About Kanjani8
Kanjani∞ (関ジャニ∞) ("kan - jya - ni - ei - to" is a Johnny's Entertainment (JE) idol unit formed in 2002, an eight-man singing/entertainment group hailing from the Kansai-region of Japan. Their earliest singles featured a fresh new sound dubbed 'modern enka'. Their subsequent releases exhibit a range of other styles as well - from pop and rock, to ballad and even comedy - Sukiyanen, Osaka, one of their popular tunes, incorparates "konto" (comical skits) which are always ad-libbed. Kanjani∞ project a strong image of being funny and loud - the stereotypical Kansai-jin (person from Kansai) or more specifically Osaka-jin (6 of the members are from Osaka). In fact, 'Osaka' is a recurrent theme in many of their songs - Sukiyanen, Osaka proclaims their love for the city, while in ∞saka Obaachan Rock, they sing about Osaka older ladies/mothers. While fulfilling the JE-idol prerequisites of being able to sing and dance, the individual members also exhibit a broad range of talents including speaking, hosting TV shows, song-writing, acting, playing musical instruments, and even Manzai.

Active Members

Yū Yokoyama (横山 裕) May 9, 1981 (Yū is his stage name, his real name is Kimitaka Yokoyama (横山 侯隆)
Subaru Shibutani (渋谷 すばる) September 22, 1981
Shingo Murakami (村上 信五) January 26, 1982
Ryūhei Maruyama (丸山 隆平) November 26, 1983
Shota Yasuda (安田 章大) September 11, 1984
Ryō Nishikido (錦戸 亮) November 3, 1984 (Also a member of another J&A unit, NEWS and has not took a fully active role in the band since the announcement was made that he would be a member of NEWS)
Tadayoshi Ōkura (大倉 忠義) May 16, 1985

Suspended Members

Hiroki Uchi (内 博貴) September 10, 1986 (He was suspended in July 2005 for underage drinking, and is now in a 'lower level' rank in Johnny's Associates. It has not been confirmed if or when he will be returning to both Kanjani8 and/or NEWS)
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