Japanese Actress Reveals Her Father’s Approval Led to Publish Underage Nude Photos

Japanese actress Maiko Kawakami shocked fans by revealing that her father was the reason she released a nude photo book while she was still a minor.

On April 2, foreign media outlet Chanto Web released an exclusive interview with Kawakami, reporting that she had taken nude photos at the age of 17 due to her father’s influence.

Kawakami recalled, “I had no intention of releasing a photo book then. However, the photographer, Kishin Shinoyama, a senior at my agency, took pictures of me while shooting photos of Kanako Higuchi and Satomi Tezuka.” She added, “Although taking nude photos of a minor is currently illegal, there was no Child Pornography Prohibition Law at the time. I agreed to take the nude photos on the condition that they would not be released.”

Kawakami continued, “I looked at the (nude) photos with my parents, and my father said, ‘These are excellent as works of art. It’s a shame not to release them.’ My father’s words moved me, and I published the photo book.” She added, “My father was very moved when he saw the photos taken by Kishin Shinoyama.”

Following the release of the nude photo book, Kawakami appeared in several adult films. She said, “There were bed scenes in the movies I shot as soon as I became an adult. Many scenes required sexual appeal. I wanted to play roles with a social message, but I never received such offers.”

Kawakami released another nude photo book in her 30s. She said, “I was offered to publish a nude photo book at a dinner with Kishin Shinoyama. A month after the proposal, I shot for three days in Paris, France.” Kawakami added, “Unlike the first nude photo book shooting environment, the second photo book shooting environment was free. I even chose the outfits myself.”

Kawakami entered the entertainment industry at the young age of 14 in 1980.

She married a non-celebrity man who was her middle school classmate in 1996, but they divorced four years later in 2000.