NHK suspends five singers for yakuza association

Earlier this month, weekly publication Shukan Shincho ran an article revealing that Takashi Hosokawa and four other enka singers had participated in a golf tournament held to celebrate the birthday of a yakuza boss. The other names mentioned were Akira Kobayashi, Nobue Matsubara, Hiroshi Kadokawa, and Kiyoshi Nakajo. All of the singers, except Nakajo, also attended a party afterwards.

Looking to verify the story, public broadcaster NHK contacted the singers’ agencies and record labels, and it was confirmed that they had indeed played in the tournament. A few days later, NHK decided to suspend all appearances by those singers on the network’s shows, including rebroadcasts of old episodes. This also includes a November episode of “NHK Nodo Jiman” and a December episode of “BS Nihon no Uta.”

The length of the suspension is undecided, and it is unclear whether NHK will allow them on the upcoming Kohaku Uta Gassen.

TV Tokyo is taking a similar course of action, cutting Hosokawa’s scenes from a show next week.

Source:
Sankei Sports