too? We see them on PBS every year.
artster
Shingo Katori starred in the musical “Talk Like Singing” ( http://www.meniscuszine.com/arts/talk-like-singing-20091121/ ) which premiered last November in New York City ( http://www.skirballcenter.nyu.edu/calendar/talk_like_singing ).
The show will open in Japan at Tokyo’s Akasaka ACT Theatre ( http://www.tbs.co.jp/act/event/tls/ ) this January.
Livvie
You read my mind! How can you do PR for a commercial??? Can you say, redundant??
nath
Boy Band? Should be called jiji band. They cannot sing nor act, but still on the tube. I do like Bistro though, even though it is fake.
Rugbyfan
I've lived in Japan quite a long time but I've never understood why SMAP are (used to be) so popular. I mean, apart from Takuya Kimura the other members are terrible singers!!!
SimpleLife
I like them Nakai is great on TV, but truly that boy cannot sing
stirfry
true...also, i believe they have to actually be males...pretty sure they're not
artster
I think SMAP deserve some time off for the sake of their mental health and a fulfilled life.
When you're screaming a bandmate's name in the middle of the night in a park it's time to meet new people, and Shingo sings "Here Is Your Hit" ("that's not how I wanna be...") with a lot of sincerity!
LoveUSA
I love that they can cook very well.
nonsibi
Nice to see them in their late 30s but have a lot of energy, still motivated and dedicated to entertain people. Keep up your good work!