Jin Akanishi

Jin Akanishi (born July 4, 1984) is a Japanese pop idol, singer-songwriter, actor, voice actor, and former radio host. Akanishi is a former member of the J-popboy band, KAT-TUN, and was one of the two lead vocalists. Since the group's debut in 2006, it has achieved 14 consecutive number ones (including studio albums) on the Oricon charts. Akanishi is also a budding actor with roles in the second season of popular NTV school dramas Gokusen 2, Yukan Club, and the romantic comedy Anego. He was also a co-host of KAT-TUN's own variety show, Cartoon KAT-TUN, and used to host a radio program called "KAT-TUN Style" with ex-bandmate Junnosuke Taguchi from October 2007 to March 2008. --- Akanishi was born in Chiba, Japan on July 4, 1984 and is the eldest of two sons. His family consists of his parents and his younger brother, Reio. His given name, Jin ("benevolence"), comes from one of the five Confucian virtues. He moved to Tokyo in the first grade. In 1997, when he was still in grade school, a classmate sent in a photo of him to idol magazine, Myojo, and he was featured in the "Cool Classmates" corner of the issue. Akanishi expressed interest in the entertainment industry and his mother thus sent in an application to Johnny's Entertainment on his behalf in 1998. Though he technically failed his audition on November 8, 1998, he was told to stay when he tried to return his number plate to a man who happened to be Johnny Kitagawa himself. After he was made a Johnny's Jr. member in 2000, Akanishi was part of a number of groups like Musical Academy Dancing, J2000 and B.A.D. before being drafted into a six-member unit in 2001 with other juniors Kazuya Kamenashi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki Tanaka, Tatsuya Ueda and Yuichi Nakamaru. Though the group was originally meant to only be backup dancers for Koichi Domoto of KinKi Kids, the sextet's unexpected popularity led their agency to allow them to expand into a separate group called KAT-TUN, an acronym formed by the first letter of the members' surnames. Despite the group's popularity (they even released DVDs of their live concerts in 2003 and 2005—a first for JE groups that hadn't debuted), they were not allowed to make their bow until five years later. In December 2010, Jin Akanishi signed a global deal with Warner Music Group. It was announced that Jin Akanishi will be releasing his first U.S. debut single titled "Test Drive" featuring Jason Derulo. The release will be released on November 8, 2011 at 7AM PST. In addition to his U.S. debut, Akanishi will hold a LIVE U-STREAM to answer questions from his fans. Documenting his US debut journey, Akanishi released the first episode of his web series, The Takeover, on October 27. After debuting on November 8, 2011, Jin Akanishi's U.S. debut single "Test Drive" featuring Jason Derülo reached the #1 spot on iTunes Dance Album Chart. In the single's Japanese release, it has peaked at number 14 on the Japan Hot 100, while the EP debuted at number 1. --- Akanishi made his debut as an actor in 1999 in a cameo appearance in the second episode of NTV's romance comedy, P.P.O.I., and also had small roles in TV Asahi's Best Friend, Omae no yukichi ga naiteiru and in NHK series, Haregi, Koko Ichiban. He also started appearing in musicals from 2000 taking on supporting roles in Millennium Shock (2000), Show Geki Shock (2001–2002), Dream Boy (2004) and Dream Boys (2006). Akanishi returned to the small screen in 2005 in the second season of the award-winning and popular NTV school drama, Gokusen, starring opposite Yukie Nakama and former bandmate Kazuya Kamenashi. The show won "Best Drama" at the 44th Television Drama Academy Awards and ended its run with an average viewership rating of 27.8%. He also had a supporting role in NTV's romance series, Anego, the same year. In 2007, Akanishi starred in his first lead role in Yukan Club, a school comedy series, with ex-bandmate Junnosuke Taguchi and was voted "Best Actor" at the 11th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix. He made his debut as a voice actor in 2008 for the Japanese dub of Speed Racer, providing the voice for protagonist Speed played by Emile Hirsch. In 2009, Akanishi was cast as the lead actor in the movie, Bandage, directed by Takeshi Kobayashi and release on January 16, 2010. This marked his debut on the big screen. It has recently been announced that Akanishi will star in the Hollywood film 47 Ronin which also stars Keanu Reeves in the lead role. Akanishi will play the role of Chikara Oishi, a friend to Kai who is played by Reeves. The film's director, Carl Erik Rinsch, was apparently impressed by Akanishi's English abilities and motivation.