Japanese all-female rock band SCANDAL announced on August 21, 2026 that it will end its activities on August 21, 2027, marking the 21st anniversary of the group’s formation. The announcement came right after the band wrapped up its 20th anniversary concert, “SCANDAL 20th Anniversary Live ‘Chapter 20’,” at Osaka-jo Hall.
In a joint statement, the four members said the decision followed extensive discussion among themselves. “Through 20 years of activity, traveling across Japan and the world, meeting so many people and having experiences we could only have had as SCANDAL, we feel we have truly done everything we could as a group of four,” the statement read. “Deciding how to close the chapter on a band that has continued this long was an incredibly difficult decision, but after talking it through many times, the four of us arrived at this answer.”
Before disbanding, SCANDAL will spend its final year on the road. A tour covering all 47 of Japan’s prefectures kicks off on October 22, 2026 at Tokyo’s LIQUIDROOM and runs through a two-night stand at Zepp DiverCity (Tokyo) on April 30 and May 1, 2027. The band’s annual Christmas show, “BEST★Xmas2026,” will also take place as planned on December 24, 2026 at Toyosu PIT in Tokyo. The farewell run then culminates on August 21, 2027 with a final concert at Yokohama Arena.
The group said it intends to treat every remaining show, and every remaining day, as precious as it counts down to that final performance.
Who is SCANDAL?
SCANDAL is a four-piece all-female rock band consisting of HARUNA (vocals, guitar), MAMI (guitar, vocals), TOMOMI (bass, vocals) and RINA (drums, vocals). The group formed in 2006 in the Kyobashi district of Osaka, when all four members were junior high and high school students enrolled at the same vocal and dance school. SCANDAL made its major-label debut in 2008 with the single “DOLL,” and the following year won the Japan Record Award for Best New Artist for the single “Shojo S.”
In 2015, the band completed its first solo world tour, an experience later documented in the film “SCANDAL Documentary film HELLO WORLD.” In 2018, the members launched their own private label, “her,” debuting it with the single “Masterpiece / Mabataki.” In August 2023, marking their 17th anniversary, SCANDAL was certified by Guinness World Records as the longest-running rock band with an unchanged lineup among all-female acts. The band released its 12th studio album, “ECHO,” in May 2026, shortly before its 20th anniversary celebrations.
SCANDAL has built its two-decade career on a steady stream of releases and relentless touring both in Japan and overseas, cultivating a devoted global fanbase largely through word of mouth and live performance rather than viral hits. The upcoming 47-prefecture tour will give fans across the country a final chance to see the band that started as four schoolgirls in Osaka before it takes its final bow at Yokohama Arena in 2027.
Author’s Comment
Twenty years, same four members, no lineup drama, no messy breakup headlines — in an industry that eats girl groups alive, SCANDAL just quietly out-lasted almost everyone and then left on their own terms. I love that they’re not slinking off; they’re doing a full 47-prefecture victory lap before the final bow, like a band that actually wants to say a proper goodbye to every corner of the country that supported them. Japanese fans online are already calling it "the most SCANDAL way to end SCANDAL" — hardworking to the very last show. I’ll be honest, I teared up a little at "we did everything we could as four." That’s the kind of ending most bands never get to write for themselves.
