Kento Nakajima

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Nakajima's early career began when he was in 6th grade, after hearing "Seishun Amigo" by Johnny's unit Shūji to Akira. He sent in his application and joined the agency in April 2008. That year, B.I.Shadow was formed with members Fuma Kikuchi, Misaki Takahata, and Nakajima; they acted in the drama Scrap Teacher. In 2011, at age 17, he was chosen for the 5-member group Sexy Zone, which debuted on November 16 with their debut single. Their average age of 14.4 was notable, but the record for youngest group to debut since Oricon began in January 1968 is held by Hey! Say! JUMP (average age 14.2 in 2007). It was announced that Nakajima would leave Sexy Zone on March 31, 2024, seeking to take on challenges as an idol and actor both in Japan and abroad. As a singer, he collaborated with Tatsuya Kitani as the unit GEMN, releasing the single "Fatal" in 2024 as the opening theme for the second season of the anime Oshi no Ko. He also released "Hitogoto feat. Kento Nakajima" as part of the Hitogoto Project, serving as the theme song for the TV Tokyo drama series Shosen Hitogoto desu kara: Toaru Bengoshi no Honne no Shigoto, in which he appears. He made his overseas acting debut in Hulu/SkyShowtime's drama Concordia, which started airing on May 23, 2024. On October 17, 2024, he announced the opening of official YouTube and TikTok accounts.

In Their Own Story

Nakajima's journey from a 6th-grade fan of Johnny's to a record-breaking idol began when he heard "Seishun Amigo" by Shūji to Akira. He sent his application at 14 and joined the agency in April 2008. That year, he became part of B.I.Shadow alongside Fuma Kikuchi and Misaki Takahata, acting in Scrap Teacher. In 2011, at 17, he was chosen for Sexy Zone, which debuted on November 16 with their debut single. The group's average age of 14.4 made them the youngest debut act since Oricon began in 1968. After over a decade with Sexy Zone, it was announced he would leave on March 31, 2024, to pursue challenges as an idol and actor in Japan and abroad. In 2024, he collaborated with Tatsuya Kitani as GEMN on "Fatal," the opening theme for Oshi no Ko's second season. He also released "Hitogoto feat. Kento Nakajima" for the drama Shosen Hitogoto desu kara. On November 20, 2025, a collaboration with Mori Calliope on "Gold Unbalance" was announced. His solo debut album N/bias dropped on December 25, 2024, with his first solo live at Ariake Arena in January 2025. On January 18, 2026, it was revealed he would sing the official cheer song for the 2026 Winter Olympics' Japanese team, performing "Kesshō" at the TEAM JAPAN farewell party. He made his overseas acting debut in Concordia on May 23, 2024. He opened YouTube and TikTok accounts on October 17, 2024, and was named Bulgari Japan brand ambassador on January 8, 2026. He also served as a special navigator for WOWOW's Academy Awards broadcast, showcasing English skills he studied for the occasion.

Reader's Guide

Kento Nakajima is a Japanese entertainer whose career spans singing, acting, voice acting, and television personality work under Starto Entertainment. He is best known as a member of Sexy Zone and Yuma Nakayama w/B.I.Shadow. His early inspiration came from Johnny's unit Shūji to Akira's song "Seishun Amigo" when he was in 6th grade. He joined the agency in April 2008 at age 14. In 2008, he was part of B.I.Shadow with Fuma Kikuchi and Misaki Takahata, acting in Scrap Teacher. In 2011, at 17, he was chosen for Sexy Zone, which debuted on November 16 with their debut single; their average age of 14.4 set a record as the youngest group to debut since Oricon began in 1968. He announced he would leave Sexy Zone on March 31, 2024, to take on challenges as an idol and actor in Japan and abroad. As a singer, he collaborated with Tatsuya Kitani as GEMN on "Fatal," the opening theme for Oshi no Ko's second season in 2024. He also released "Hitogoto feat. Kento Nakajima" for the drama Shosen Hitogoto desu kara. On November 20, 2025, a collaboration with Mori Calliope on "Gold Unbalance" was announced. His solo debut album N/bias was released on December 25, 2024, with his first solo live at Ariake Arena on January 17–19, 2025. On January 18, 2026, it was revealed he would sing the official cheer song for the 2026 Winter Olympics' Japanese team, performing "Kesshō" at the TEAM JAPAN farewell party. He made his overseas acting debut in Concordia on May 23, 2024. He opened official YouTube and TikTok accounts on October 17, 2024. On January 8, 2026, he was appointed brand ambassador for Bulgari Japan. He also served as a special navigator for WOWOW's Academy Awards broadcast, studying English for the occasion and showing wonderful English-speaking skills. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in Sociology from Meiji Gakuin University. He is an only child raised by his mother, loves playing the piano, and owns a toy poodle named Bonita. He coined the term "Sexy Lovers" or "sekurabas" for Sexy Zone fans and updates his blog KenTeaTime daily.

Did You Know?

• Nakajima joined Johnny & Associates in April 2008 after being inspired by the song 'Seishun Amigo' by Shūji to Akira.
• Sexy Zone debuted on November 16, 2011, with an average age of 14.4; the record for youngest debut group since Oricon Singles Rankings began in 1968 is held by Hey! Say! JUMP (average age 14.2 in 2007).
• Nakajima graduated with a bachelor's degree in Sociology from Meiji Gakuin University.
• He owns a toy poodle named Bonita, also called Bon-chan.