Marching J
Johnny's Entertainment has just announced the creation of a charity project called Marching J, which will reportedly involve all of its managed artists. The project, first hinted at earlier this month, was established in response to the recent Tohoku earthquake and will work towards providing support to the affected areas.
Marching J’s first activity will be a fundraising event outdoors at Yoyogi National Gymnasium on April 1-3. Almost all of the major Johnny’s artists – including Kondo Machihiko, Shonentai, and SMAP – will participate in the event. Even Johnny's Jr. members who have not yet debuted will be involved, pushing the total number of participants to over 100 people.
The event is planned to take place between 10:00am and 6:00pm for each of those three days, involving talk sessions and other activities. Donations will be accepted until 5:00pm each day. The artists will show up at the venue as their schedule permits, though it is said that about 10 artists will serve as the main hosts and be there the whole day. The event’s catchphrase is “Denki o tsukawazu genki o tsukaou,” which roughly translates as “Let’s use energy without using energy (electricity).”
It was also announced that a charity baseball tournament will be held at Tokyo Dome on May 29, mainly involving Johnny’s Jr. members.
The project was named by president Johnny Kitagawa, and the “J” stands for both ‘Japan’ and ‘Johnny’s’. Mr. Kitagawa says, “I put the meaning of ‘Let’s walk together toward the recovery.”
Although Johnny & Associates housed a relief unit, “J-FRIENDS“, for 1995’s Great Hanshin Earthquake, it was only comprised of TOKIO, KinKi Kids, and V6. This time, however, “Marching J” will involve all the agency’s talents – it’ll mark the first in-house collaborative project since the company’s founding in 1962. Mr. Kitagawa explained, “It was that big of a disaster. We need to get together, and take actions to make our hearts as one.” He also revealed that there were many talents who were willing to do something for the disaster relief.
The first event for “Marching J” will be through a fundraiser, which will be hosted in front of the First Gymnasium at the Yoyogi National Stadium. The event will run from April 1st to the 3rd, from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Including Johnny’s Jr. boys (and trainees), there will be over 100 talents participating the event under the slogan, “Use our energy without using electricity“. Talk segments will also be held at the event.
Mr. Kitagawa also stated that the project does not have a set time limit, nor will this be a one-time event. He said, “We will continue to do some kind of activity every month until the end.”
Labels: Hey Say JUMP, Johnny's Junior
Wednesday, March 30, 2011 @ 9:07 PM /
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