FROM MEMETO FRESH

SUPERSTAR
Have you ever scrolled past a video inyour Twitter feed and wondered'Where is that from?'?
It happens more often than not,especially in today's digital network
jungle, and it's exactly what happened to
the Japanese pop idol group 7 MEN
Samurai (7 MEN侍).

7 MEN Samurai is a six-member group

under the Tokyo-based talent agency
Johnny & Associates. With a focus on
Japanese pop and rock, their weapon onstage is being a band.
On drums, we have their youngest
member, Taiko Sasaki (19), on lead guitar
Taiki Konno (22), on guitar/saxophone
Rinne Sugeta (23), on bass andmiscellaneous instruments, Rei Yabana(21), on keyboard Katsuki Motodaka (23),and lastly, main vocalist and guitar, Reia
Nakamura (24).

FROM MEME TO FRESH SUPERSTAR

www.sjpa.se | 2022

WHERE do we begin?
Somewhere in the jungle oftweets and TikToks, somebody
uploaded a segment of Taikowalking into a glass door, falling
over, proceeded by Rei tripping
over the other.

This video went uncredited (asper usual on the web), and fans ofvarious groups started to caption
it with their idols instead. Thisturned into a state of confusion asof "which group is this?". While
many claimed it to be BTS, Stray
Kids, NCT, or ATEEZ, they were farfrom right. It wasn't even a
Korean group causing this viral
moment of fame and laughter.
It was 7 MEN Samurai - a
Johnny's Jr. group.
This is where we are now, and I
am here to highlight some of thegreat aspects of this young, rising,unique band.

7 MEN Samurai are active weekly,
on the web, on the Johnny's Jr.
Channel and on the platform
ISLAND TV.

This is where you get the official
content of the boys, and aside
from their activities on YouTube,
they also star in various musicshows, stage plays and TV dramas.
They appear both individually andas a group.
Being a Johnny's Jr. group meansthat you don't have a lot of originalcontent but 7 MEN Samurai do not
let that hinder them fromdelivering top-notch performances
whenever they get the chance.
Their first original song, SAMUDAMA, is a rocking songshowcasing their skills as as band.
This version from Summer Station
LIVE THE FUTURE, July 18, 2021,is quite the upgrade from theirfirst studio live in Sep 11, 2020.

★

We willkeep on
until weachieve thedream we've
madeSAMU-DAMA• Johnny's Jr.: trainees that have yet made a CD debut.

FROM MEME TO FRESH SUPERSTAR

www.sjpa.se | 2022

Eventhough ourdreams might
be beyondwhat fateallowsSIREN
Continuing on, the second original song they
got is called "SIREN", and they surprised us
with this song at the Johnnys' Jr. Island FES on
November 28, 2020. Unlike SAMU-DAMA,SIREN is a dance-focused performance,
showing us that they possess the expectedskills as idols of Johnny's. With the duality of aband and idol group, 7 MEN Samurai walks
the path toward a bigger stage than justJapan's borders.

Looking at the members in more detail,they're surely an interesting bunch of boys!
Not only are they top-notch idols but each ofthem got their own set of unique skills.
The oldest, Reia, recently appeared on a showcalled "NEO COLOSSEUM", where he got tocompete against an Olympic medalist in
skateboarding. His skateboarding skills
successfully brought him to victory. He also
appears in various dramas and movies, and hehas been active as a junior ever since 2009and loves Star Wars! With his unique sense ofart, he's also their resident artist and has
made their logos you can see on stage and on
Taiko's drum set.
Katsuki is their academically smartest
member, as he was a ranked top student inmaths nationwide during his junior high years
and is a graduate of the prestigious Waseda
University. He even went against the other fivemembers in a quiz battle! How did that go?
Well, take a look for yourself and find out! Avery charming point about Katsuki is his lovefor fish. He's self-taught in the art of cleaningand preparing fish, and he even caught theeyes of the Japanese Fisheries Ministry.

FROM MEME TO FRESH SUPERSTARNext in line is their fitness guru, Rinne, whocharmingly refers to himself in third person.
Rinne is considered the "genius acrobat" as hisskills with acrobatics and similar is highly
regarded! Not only that, he has participated inthe show SASUKE (Japan's Ninja Warrior)
twice and passed the first stage both times.
Rinne's amazing physical ability is well-known
through the agency as well, and he even ran
12 flights of stairs in just 45 seconds! To top itoff, he absolutely loves cats and has 8 of themat home.
Taiki is their lead vocalist and is usually incharge of higher harmonies and adlibs tocompliment Reia's main vocals. With hissoothing voice and highly regarded vocal
skills, he's been in the reading musical ROCKREADING "ROBIN!", 2021 and "the Happiest
Prince", 2020, alongside fellow member
Katsuki. He occasionally posts his acapellasinging on ISLAND TV, showing off his rawvocals!
7 MEN Samurai's second-youngest, Rei, takes
his passion for music to the next level and ismajoring in music at university alongside hisactivities as an idol. He's not your typical idol,as he tends to let his inner rock beast loose onstage when they rock 'n roll. On ISLAND TV, heoccasionally uploads sessions of himself
jamming or showing off his music equipment.
In 2021, he also got the chance to star in his
first-ever stage play "The Fiend with 20 Faces".
Last, but not least, Taiko. The youngest madehis international debut when it came to light
he resembles the Indonesian actor Iqbaal
Ramadhan. This information went viral, justlike the famous glass door video. On ISLAND
TV, he created a whole series of "Taiko'sChallenge", where he inserted Mentos into
Coca-Cola if to name one thing he's done.
That also, got the official Mentos Twitter topick up on his crazy antics! Not only is heliving on the edge, but he's also a great
dancer.

www.sjpa.se | 2022

REIA
NAKAMURA
NAKAMURA

There is a lot more to discover whenit comes to 7 MEN Samurai because
while they are on their way to
become superstars, they are also agroup of normal, chaotic boys. Every
Friday you can watch the six of thementertain the viewers with crazystunts like cooking huge versions offood, getting pranked by zombies,
babysitting a foreign kid, andhumoring Taiko and his Taiko
Challenge... the list is endless of things
they have done!

RINNE

Who cares
if we're still
unpolished?
SIREN

SUGETA
SUGETA

MOTODAKAMOTODAKAKATSUKI

The title might be a bit misleading as
7 MEN Samurai did not start theircareer from one single meme
circulating on the Internet. Although,it definitely helped them spread theirname across the whole world andmake them a little bit more consciousof the world outside Japan. The worldis big and I think that in time, 7 MEN
Samurai will be ready to expand
globally too, as long as they wish for it.
They possess the charm andadaptability as a classical idol ofJohnny's - whether it be dancing on
stage in shining sequins and layers offur, or causing storms of laughter on avariety show. As a band, they have thenecessary skills they can polish anddevelop into a powerful weapon thatthey can use in the future. Combining
these two, you get 7 MEN Samurai
and they will create their own path
toward the dreams they want toachieve.

SASAKISASAKI

TAIKO

TAIKI
KONNO
KONNO

REI
YABANAYABANAIn conclusion, I would like to wish for
7 MEN Samurai's future success.
When the time comes for theirinternational career, I will be there tosupport them from the bottom of myheart. As long as there aren't any
transparent doors in the way, I believe
they are a group to keep an eye on
and support, especially with thecurrent digital era. Maybe Taiko willgo viral again, who knows? Let's findout together!

INTERESTED IN 7 MEN SAMURAI?
Check the official channels out below.

YOUTUBETWITTERISLAND TV
JOHNNY'S ISLAND STORECHECK THESE VIDEOS OUT!
Can we guess who is playing justby the sound!?
Can we say I LOVE YOU withmarshmallows stuffed in ourmouth??
How long does it take to escapeour duct tape bonds!?

"SIREN" Dance Practice & 3x
Speed Dance Challenge! Can wedo it!?
A detective joins the WerewolfGame!

Sabina Lindström, 2022

FROM MEME TO FRESH SUPERSTAR

www.sjpa.se | 2022