Japanese boy band Arashi to conclude activities after more than 20 years

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

'We could not imagine resuming our activities only to go on a hiatus yet again,' the band says as its members announce that they'll be going on a final tour

MANILA, Philippines – Japanese boy band Arashi announced on their social media pages on Tuesday, May 6, that they would be concluding their activities as a group with a final tour.

The group has been on a hiatus since 2020. They will momentarily be resuming their activities to stage a series of concerts to be held next spring as a way to express gratitude to their fans. After the tour ends, the members will officially stop their activities as a group.

“For about a year and a half now, the five of us have regularly gotten together to discuss the idea of working as ARASHI again. However, it was not easy to find an answer to how to do this, as the environment surrounding us has changed, in addition to each of our individually changed circumstances compared to before,” the members said in a collective statement. “We could not imagine resuming our activities only to go on a hiatus yet again.”

The band said that they will temporarily suspend fan club membership applications so they can give priority to existing fan club members for concert tickets. They added that they are currently still preparing for the concert and will inform fans of the tour’s details once things are finalized.

While their fan club on the Family Club site will close in May 2026, Arashi’s members promised that they would continue to regularly post content for fans to enjoy, with the next post scheduled for mid-June this year. Their Family Club will officially close in May 2026.

“Once again, we would like to thank all the fans who have continued to support us, and have come together as the five of us in order to bring you something very special. Please look forward to everything we have planned,” the members added.

Composed of members Aiba Masaki, Matsumoto Jun, Ninomiya Kazunari, Ohno Satoshi, and Sakurai Sho, Arashi is one of Japan’s oldest and most prominent boy bands. The band debuted in 1999 under Johnny & Associates, a Japanese talent agency established by the late Johnny Kitagawa.

Since then, Arashi has gone on to release an impressive total of 17 full-length studio albums and several compilation albums. Their 5×20 All the Best!! 1999-2019 was named the bestselling global album in 2019, according to the group’s Spotify bio.

Some of Arashi’s most popular songs include “Love So Sweet,” “Happiness,” “One Love,” “Monster,” and “Sakura Sake,” among many others.

In 2024, the members officially launched their own label, STARTO ENTERTAINMENT, to mark their 25th anniversary. – Rappler.com