Mahoto Watanabe
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is a former Japanese
YouTuber A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006 ...
and rapper. He was part of the
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
group Kaiware Hummer, releasing music under the stage name Bema. Watanabe first began posting videos on Nico Douga in 2007 and transitioned to
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
in 2010, becoming one of the first YouTube personalities on YouTube Japan. He gained popularity with his radical video style, but he was also known for his caring personality for his junior YouTubers, who called him "Oyakata". He is famous for having trained up popular YouTubers such as Tokai On Air, Avntis, and Hekitora House. In January 2021, Watanabe allegedly solicited nude photos from an underage fan, which subsequently caused his agency Uuum to drop him as an act and YouTube to permanently ban his channel. In March 2021, he announced he was retiring from YouTube.


Career

On November 7, 2007, when Watanabe was in middle school, he posted on
Niconico , known before 2012 as , is a Japanese video sharing service based in Tokyo, Japan. "Niconico" or "nikoniko" is the Japanese sound symbolism, Japanese ideophone for smiling. As of 2021, Niconico is the 34th most-visited website in Japan, accordi ...
under the username . Watanabe began uploading to YouTube in 2010. In 2013, after signing with Genesis One, Watanabe became a member of the hip hop group called Kaiware Hummer with his fellow member Imiga and began his career as a rapper. Kaiware Hummer released their debut album, ''Beginner'', under Neo Kinder Records on July, 12 2014. In addition, Watanabe released his debut solo album, ''Shinryakuteki Sukima'', on November 26, 2016. In 2015, Watanabe made his acting debut in the Squash Films' drama titled ''Dancing Office Worker''. In 2018, Watanabe left Genesis One and signed with Uuum as his network. By June 2019, he had over 2.7 million subscribers on his main channel. After getting arrested on suspicion of battery in the same month, his activities were cancelled for the remainder of the year, including a new label contract between with
Avex Avex Inc. ( kabushiki gaisha , commonly known as Avex and stylized as avex) is a Japanese entertainment conglomerate led by founder Max Matsuura and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1988, the company manages J-pop talents like Ayumi ...
and an appearance of Kaiware Hummer at A-Nation 2019, while he remained at Uuum to do clerical work. On February 7, 2020, Uuum announced that Watanabe would resume activities on February 14, 2020 on a new channel. On January 22, 2021, Uuum announced that Watanabe had been dismissed from the agency after confirming he solicited nude photos from an underage girl. On January 28, 2021, YouTube suspended his channel for community violations. Following the events, on March 2, 2021, Watanabe issued an apology on
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
and also announced he was retiring from YouTube. Since his retirement from YouTube, Watanabe started editing videos for Gardman, a YouTube channel with 2 million subscribers, earning him a million yen a month.


Personal life

On January 21, 2021, Watanabe announced that he was marrying actress and former Keyakizaka46 member Yui Imaizumi and that they were expecting a child. The child, a daughter was born in June 2021. Following Watanabe's 2021 arrest, Imaizumi announced in July 2021 that she would not be registering their marriage and that she would be raising the child herself with support from her family.


Legal troubles

On June 2, 2019, Watanabe was arrested on suspicion of battery. He had reportedly beat a female acquaintance and stomped on her face during an argument while he was intoxicated. On June 19, 2019, he issued an apology and also claimed he reconciled with the victim. On July 18, 2019, UUUM later stated that Watanabe's activities would be suspended, including Kaiware Hummer's appearance at A-nation 2019. Instead, he would be doing clerical work within the agency until December 31, 2019, though there were no immediate plans of him returning in January 2020. During this period, he was also prohibited from drinking. On January 21, 2021, the same day where Watanabe announced his marriage to Yui Imaizumi, Japanese
YouTuber A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006 ...
Korekore posted a live stream video where a 15-year-old girl alleged Watanabe had solicited nude photos from her and then blackmailed her with them, with screenshots of private messages from November 2020. On January 22, 2021, UUUM announced that Watanabe confirmed the reports and was dismissed from the agency. The victim later contacted the police, which resulted in Watanabe being arrested on suspicion of forced child prostitution and possession of child pornography on March 17, 2021 after investigation. He was released on April 2, 2021 and indicted by the
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department The , known locally as simply the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), is the prefectural police of Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Founded in 1874, the TMPD is the largest police force in Japan by number of officers, with a staff of more than 4 ...
on April 22 of the same year. On June 14, 2021, he was fined . On March 22, 2024, Watanabe was arrested on suspicion of allegedly assaulting his ex-wife, including pushing her to the ground, on March 21.


Discography


Studio albums


Extended plays


Singles

As featured artist


Filmography


Movies


Dramas


Publications


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watanabe, Mahoto Japanese YouTubers Japanese male rappers Avex Group talents People from Saiki, Ōita 1992 births Living people YouTube channels launched in 2011 YouTube channels closed in 2021