King & Prince

King & Prince is a two-member Japanese idol group under Starto Entertainment (formerly of Johnny & Associates) that debuted in 2018. Their debut was announced at a press conference on 17 January 2018 along with the establishment of Johnny & Associates' new record label under Universal Music, Johnny's Universe (now Project K&P), with King & Prince becoming the first artists to sign under the label. They have sold 12.3 million physical copies in Japan.

The group used to have six members: Sho Hirano, Ren Nagase, Kaito Takahashi, Yuta Kishi, Yuta Jinguji and Genki Iwahashi. However, Genki Iwahashi withdrew from King & Prince on 31 March 2021 due to anxiety disorder. Three of the remaining five members left the group on 22 May 2023. Sho Hirano and Yuta Jinguji left the agency on the same day, while Yuta Kishi remained until fall of 2023.

History

2015–2017: Beginnings

Johnny & Associates announced the group's formation in a press conference on 5 June 2015. The group was formed to be special supporters for TV Asahi's Summer Station event. Mr. King vs Mr. Prince was divided into two subgroups: "Mr. King", consisting of Sho Hirano, Ren Nagase, and Kaito Takahashi and "Mr. Prince", consisting of Yuta Kishi, Yuta Jinguji, and Genki Iwahashi. Producer Johnny Kitagawa chose their name in hopes that each member would "spark off each other" and "improve themselves through friendly rivalry". The group's first original song, "Summer Station" was used as the official theme song for the Summer Station event, which ran from July to August 2015. The group was meant to disband after the event. However, in August 2015, the members announced that they would continue activities as a group.