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Rock Band KANA-BOON Halts Activities for Rest of Year; Takahiro Koizumi, Hayato Koga Leave Group

Rock band KANA-BOON announced on Monday that the band will halt their activities for the rest of the year. The announcement also stated that drummer Takahiro Koizumi and guitarist Hayato Koga will leave the group, after the agency terminated their contracts. The band are canceling all their appearances and performances for the rest of the year.

The announcement on KANA-BOON's website references a report that the agency had investigated from a few days ago. The tabloid website News Post Seven had posted a report on December 7 alleging drummer Koizumi had been dating an underground idol in her 20s, and when she got pregnant last year, she had an abortion. The report alleges Koizumi became distant after she became pregnant, stating he could not support her or her child due to his agency. The woman alleges Koizumi also took many months to reimburse her the costs of the abortion after he initially said he would pay for it, and only did so after she told him she was considering a lawsuit. KANA-BOON's website stated Koizumi told the agency the report was "mostly" true. The agency and Koizumi decided after talks that Koizumi would leave the band, and decided to cancel his contract.

At the same time, the agency said it has also "for some time" received reports of "misbehavior" by guitarist Hayato Koga. After discussing the matter with Koga, they decided it would be difficult to have him continue to remain in the band, and so the agency is terminating Koga's contract as well and Koga is leaving the band.

Regarding the band's activities from 2024, the agency stated it will continue to have discussions "to find a way to continue activities without embarrassing fans" and make another announcement at a later date. The remaining members of the band include Maguro Taniguchi and Masami Endō.

KANA-BOON formed when the members were in high school in 2008, and released their first single in 2013. They have released six studio albums. The group have performed theme songs for the Naruto Shippūden, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans, The Perfect Insider, Karakuri Circus, Sarazanmai, My Hero Academia (TV 4), Fire Force (TV 2), Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, and My Love Story With Yamada-kun at Lv999 anime series, and the Boruto -Naruto the Movie- anime film.

Bassist Yūma Meshida left the band in 2019. Meshida was diagnosed with mental illness, and he did not know how many months or years recovery would take.

The band's vocalist and guitarist Maguro Taniguchi went on hiatus from the band in October 2020 due to poor physical health.

Sources: KANA-BOON's website, Music Natalie