TOKYO — SMAP and EXILE garnered the highest television audience rating during NHK’s popular New Year’s eve musical program “Kohaku Uta Gassen.”
SMAP, who performed last at around 11:30 p.m., drew an audience rating of 48.2%, followed by EXILE with 45.7%, Ikimonogakari with 45.2%, and Arashi with 44.6%. Sayuri Ishikawa, who was the last female act for the Red team, got 44.7%, according to video research by Sports Nippon.
The evening’s youngest performers, Mana Ashida, 7, and Fuku Suzuki, 7, had an audience rating of 39.1%.
Lady Gaga, who performed by video link from New York at 10 p.m., got 40%.
Japan Today http://www.japantoday.com/
http://www.daily.co.jp/gossip/article/2012/01/05/0004722332.shtml (Japanese)
