Japan’s top idol group ARASHI have split up! The songs they have left behind will remain in the hear
Arashi, Japan’s top idol group, disbanded on 31 May 2026. Formed in 1999 as a five-piece boy band, Arashi were originally backup dancers and trainees at an entertainment agency. The head of that agency hand-picked five members, and their debut song, ‘A・RA・SHI’, was adopted as the theme song for Japanese television’s sports coverage of the 1999 Volleyball World Cup. From there, they went on to produce numerous hit songs.
Arashi’s popularity was not confined to Japan. In 2006, they chose Taipei, Taiwan, as the destination for their first world tour. Although Taiwan is a neighbouring country, it is known to have the largest population of pro-Japanese people in the Chinese-speaking world. Their 2008 world tour included stops in Taipei, Taiwan, and Shanghai, People’s Republic of China.
In this way, there is no doubt that Arashi is the most representative Japanese idol group in East Asia.
However, after more than 20 years in the idol business, they have been overtaken by many rival idol groups, and as the members have aged, differences in their career aspirations have become increasingly apparent. It was at this juncture that the BBC News reported on the long-standing allegations of sexual abuse of young boys by the late Johnny Kitagawa. There is no doubt that this was the turning point that decisively determined Arashi’s future direction
As this scandal originated from a report by BBC News, it marked the moment when the unspoken code of the Japanese entertainment industry was broken. This created objective factors that cast significant doubt on the credibility, trust and reliability of the Japanese entertainment industry, leading long-standing fans to drift away one after another towards other idol groups
However, Arashi’s legacy is immense. Whilst the production company’s income from copyright fees and royalties for their music will increase following the group’s disbandment, it is an objective fact that, as Arashi’s popularity gradually disperses amongst the former members, the profitability for the production company in terms of future revenue will be negligible.
Could Arashi’s disbandment be a crucial test of whether the Japanese entertainment industry can produce music that rivals K-pop on the global stage?
