It isn't strange for idols to venture out of their comfort zones and wear additional hats that have little to do with their entertainment personas, but it remains quite fascinating to see. The pursuit of passion beyond their initial fame makes for a compelling journey of self-discovery that easily resonates with many, and of such instances, the trajectory of Shigeaki Kato is particularly noteworthy.

As a member of Johnny & Associates boyband NEWS since 2003, he has been involved in acting, songwriting, certain aspects of concert production, and has even delved into directing and photography. He also happens to be a celebrated novelist.  

In 2012, Kato released his debut novel, Pink and Gray, after expressing a desire to accomplish it by the time he turned twenty-five. Pink and Gray was an instant hit and was eventually turned into a movie starring fellow Johnny’s talent, Hey! Say! JUMP’s Yuto Nakajima, and actor Masaki Suda. Since then, he’s written several more novels, the latest of which was Alternate (2020), which told the story of three high school students whose lives revolved around the existence of a matching app catered exclusively to young people. Through their varied experiences, Kato was able to explore the themes of love, family, and friendship, and the intricacies of human connection in the digital age. 

According to Kato, who is now in his mid-thirties, one of the reasons he wanted to write this book was to encourage younger idol fans to rediscover the joys of reading. In this regard, one might be able to argue that being a published author has plenty to do with being an idol, especially if we're considering their spheres of influence. In fact, Kato himself notes, “Writing novels and being a talent at Johnny’s are two very important sides of the same coin that is me.”

It also helps illustrate the profound connection between idols and fans, where idols serve more than just entertainers and become akin to companions who inspire transformation – they are idols fans grew up with, idols fans have seen grow, idols that fans look up to, idols who are inspired by their fans to grow, and idols who find strength in the hope to inspire fans’ growth.

Like its predecessors, Alternate has been met with much acclaim; it went on to win the 42nd Yoshikawa Eiji Literary Newcomer Award and was also nominated for the prestigious 164th Naoki Prize. Most recently, the work was released in Indonesia through publisher Penerbit Haru, giving it another opportunity to find an even wider audience. 

With this and a new book, Nare no Hate, just announced for release this coming 25 October, Kato continues to establish a cross-cultural reach that emphasises the universality of his works’ themes. 

Bandwagon had the opportunity to ask Shigeaki Kato about Alternate, what it means for him to be a novelist and an idol, and what he hopes to achieve with what he has chosen to offer to the world. 

Your book Alternate has reached many people in Japan and has been recognised by prestigious award-giving bodies. It’s recently been distributed in South Korea and is now being released in Indonesia. How are you feeling about all this right now?

Several of my works have been translated for international readers now, and it makes me very happy that so many people can read them even though I don’t always have the chance to see their reactions. I do read the responses and impressions on the radio or SNS whenever I can, and since this book was written in Japanese I am always worried about things being lost in translation. I feel both anxiety and anticipation, as always, though I am excited.  

What can Indonesian readers expect from this book?

Alternate portrays the lives of teenage boys and girls through a personality-matching application. I think that the conflicts, worries, and joys unique to teenagers while growing up are kind of universal, so I hope that this book will give hope to everyone who is currently enjoying their youth, as well as grown-ups fondly remembering that time of their lives. When it was published in Japan, I received a great response from a lot of people, including even some men in their 50s who said that they liked it! I hope that all Indonesians, not only young readers, will enjoy this new translation.

It’s been over ten years since you published your debut novel, Pink and Gray, and since then, you’ve published many more stories. What compelled you to get into writing novels, and what continues to drive you to do so?

For my first book, Pink and Gray, I just wanted to write something all by myself. I assumed it would be my first but only novel, I decided to give it my all, but more people read it than I expected, and people kept telling me they would like to read more of my writing. I visited many bookstores too, and they also said, "Please keep publishing so that we can support you! We like your enthusiasm in your novels and the fun of your books." It became my primary motivation, and by continuing to do more I have gained a lot of readers around the world and have now even been able to publish in Indonesia. I think that the fact that I was able to write more than just that first one is a great source of pride for me.

Of course, aside from being an accomplished author, you are a well-established figure in Japanese entertainment. And aside from writing novels, you have also shown your talent for words in various ways as a member of NEWS. How has being an idol and musical artist influenced your writing, and in turn, how does being an author influence your life and artistry as an entertainer?

There are several important things about writing a novel, and one of them is having a variety of experiences. I sing and dance in this institution of ours called Johnny’s, do various plays, travel on variety shows, get to eat various things, and all these experiences together have become the main source I draw on for my material. My own experiences become ink and paper; and by turning such useful experiences into writing, I can seriously face my other activities as a talent. For me, writing novels and being a talent at Johnny’s are two very important sides of the same coin that is me.

The premise of Alternate itself seems to deal with how various aspects of young people’s lives blend into each other and influence their relationships with those around them and, most significantly themselves. You’ve said that this is something you consider your representative work. Could you tell us more about that?

It is said that fewer people are reading physical books in Japan and that the publishing industry itself is shrinking.  I want people who like books to find my books interesting, but since I belong to an agency that has many young female fans, I also hope that my efforts might help young people rediscover the joy of reading. I hope it will be the first book for young people to read without hesitation. 

Normally, novelists apply for the Newcomer Award, but because I have done so many other things, I was able to skip that part and publish novels directly under the support of Johnny & Associates, and in that sense, the publishing world has been very kind and generous to me. So, in return, I wrote Alternate in the hope that more young people would read books and in so doing come to love books as well.

I also found it interesting that you wrote this book because you wanted to encourage more teenagers to read. This somehow feels rather like your position as an idol who motivates those who watch you on stage and on screen. Would you also say that that is the case? Please tell us more about why you chose to write Alternate with such a young audience in mind.

It may be the same as what I said in the last question, but I simply wanted young readers to read. Of course, I’m in my mid-30s, so I was worried about whether I could connect with young readers and understand the feelings of people wholly outside my own generation in an honest way. But in the end, I think teenagers nowadays and how I was in my youth are not so different on a fundamental level. Digital devices such as smartphones or gadgets have changed, but I think how we think and approach a world we’re still figuring out is the same. I still have vivid memories of all the hopes, dreams, and worries that youth brings with it, and age has brought me more experiences including those I’ve garnered through reading and writing as much as I have. 

When I was young, I loved to read novels, and one of my favourites of all time is The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. It is also a story about a young boy, but it was written in the United States about 70 years ago, yet it really resonated with me as a young adult and still does now. So, as a reader, I do have confidence that I can still feel connected with the mind of a teenager, and articulate the kind of important life experiences that transcend age or nationality. 

What specifically influenced you about Catcher in the Rye?*

The main character, Holden Caulfield, is very rebellious from the point of view of other people in the story. He is troublesome and they don’t understand why he does the things he does. However, from his point of view, he simply has his own way of thinking and his own sense of values, and I was and still am the same. There are things I think or do that even though I know are “wrong” in some way—in the sense of being outside the logic and expectations of others--they are important to ME and are an integral part of how and why I do things.

When I read it, I was about 20 years old, and I felt I could really understand Holden's feelings. He is said to be troublesome, but there is something in him that makes sense unto himself, and there is something in him that he cannot give up even though it hurts. His desire to help his sister in the rye field is so pure and innocent, and that character really appealed to me. I guess not just me since it remains an international best-seller, and I think that's a testament to the power of the written word.

You seem to enjoy exploring the core emotions of people and how those affect their decisions and actions in life. What is it about the human psyche that inspires you to write?

I think we as humans don’t understand other human beings as well as we think we do. If humans truly understood one another, there would be no conflict, no war; but we don’t, or we simply refuse to try. I think it is important to at least have the desire to understand one another, and to respect each other through knowing each other's differences. Even here, in a country as culturally homogeneous as Japan, I still fight and argue with people, so clearly this is something more deeply fundamental to the human condition than race or creed, and what has helped me personally is reading novels. They give me a ton of new perspectives and ideas through which I can sympathise or empathise with others, and be more kind and respectful to ways of thinking no matter how different they are from my own. I believe that if we can do that more as a species, we will have a better society.

Can you elaborate on your process for creating such complex and emotionally rich characters?

I want to know people and the intimacy of their feelings, even though it is difficult when up against key differences. The stimuli to them may have changed through the centuries, but human emotions are still the products of the same brain chemicals that we’ve had for tens of thousands of years, if not more, so I don’t think it is as hard as we assume it to be. I honestly want to understand the experiences of women, or foreigners, and try to read more literature from those perspectives. 

In Alternate, there are three main characters; one who doesn’t use the titular app, one who uses it and loves it, and one who wants to use it but can't. The story was created while going through why the three of them became like that, and from that starting point, I also built the characters of the people around them. 

Previously, Alternate had been translated into Korean, and this time it is being released in Indonesia; but you have many fans from other countries who would surely love to read your book in their own language, too. Is there anything you would like to say to your other international fans?

I sincerely appreciate the interest of so many people in countries where my books have not yet been translated. Publishing is a very tricky business, and it’s not easy to build a case for translation and distribution when the voices of readers who want full translations are not easily heard. So, if you are a fan from overseas, please let your presence be known! I will continue to do my part, but nothing is stronger than the voices of the readers, and if there is a greater awareness in the publishing industry of the interest from foreign countries in the works of Japanese literature, anything is possible! 

What’s next for Shigeaki Kato?

As a novelist, I have a new book coming out in October! This time, I challenged myself to a mystery; a more ambitious and totally different story than I’ve ever written before, touching on the history of Japan. I really hope you enjoy it, and I sincerely hope that one day it can be translated for overseas readers. 

Also, NEWS is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, and while most of our related activities are based here in Japan, I hope to eventually go abroad if possible. 

All in all, I think it will have been a fulfilling 2023, and I know there is a lot to look forward to next year and beyond. 

You said your next book was a mystery. Previously, you played the classic detective Kosuke Kindaichi for a TV movie. Was there any connection between this new book and that?*

Getting to play Kosuke Kindaichi was so much fun! I think a lot of Johnny’s fans are familiar with Hajime Kindaichi because of how many Johnnys have played him in the Kindaichi Shonen TV dramas, but perhaps they’re not familiar with the character’s grandfather beyond the famous catchphrase. I’ve read the full series of original books by Seishi Yokomizo many times, and while I wouldn’t say it was a conscious choice, perhaps readers might find some influences between them and my new book, which touches on the history of Japan and connects the modern world of 2019 with the immediate pre/post-war era. However, it’s not really a history book, but rather a mystery centred on the creator of a certain painting. 

Follow Shigeaki Kato on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram. 

*This interview was conducted via email through a representative of Johnny & Associates. Two follow-up questions were included on the spot.