Founded in 2016, utaite group Strawberry Prince is undoubtedly one of Japan’s largest VTuber and VTuber adjacent groups at the moment. As of the end of 2023, they were one of Japan’s top selling acts (according to Oricon, the latest ranking shows the album Here We Go!! at 200,094 copies sold and still charting more than a year later). Their latest accomplishment was being invited to NHK‘s Kouhaku Uta Gassen at the end of last year.
Not all has been smooth sailing for the group, however. In March 2022, YouTuber Korekore claimed that Nanamori, the original group leader and founder, had a fiancée and child while also cheating on said fiancée with another woman. The parent company of the group, STPR, confirmed those statements, with Nanamori deeply apologizing to all involved and taking an indefinite hiatus from his activities as well as withdrawing from the group. Even when he returned to his solo activities in December of that year, he did not return to the group. Another member, Jel, withdrew and took an extended hiatus due to depression, also in 2022.
この度は、私の振舞いや行動等によって多大なるご迷惑をお掛けしており、大変申し訳ございません。
また、私自身からのご報告が遅くなってしまいましたことを重ねてお詫び申し上げます。 pic.twitter.com/bmLvCRDXNM— ななもり。＠すとぷり (@love_nkun) March 14, 2022
On the 27th, both members announced that they would be returning to the group, meaning they would yet again have 6 members. While many were extremely excited about the news, some in the fandom were noticeably more mixed in their reaction to the news that Nanamori was coming back.
