Satoru Kuwabara, the music producer behind the Ensemble Stars! franchise, has stepped down from his position after publicly acknowledging allegations of affairs that surfaced last week.

The allegations were first posted by the idol exposé account Deathdol Note on social media, which reported that Kuwabara had been involved in multiple affairs over at least the past two years. According to the posts, Kuwabara was married and a father during these relationships, which allegedly involved female cast members, VTubers, and music industry employees. The account claimed he used concert tickets as a way to facilitate these connections.

Kuwabara addressed the allegations on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, acknowledging that while the reports don't show the complete picture, he confirmed the main points as accurate. He announced his immediate resignation as music producer for Ensemble Stars! and indicated that further details about his other professional commitments would come later.

The fallout extends beyond Ensemble Stars!. Arte Refact, the music label Kuwabara heads under the Memento mori company, announced that all creators under the label will depart on June 30. However, the label plans to honor existing agreements and contracts. Creator Yuki Honda confirmed on social media that affected creators are planning to establish a new agency in July.

Kuwabara's departure affects multiple high-profile anime and media projects. Beyond Ensemble Stars!, he's served as music producer for The IDOLM@STER Million Live!, The Idolm@ster SideM, Uma Musume Pretty Derby, Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya 2wei!, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, and several other anime series. He also serves as bassist for the band Sir Vanity.

Interestingly, Kuwabara had announced an intended one-month work hiatus starting May 11 back in late April—before the allegations became public. In that same announcement, he had indicated he was considering stepping down as Arte Refact's head and potentially retiring from the industry entirely.

The situation reflects ongoing industry conversations around workplace conduct and accountability in anime and music production.