So late last year, it was announced that Tackey and Tsubasa were disbanding. Hideki Takizawa ended up staying on full time behind the scenes with Johnny’s and Associates, taking on the management of something called ‘Johnny’s Island’. Well, we finally got a taste of that back in early February what that meant.
February 21st, 2019 the announcement was made that ‘Island TV’ would be launching. The platform is a streaming service catering to all Johnny’s Jr groups, including those on the Johnny’s Jr. Youtube channel and more! New groups included are the Kansai Jr’s, Seven Men Samurai, Uchu Six, Naniwa Danshi and more! The platform allows fans to stream the Jr’s concerts for 500yen ($5 roughly). Bonus materials shot by individual members such as behind the scenes and more, will be free. To top it all off these videos are accessible to international fans as well!
Now, I haven’t had the chance to watch anything here. Their Youtube channel keeps me plenty busy. However, for fans of the Kansai Juniors and those who are truly dedicated to one group this is amazing. Johnny’s is taking a huge step forward by making more of these materials accessible for free, and even for the nominal fee streaming a concert legally is amazing! If I ever have some spare money and time, I’ll be sure to check it out myself.
I highly encourage any fan of the Jr’s, any of them, to check out this service and consider getting signed up. It’s worth it to prove the demand to Johnny’s and Associates!
Phoenix Talks Pop Culture Japan 