J-pop idol Urin Kokoro dies 1 day after announcing hiatus due to spinal injury

J-pop idol Urin Kokoro of metal group Mazari died on Monday (Feb 24), one day after she announced she would be taking a break due to a spinal injury.

Her agency Mad’s Ink announced the news in a post on X yesterday.

The post reads: “The news of her passing came so suddenly that all the band members, artistes and staff are still finding it difficult to accept and are in deep sorrow.

“Please note that we will refrain from disclosing the date, time and location of the funeral at the request of her family.

“We would like to thank you for all the support and encouragement you gave to Urin Kokoro during her lifetime, and we pray for the repose of her soul.”

They added that Urin will continue to be a member of the band and an “irreplaceable friend”.

Urin, whose age is not disclosed, debuted as a member of idol group Miracle Fanfare! in 2022, promoting under the name Otonashi Urin. She left the group in September last year. In the same month, she returned as a founding member of Mazari, a seven-member girl group whose performances follow a “curse” concept.

On Feb 19, the group announced in a X post that Urin was diagnosed with a crack in her spine and would be undergoing surgery, so her scheduled live performances on Feb 25 and 26 would be cancelled.

In addition, they wrote that following the doctor’s advice, Urin would perform seated in the meantime to “avoid strenuous exercise before and after her surgery”.

She was seen sitting down in a photo taken with fans after their performance on Feb 20.

Urin was initially scheduled to appear in a concert in Shibuya on Feb 23, but her agency announced that day that she would be taking a break due to back pain.

She followed up with a post on her own X profile to apologise for her absence.

“I’m sorry to those who were planning to come [to the performance] today. I’ll be taking a break to take care of myself and prepare for the future,” Urin wrote.

Fans paid tribute to her on X after the announcement of her death.

One of them wrote: “May Urin rest in peace. I’m so sad, I can’t put it into words. I met her on the 22nd and we spoke for the first time… I’m so glad I got to talk to her even for just once… she was so fun to talk to and such a cute girl. Please rest and watch over Mazari from the sky.”

Another fan expressed: “Our last conversation was, ‘Good luck with your surgery! I’m looking forward to seeing you in good health! I want to see your new dance too.’ It’s really painful [to hear this news] …I’ll always be with Mazari, so please say hello when we meet again somewhere.”