Johnny & Associates/Johnny's Entertainment, known in Japanese as "Johnny's Jimusho"- formed by Johnny Kitagawa in 1963, is an organization that trains and promotes groups of male idols in Japan.
Famous groups include SMAP, TOKIO, Kinki Kids, Arashi, V6, NEWS, Tackey & Tsubasa, KAT-TUN, Kanjani8, Ya-ya-yah and others. Members of the groups frequently appear in a number of Johnny's magazines, including Myojo, Potato and Wink-up.
Johnny's Jimusho (Johnny's Entertainment) is a talent agency that was established by Kitagawa Johnny and his sister Mary back in the early 60's. It has dominated the Japanese boy band market ever since. Just about all the top male groups on Japanese television today are members of this stable. Most of them not only dominated the music industry, they are also known for appearing everywhere from doramas to TV commercials. Johnny's Jr. consists of young boys, probably around early teens, being "trained" to sing and dance. When they reach a certain age they move on to debut as part of a group, duo, trio or even solo. Most "juniors-in-training" end up being back up dancers for their seniors who already debuted. The Juniors are divided into groups with leaders. Takizawa Hideaki, Imai Tsubasa and Kimura Takuya are some examples of past Johnny's Jr. leaders.