Tens of thousands of young fans shut down central Tokyo Thursday in an extraordinary outpouring of grief for a rock guitarist who hanged himself. One fan followed him in suicide, and two tried.
Helicopters buzzed over the Buddhist temple where as many as 50,000 lined up outside services for Hideto “Hide” Matsumoto. TV networks went live as ambulances carted away dozens overcome by emotion and the 82-degree heat.
Matsumoto killed himself on Saturday, leaving nothing to explain why. His group–X-Japan, one of Japan’s most popular–broke up in September; Matsumoto had a solo tour planned for the summer.
Initially unprepared for the turnout, workers at Honganji Temple set up a first-aid room after about 12,000 fans visited the temple for Matsumoto’s wake Wednesday. By late Thursday, 26 people had been hospitalized.
