It’s been announced that SMAP will be releasing a disaster relief album called “SMAP AID” on August 17th! When the Tohoku earthquake struck Japan back in March, SMAP received many letters and messages that said, “I was cheered by SMAP’s songs” or “I was encouraged“. The SMAP members were encouraged in kind by the messages, and so they decided to release a special album with tracks decided by fans’ votes. The album will include a handkerchief (either a “Shiawase no YELLOW-AID” or “Genki no RED-AID), and it’s been priced at 3,570 yen (approximately 44.52 USD). 200 yen from every album sold will be donated through Marching J. SMAP will also be holding fan meeting events for those who purchase the album, as well as for their fan club members. The fan meeting event for the album purchasers will be held at “Nami no pool” at Seibuen amusement park on September 9th. A lottery ticket will be included in every album, and 10,000 lucky people will be invited to the event for free if their lottery application gets picked. Seibuen amusement park holds a special significance to SMAP, since it was where the group held their debut single release event 20 years ago. Thus, it’s sure to be a deeply emotional event for both the members and the fans. The fan meeting event for their fan club members will be held in 4 cities; Fukuoka Sun Palace (8/14), Hokkaido Nitori Bunka Hall (8/17), Kobe Bunka Hall (8/27), and Nagoya Century Hall (9/4). There will be two stages for each day, and all profits from the fan meeting events will also be donated through Marching J. More details on the new album, including how to vote for its tracks, will be revealed during June 20th’s episode of “SMAP×SMAP“. Source: Oricon, Tokyohive
