Jin Akanishi

is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter and actor. He has been active since 1998 as one of the two lead vocalists of the J-pop boy-band KAT-TUN before starting a solo career in 2009. Akanishi has also acted in several films and dramas. Biography Early life Akanishi was born in Chiba Prefecture, Greater Tokyo Area, Japan on July 4, 1984, as the eldest of two sons. He has a younger brother Reio, who also works in the entertainment industry as an actor under the stage name Fuuta. Akanishi moved to Tokyo in the first grade. In 1997, when he was still in grade school, a classmate sent in a photo of him to idol magazine Myojo, and he was featured in the "Cool Classmates" corner of the issue. Akanishi expressed interest in the entertainment industry and his mother thus sent in an application to Johnny's Entertainment on his behalf in 1998. Though he technically failed his audition on November 8, 1998, he was told to stay when he tried to return his number plate to a man who happened to be Johnny Kitagawa himself.