My daily life with the original diva

Since she was so confident, we should definitely let her give it a try. Nakamori Akina immediately went to find accompaniment and found it quickly. Then Miyazawa Rie began her performance.

However, this song, which was not particularly difficult, became extremely challenging under Rie Miyazawa's interpretation. Watching Rie Miyazawa sing with such confidence, Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori exchanged a glance, then whispered in her ear, "Rie-chan's singing ability is almost comparable to that of the brave Iyo-chan."

Once again, Akina Nakamori almost couldn't help but laugh, but seeing Rie Miyazawa on stage so earnestly, she managed to hold back. As for Iyo Matsumoto's singing, well, it was just in tune; the rest was almost unbearable to watch.

"You're so mean, Hiro-kun! Don't say such things. Rie-chan is still young and needs encouragement. You mustn't say things like that again." Nakamori Akina immediately reprimanded Kimura Hiro to prevent him from saying such things in front of Miyazawa Rie.

After a while, Rie Miyazawa finally finished singing, and the three people listening immediately applauded. Hiroshi Kimura clapped and said, "You sang so well, Rie-chan. You can be a singer in the future, believe me."

When Sato Kayo heard Kimura Hiro's words, her face began to distort. She had no choice but to hold it in. She already considered herself not a very good singer, but she didn't expect that Miyazawa Rie was even worse than her. Even so, Kimura Hiro still said that. She really wanted to laugh, but she felt that laughing would be mocking him, so she could only hold it in.

Rie Miyazawa had no idea about this. After stepping off the stage, she happily said, "Really? Hiro-nii, you have to write a single for me then!"

"Okay, no problem, I'll definitely write it for you then." Kimura Hiroshi agreed, thinking that he would write a catchy pop song for Miyazawa Rie and try to make it as pleasant as possible for her to sing.

Next, Kayo Sato also gave a performance. Although she had retired from idol life for many years, her voice was still there, and she sang very well. However, at this moment, Rie Miyazawa seemed to sense something. She felt that Kayo Sato's singing voice was much better than hers, and that her own singing was not quite up to par.

She was having so much fun that she didn't have time to think about it too much. After playing around, she enjoyed a dinner cooked by Kimura Hiroshi in the apartment, and the four of them finally ended their happy day.

Chapter 557 The Formation of the Band

As summer arrived and the weather grew increasingly hot, Japan, in the last year of the 1980s, was just as restless and scorching as the summer heat. The entire country was immersed in a booming economy, and in the second half of the year, the stock market and the real estate market continued to rise as if there was no end in sight.

People poured their money into the revelry, as if everyone had made money. Extravagant enjoyment began to permeate the entire neon-lit city, especially in Tokyo, the economic center. You needed to carry a 10,000 yen bill to hail a taxi, otherwise the driver wouldn't even bother to look at you.

Ginza, arguably Tokyo's most bustling district, is becoming increasingly noisy. Even on weekdays, it's teeming with people, spending and enjoying themselves. Shopping malls, bars, and karaoke venues are open all day, allowing people to experience that glamorous lifestyle even during the daytime.

But all of this was irrelevant to Kimura Hiroshi. He simply sat on the seventeenth floor of the real estate agency, near the window, watching the crowds coming and going into various consumer venues below, watching them enjoy their last moments of pleasure.

"Kimura-san, the buyer has signed the contract. The unit price is 120 million yen, and the total price is 26.4 billion yen. It will be deposited into your account within the next fifteen working days." Hanano Yoko handed the latest sales contract to Kimura Hiroshi, preparing for him to sign it.

This property is a shop located closest to the Ginza shopping street. It is quite large, with an area of ​​over 200 square meters. As soon as it was announced that someone was selling, many investors were willing to buy it. There's no way around it; the area around Ginza is currently in a state of high demand but low supply. People who own property near Ginza are all waiting for prices to rise, and almost no one is willing to sell. So when a property comes up for sale, there will be several competitors, and of course, the highest bidder wins. For example, the market price of this property should be a little over 100 million yen, but the final price reached 120 million yen.

However, because of his special status, Kimura Hiroshi did not want to meet with the buyers. He would wait for the buyers to sign the documents, and then Hanano Yoko would bring them over for him to sign and complete the transaction.

After carefully reviewing the contract and confirming there were no issues, Kimura Hiroshi signed his name. As he signed, he said to Hanano Yoko, "Ms. Yoko, sell three properties next month. Speed ​​things up and try to sell all the properties by around November. Do you understand?"

Yoko Hanano finds it hard to understand why Hiroshi Kimura is in such a hurry to sell his real estate holdings. Since the beginning of the year, real estate prices have remained stable and have been rising steadily, which has made her, who works in the real estate industry, hesitant. However, Hiroshi Kimura is very persistent and continues to sell off his properties quickly.

"Are you really not going to reconsider, Kimura-san? Bank loans are very lenient lately, and there are many investors. I don't think the real estate market is likely to decline in the short term," Hanano Yoko couldn't help but persuade her again.

Kimura Hiroshi, however, had made up his mind and said very calmly, "Sell it. Miss Yoko, you don't need to persuade me anymore. On the contrary, I should advise Miss Yoko not to invest any more money in it recently, or you will suffer losses."

Without listening to Yoko Hanano any further, Hiroshi Kimura signed the contract and, after confirming that everything was in order, left the real estate agency. However, he did not return to the firm or company, but instead went to Stardust Media. The ZARD band that Sachiko Kamachi had recently formed was nearing completion, and Yoshiro Hosono asked him to take a look and see if there were any problems. After all, this was Stardust Media's first time organizing a band, and Yoshiro Hosono lacked confidence.

He drove to Stardust Communications and was not stopped at all. He went straight to Yoshiro Hosono's office. There was nothing he could do. The receptionist already knew him. Even though he was wearing sunglasses, she knew that he was Hiroshi Kimura and that he was the president's distinguished guest. She had no intention of stopping him.

When they arrived at Yoshiro Hosono's office, he was working on something inside. Upon seeing Hiroshi Kimura, he immediately smiled and said, "Kimura-san, I've been waiting for you for so long. I'm so glad you finally had time to come."

Kimura Hiroshi found a chair and sat down, saying, "Hosono-san called me three days ago, why have you been waiting for so long? Are we in different time periods?"

"Haha, Kimura-san is really funny." Hosono Yoshiro said with a laugh, and then they started talking about the ZARD band. Now the band's guitarist, drummer, and others have all gathered, and the band can be considered to have been initially formed.

"These are all carefully selected by me; they are all very good musicians," Yoshiro Hosono said with great pride.

Kimura Hiroshi dismissed this with a hint of disdain, saying, "ZARD is called a band, but the core of the band is Sachiko-chan. The band exists because of her, so everything should be built around her. The other members of the band don't need to have superb skills; they just need to be above average. What they need is to cooperate with Sachiko-chan and maintain stability. We shouldn't have someone leave the band today because of this or that, giving fans and casual listeners the feeling that the band is constantly in turmoil."

“Ah, is that so? That makes sense. Skilled musicians tend to be very ambitious. If something doesn’t go their way, they might want to leave or argue with other members. So these people might become unstable factors. Once the band is actually formed, they might ruin the feelings of fans and casual listeners. The lead singer would probably be the one most hurt.” Yoshiro Hosono pondered Hiroshi Kimura’s words and found them very reasonable.

Hiroshi Kimura was pleased that Yoshiro Hosono understood his meaning. He wasn't afraid of not knowing, but of doing things blindly without knowing, which would cause big problems. Clearly, Yoshiro Hosono, who was able to develop and expand Stardust Media, must have a strong ability to learn humbly. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to turn an agency that only dealt with magazine models into one of the top three super-large agencies in Japan.

“So Hosono-san needs to spend some time figuring out the temperament of the recruited band members, eliminating unstable factors first, then forming a stable band, and then removing those members who cannot fit into the band. This may take several months, but there’s no rush, we have plenty of time, we’ll take it slowly.” Kimura Hiroshi’s emphasis on Kamachi Sachiko made him unable to tolerate the slightest mistake. He wanted to eliminate potential problems first, and then arrange the debut matters.

Having fully accepted Hiroshi Kimura's advice, Yoshiro Hosono prepared to carefully observe the band's current situation and get rid of anyone who was detrimental to the band.

Having finalized the plan for forming the band, Yoshiro Hosono continued, "Kimura-san, let's go check on the band's training progress. They've been trying to practice together for the past few days."

"That's no problem," Kimura Hiroshi nodded, then got up and went with Hosono Yoshiro to the training room to check on Kamachi Sachiko's training progress.

As soon as he approached the rehearsal room, Hiroshi Kimura heard the sounds of various instruments playing together, as well as Sachiko Kamachi trying to sing. However, after listening for a while, Hiroshi Kimura noticed some discord and mistakes. It was clear that a band could not achieve the desired performance effect without a period of practice and coordination.

Instead of going directly into the rehearsal room, Hiroshi Kimura and Yoshiro Hosono stood at the back door, watching the band practice. There were no problems during the rehearsal, but after it ended, Hiroshi Kimura noticed something was wrong: the guitarist was complaining that Sachiko Kamachi was singing poorly, and Sachiko was apologizing.

"Fire that guitarist. The band revolves around Sachiko-chan, not some guitarist. The band should complement Sachiko-chan, not the other way around. I don't want some kind of band art; I want a band that can make money," Kimura Hiroshi whispered to Hosono Yoshiro beside him.

He made a hand gesture to make sure everything was alright, then called out to the inside, "Sachiko-chan, come out for a second, someone's looking for you."

Sachiko Kamachi, who was discussing issues with her bandmates, turned around and saw Hiroshi Kimura. She immediately wanted to greet him, but she stopped herself because if she called out his name, others might recognize him.

He quickly jogged to the door, then smiled and said, "Hello, President, Kimura-san, what brings you here?"

"Your club president sent me to check on the band. Okay, this isn't the place to talk. Let's go somewhere else to chat." The band members were already turning around to look at them. Kimura Hiroshi knew they couldn't stay there any longer, so he quickly left with Kamachi Sachiko.

Instead of going to a conference room, Kimura Hiroshi led Kamachi Sachiko to the rooftop balcony of Stardust Communications Agency, where the shade meant they wouldn't be directly exposed to the summer sun.

"So, is forming a band stressful?" Kimura Hiroshi asked, looking at Kamachi Sachiko beside him.

Holding onto the balcony railing, Sachiko Kamachi squinted, feeling the cool breeze blowing from afar, and replied, "It's alright, it just feels different from before. When I sing, I need to take care of the rhythm of the other band members, and I haven't fully adapted yet. It may take some time."

When singing solo, you can just follow the accompaniment. However, when the band plays, the rhythm may be different from the accompaniment. The lead singer needs to pay attention to this. At the beginning, there will definitely be a lot of discomfort. It takes time to get used to it. It's not like you can just put a few people together and start performing.

"It's okay, take your time. You're still a trainee and haven't debuted yet, so you don't need to feel too much pressure. I'm giving you time until the second half of next year. That's when I'm ready to debut. Even if you train quickly, I won't let you debut early," Kimura Hiroshi said with a hint of reassurance.

However, Sachiko Kamachi didn't understand this approach. She turned around and looked at Hiroshi Kimura curiously, asking, "Why does the agency keep paying me a salary? Isn't it because they hope I'll debut soon and bring them profits? Why doesn't Kimura-san seem to be in a hurry for me to debut? Is it because we're friends? I don't want Kimura-san to act like that."

"How could that be, Sachiko-chan? I'm a very greedy person. Even if we're friends, it's no problem for me to treat you to a meal or go out with you, but it's impossible for you to keep getting money from me. So don't overthink it." Kimura Hiroshi said frankly.

However, this did not dispel Sachiko's doubts. If Hiroshi Kimura was greedy for money, he should have let her debut and make money faster. But he did not. Instead, he pushed forward her debut very slowly, as if he was worried that her debut would not go smoothly. This process was very different from other agencies.

This made her think about things more, such as whether it was just a simple friendship. Thinking about this, Sachiko's face turned slightly red. She didn't actually dislike Hiroshi Kimura anymore. In fact, after spending time together, she had developed a different feeling in her heart, but she didn't dare to think about it or wanted to think about it too much.

"The reason I'm willing to give you more time is because I think you can make me a lot of money in the future. I have a lot of songs in my head, but unfortunately none of them are suitable for me to sing. I think you are very suitable. With your help, I'm sure these singles will sell very well. You will make me a fortune. So, this small investment in the early stages is nothing at all," Kimura Hiroshi continued.

Is that really the case? Sachiko didn't know, but she knew that Hiroshi Kimura's arrangements were always correct, so she replied, "Kimura-san really has confidence in me. In that case, I'll listen to Kimura-san, train slowly, and wait patiently for my debut opportunity."

"That's how it should be. Don't be too hasty. I'm waiting to see you and your ZARD make a name for yourselves," Kimura Hiroshi said confidently.

The two chatted for a while longer, but even in the shady spot, it was still too hot in the summer. They soon came down, with Sachiko Kamachi going back to continue training, while Hiroshi Kimura met with Yoshiro Hosono again.

"As you requested, Kimura-san, I will inform the guitarist after get off work today to prepare for his departure, and then we will recruit a new guitarist." Hosono Yoshiro was remarkably efficient, planning to fire him after get off work today.

Kimura Hiroshi was naturally satisfied with this speed. He said, "Very good. When recruiting guitarists next, make sure to tell them that the lead singer of the band is a woman. Even if he is a man, as a senior, he needs to follow the lead singer's arrangements. Otherwise, he can forget about having the opportunity to perform on a big stage. There are very few big stages in Japan, but there are many guitarists."

The Japanese music scene is incredibly competitive. There are so many people with professional skills, but only a handful can actually debut. Many people dream of having the opportunity to form a band and debut.

Chapter 558 There's something interesting coming up.

With his new single about to be released, promotion is naturally in full swing, starting with magazine and entertainment newspaper ads. This is Hiroshi Kimura's third single of the year, and it's being released in such a dense and continuous manner, something that has never happened to Kimura since his debut. Even in his most stable early days, he only released a single every four months. It's only August now, and he's already releasing his third single.

This naturally made Kimura Hiroshi's fans and music lovers extremely happy. How could they not be happy that their favorite singer could be so diligent in his work?

Furthermore, along with the promotion of his new single, Hiroshi Kimura announced that he would hold two concerts at the end of August and in September, which is unprecedented, as Kimura used to struggle to hold even one concert a year, but this year he is going to hold two concerts in a row.

All of this exuded a sense of something amiss, but the fans and the media had no idea. They just felt that Hiroshi Kimura had indeed become more active in his work, perhaps because his two consecutive singles had sold over a million copies. Sales had recovered, he was making money, so he started to be more proactive in his work.

Only a few people know that this was probably Kimura Hiroshi's last gift to his fans and music lovers before his marriage. What will happen to him afterward, and whether he will continue his entertainment career, only he himself knows.

As an artist, Hiroshi Kimura will continue to do his job well. He will naturally not miss the TV promotion for his new single. However, this time, he did not choose Fuji TV's Night HIT for the premiere of the new single, but instead chose TV Asahi's Music Station.

The reason he did this was that the Night HIT program had been going a bit crazy lately, frequently going abroad to record programs. If he wanted to be on the latest episode of Night HIT, he would have to go to England with the production team to record, which would take several days. Kimura Hiroshi was naturally unwilling to do that, so he chose his old friend Music Station.

Recently, the drama series has become so popular on Fuji TV that it has angered TV Asahi, which had collaborated with him earlier. Kimura Hiroshi can use this opportunity to ease the tension between the two sides. Although the focus of the drama series will no longer be on TV Asahi, they will still need TV Asahi's help to focus on their anime programs.

Unlike the Night HIT program, which disregards production costs and travels overseas to record shows, Music Station maintains its original style, with only one studio. One side is where the guests sit, and the other side is where they perform, demonstrating an extreme commitment to cost-cutting.

It's no wonder that Music Station has become such a long-running music show. Because of its low cost, it can survive as long as the viewership reaches a certain level. In contrast, Night HIT has a much higher cost. It has to go abroad to record every day. If the viewership drops, it will not be able to withstand it. It needs high viewership to attract enough advertising revenue to offset the costs.

"Oh, Kimura-san, it's been a long time." As soon as he arrived backstage at the program's production team, Kazuyoshi Morita, the star host of Music Station, came up to greet Hiroshi Kimura. This guy was wearing sunglasses backstage, just like when he appeared on the show. This made Hiroshi Kimura very curious about what his eyes looked like. He had seen him many times, but he had never had the chance to see them.

"Yes, it's been a long time. This time I'm here to promote my new single, and I hope Morita-san will take good care of me," Kimura Hiroshi replied very politely.

In response to this superficial politeness, Kazuyoshi Morita replied in a very polite manner, "No problem. Kimura-san is a distinguished guest on our program. Rest assured, when we go on stage, I will definitely not ask Kimura-san why he dyed his hair such a strange color."

Amidst the pleasantries, this guy even made a joke about Hiroshi Kimura's hair. In reality, before going on the show, they would inform the production team about the songs to be promoted and other things. As the show's host, Kazuyoshi Morita certainly knew why he changed his look, but this guy was pretending not to know.

"Ahem, ahem, Morita-san isn't curious about my hair, just like I'll never be curious about Morita-san's sunglasses. Morita-san, could you please take off your sunglasses when you go on the show?" Kimura Hiroshi said, staring at Morita Kazuyoshi's sunglasses.

"What? Kimura-san actually wants me to take off my sunglasses? That's outrageous! You know, these sunglasses are my signature look. As long as I'm on the show, they won't disappear from my sight," Morita Kazuyoshi said angrily.

Kimura Hiroshi knew he wasn't really angry, but the more he said that, the more curious Kimura Hiroshi became. He stared at his sunglasses, thinking that he would find an opportunity to take them off during the mountain climbing program later. Would that count as a broadcasting accident?

Seemingly feeling a bit uneasy under Kimura Hiroshi's gaze, Morita Kazuyoshi decided to distance himself from the guy. He quickly gestured and left, not daring to tease Kimura Hiroshi any further. If his sunglasses fell off, it would mean the end of his hosting career.

Having managed to scare Morita Kazuyoshi away, Kimura Hiroshi picked up his electric guitar, strummed it a couple of times, and after confirming that he was in good condition, he put the guitar down and sat there reading a magazine.

At this time, the guests participating in the program began to arrive one after another. Most of them were juniors of Hiroshi Kimura. Now Hiroshi Kimura has also been promoted to a senior in the entertainment industry. Every guest who came in had to greet him. Hiroshi Kimura would put down his magazine and smile at them or chat for a few words.

"Hello, Kimura-senpai." Just as Kimura Hiroshi was reading a magazine again, he suddenly heard a very unfamiliar voice greet him.

Putting down the magazine, Kimura Hiroshi looked at the person who had just arrived. The person in front of him was somewhat familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar. She had a head of jet-black hair tied into a ponytail with a pink bow, and wispy bangs in the front. She wore a simple shirt and jeans. Hmm, she didn't look very tall, but her legs were even more beautiful than his girlfriend Nakamori Akina's, and no less beautiful than Kamachi Sachiko's, except that they were a bit flat.

As for her appearance, she could be considered beautiful even without makeup. He tried hard to recall and said, "You, you are Moritaka Chisato, Chisato-chan, right? Ah, I know you sang '17-sai,' it's very good, and many people like it."

After a quick recollection, Kimura Hiroshi knew who the person in front of him was: Moritaka Chisato, a recently popular idol. Of course, Kimura Hiroshi already knew her; there was no way he could resist being drawn to her legs, given how captivating they were during the Showa era.

"Ah, I'm so happy that Kimura-senpai knows me. No, I didn't sing well enough. I didn't sing as well as Minami Saori-senpai." Moritaka Chisato was very happy to see that Kimura Hiroshi knew her, but she was also very humble.

"No, your singing is also very distinctive, at least I think it's very good. By the way, are you here today to continue promoting this single?" Kimura Hiroshi asked with great curiosity. The reason he was so curious was simply because if Moritaka Chisato continued to promote this song, then he would be in for a treat.

After all, the legs of the Showa era's "Leg Queen" are something you can't miss. Right now, she's wearing jeans, so you can't see anything. We'll have to wait until she puts on her performance tutu; that's when the best time to appreciate them will be.

Chapter 559 Something New Again

One by one, all the guests who came to participate in the program today arrived. Kimura Hiroshi found that most of the people who appeared on the program now were new generation idols or popular singers born after 85. People like him who debuted before 85 were very few, unless you were an enka singer.

All the attendees were juniors, and you can imagine how it felt. Kimura Hiroshi truly experienced the cruelty of the Japanese entertainment industry. The turnover rate was incredibly fast; almost every few years, the most popular generation would disappear from the screen.

"New talents replace the old, but I'm probably the one who can't be replaced. What does it matter to me if others are replaced? Only if I voluntarily retire from the entertainment industry can I retire. But this entertainment industry is really meaningless." Kimura Hiro sighed, then went to the dressing room to change into his performance costume, preparing to start the recording of the program.

After changing clothes for about ten minutes, the production crew came to inform him that the show was about to start and that he should get ready quickly. Kimura Hiroshi was already ready and went straight out of the dressing room to the show's studio.

By this time, almost all the other guests had arrived. Kimura Hiroshi glanced around and could only say that the female idols were more numerous than the male idols. Even though idols weren't as popular as they were a few years ago, they were still under the afterglow of the idol era, and female idols still held an absolute dominant position. By next year, female idols would have almost disappeared from the Japanese entertainment industry like they were falling off a cliff.

"Wow, Kimura-san's outfit today is quite unique. It seems the new single will really showcase a different style." Morita Kazuyoshi exclaimed, sounding slightly fake, upon seeing Kimura Hiroshi's attire.

The eyes of the other guests who had arrived in the studio were all focused on Hiroshi Kimura. Their expressions varied, some were surprised, some were curious, and some were disdainful, but most of them were stared at by the female guests in the audience.

Today, Koichi Kimura's outfit was designed for him by Akina Nakamori. He wore an ill-fitting and somewhat strange suit, with two buttons of his shirt undone. Coupled with his long, almost eye-covering, heterochromatic hair, he exuded a rebellious and unrestrained charm amidst his handsomeness. This kind of outfit is very attractive to girls. Most girls like men who are handsome with a touch of bad boy. Of course, if you're not handsome and try to act bad, you won't be very attractive.

"Of course, I guarantee that Morita-san will be satisfied." Kimura Hiroshi didn't care about Morita Kazuyoshi's teasing at all. He found Moritaka Chisato, whom he had just chatted with, and sat down next to her.

During the recording of MUSIC STATION, the guests all sit together, and when it's their turn to perform, they stand up and are interviewed. After the interview, they go to the performance stage opposite to perform. This isn't a particularly unique format; Night HIT also uses it. However, MUSIC STATION feels more like chatting with friends, which creates a sense of intimacy.