Ex-Johnny’s Jr. Taiyo Ayukawa is back

With roles in stage plays, movies, and now a new blog, former-Johnny’s Jr. and Ya-Ya-yah member Taiyo Ayukawa has made a comeback, reports Cyzowoman on September 4.

 

Ya-Ya-yah was a Johnny’s Jr. group which released the single “勇気100% / 世界がひとつになるまで (Yuuki 100% / Sekai ga hitotsu ni narumade)” back in 2002.  Back then, Hey! Say! JUMP members Kota Yabu and Hikaru Yaotome were Ayukawa’s team mates.

 

It has been reported Ayukawa’s blog “殿堂入り　鮎川太陽オフィシャルブログ (Dendo-iri Taiyo Ayukawa’s Official Blog)” opened on August 31, and recorded more than 1000 comments on its first day.  It even made its debut at No.7 on Ameba Celebrity Blog’s newcomer chart.

 

The talent had started to fade out after Yabu and Yaotome joined Hey! Say! JUMP in 2007.

“He was cute and had an innocent personality that made him one of president Johnny Kitagawa’s favourites, but after he hit puberty he had a huge growth spurt.  By the time he was at high school he was 185cm tall.  Being so tall, he was a head taller than all the other talents, which wasn’t a good thing balance-wise and gradually he got less and less jobs.  In the end, it seems like he made the decision to leave the agency,” one Johnny’s reporter said.

 

While there were some rumors Ayukawa had retired from showbiz completely, the ex-Johnny’s talent made a comeback as a newcomer actor in last year’s New Year’s TV special 仲間由紀恵の蒼い地球5 (Nakama Yukie no Aoi Chikyu 5, Yukie Nakama’s Blue Earth 5).

“By that time he seemed to have joined the same agency as actress Yukie Nakama, Ogi Production, but his profile wasn’t made public, probably to avoid any conflict with Johnny’s.  It wasn’t until this year when the agency made his profile public, and he’s been getting more jobs in movies and stage shows.  It’s like the same thing his other Ya-Ya-yah team mate Shion Yamashita did when he stayed low for a year to cut things off from Johnny’s,” said the same source as above.

 

It has been reported his latest job has been attending a press conference on August 29 for his latest movie ひとりかくれんぼ　劇場版−真・都市伝説− (Hitori Kakurenbo Gekijoban – Shin.Toshi-densetsu -), where he has a supporting role.  In September, Ayukawa will also be starring in a new stage play.

 

But even though he has jobs now, on his blog the talent had said he is far from comfortable.

“It’s not like I have an event to take part in every year, or a concert tour to go on every season.  I don’t have any regular magazine spots, or regular TV shows.  I don’t have a work place I can go to every day either.

“My mother once told me this.  She said, ‘celebrities need to be seen or they’ll be forgotten.  There are always new kids or groups to replace you’.  New kids are scary!  Scarier than horror movies!”

 

But Ayukawa said it has been his fans who have and will help him through it.

“I’ve gotten comments like, ‘I’ve been a fan for 10 years’, ‘I’m from Hong Kong and love you’, ‘thanks for coming back’.  It’s things like that that make me so happy.  So let me say ‘thank you’ to you.  To every single person, thank you.  At the moment I’ve read comments 1 to 420.  I haven’t read all of them.  But I will.  And I’ll reply to the ones I can.”

 

Finally, Ayukawa had said he was glad to be able to interact with his fans more.

“Being able to do this blog, I think I can interact in a new way.  Even if I’m dead tired from work, I can find the strength to keep going tomorrow.  Even if I feel like giving up, I think I can find a way to stay in this world from now on.”

 

To see Ayukawa’s profile at his new agency, click here.  He’s 188cm tall now!  Wow!

Good luck Taiyo!  I’m off to write a comment on his blog now – Momo