Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku, TC Klaxons, Rainmans

These three groups have deep ties in the theater. Remarkably, it has been revealed that a common manager, "Mr. T," was the impetus for their affiliation!
Given their unexpected friendships, reflections on awards, and ambitions, they candidly discussed the "behind-the-scenes" stories that only they, who know each other well, can share.

Released on 6/20 (Friday)!
Part 2 - "From the place where the newborn laughs echo" to the award race—passionately talking about their feelings and charms for the theater where they were born and raised!

Tickets for the "6/22 (Sunday) Grapefruit Company Office Live" are available here👇

https://grape.zaiko.io/e/grapelive22

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May Office Live

ZAIKO: First of all, could you share how each of you formed your duo and why you chose Grapefruit Company among many agencies?

Kumoten Furuya (TC Klaxons, hereafter Furuya): Well, there's every reason to join... (laughs)

Sakamoto NO. 1 (TC Klaxons, hereafter Sakamoto): That’s really true~ (laughs)

Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku & Rainmans: No, no, you don’t have to worry about that! (laughs)

Furuya: We were lucky, or rather, it felt like "timing". We formed in 2019 and intended to be active as freelancers, but at that time, Mr. T, the manager of Grapefruit Company, approached us with an audition offer. We were well beyond the age limit, though.

Sakamoto: At that time, it was still quite lenient.

Furuya: Exactly. Now it's much stricter. Just before us, groups like "Ranjatai" were able to join even though they exceeded the age limit without any problem, and recently, older gentlemen in "TOKYO COOL" have also joined! (laughs)
At that time, the audition group wasn’t too numerous, but I thought, "Well, we have an ally (Mr. T) now..." That was the reason we decided to audition for Grapefruit Company.

TC Klaxons: Sakamoto NO. 1 & Furuya Kumoten

ZAIKO: How about the Rainmans?

Horikoshi (Rainmans): We met in a university comedy club and formed when we were in our first year, but right before graduation, we participated in a contest called "Gachi Pro!"

Akase (Rainmans): (In "Gachi Pro!", managers from various comedy agencies serve as judges.)

Horikoshi: Yes, exactly. At that competition, the manager from Grapefruit Company gave us extremely good scores!
After graduating from university, we were freelancing for a while, but because of that memory, I immediately auditioned for Grapefruit Company when they started their auditions.

Akase: I think the manager who gave us high scores back then might be the same one that TC mentioned as an ally?

Horikoshi: Yes, it must be Mr. T!

Sakamoto: No, no, I think that’s not the case…?

Rainmans: Wait! We were getting to something good, so why say that~! (laughs)

Sakamoto: We need Mr. T to evaluate only us, right? (laughs)

ZAIKO: Both of you have a common point, "Mr. T"! How about Tsuntsuku Tsunbaku?

Tough Guy (Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku): I was originally working in a corporate job, but when I decided to quit, I received a call from Naito. That sparked our duo formation. Initially, I was auditioning for other agencies.

Naito Koyu (Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku, hereafter Naito): Yes, that's right. I was actually on the verge of joining a different agency, but at that time, I received advice from various seniors that "Grapefruit Company is hot!" That encouraged me to audition for Grapefruit Company.
Speaking of which, when Mr. T was probing, asking, "What is Tsuntsuku Tsunbaku like?", other comedians said they found it interesting, which made it easier to negotiate when joining.

Sakamoto: No, that can’t be true~! (Mr. T) should only be supporting us, right...? (laughs)

Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku: Tough Guy & Naito Koyu, TC Klaxons: Sakamoto NO.1

ZAIKO: From here, I would like to ask about your personal interactions. Since Tsuntsuku Tsunbaku and Rainmans are from the same generation, I hear there are many interactions with TC Klaxons in theater. Do you have any off-stage interaction stories to share?

Tough Guy: TC took me out to eat sometimes.

Furuya: Also, I went out to eat with Akase before.

Sakamoto: Just the two of you?!

Furuya: No, it was with Suzuki from "Ponloop" too. I also went to (Tokyo) DisneySea with Horikoshi.

Horikoshi: Ah! Yes! It was not long after we joined the agency, and I got to go together. It’s when Sakamoto dropped his ears (character headband) and a middle schooler took it!

ZAIKO: Did you see that happen right in front of you?! (laughs)

Horikoshi: I shouted, "Sakamoto! Someone is stealing that!"

Furuya: But I did manage to get it back afterwards.

Sakamoto: That was pretty embarrassing! (laughs)

TC Klaxons: Furuya Kumoten, Rainmans: Akase & Horikoshi

ZAIKO: Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku and Rainmans are from the same generation, but do you gather together?

Tough Guy: The peers get along really well, right? We often go drinking out after our monthly live shows when we have time.

Naito, Akase & Horikoshi: That’s true. …But, I get the impression that Guy doesn’t go out the most, right?

Furuya: You were the one who mentioned it first! What does that mean? (laughs)

Naito: Guy goes when he can be treated by his seniors, but if the meal exceeds 1,000 yen, he says, "I’m good," and goes home! (laughs)

Furuya: Well, during a wedding after-party, Kuritani from "Kakaroni" was invited, but Sugaya wasn’t, right?

Naito, Akase & Horikoshi: Now that you mention it!

Furuya: When I asked, "Why is that?", he said, "Because Kuritani treated us to yakiniku!"

Naito: Does that mean it’s about money!!? (laughs)

Tough Guy: No, no, no! It’s not about "Because there was an opportunity to get to know each other," it’s not just because he treated us to yakiniku! There’s a misunderstanding! (laughs)

ZAIKO: Thank you for sharing an unexpected interaction! (laughs)

Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku: Tough Guy & Naito Koyu, TC Klaxons: Sakamoto NO.1

ZAIKO: TC Klaxons and Rainmans participated in "Double Impact," which started this year, and since you engage in both stand-up and skits, it may have required a different approach than previous awards. Please share your candid thoughts on participating.

Furuya: Well, by the time this article is published, we might have dropped out, is that okay? (laughs)

Horikoshi: Let’s talk assuming we are progressing! (laughs)

Sakamoto: To be honest, we didn’t do well at all. When doing skits, you need to be aware of the stage width, but I couldn’t understand that.

Furuya: Indeed, once we tried it, it felt cramped.
Besides that, we had to decide whether to do skits or stand-up first, which was new for us.
We did skits first and then joked about them in stand-up, but we didn’t know if that was good or bad, and it’s possible someone would say, "Aren't those both stand-up?"... So, to begin with, we don’t even know what is being evaluated, so it feels like we’re groping around in the dark! (laughs)

TC Klaxons: Furuya Kumoten, Rainmans: Akase & Horikoshi

ZAIKO: Nevertheless, it seems that TC Klaxons’ progression may have been significantly influenced by your past experiences.

Furuya: Yes, indeed. We've been doing both stand-up and skits for a while.

Sakamoto: Right. Having a lot of material gives a sense of relief.

Furuya: However, those who have only done stand-up dive into skits without much preparation and think, "That person will drop out quickly," but surprisingly, some of them stay!?

Sakamoto: They were getting laughs too. What’s that about? (laughs)

Furuya: Sometimes it seems like those who weren’t doing it were getting the laughs instead.

ZAIKO: Rainmans also participated in "Double Impact." Do you have any outlook for the next event?

Akase: Actually, after doing skits, we touched on the skit content in stand-up, but it didn’t land quite well! (laughs)

Furuya: It was one of those bad patterns! (laughs)

Horikoshi: Also, for us, the tension for the second performance really dropped. We did stand-up with a grin and ended up forgetting parts of our material! (laughs)

Tough Guy: The tension dropped, huh?

Horikoshi: That’s right; since the tempo changes from what we are used to, it can lessen the tension. Just before, I added a weird opening as well.

Akase: Maybe there was relief from having performed once before.

Horikoshi: But it was fun!

ZAIKO: Did the order of your material and the intervals affect you?

Horikoshi: Surprisingly, the timing was tricky. After finishing the first performance, it wasn’t frantic, but we couldn’t take it slow either... We just had to keep grinning! (laughs)

Sakamoto: You're grinning too much! We were still a bit tense! (laughs)

Everyone: (laughs)

Akase: Maybe those who were grinning are the ones who dropped out...

Horikoshi: Next time, I want to perform without grinning! (laughs)

Furuya: Indeed, I can really see the difference in how nervous one feels compared to other awards. In other awards, you spend a year making material for it, but "Double Impact" came up suddenly, and we participated in a rush, thinking, "How about this?!" So it’s only natural to grin! (laughs)

Sakamoto: You shouldn’t be grinning!! (laughs)

TC Klaxons: Furuya Kumoten, Rainmans: Akase & Horikoshi

ZAIKO: Tsuntsuku Tsunbaku strongly gives off an impression of skits, but are you also interested in stand-up?

Tough Guy: Actually... I'm not sure what Naito thinks, but I am interested.

Naito: I made a few stand-up routines before, but it’s clear that Guy is more suited for skits! (laughs)

Tough Guy: I’m just... not good at casual conversations or topics that aren’t my character at all. (laughs)

Naito: Even if it's stand-up, it depends on whether you can create a good opening that quickly fits your character or not.

Tough Guy: Exactly. My daily conversation skills are horrifically bad... (laughs)

Naito: The way I speak during the preliminary phase is so weird that it gets laughs, but then I need to respond to it, making it hard to get into the main topic.

Tough Guy: I was struggling with that, but having seen "Double Impact" up close and participating in "M-1" twice, which I lost in the first round, I would like to try again.

ZAIKO: Do TC Klaxons and Rainmans also have worries related to material?

Sakamoto: I have the same worries.

Furuya: Wait, really?

Sakamoto: Yes, I do! In skits, there’s an opening act that lasts about 30 seconds...

Furuya: No, no, it’s the entire skit! (laughs)

Everyone: That’s true! (laughs)

Furuya: It means the part that hasn't gotten laughs yet, the opening part.

Sakamoto: Exactly. That part makes me super nervous and might be bad.

Furuya: Well, I understand that, so I try to reduce it as much as possible while creating material, but there are times when you just have to do it! (laughs)

ZAIKO: Rainmans, you two started with stand-up in school, but I think you began doing skits after entering the professional field...

Akase: After trying skits, I found it suited me. It felt less "embarrassing" than stand-up! (laughs)

Horikoshi: What do you mean "embarrassing"!? (laughs)

Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku: Tough Guy & Naito Koyu, TC Klaxons: Sakamoto NO.1 & Furuya Kumoten

ZAIKO: That's an opposite pattern from the other two groups! (laughs)

Horikoshi: In our case, we often switch roles between comedic replies and responses in stand-up and skits, which might help in switching our mindset.
But I don't think I’ve ever felt embarrassed. I wonder if Akase felt embarrassed... (laughs)

Tough Guy: I get the impression that Rainmans are good at both.

Naito

: Do you think moving from stand-up to skits is easier?

Rainmans: Yeah, it might be easier to branch out.

Furuya: That’s not true. Skits to stand-up are easier! (laughs)

Naito: Absolutely not! (laughs)

Sakamoto: It’s really hard to switch from stand-up to skits! (laughs)

ZAIKO: I’m looking forward to seeing Tsuntsuku Tsunbaku’s stand-up!

Naito: Nowadays, there are many awards for young comedians, and since "Double Impact" is mixed up, I think I’ll wait and see for a bit. Also, if this continues, the material around us will run out, so I plan to participate and try to win at that timing!

Horikoshi: That’s amazing!!! (laughs)

Furuya: That’s quite a strategy...! Isn’t that the weakest champion! (laughs)

Naito: I’ll do anything to win, even when everyone else is weak! (laughs)

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In the next installment, we will delve into their thoughts on the office live shows, the allure of the theater, and their enthusiasm for the "Tugikuru GP" finals, which will be aired live!

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Tickets for the "6/22 (Sunday) Grapefruit Company Office Live" are available here👇

https://grape.zaiko.io/e/grapelive22

Check out the latest comedy events👇
https://zaiko.io/events/category/comedy

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About TC Klaxons

Formed in 2019.
They are a duo comprising Furuya Kumoten (left in the photo) and Sakamoto NO.1 (right in the photo).
They have achieved good results in both stand-up and skits, characterized by Sakamoto NO.1's loud comedic responses.
Reached the quarterfinals of Double Impact and the semifinals of King of Comedy (5 consecutive years since 2020), and reached the finals of Tugikuru Comedy Grand Prix (2022, 2023)

About Tsuntsuku Tsunbanbaku

Debuted in April 2021.
They are a duo comprising Naito Koyu (left in the photo) and Tough Guy (right in the photo).
They mainly perform skits, characterized by sound-based rhythm gags like "Pizza Man" that stick in your ears.
Reached the finals of Tugikuru Comedy Grand Prix (three consecutive years since 2023) and placed third in UNDER5 AWARD 2024.

About Rainmans

Debuted in April 2021.
They are a duo comprising Akase (left in the photo) and Horikoshi (right in the photo).
They are alumni of the HOS comedy club at Hosei University, and after graduating, they freelance for a year before joining Grapefruit Company.
Reached the finals of Tugikuru Comedy Grand Prix 2025 and the semifinals of ABC Comedy Grand Prix (2022, 2024)

About ZAIKO

"ZAIKO" has developed services focused on being artist- and event organizer-first, allowing direct connections between artists and fans through electronic tickets. Since March 2020, we implemented a live-streaming electronic ticket service faster than anyone else, contributing to over 40,000 events held, including venue events.