4 Idol Groups Withdraw, Leaving Music Festivals In Shambles

Two autumn music festivals are scrambling to make changes now that four artists have been pulled from their lineups.

The Japanese girl groups ≠ME and ≒JOY will not be part of the GIGA・GIGA SONIC on October 18. Two other Japanese girl groups, FRUITS ZIPPER and CUTIE STREET, will also not be performing at SAMURAI SONIC, which is taking place on October 19.

As it turns out, the groups’ agencies, Asobi Systems and Yoyogi Animation Academy, had never approved these scheduled appearances, and only found out about them after seeing the groups’ names on promotional images for the events.

≠ME, ≒JOY, FRUITS ZIPPER, and CUTIE STREET were also unaware.

The event committees’ so-called agreements with these agencies never existed; the “representatives” the committees had arranged the scheduled appearances through ended up being scammers with no real connections to Asobi Systems or Yoyogi Animation Academy.

After announcing the line-ups, we received communication from each agency and found that the contracts had been made with individuals falsely claiming to represent them. These people were not affiliated with Asobi Systems or Yoyogi Animation Academy. We, along with other involved companies, have suffered damages and are cooperating with police while taking appropriate legal measures.

— GIGA･GIGA SONIC organizers

All other scheduled performers will proceed as planned, and fans who bought tickets to see ≠ME, ≒JOY, FRUITS ZIPPER, or CUTIE STREET will be given full refunds.