On a quiet Monday announcement that marks the closing chapter of a sixty-year entertainment reign, the official website for Smile Up confirmed that President and Representative Director Noriyuki Higashiyama will step down from his position on October 1. The leadership change coincides with the resignation of Managing Director Akira Abe, concluding their formal executive mandates as the agency faces a grueling new phase of victim restitution. How does a talent agency once commanding Japan’s pop charts reshape itself to answer decades of concealed crimes? The answer now falls to corporate attorney Masayuki Yamada, who will assume the role of Smile Up president to steer legal settlements for survivors of the late Johnny Kitagawa [1].
Why the Smile Up President Is Stepping Down
Speaking before reporters during a press conference in Tokyo, Higashiyama explained that the agency’s primary mission had fundamentally evolved since the scandal erupted into international view. The Board of Directors concluded that upcoming operations will increasingly require technical legal expertise rather than celebrity leadership. Both Higashiyama and Abe will formally conclude their administrative duties when their executive terms expire. Takayuki Jin becomes managing director [1].
Addressing concerns that his departure signaled an institutional retreat, Higashiyama denied that the restructuring would dilute corporate accountability. “This does not mean putting an end to victim relief,” Higashiyama emphasized during the briefing, speaking in Japanese as reported by NTV News NNN. In a translated statement, he affirmed: “Both as a company and as an individual, my commitment to fulfilling compensation for every last victim has not changed at all” [2].
Smile Up will not survive. The agency operates under an explicit corporate mandate to dissolve permanently once the final victim claims are resolved. Smile Up will continue to be responsible for handling the compensation measures for sexual abuse victims of Johnny Kitagawa, a structured restitution process that began in November 2023 [1].
Masayuki Yamada Takes Over for Legal Proceedings
The arrival of Masayuki Yamada places an experienced attorney directly at the helm of an agency previously steered by stage performers and talent agents. Yamada must navigate an intricate framework of ongoing claims, verified settlement hearings, and civil proceedings. Fujishima took over the presidency in September 2019 following Kitagawa’s death and stepped down as president in September 2023, yet she retains her representative directorship and ownership to guarantee financial backing [2].
Legal disputes reached Japanese courts. The Yokohama District Court addressed a lawsuit regarding advisory fee payments demanded from victims by a former victim group representative, ruling that such fee claims constituted unauthorized legal practice. Managing such proceedings requires rigorous compliance oversight that performer-led management could no longer realistically provide. Specialized legal acumen became indispensable [2].
Restitution remains daunting. Kyodo News reported that the compensation committee established by the agency had received consultations from 478 sex abuse victims, with 325 individuals formally seeking financial restitution. Hundreds sought compensation. Processing these claims requires strict verification protocols to ensure equitable settlements across decades of documented offenses [1].
Noriyuki Higashiyama and the Rebranding Effort
The trajectory of Noriyuki Higashiyama as agency head reflected the turbulent collapse of an entertainment powerhouse that held an unrivaled monopoly over Japanese television for six decades. When the company first publicly acknowledged Kitagawa’s widespread abuse in September 2023, Higashiyama initially insisted that Johnny & Associates would retain its historic corporate name. The historic confession confirmed that Kitagawa had systematically assaulted aspiring teenage pop stars spanning five decades from the 1970s to the 2010s [1].
Japanese advertisers withdrew en masse. Major corporate brands refused contract renewals, while public broadcaster NHK suspended appearances by agency performers, barring them from the prestigious New Year’s Eve music broadcast Kohaku Uta Gassen. Facing total commercial ostracization, Higashiyama announced in October 2023 that the enterprise would rebrand as Smile Up to rebuild public trust [1].
To separate talent management from historic liability, Johnny & Associates established Starto Entertainment in December 2023. Starto Entertainment assumed the day-to-day contracts and career management of popular male idol groups, leaving Smile Up as a dedicated restitution vessel. Starto Entertainment began separate operations to manage the careers of active male idol groups without corporate ties to Kitagawa’s estate [1].
Testimonies and the Fall of Kitagawa’s Empire
The reckoning arrived years after Kitagawa’s death at age 87 in July 2019 from a subarachnoid hemorrhage (a form of stroke). Kitagawa passed away without facing criminal indictment, an abrupt end resembling sudden neurological crises in the entertainment industry such as Kentaro Ito pausing work after a brain hemorrhage. For decades, Kitagawa wielded unprecedented power over Japanese pop culture, having founded Johnny & Associates in 1962 and launched iconic groups like SMAP, Arashi, Tokio, and KinKi Kids [1].
Although weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun published a groundbreaking 14-week investigative expose in 1999 documenting child sexual exploitation, domestic broadcasters and print editors remained silent. Kitagawa sued the publication for defamation, but the magazine effectively won its Tokyo High Court appeal in July 2003 after judges affirmed that victim testimonies were consistent, frank, and detailed. The court noted Kitagawa offered no rebuttal evidence. True public reckoning only materialized in March 2023 when the BBC released the investigative documentary Predator: The Secret Scandal of J-Pop [1].
After Brazilian-Japanese singer Kauan Okamoto held an April 2023 press conference detailing repeated abuse at Kitagawa’s luxury residence, other former agency performers found the courage to speak publicly. Among the most prominent figures was Kyohei Iida, a founding member of Kis-My-Ft2. Speaking to TBS NEWS DIG, Iida disclosed that he had been repeatedly victimized for five years beginning at age 13, debunking the agency’s earlier claim that he left the group for academic studies [3].
“He massaged me while I was sleeping,” Iida testified to TBS NEWS DIG, recounting how the assaults occurred regularly during his early adolescence. Iida recalled receiving money the following day, noting that the encounters occurred dozens of times. “Kitagawa’s sins will not disappear just by changing the agency’s name or because he has died,” Iida said, emphasizing that silence had only created more victims [3].
Corporate Dissolution After Victim Restitution
The executive transition taking place on October 1 underscores the unique character of Smile Up as an organization designed solely for permanent corporate dissolution. Unlike conventional corporate turnarounds aimed at restoring commercial viability, Yamada’s administration exists to settle verified claims before dissolving the corporate entity permanently. As the newly appointed Smile Up president, Yamada will oversee remaining compensation payouts and coordinate with independent review panels to evaluate long-standing grievances [1].
Former talent manager Akira Abe and outgoing leader Higashiyama leave behind a dramatically altered entertainment ecosystem where talent agencies no longer exercise unchecked control over broadcasting networks and promotional coverage. Johnny & Associates once managed iconic groups including V6, KAT-TUN, and Hey! Say! JUMP, dominating concert tours and television variety programs across Japan. Smile Up remains strictly tethered to the courtroom and the claims office. The agency’s eventual dissolution will mark the formal conclusion of the largest institutional abuse reckoning in Asian entertainment history [1].
Accountability remains the solitary measure of success for Yamada’s legal team. Every remaining claim must be settled before Smile Up can formally dissolve [1].
- ONLINE NEWS Mateo, A. (2026, September 28). Smile Up President Noriyuki Higashiyama Steps Down. Anime News Network. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS NTV News NNN. (2026, September 28). SMILE-UP. President Noriyuki Higashiyama to step down, future compensation work to focus on legal procedures. Yahoo! News Japan. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS TBS NEWS DIG. (2023, September 29). Former Kis-My-Ft2 member Kyohei Iida reveals sexual abuse was reason for leaving agency. TBS Television. [Article Link]
