Tsubasa Imai facts for kids

Tsubasa Imai (今井 翼, Imai Tsubasa, born October 17, 1981) is a Japanese singer, actor, and dancer. He used to be part of the famous Japanese talent agency, Johnny & Associates. Tsubasa joined the agency in 1995. He officially started his career in 2002 as part of a music duo called Tackey & Tsubasa. His partner in the duo was Hideaki Takizawa. Their music was released by the record label Avex Trax. Tsubasa Imai also released his first solo song, "Backborn," on February 24, 2010.

About Tsubasa Imai

Tsubasa Imai was born in Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan, on October 17, 1981. He is known as a very talented dancer among his friends and colleagues. His close friends from the Johnny & Associates agency include Hideaki Takizawa, Tsuyoshi Domoto, Toma Ikuta, and Sho Sakurai. People often call him Tsuba or Imai-kun. He is a big fan of the Japanese baseball team, the Yokohama BayStars. He has supported them since they were known as the Taiyou Whales.

Tsubasa is also known as one of the "Four Dancing Kings" in the Johnny & Associates agency. Another famous dancer in this group is Koichi Domoto from KinKi Kids. Tsubasa has appeared in many TV shows and was a main actor in the yearly musical Shock. He played the second main role again in the 2005 show called Endless Shock.

Tsubasa's Career Journey

How Tsubasa Started

Tsubasa's older sister was a fan of the band TOKIO. She sent in his application to the agency. During his audition, Johnny Kitagawa, the founder of the agency, noticed his amazing dancing skills. He told Tsubasa, "YOU dance well." Tsubasa was originally going to start his career as a solo artist. However, he and Hideaki Takizawa decided to debut together as a duo, which became Tackey & Tsubasa.

Learning Flamenco Dance

In 2007, Tsubasa traveled to Spain. There, he quickly fell in love with flamenco, a lively Spanish dance style. He even studied flamenco under a professional artist named Hiroki Sato.

Health Challenge

In 2014, while practicing for a show called Playzone, Tsubasa started feeling dizzy. He found it hard to stand up. He went to the hospital and was diagnosed with Ménière's disease. This is a condition that can cause dizziness and hearing problems.

Tsubasa's Acting Roles

TV Shows

• Mokuyou no kaidan (1995)
• Brothers (1998)
• Summer Snow (2000)
• Never Land (2001)
• Saigo no Bengonin (The Last Lawyer) (2003)
• Haru to Natsu (2005)
• Yoshitsune (2005), playing Nasu no Yoichi
• Kirin ga Kuru (2020), playing Mōri Shinsuke
• Ojisan wa Kawaii Mono ga Osuki (2020)

Movies

• Life in Overtime (2018)
• What She Likes... (2021)
• Tell Me (2022), playing Hiroshi

Anime Voice Acting

• Layton Detective Agency ~Katrielle's Mystery Solving Files~ as Simon Wright (2018)

Tsubasa's Music and Performances

Solo Songs

Tsubasa Imai released his first solo single, "Backborn," on February 24, 2010. It reached number 2 on the Oricon weekly charts.

Radio Show

Tsubasa has his own weekly radio show called To base (翼のto base). It is broadcast on the Japanese radio station JORQ AM 1134 kHz.

Concert Tours

Tsubasa has held several concert tours for his fans:

• "TSUBACON" 2004 (August 6–18, 2004)
• "23 to 24" First Solo Tour 2005 (September 17 - November 6; December 28–29, 2005)
• "STYLE" 2006 Tour (August 12 - October 1, 2006)
• "Dance and Rock Tour '09 (2009)
• LHTOUR 2011 Dance & Rock Third Floor ~DiVelN to SExaLiVe (2011)

Stage Musicals

Tsubasa has performed in many stage musicals, especially the annual musical production Shock. This show is performed in the Imperial Garden Theater in Tokyo. Koichi Domoto of KinKi Kids plays the main role, and Tsubasa often plays the second main role.

• Shock 2000 - Millenium Shock (November 2–26)
• Shock 2001-2002 - Shock (December 1–25; January 3–27)
• Shock 2002 - Shock (June 4–28)
• Shock 2004 - Shocking Shock (February 6–29）
• Shock 2005 - Endless Shock (January 8 - February 28）
• Shock 2006 - Endless Shock (February 6 - March 29）
• "World Wing 翼 Premium (2007)
• "World Wing 翼 Premium (2008)
• PLAYZONE 2010 - ROAD TO PLAYZONE
• PLAYZONE 2011 - SONG & DANC'N
• PLAYZONE 2012 - SONG & DANC'N PART II
• PLAYZONE 2013 - SONG & DANC'N PART III
• PLAYZONE 1986….2014 ★Arigatou! ~AOYAMA THEATRE★ (July 6 - September)
• PLAYZONE 2015 - ★Sayonara! ~AOYAMA THEATRE★ PLAYZONE 30YEARS
• Burn the Floor 2012 - Around the World Tour (December 5–9 TOKYU Theatre Orb; December 12–16 Orix Theatre Osaka)
• Burn the Floor 2014 - Dance with You (May 2–7 TOKYU Theatre Orb; May 9–13 Festival Hall; May 16–18 Nagoya Congress Center)
• GOEMON (2014)
• GOEMON (2016)
• Marius (2017)
• Musical GOYA (2021)

Videos and DVDs

• "TSUBACON" 2004
• "23 to 24" First Solo Tour 2005
• Dance and Rock Tour '09
• LHTOUR 2011 Dance & Rock Third Floor ~DiVelN to SExaLiVe

See also

In Spanish: Tsubasa Imai para niños