Naniwa Danshi


Naniwa Danshi is a Japanese boy band formed by Starto Entertainment. It consists of seven members who primarily come from the Kansai region. The group's official debut announcement was made through their label Storm Labels. Their debut single, "Ubu Love", was released on November 12, 2021. The name "Naniwa" refers to the old name of Osaka. They have sold over 6 million records in Japan since their debut.

History

Naniwa Danshi is produced by Super Eight's Tadayoshi Okura. Prior to Naniwa Danshi, a Kansai Junior trio unit called Naniwa Ouji was formed in August 2012. Naniwa Ouji includes the two current members Daigo Nishihata, Ryusei Onishi, and Ren Nagase, who later became a member of King & Prince.
The group's formation was informed to the members through mass e-mails, as opposed of being called directly to Johnny Kitagawa's place, leading members to think that "it was a prank." Nishihata originally thought it was a prank due to the group's name "Naniwa Danshi", due to it literally meaning "people from Kansai." Formation of Naniwa Danshi was the first time in 4 years for Kansai Junior and was publicly announced through the magazine Potato.

2021-present: Debut

On January 5, 2021, Naniwa Danshi, along with two other Kansai Junior groups, joined the Junior official YouTube channel, indirectly replacing SixTones and Snow Man after their departure from the channel.
The group's official debut was announced through their Naniwa Danshi First Arena Tour 2021 #NaniwaDanshiShikaKatan concert at Yokohama Arena, which was also a surprise for themselves. The debut was announced on Naniwa Day. This also marks the long-awaited debut for Joichiro Fujiwara, who had been a trainee for 17 years 8 months—the longest in Starto Entertainment's history. Alongside their debut CD release, an Instagram account was also made. They also "graduated" from the Junior YouTube channel and opened their own YouTube channel.
In 2024, Super Eight, West, and Naniwa Danshi collaborated in all-Kansai group named Kamigata Boyz. The group digital single, "Musekinin de Ee Janai ka Love" was released on May 3 and is available on music streaming sites. Hyadain wrote and composed the song. The song title is a combination of each group songs: Musekinin Hero, Eejanaika, and Ubu Love.
On August 13, during their talk segment on +Alpha concert at Yokohama Arena, the group announced their first Asia tour concert. The concert will be held in three cities Taipei, Seoul, and Hong Kong.
On June 28, 2025, during their ongoing live tour in Yokohama Arena, they announced that in 2026 they will be performing at Tokyo Dome and Kyocera Dome for the first time.

Members

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Video albums

Tie-ins

Filmography

Dramas & TV Shows etc

Documentary

Films

Commercials

Concert tours

Solo concerts

  • Naniwa Danshi First Live Tour 2019 ~Naniwa Danshi to Isshoni #Aoharu Shiyo?~
  • NANIWA DANSHI LIVE 2020 「Shall we #AOHARU」
  • Kansai Johnny's DREAM PAVILION 〜Shall we #AOHARU?〜
  • Naniwa Danshi First Arena Tour 2021 #NaniwaDanshiShikaKatan
  • Naniwa Danshi Debut Tour 2022 1st Love
  • Naniwa Danshi Live Tour 2023 Pop Mall
  • Naniwa Danshi Live Tour 2024 '+Alpha'
  • * Naniwa Danshi ASIA TOUR 2024+2025 '+Alpha'
  • Naniwa Danshi Live Tour 2025 'BON BON VOYAGE'
  • Naniwa Danshi 1st Dome Live 'Voyage'

Joint concerts

  • Johnny's Festival 〜Thank you 2021 Hello 2022〜
  • Johnny's Countdown
  • WE ARE! Let's get the party STARTO!!
  • Kamigata Boyz Dream IsLAND 2024 ~Yappa Kono Machi Sukkyanen~

Pre-debut concerts

  • Fall in Love ~Aki ni Kanju ni Koishichainayo~
  • Kansai Johnny's Jr
  • Kansai Johnny's Jr. Live 2019 Happy 2 Year!! ~Kotoshi mo Kanju to Chu Year!~
  • Kansai Johnny's Jr
  • Johnny's IsLAND Festival
  • Johnny's Jr. 8.8 Matsuri ~Tokyo Dome kara Hajimaru~
  • Kanju: Yume no Kansai Island 2020 in Kyocera Dome Osaka ~Asobi ni Oide ya! Manzoku 100%~
  • Johnny's World Happy LIVE with YOU（2020, online)
  • Johnny's Dream IsLAND 2020 > 2025 ~Daisuki na Kono Machi kara~
  • Kansai Johnny's Jr. Akeome Concert 2021 ~Kanju ga Gyuuuutto Daishuugou~

Other media

A virtual idol collaboration project between Starto Entertainment and Showroom started from 2019 which features two members Joichiro Fujiwara and Kazuya Ohashi. They voiced the members of duo unit Ascana: Asuka Kaido and Kanata Ichigoya, respectively. The duo streamed every day at 21:30 JST on Showroom. Honeyworks handles the music and character designs. Along with Naniwa Danshi's official debut, both of them "graduated" from the project in 2021.
Ascana has released 5 original songs:
  • "Yowamushi-tachi no Sekai Seifuku"
  • "Shiny Wedding"
  • "Lv.1"
  • "Pudding to Cream Stew"
  • "Step x Smile x Step"