Sho Sakurai is a former Arashi member whose group activities ended on May 31, 2026. He is scheduled to MC the MUSIC EXPO LIVE festival in Taipei on October 24 and 25, 2026.
Sho Sakurai emerged from the end of Arashi's group activities with a move into large-scale event hosting. The group, which had been on hiatus since 2020, resumed activities in 2025 and announced it would end all operations on May 31, 2026. Sakurai publicly reflected on the final tour during a March 16 broadcast of news zero, describing the moment of reuniting with fans at the opening Sapporo Dome show as when Arashi began to move as Arashi. He noted it had been about six and a half years since the group had stood directly in front of fans, as the final pre-hiatus year was affected by the pandemic. He also mentioned seeing fans' messages on social media and spending time in the dressing room with members and staff for the first time in a long while.
The tour, ARASHI LIVE TOUR 2026 'We are ARASHI,' ran 12 performances through May 31 across Sapporo, Tokyo, Nagoya, Fukuoka, and Osaka. That same day, Arashi's activities ended. Two months later, Sakurai was announced as MC for the first overseas edition of the large-scale music festival MUSIC EXPO LIVE, held at Taipei Arena on October 24-25, 2026. The lineup features eight acts from Japan and South Korea, with King & Prince headlining day one and ATEEZ headlining day two. Sakurai will host both days.
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The large-scale music festival MUSIC EXPO LIVE, which debuted at Tokyo Dome in 2025, will hold its first overseas performance at Taipei Arena on October 24-25, 2026. Sho Sakurai will serve as MC for both days. The lineup includes eight acts from Japan and South Korea, with King & Prince headlining day one and ATEEZ headlining day two.
Sho Sakurai commented on the opening of Arashi's final tour during the March 16 live broadcast of "news zero" on Nippon TV. The group, which announced it will end all activities on May 31, 2026, resumed group activities in 2025 after a hiatus that began in 2020. Their last concert tour, "ARASHI LIVE TOUR 2026 'We are ARASHI'," opened at Sapporo Dome on March 14. Sakurai said it had been about six and a half years since the group last stood directly in front of fans, because the final year before the hiatus was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. He described the moment of meeting fans at the concert venue as the instant "Arashi began to move as Arashi." He also mentioned spending time in the dressing room with members and staff, eating and drinking alcohol together for the first time in a long while. Sakurai said he saw posts on social media showing fans writing messages for Arashi at airports and record stores, and that it moved him. He stated the tour has 12 performances through May 31, and he wants to treasure each one. The tour will continue in Tokyo, Nagoya, Fukuoka, and Osaka.