"I Felt Saved": Arashi's Kazunari Ninomiya Touches Fans by Proudly Saying "Johnny's" in Livestream Speech
On May 31, 2026, as fans basked in the afterglow of a livestream concert by the nation's beloved group Arashi, remarks made by member Kazunari Ninomiya during his closing speech took social media by storm. Ninomiya's repeated use of the word "Johnny's" brought comfort and a sense of closure to countless fans. In recent years, uttering the former agency's name or the word "Johnny's" in public had become a taboo, or at least a highly sensitive topic requiring extreme caution. Amid an atmosphere where even fans hesitated to say the word, Ninomiya chose the grand stage of a live broadcast to speak it proudly and directly, without evasion. By directly confronting his "Johnny's life" in which he grew up, bringing a sense of closure, and expressing his gratitude, his stance sparked an outpouring of appreciation online. Comments like "Nino saying it so clearly cleared away the fog in my heart" and "I felt saved by his words...