YESASIA: YumCha! - SMAP - Feature Article

For more than a decade Japan has seen a phenomenal rise in the demand for Idorus ("Idols"). The Japanese pop-culture scene has been flooded with the likes of Morning Musume, KinKi Kids, V6, Ayumi Hamasaki, BoA, and many others. However, none have received the same widespread popularity and respect as the idol group SMAP.

Either individually or as a group, SMAP appears ubiquitously on the radio, stage and television. Their constant presence promotes their charismatic and rebellious attitudes, which have come to appeal to a new youthful demographic. They have released a string of immensely popular songs such as Yozora no Muko ("Behind the Night Sky"), Lion Heart and Sekai ni Hitotsu Dake no Hana ("The One and Only Flower in the World"), which have each sold over a million copies and have embedded themselves into the history of Japanese popular music.
However, unlike their American counterparts, SMAP and other idorus are not confined wholly to music performance. Japanese idorus often take a multifaceted approach to their careers, appearing on screen at least as often as on music channels. It is this on-screen duality that has been so integral to furthering SMAP's appeal. Accordingly, this article will attempt to shed a little light on what SMAP means to Japanese entertainment by looking at who they are, and what they have contributed to Asian screen media.

Testimony to their on screen responsibilities, in 2004 SMAP neither recorded any music nor played any concerts because of other commitments, including films and television. Furthermore, between July and October, when they normally would have toured the country, they opted out, citing their lack of new material. For the same reason, SMAP also declined their invitation to the annual "Red/White" show, at which they were regular guests. The only other year SMAP did not attend the event was in 2001, after Goro Inagaki was arrested for a traffic violation.

History

Formed by prominent idol creator/manager Johnny Kitagawa, (who also manages Kinki Kids, and V6), the group were originally brought together under the name of "Skate Boys" to perform as back-up dancers to idol group Hikaru Genji. However, in 1988 the boys branched out and gave rise to the group SMAP. An acronym for Sports Music Assemble People, SMAP consists of five members: Masahiro Nakai, Kimura Takuya, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Goro Inagaki, and Katori Shingo. Originally, the group also featured Katsuyuki Mori, however he left in 1996 to follow a career in motorcycle racing. Despite their prominence as "Johnny's boys", it wasn't until 1991 when their variety show I Love SMAP was initially aired that they gained widespread fame. Since then, SMAP have achieved a level of popularity and longevity unknown to any Japanese entertainment show, let alone any boy idol group.

One of the reasons they have achieved such amazing success is because of their magnetic personas. SMAP's combined charisma flow effortlessly from the various shows they appear in to their legions of fans. Followers often claim that the members of SMAP come across very naturally on television, allowing them to see how the boys behave "in real life." It is this type of promotion that has helped SMAP earn the title of Ochanoma Idoru ("living room idol"), making them a virtual member of every Japanese family.

This level of attraction isn't only restricted to Japanese national borders, SMAP have attracted a keen following Asia-wide. Variety shows and dramas starring SMAP members have had a wide dissemination across Asia; their programs are shown on a number of cable channels in Taiwan, and have reached a massive audience with their numerous VCD and DVD releases. The level of SMAP's appeal across national borders can be seen through the consistently high ratings that SMAP-related media hold in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Group Performances

After the success of I Love SMAP and several other variety shows, the group followed up with their most famous show to date, SMAP × SMAP (otherwise known as Sma Sma). This variety show has convincingly topped Japanese ratings for years now, and has inspired a number of related spin-offs. The primetime variety show is split into three major segments: acting, music, and cooking. One of the segments, known as the Comic Variety Show, features SMAP members performing in short comic or dramatic sketches. Another segment features SMAP and guest musicians performing together on stage, who are regularly notable Japanese or international celebrities. And finally, the most popular segment is known as BistroSMAP, which features SMAP members going head to head in a competitive gourmet cook-off. This segment has garnered a large following, and many recipe books and DVDs have been devoted to displaying SMAP's culinary mastery.

Individual Performances

The members of SMAP also perform individually, earning themselves their own devoted fan-base, which recognizes their specific skills. Their solo performances reinforce their on-screen ubiquity, allowing at least one member to appear on television daily.

Masahiro Nakai is the so-called leader of SMAP. He is also one of the more active members of the group, appearing in countless commercials and hosting at least four variety shows weekly, all while managing his many guest appearances and his SMAP group shows. Aside from his variety show appearances, Nakai has also featured in several recent dramas. One of his more notable appearances is in the love drama Shiroi Kage ("White Shadow"), where he was highly praised as the young doctor Naoe Kensuke. Consequently, Nakai has become the most televised member of SMAP, and the Japanese National Tax Bureau recently published that Nakai is one of the biggest taxpayers of all Japanese entertainment personalities.

Takuya Kimura is known as the group's heart-throb, appearing in a number of variety shows, dramas, feature films and most of all, commercials. Through such extensive exposure, Kimura has for the last twelve years been voted as Japan's "most attractive man" in An An Magazine - one of Japan's major pop-culture publications.

Takuya Kimura, or "Kimutaku" as his fans affectionately call him, has for a long time appeared in many Japanese hit dramas. Kimura's first drama appearance in 1993 was for a series named Asunaro Hakusho, where he played Osamu Toride. The appearance gave Kimura overnight success all over Japan, and since then, he has attracted a number of significant roles in some of Japan's most successful dramas including Hero, Beautiful Life, Good Luck! and Long Vacation, with each program boasting an impressive 30% viewership rating after their initial release.

Aside from television work, Kimura has appeared in a number of feature films. Most notable are his recent appearances in Wong Kar Wai's 2046, and in Hayao Miyazaki's Howl's Moving Castle

Tsuyoshi Kusanagi is one of the more creative members of SMAP. Aside from his regular drama appearances, his proclivity for serious acting has garnered him roles in a number of highly acclaimed feature films. In 2000, Kusanagi played the character Hayasaka in Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Korei ("Seance") which picked up the Un Certain Regard Award at Cannes in 2001. In the following year, Kusanagi played the lead alongside TV star Yuko Takeuchi, in Shiota Akihiko's hit film Yomigaeri. The film was a critical success for Kusanagi, with critics praising his outstanding performance.

Since 2004 Kusanagi has taken a change in direction, achieving major success for his recent documentaries abroad. His documented travels to South Korea - entitled Chonan Kan, featured Kusanagi travelling around South Korea, while learning the language and regional cultures, in an attempt to achieve widespread fame there (note that Chonan Kan is the Korean language articulation for Tsuyoshi Kusanagi). The pseudo-documentary was a huge success not only for Kusanagi, earning him a Japan Innovators Award, but also for establishing better relations between the South Korean and Japanese entertainment industries. Furthermore, the success of Chonan Kan opened the door for a feature film to be made entitled The Hotel Venus, starring Kusanagi as the mentally lost character Chonan Kan. The Hotel Venus won Best Director at the Moscow International Film Festival, and was the first Japanese-produced Korean language film ever made.

Goro Inagaki is the quiet member of SMAP, appearing less on screen compared to the rest of his group. But despite his fewer appearances, Goro still has a considerable following in Japan and abroad. Like Kusanagi, Goro's acting ability has earned him roles in several notable feature films. In 1999 he starred in Masayuki Ochiai's haunting Saimin ("Hypnosis") where he played Toshiya Saga. In 2004 Goro featured in Mamoru Hosi's Warai no Daigaku ("University of Laughs") which was a hit at the 2004 Pusan International Film Festival, where Goro apparently made a guest appearance.

Shingo Katori is the youngest in the group. Like Kimura, he commands legions of fans, all attracted to his boyish humour. He is better known as a comedian rather than a singer or serious actor, which would explain his regular appearances as his female alter ego "Shingo Mama" who used to regularly host a segment on Sata Suma. His television appearances also extend to dramas, appearing in notable television series, such as Invisible Man, and the recent historical drama, Shinsengumi. Aside from his television career, in 1997 Katori appeared alongside Anita Yuen in Hong Kong Nightclub, and recently starred in Masayuki Suzuki's hit comedy feature Nin X Nin: Ninja Hattori Kun.

Published December 12, 2005

Published December 12, 2005

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