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Artists who were "frozen/blacklisted" after disputes with their Management Agencies?

Jotham

By Jotham
in Celebrity News & Gossip

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Jotham Star

Jotham

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Production/Management Companies aka Jimusho are the big players in the Japanese Entertainment Scene, with big names such as Johnny and Burning Productions wielding most of the power behind the scene. Jimusho operates through group of subsidiary companies called keiretsu. From 1988 to 2004, the top 5 jimusho keiretsu (Johnny & Associates, Burning Productions which included Avex and Rising, Up Front Agency, Sony Music Artists, and Nagara Production Group including Being) made up of around 50 percent of all appearances on Music Station, Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ and Utaban. 

 

Now, when Jimusho are so powerful, the power relationship between artists and the company will be very unbalanced. The practice of Jimusho blacklisting artists is like an open secret and widely speculated, and tabloid magazines have often attribute artists disappearing from the scene for a few years due to the Jimusho's pulling of strings. 

 

I am very interested in this aspect and would like to ask if any of you know any artist who have been speculated or even proved to be "frozen/blacklisted" after disputes with their Jimusho? Here are some of the cases I've found.

1. Suzuki Ami with Rising Production 

Additional Article: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2008/11/20/music/you-and-whose-ami/#.Wg3ANUqWbcs 
280px-Suzuki_-_nothingwithoutyou.jpg

 

 

In 2000, Eiji Yamada, president of AG Communication, was convicted on counts of tax evasion. Suzuki's parents afraid that this incident would tarnish her image, sued AG Communication and won the lawsuit. However, they broke the taboo of the Japanese Entertainment Industry to publicly go against the management company, so they were blacklisted from the entertainment industry. Within weeks, she lost her radio show, drama roles and sponsorship deal with Kodak. Adding on, Sony rushed out a greatest hits package and she vanished from the scene.

 

 

2. GLAY with Unlimited Records under Burning Production

Additional Japanese tabloid website: http://www.cyzowoman.com/2012/06/post_6134_1.html 

main_w660.jpg

 

GLAY debut under YOSHIKI's Extasy Records label, and it was speculated that he transferred the rights of the songs to Burning Publishing which was under Burning Production Groups. Not sure if Extasy Records was under the same umbrella as Unlimited Records, which was EMI Music Japan, or GLAY transferred later onto Unlimited Group, but GLAY came under Unlimited Group until 2005 where there was a dispute between GLAY vs Unlimited Group and Burning Productions. There was a dispute in the royalties and other fees, and GLAY left the Agency and took them up to court in 2005. It was also a period when GLAY took a hiatus and had no significant releases for the following few years.

 

GLAY won the case in 2009, and according to 2chan, GLAY seek the help of Kyosuke Himuro who then enlist the help of his friends the Goto Clan (yakuza) to get GLAY back into the scene. Many people believe in this theory due to them going on a hiatus, describing this period as a period the band can't move forward, the lawsuit and their return single being a collaboration with Kyosuke Himuro. 

 

3. Rena Nounen with LesPros Entertainment

 

latest?cb=20160605191952

 

Rena Nounen kind of disappeared from the Japanese Entertainment Scene from 2014-2016, after her contract dispute with LesPros Entertainment. She returned to the scene in 2016 as Non and set up her new independent music label, but it seemed that she is unable to pick up any acting roles. (although she appeared in some MVs and CMs). 

4. SMAP

001.jpg

 

Probably the most high-profile case recently, with the break-up of SMAP and 3 members leaving Johnnys. They then took their activities online with their recent 72 hours AbemaTV live stream and setting up their new project "Atarashii Chizu". However it seemed that it would be highly unlikely to see them appearing in Music or Talk shows with fellow Johnnys. 

 

Please contribute if you know of any other such cases as I'm very interested in this aspect of the Japanese Entertainment Industry. (I know Namie Amuro has left Rising Production after a feud with them, and set up her own management agency.)

EDIT

 

d2929045.jpg

 

To add on, a such case may be developing right now with Mariya Nishuichi in dispute with Rising Production. From tabloid magazine, she was reported to be frozen by her company after the disastrous ratings from her latest drama series in Fuji TV. (Worst ratings in 30 years) It was reported by tabloid magazines that the company had begun to "freeze" her and there also emerged disagreements on her musical career path. This led to her in a dispute with the CEO of her company. It was reported in this dispute she had a huge outburst and hit the CEO, resulting in him being hospitalised for a month. 

I'm sure we can watch closely to how this case would develop. (Note: Her instagram has been inactive since 6th May).

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Romeo Global Superstar

Romeo

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Not sure if it's the same but it's pretty well known that NMB48's Watanabe Miyuki is banned from entering the entertainment industry until like 2018 (2 years after she graduated) because she chose to leave Yoshimoto when she graduated. It's like a contract clause or something.

 

Nounen Rena's situation was so sad, she was so big after Amachan and then she just disappeared

 

Also, I feel like most of these stories, unless the artist was really big before the dispute (like most of the above examples), end up getting buried pretty easily. 

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mochichan Legend

mochichan

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Not sure if it's the same but it's pretty well known that NMB48's Watanabe Miyuki is banned from entering the entertainment industry until like 2018 (2 years after she graduated) because she chose to leave Yoshimoto when she graduated. It's like a contract clause or something.

 

 

 

Yeah Yoshimoto have a clause in their contract that if you leave the company then you have to abstain from doing activities in the field you were doing before for 2 yrs...so like if she was doing varieties and talento stuffs then she couldn't do it after. Not sure if it means she's allow to have activities of different genre tho...it's to prevent them from being snatch by other agencies to compete I think. She was supposed to be transfer to Yoshimoto subsidiary that still handle the graduated members but she probably wanted to cut tie since she doesn't seem to get along with Yoshimoto for awhile anyway. 

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DrkSpphrGT Superstar

DrkSpphrGT

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ASDFGHJK had no idea mariya nishiuchi was having trouble with rising pro...what a mess

 

 

 

...........what

Yea same here. I was wondering why she wasn't releasing anything new. A month? Damn she's so multi talented that she must have a black belt and kicked his ass 😂

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