The folk music duo Hirakawachi Icchome have announced that they are disbanding after they complete their final concert tour in August. The two brothers, Ryunosuke and Naojiro Hayashi, said that they began talking about it a year ago, and they decided to separately search for their own futures.

Originally from the island of Sadogashima in the Niigata Prefecture, the pair made their debut as middle schoolers in 2003. At the time, they weren't really aspiring for musical fame. Ryunosuke revealed that they have three other siblings, though their mother had run away from home with their youngest brother. By starting Hirakawachi Icchome, the duo had hoped to find their mother and brother.

They recalled that playing their music had been sad and painful at first, but with the support of their fans they eventually grew to enjoy it. As of now, their family has been reunited.

The younger Naojiro, who made his solo debut last year, has entered his last year of high school and says he is studying hard with the goal of entering university like his friends. He mentioned that if he does go on to higher education, he plans to do so in Tokyo. For now, he is also continuing an acting career, with an appearance in Isshin Inudo's "Gou-Gou Datte Neko Dearu," which stars Kyoko Koizumi and opens on September 6.

Meanwhile, Ryunosuke has already started living by himself in Tokyo, and he says that one of his dreams is to open up a restaurant.

Hirakawachi Icchome's last tour will start on July 29 in Shizuoka and end in Tokyo on August 23. On July 30, they plan to release two works: a single titled "Tokyo 2008" (presumably a new version of their debut single "Tokyo") and a tentatively self-titled best album.