It seems we keep receiving Johnnys International mails...



Johnny san:

I don't know what is what you had in mind when you opened an International service for overseas fans... We have always been neglected and we haven't complained, not even once. We spend our money in your boys meanwhile we don't receive any extra benefit except enjoy what we buy. We don't figure in your numbers, we don't count as fans and of course, we don't count as an interesting market to open your company to. We are less than zero at the time of getting tickets for your most famous bands and still we try to figure a way to go even if it means spending money we hardly have or resort to methods we wouldn't be using if your concert-tickets system was something like normal.

I mean what if lady Gaga decided to do the same and only accept people from her fan club that also have to pass a balloting system to know if they get tickets? It sounds so incredibly insane and so XIX century!

Let's ignore that for a second... Since, well, you opened a ticketing service for us (how nice of you). Do you honestly think that the potential fans for Hey!Say!Jump! have the money to get a plane ticket, hotel reservations and all that? Do you think that a person from, lets say some place in Europe around 17-18 years old can convince her parents to allow her to go alone to Japan or that they take her there in a family trip to watch her favorite band? Don't know why but I doubt that.

You have the numbers. I mean when you allowed people to join the service and asked them for their favorite band, you know which one is the most popular. Even when we buy at yesasia and cdjapan, you know people from outside Japan buy their things... so it's incredible to me that you don't use that information to promote and to earn more money (if what you want is more money, I mean). Why not a world tour for Arashi? You only had to choose probably like three venues: one in Europe, one in North America and one in South America and after that you can do an Asian/Japanese tour or whatever. That way you'll have everybody happy (included yourself). Jun sure would have a blast preparing concerts outside Asia!

Another thing I have to add about you ignoring overseas fans. You have some assumptions that I don't really know in detail, but I'm guessing they're wrong! Now that your country is constantly 'invaded' by Korean bands and singers, the competency is harder than ever. Before you only had to deal with bands and singers from your country, but what are you going to do in the upcoming years when more and more neighbors decide to debut in your country?

Maybe you think your boys are powerful enough to take it all, and I want to believe that too. I don't think the most famous bands like SMAP or Arashi will be affected. I don't think the other long established ones and with an stable fanbase as the both mentioned and V6, TOKIO, Kinki Kids, Tackey and Tsubasa, NEWS, Kanjani 8 and even Kat-tun will be affected by this, but your young bands the really young ones will have a hard time... Now that I think about it, it is possible that NEWS and Kat-tun may be get slightly affected in the near future.

And not just Korean. Today I've learned that Show Luo is also thinking in debuting in Japan... Too much males idols for a non-increasing young female population. You have your audience outside if you want it... when will you realize that? I wonder...