J-Pop Music's Darkest Secret: The Sexual Predator Who Created Boy Bands And Died Like "A God"

It is much more than music.

J

, an abbreviation that baptizes Japanese pop, is a phenomenon that has marked Japanese culture since the mid-20th century.

Although in the international context it has not reached the relevance of its Korean K-pop equivalent, it is the root of the same movement of idols, teen stars and viral songs that has become not only a form of consumption but an economic machine. giant that moves millions in advertising and

with the faces of its stars.

However, this industry, characterized by its festive tone, vocation for all audiences and a bright white image, has a very dark side that has taken too long to come to light.

The protagonist of these

of Japanese pop culture is its creator, music mogul

, against whom accusations of sexual abuse by artists when they were minors intensify.

A BBC documentary has just reignited the controversy with a dive into the depths of the Japanese music industry.

In

-Pop, journalist

travels to Tokyo to meet with former Kitagawa protégés and unravel a decades-long history of abuse.

The show explores how idolization of Kitagawa was born, the man who shaped Japanese

through his all-male talent agency,

, with which he produced dozens of successful bands to the point of holding the world record for Most number one artists and

in their country, or most concerts produced by the same individual.

When he died in 2019, the whole country mourned him as a hero, there are even fans of the genre who continue to consider him "a god", as they declare to the program.

Kitagawa founded the company in 1962 and invented the apprenticeship system for teen idols who still use J-pop, K-pop, and their counterparts across the globe.

Under her protection thousands of young people were trained to become superstars capable of singing, dancing and acting.

Throughout his career, Kitagawa launched dozens of

such as the almighty

,

,

,

.

Although the popularity of the style has been waning, the death of its promoter made national news, with a tribute concert featuring more than 150 of his artists at Japan's largest concert hall and messages of condolence from the then-prime minister. of the country,

.

His legacy is still evident in the country, and the faces of his artists populate the billboards on every corner.

While the world of Western entertainment bleeds after

, Japan continues to idolize a predator whose inclinations were far from behind closed doors: the national press covered the numerous cases that even reached the courts.

Silence in the media

In 1988,

, a member of the band

, revealed that Kitagawa had made sexual advances to young men under contract.

It was the first of a cascade of complaints.

Almost a decade later,

, another of Johnny's protégés, as he was called by his students, alleged that he had witnessed the producer forcing a teenager to have sex.

magazine

detailed in 1999 the accounts of a dozen young men who had witnessed or experienced sexual abuse by Kitagawa.

In 2002, the court ruled against the outlet for defamation, but a year later the Tokyo High Court reversed that decision.

Although the accounts of sexual abuse were considered reliable and accurate, the case was silenced in the media and the country's authorities did not act against the music guru.

One of the magazine's reporters, interviewed in the BBC documentary, weeps as he recalls his interviews with the terrified victims.

Some of the boys were as young as 12 when they fell into Kitagawa's clutches.

Among the extremely graphic testimonials, there are references to penetration and coerced oral sex.

The tycoon abused his position of power and achieved his goal under the threat of wiping out his professional career in full swing.

Hayashi, now an adult, tells for the first time his ordeal in "the bedroom" before the BBC cameras.

That's what the children called the producer's house, where many spent the night.

When one of the teenagers resisted abuse, the unanimous response from his own peers was: "You have to put up with it or you won't succeed."

Kitagawa even had sex in one of the boys' own home, with their parents sleeping in the next room.

The statements of those involved suggest that many parents not only allowed, but facilitated the abuse and encouraged their children to put up with whatever it took to succeed.

Six decades 'making' stars

Over nearly six decades, thousands of children have gone through the

himself

.

The system he had created himself allowed him unsupervised access to the boys and tight control over them as they got their start as dancers for the bands.

Thus, years could pass until the producer decided that they were ready to be first swordsmen.

Kitagawa's double face is evident in the contrast of testimonies, from the most horrifying to the most benevolent, among his most recent artists, who speak of a kind and considerate man while downplaying the importance of baths, massages and touching that they had normalized with an 80-year-old man.

There is no apparent trauma.

They smile, explain that they loved him and even understand that he was part of a payment for future stardom.

They say they were "treated with love."

Like them, Japanese society has overlooked the monster and continues to revere the man who forever changed its popular culture.

A "god" in the shadow

Kitagawa was a dark character who rarely made public appearances or gave interviews, nothing to do with similar cases such as

or

, who lived on camera.

The documentary explores the reasons that have drawn a thick veil over the accusations, partly a consequence of a culture based on extreme courtesy and guilt, and with strong social prejudices regarding sexuality, in which homosexuality is still a taboo subject. .

The age of consent in Japan remains 13, and until 2017 men and boys could not be recognized as rape victims in the eyes of the law.

However, the codependent relationship between the Japanese press and the Kitagawa empire has been decisive in cleaning up the producer's image.

Promoting the agency's

can facilitate favors like access to bigger, more established names, and speaking out against the company insulates the outlet from the revenue it can attract.

Most of the media didn't even pick up on Kitagawa's conduct in the 1990s. Johnny & Associates banned Bunshun

its sister publications from discussing any of his talents.

Today, the company remains an enormously powerful agency in the world of

, and its late president's face still recalls his power from a gigantic painting hanging in the company's lobby.

The company's current president,

, is his niece and refuses to talk about the abuse in the media.

The BBC documentary leaves a bitter taste in the mouth.

stars suffered sexual abuse

.

The power structures of an entire country have managed to normalize horror as something invisible, in a polite and serene way.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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