Editing SMAP (section)

===1991–1993: Debut and early years===
On January 1, 1991, the band held their first concert in [[Nippon Budokan]] and their first tour from March through April, before releasing any music.<ref name="Sponichi">{{cite web|title=SMAP いきなり日本武道館ライブ、紅白には通算23回出場|url=http://www.sponichi.co.jp/entertainment/news/2016/08/14/kiji/K20160814013160640.html|website=Sponichi Annex|access-date=August 14, 2016}}</ref> On September 9, 1991, they released their first single, "Can't Stop -Loving-" from [[Victor Entertainment]], which peaked at No. 2 on the charts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/22180/products/292396/1/|title=Can't Stop!! Loving single information|work=[[Oricon]]|access-date=August 18, 2016|language=ja}}</ref> Subsequent singles, "Seigi no Mikata wa Ate ni Naranai", "Kokoro no Kagami", "Makeru na Baby" peaked in the top 10.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/artist/22180/ranking/cd_single/|title=SMAP singles ranking|work=[[Oricon]]|access-date=December 13, 2009|language=ja}}</ref> The band asked the fans to write the lyrics for "Kokoro no Kagami", and the one submitted by a fourteen-year-old girl was chosen. The song was later used in a [[Panasonic]] television commercial. They were invited to perform the song at ''[[Kohaku Uta Gassen]]'', an annual music show, on December 31, 1991.<ref name="Sponichi" />

At the same time of their debut, the Japanese music industry experienced what is frequently referred to as an "Idol Ice Age", where many of the popular music shows that aired weekly since the 1980s ended, and singers and bands lost a place to perform, resulting in scarce opportunities for TV exposure. Therefore, the agency decided to market the band through variety programs, where members participated in sketch comedies and game shows along with other television personalities. This non-mainstream marketing approach turned out to be a success, as the members' humorous and playful spirits on these shows propelled them to gain new fans, despite not having many musical performances on television since their debut.<ref>{{cite web|title=アイドル氷河期にバラエティーに活路|url=http://www.sponichi.co.jp/entertainment/news/2016/08/14/kiji/K20160814013164430.html|website=Sponichi Annex|access-date=August 14, 2016}}</ref>

In 1991, the band's first self-titled television show, ''SMAP no Gakuen Kids'', got renewed and changed to, ''I Love SMAP'', which aired until 1996. From October 7, 1991, Inagaki launched his radio program, ''Stop The SMAP'', still airing as of 2016.<ref>{{cite web|title=稲垣吾郎のSTOP THE SMAP|url=http://www.joqr.co.jp/stopthesmap/|website=文化放送|access-date=July 29, 2015}}</ref> From April 1992 to September 1995, the group appeared regularly on a weekly variety program, ''Yume ga Mori Mori''. Due to the fact that this was the first time in Japanese history, that a band participated in a sketch comedy, this rare act attracted wide attention.<ref>{{cite web|title=「バラドル」SMAPの原点となった番組『夢がMORI MORI』|url=http://www.excite.co.jp/News/90s/20160620/E1464753612555.html|website=Excite News|date=June 20, 2016 |access-date=June 20, 2016}}</ref>

On January 1, 1992, they released their first album, ''SMAP 001'', which peaked at No. 14 and released another album, ''SMAP 002'', in the same year and peaked at No. 6. Their singles, "Egao no Genki", "Yuki ga Futtekita", "Zutto Wasurenai", "Hajimete no Natsu", "Kimi wa Kimi dayo", "$10", and "Kimi iro Omoi", released from 1992 through 1994, all peaked at the top 10. They headlined three tours in 1992, from January to August. In 1993, they released their third and fourth album, ''SMAP 003'' and ''SMAP 004'', which peaked at No. 11 and No. 3 respectively. In 1992, Inagaki starred in a drama television series, ''Hatachi no Yakusoku'', as the main role.<ref>{{cite web|title=二十歳の約束|url=http://www.tvdrama-db.com/drama_info/p/id-28957|website=テレビドラマデータベース|access-date=March 23, 2014}}</ref> In 1993, Kimura starred in a drama television series, ''[[Asunaro Hakusho]]'', which became a massive hit, with an average household share rating of 27% and 31.9% for the season finale. Kimura's popularity soared and from then on, members of the band started their acting careers individually.