Everything You Wanted to Know About Japanese Idol Band SixTONES
If you're not already a J-pop fan, SixTONES (pronounced "stones") is the band that'll win you over.
Known for their epic and romantic ballads, as well as infusing their music with energetic rock influences, they've quickly grown to become one of Japan's most beloved boy bands. It consists of Hokuto Matsumura, Jesse, Juri Tanaka, Shintaro Morimoto, Taiga Kyomoto and Yugo Kochi, who are each charismatic and talented on their own, but whose ability soars even further when they join forces—and after learning all of the following trivia about the group as our latest Man Crush Mondays, we're even more obsessed.
(Image courtesy of Johnny & Associates)
Hokuto
Name: Hokuto Matsumura
Hometown: Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan
Birthday: June 18
Zodiac: Year of the Pig, Gemini
Jesse
Name: Jesse
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan
Birthday: June 11
Zodiac: Year of the Rat, Gemini
Juri
Name: Juri Tanaka
Hometown: Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Birthday: June 15
Zodiac: Year of the Pig, Gemini
Shintaro
Name: Shintaro Morimoto
Hometown: Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Birthday: July 15
Zodiac: Year of the Ox, Cancer
Taiga
Name: Taiga Kyomoto
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan
Birthday: December 3
Zodiac: Year of the Dog, Sagittarius
Yugo
Name: Yugo Kochi
Hometown: Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Birthday: March 8
Zodiac: Year of the Dog, Pisces
Fun Facts:
1. Hokutu has always wanted to learn how to work a sewing machine.
"I've always wanted to be able to mix, match and remake my own clothes."
-Hokuto Matsumura
2. If Jesse could live in any decade, he'd go way back in time.
"Definitely the prehistoric Jomon Period (around 14,000 BC). I've always been fascinated by the pottery found from that time and would love to see it live."
-Jesse
3. Juri is obsessed with barbecue-flavored snacks.
"I eat them almost every day."
-Juri Tanaka
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4. It may sound strange, but Shintaro likes to eat seaweed directly from the ocean.
"I also like to pick fruits from trees off the side of the road."
-Shintaro Morimoto
5. Taiga can't get enough of the Case Closed (Detective Conan) series, and he's seen most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies multiple times.
6. The last celebrity Yugo got starstruck over was Japanese comedian George Tokoro.
"From motorcycles and cars to gadgets to music, he's the epitome of what I like and like to do and the manifestation of the person I'd like to be one day."
-Yugo Kochi
7. Hokuto loves the autumn season, and if he could create his own fictional world, it would always be fall there.
"Nothing specific like fantasy, but if there was a world that had especially long autumn seasons that would be where I'd want to be. I love the fall season and everything about it."
Hokuto Matsumura
8. After a tough day, Jesse unwinds by eating and drinking with good friends, and listening to music.
9. At the moment, Juri's favorite article of clothing is a simple black parka.
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10. Shintaro can't stand avocados.
"The texture drives me crazy, and I'm not keen on the taste, either."
-Shintaro Morimoto
11. While Taiga doesn't consider himself a sporty guy, he does have some martial arts experience.
"When I was in elementary school I did six years of karate, and even got to compete in a major national tournament!"
-Taiga Kyomoto
12. If Yugo weren't an idol, singer and actor, he'd want to be a carpenter.
"Ever since I was in kindergarten, I thought the ability to make a house was so cool, and wanted to be such a person when I grew up. Even now, I love to create things."
-Yugo Kochi
13. Hokuto knows how to walk on stilts.
14. Jesse doesn't consider himself much of a gamer, but he does enjoy some soccer games.
15. Juri's favorite scent is a seasonal Japanese specialty.
"There is a Japanese scent that comes out every year in Tokyo during the fall season called kinmokusei. It translates to 'fragrant olive' in English, but you have to smell it to really know it!"
-Juri Tanaka
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16. Shintaro loves a good sunny day.
"I always just feel better, and it's good for my hobbies like surfing and scuba diving."
-Shintaro Morimoto
17. Taiga is an only child.
"I think that's made me pretty good at amusing myself when alone."
-Taiga Kyomoto
18. Yugo's biggest guilty pleasure is using more laundry detergent than he should.
"I always put a little more than what is indicated as necessary on the bottle or the machine, because I really like the way it makes my clothes feel."
-Yugo Kochi
19. Even though Hokuto doesn't have good eyesight, he'd still prefer to do everything without the help of contact lenses or glasses.
20. One of Jesse's biggest character quirks has to do with dishes.
"If friends or family come over and help wash dishes, I always wash them again myself after they leave. It's not that I don't trust their cleanliness, I'm just very particular about that sort of thing."
-Jesse
21. Even though Juri says he can be lazy and have a short attention span, those things don't define him.
"On the other hand, when I do focus, my concentration is extremely strong."
-Juri Tanaka
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22. Shintaro gets very serious about cooking.
"I love to cook, but I get very obsessive about precise measurements and make everything exactly in accordance with the recipe. If I'm off by even one milligram or one second, I can't stand it."
-Shintaro Morimoto
23. Taiga considers himself a hardcore otaku—a Japanese word for a certain type of fandom geek.
"I love to collect figurines and play various card games from series like Dragon Ball Z, Marvel, Yu-Gi-Oh, and of course Detective Conan."
-Taiga Kyomoto
24. Yugo wants fans to know he's more than what he appears.
"To a lot of people who just see my work. I seem like I'm always happy and positive, but I have a surprisingly sensitive and serious side as well."
-Yugo Kochi
Want to know who else we're crushing on? Click HERE to find out all of the reasons OMEGA X singer Sebin was our last Man Crush Monday.