My daily life with the original diva

However, Hua Jianhe was clearly disheartened and said, "No need. I'm already so old, why should I work? Retiring and going back to rest is a good choice. I feel very tired every day at work. I'm getting old, and my energy can't keep up anymore. I'm afraid I can't handle working anymore."

It seems he really wants to retire, so Kimura Hiroshi didn't say much more, only saying, "President, your choice is not wrong. If I were your age, I would definitely choose to retire early and stop working. No, I should retire before I'm sixty. I don't have your strong ambition."

"Yes, if you don't want to work, then you should rest well. By the way, where is your address, President? We'll visit you often in the future. Of course, if you feel it's inconvenient, you don't have to tell us." Nakamori Akina also expressed her concern for Hanami Kagami.

After all, she was personally trained by Hanami Kagami, so her feelings for this president were naturally much deeper than those for Kimura Hiroshi. She felt as if Hanami Kagami was an elder in her own family.

"What's inconvenient about that? I can write it to you right now. I'll also give you my home phone number. I'd be very happy if you could come visit me sometime. You two are my proudest creations since entering the entertainment industry. You two became superstars who practically influenced the 1980s under my guidance. I'm really quite proud of you." Hua Jianhe looked very proud. He had indeed left a lot behind in the entertainment industry, so his trip wasn't in vain.

Chapter 670 Ultimately, Stardust was used.

After leaving Ken-On and getting into the car, Kimura Hiroshi noticed that Nakamori Akina was still somewhat downcast. Instead of driving off immediately, he reached out and patted Nakamori Akina's head.

"What, Akina, do you still think Kenon's current situation is related to your withdrawal?" Kimura Hiro knew what Nakamori Akina was thinking. His wife disliked causing trouble for others the most, let alone Kenon's current situation.

Without hiding her emotions, Akina Nakamori said softly, "Hiro-kun, were we too hasty in getting married back then? We didn't give the agency enough time, which is why Ken-on has become like this."

Kimura Hiroshi couldn't help but laugh, but when he laughed, Nakamori Akina looked at him with a strange expression, as if she didn't know what Kimura Hiroshi was laughing at.

Kimura Hiroshi stepped forward and touched Nakamori Akina's face. "My Akina, why do you always take the blame? I informed the agency about the marriage a long time ago so they could prepare in advance. Otherwise, the agency wouldn't have agreed to our marriage so easily."

The point of this kind of thing is to present the facts and let Akina Nakamori know that the issue isn't with them. He continued, "Also, it's because the two of us are too outstanding that the agency has a kind of fleeting sense of inflated ego, like the bubble economy in Japan before. Once the two of us left, the bubble burst, and they went back to where they were."

"Akina, do you think Ken-On is in a bad state? I think it's alright. They have Noriko-chan and many other well-known actors, all of whom I personally placed and nurtured in the movies. Not to mention the money we've earned for Ken-On. I heard they're even building their own skyscraper! How much money will that cost? It's all from the two of us. If that's still not enough, then Akina, you and I will have to sell ourselves to the agency and stay here forever working for them."

After hearing this, Nakamori Akina understood more or less. Ken-On was just not as good as when they were there, but in reality, it wasn't that bad compared to other agencies, because they had left Ken-On with a lot. At the same time, she also heard the helplessness in Kimura Hiro's words, because her own guilt was putting a lot of pressure on Kimura Hiro, who felt guilty towards Ken-On.

“Hiro-kun is right. We’ve left so much stuff for the agency, enough to build a building. My husband’s company is still renting office space. Ah, we should have asked for more record sales revenue back then, so we could have built a building too.” Nakamori Akina joked with Kimura Hiro as she adjusted her mood.

These words amused Kimura Hiroshi. "Yes, you should ask for more. I asked for quite a lot, but Akina really got the short end of the stick."

"What can we do? It's all in the past. If we want to release an album in the future, we have to get the highest percentage of revenue. Like the song I'm going to sing next, we have to. But Hiro-kun, we can't keep Ken-on. So who should we go to?" Nakamori Akina was in a dilemma again. Without Ken-on, she really didn't know which agency to go to.

This was no big deal for Hiroshi Kimura. He started the car and said, "Akina, don't worry. Leave it to me. Don't forget, I have a good friend who also works for an agency. We can go to him, he can act as a middleman, and then Warner will release the record."

"Sigh, isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Nakamori Akina was also a little afraid of troubling others.

“What’s wrong with that? I invested in him when he set up the agency, and your husband is a shareholder.” Kimura Hiroshi directly stated that he was a shareholder of Stardust Media, saving Nakamori Akina from worrying about this or that.

However, when he revealed this, Nakamori Akina was quite shocked. She hadn't expected that Kimura Hiroshi had secretly invested in the agency. She had no idea about this. No wonder he had recruited so many outstanding newcomers into the agency called Stardust Media. It turned out that he had also invested in it.

Nakamori Akina didn't ask any questions and had Kimura Hiro drive her to Stardust Media Agency. The receptionist already recognized Kimura Hiro and got up to greet him, but when she saw the person he was with, she was completely bewildered. She saw Kimura Hiro bringing Nakamori Akina, who was a very popular top celebrity.

After asking the receptionist if Yoshiro Hosono was at the agency, Hiroki Kimura took Akina Nakamori directly to Hosono's office. Unexpectedly, they ran into Hosono at the door, where he was scolding a young man who looked like a male artist from Stardust Media.

Just as he was hurling his insults, he looked up and saw Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori standing not far away. He swallowed back all his curses, patted the young man on the shoulder, and told him to leave. The young man was so angry that he didn't even dare to look up when he left.

"Wow, I never expected President Hosono to have such a stern side. It's truly impressive. I've finally witnessed what a president's authority looks like." Kimura Hiroshi's tone was slightly teasing; he had seen something quite novel today.

Somewhat embarrassed, Hosono Yoshiro, who always maintained a gentle and calm demeanor in front of Kimura Hiroshi, said somewhat apologetically, "I'm so sorry to have made you laugh, Kimura-san. Oh, and Akina-san, welcome to our Stardust Media."

It was strange that someone his age would act so timidly in front of Hiroshi Kimura, which made Akina Nakamori want to laugh, but she held back out of politeness and greeted Yoshiro Hosono in a low voice.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Yoshiro Hosono quickly led Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori to the meeting room. They couldn't just stand at the office door chatting; that would be too inappropriate. It was much more formal to go to the meeting room.

On the way to the meeting room, Kimura Hiroshi couldn't help but ask why he had scolded that young man. Speaking of this, Hosono Yoshiro was also quite angry. That kid, as a new recruit recruited by Stardust, actually tried to seduce a female artist in their agency, and as a result, the female artist complained to Hosono Yoshiro. It's a bit too hasty for a newcomer to do this.

So that's how it is. Stardust Media has a lot of female celebrities, and many of them are very beautiful. Some young people come in and see so many beautiful female celebrities, so naturally they can't resist. Unfortunately, they forget their own status. If they were already famous, then they might be able to hook up with them, but they are not famous at all. Why would they pay attention to them? They might even find them annoying.

Upon arriving at the reception room, Yoshiro Hosono had his secretary bring drinks, and the three of them sat down to chat. However, Hiroshi Kimura didn't rush to talk about his and Akina Nakamori's upcoming record release. Instead, he inquired about the recent developments of Stardust Media, with a particular focus on the progress of Sachiko Kamachi and Maki Ohguro.

"It's rare that Kimura-san still remembers them. How long has it been since you asked about their situation? I thought Kimura-san had completely forgotten about the two new recruits he personally recruited." In response to Kimura Hiroshi's inquiry, Hosono Yoshiro couldn't help but tease Kimura Hiroshi.

In recent months, Kimura Hiroshi hadn't spent much time on these two newcomers, which made him feel a little embarrassed. So he wasn't angry; he just smiled.

Not intending to embarrass Kimura Hiroshi, Hosono Yoshiro began to talk about the recent developments of Kamachi Sachiko and Ohguro Maki. Since her debut last summer, Ohguro Maki has been doing well. As a singer-songwriter, she has been slowly building her popularity, but she still needs some more time to truly become a star.

As for Sachiko Kamachi, her popularity grew much faster than that of Maki Ohguro. Although her debut single last year achieved such high sales because of Hiroshi Kimura's composition, it also brought Sachiko Kamachi a lot of attention quickly. As the lead singer of a band, she has a beautiful face, a slender figure, and excellent singing skills. Finally, her light and approachable makeup also contributed to her rapid rise in popularity.

She released her first album at the end of last year, and it immediately became a bestseller. By February of this year, it had sold more than 500,000 copies. Although this sales volume is still far behind those of top-selling singers, it is very high for a newcomer who debuted last year. She has the highest album sales among newcomers who debuted last year.

"Wow, Sachiko-chan is really amazing! I knew she would become popular, but I didn't expect her to achieve album sales of over 500,000 copies so quickly. That's much better than what I did back then." Nakamori Akina couldn't help but feel proud and happy for Sachiko Kamachi's achievements, and even compared herself to her.

"This is indeed a remarkable achievement. It seems she and Mr. Tetsuro Oda have worked together very well, and her rise to fame is a certainty. However, Akina doesn't need to compare herself to others. When you debuted, the situation was very different from now. Back then, your record sales were already declining, and it was rare for a record to sell over a million copies. But now, it should be relatively easy for a record to sell over a million copies." Hiroki Kimura didn't like Akina Nakamori always belittling herself.

After all, she and Sachiko Kamachi debuted at different times, and the era has changed, so there is no point in comparing them. If we consider the achievements of Akina Nakamori during the period from 84 to 88, there are almost no female singers who can reach that level. However, due to the era, her record sales were destined not to break one million. If it were today, it would definitely be very easy.

Unexpectedly, Kimura Hiroshi still defended her at this time. Nakamori Akina couldn't help but chuckle and patted Kimura Hiroshi's thigh, "I know, I know, I understand what the Red Army means."

Sitting opposite him, Yoshiro Hosono felt extremely uncomfortable watching the two young couple showing off their affection. He thought to himself, "You came to Stardust Spread just to put on a show of affection in front of me? That's really a bit too boring."

"Alright, let's get down to business, Hosono-san. I'm here not only to check on the situation of Maki Ohguro and Sachiko Kamachi, but also because there's something I need Stardust Media to ask you to do. Akina and I are releasing a single, and it's no longer convenient to work with Ken-On, so we need Stardust Media to temporarily act as our agency." Having said everything he needed to say, Hiroshi Kimura began to explain the purpose of their visit.

Upon hearing this, Yoshiro Hosono replied immediately, "I see. No problem. If Kimura-san and Akina-san are going to release a single, then Stardust Media... wait, Kimura-san, you said you and Akina-san are going to release a single and hope to collaborate with Stardust Media?"

Belatedly realizing what he had just heard, Yoshiro Hosono suddenly realized that Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina were releasing a new album and needed Stardust Media's assistance. Had he misheard? Was he dreaming?

My goodness! You have to know who Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori are – they're both top-tier singers! Last year, a drama they starred in broke viewership records in recent years, which shows that their popularity has absolutely not been affected by their marriage. If they were to release an album with Stardust Media, it would be an unimaginable boon for the company. Just the agency's reputation could increase many times over.

"Yes, President Hosono, Akina and I are going to release a record and we need the assistance of Stardust Media. Is that alright?" Kimura Hiroshi said, pretending to be very polite. He knew that Hosono Yoshiro had no reason to refuse, nor would he dare to refuse, after all, he was a major shareholder of Stardust Media.

Realizing what was happening, Yoshiro Hosono quickly stood up and said, "No problem, no problem. It's an honor for Stardust Media to have Stardust Media assist in releasing a record, since Kimura-san and Akina-san need our assistance in releasing a record. Of course, there's no problem at all. We can help you release a record whenever you want. Just tell us what you need."

At this moment, Yoshiro Hosono was being incredibly humble about himself and Stardust, which made Akina Nakamori feel a little embarrassed.

"President Hosono, we're just releasing a record, it doesn't need to be too complicated. It only requires some staff to communicate with the record company. We've already agreed on the record company, it's Warner Music, the record company we used to work for, so it doesn't need to be too complicated."

Hosono Yoshiro knew perfectly well what was going on, and he repeatedly said, "I know, Akina-san, please rest assured, I will take care of it immediately and arrange it for you as soon as possible. It won't delay your time or business."

Chapter 671 Record Reboot

In the second year of the 1990s, Japan's economy still showed no signs of recovery. Instead, it continued to slide into the abyss. The stock market continued its usual downward trend, and corporate bankruptcies showed no signs of decreasing. The entire economy presented a sluggish and shrinking picture.

In this economic climate, the real estate market appears particularly peculiar, maintaining its alarmingly high prices with no sign of decline. However, despite these high prices, real estate transactions are exhibiting a strange slump, a situation of high prices but no buyers. Although the prices seem to suggest potential profits, there are simply not many people willing to buy.

In contrast to the strange state of the economy, Japan's entertainment industry is truly beginning to show signs of recovery, with television dramas, movies, and records all experiencing rapid growth.

Since last year, the Japanese record market has been recovering at an astonishing speed. Last year, the singles sales chart was still dominated by the man who had dominated record sales in the 1980s, Hiroshi Kimura, who only released one theme song for a TV drama, and sold a staggering 2.67 million copies. This is an extremely exaggerated record.

Following closely behind him was the theme song for the anime "Momoko Sakura," a joint production of Wit Studio and Fuji Television, composed by Tetsuro Oda and with lyrics by Hiroshi Kimura. It sold over 1.8 million copies, and it seemed as if only a year had passed before million-selling records were everywhere.

This year is no exception. At the beginning of the year, the entire record market began to show a boom. The sales of records in the first quarter increased by 30% compared to last year. This growth is an absolute counterexample to the economic growth of Japan this year, and can be described as completely opposite.

However, this revitalized record market has nothing to do with a type of singer that once dominated the 1980s: idol singers. Since last year, the market seems to have stopped favoring idol singers, whether it's the once-dominant female idols or the male idols who have faded into obscurity. Although Johnny & Associates did a big thing at the end of the year and won the record award, the reality is that this had the opposite effect, and the market seems to dislike idol singers even more.

Last year, idol singers who could still make a splash, such as Shizuka Kudo and Miho Nakayama, have completely faded this year. They have been overshadowed by newly emerging singers, and some former rock singers and talented singer-songwriters have started to rise to prominence this year.

Given this market situation, Hiroshi Kimura also wanted to get a piece of the pie. Of course, he wasn't greedy and didn't want everything. He just wanted to see if his popularity was still there and if he could still be welcomed. So he decided to release two singles and an album this year, with Stardust Media as his management company and Warner Music as the record label.

He had a very good relationship with Warner, not to mention his old friend Yukio Tomioka, who offered him generous royalties. There was no reason for him not to collaborate with Warner.

So after communicating with Stardust Media, Stardust Media sent two assistants to Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina. They were both young girls, not particularly good-looking, and newcomers to the industry. Of course, this was not because Stardust Media was neglecting them, but because the two of them had requested it themselves.

Originally, Yoshiro Hosono wanted to send their agency's best manager and assistant, but Hiroshi Kimura refused, telling him to send two newcomers who could handle things and also help him train the newcomers, gain some experience, and then they could become managers for Stardust Media's new artists in the future.

After all, they have been in the entertainment industry for so many years, and have been singing and releasing albums for so many years. They are basically familiar with the process, so they don't actually need a manager. They only need two assistants to help them handle some things, such as contacting partners and helping to handle some matters and documents. So even newcomers can use them.

Now that Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori are married, there's no need for them to hide anything. So, the two of them, along with two assistants, went to Warner Music. They went to discuss the recording of the album. Of course, they weren't going to record it today, since Akina Nakamori hadn't sung in a long time and needed time for some recovery training, about a week.

Upon entering Warner, as before, Yukio Tomioka was already waiting for them in the lobby. Seeing them arrive with their assistant, he quickly went to greet them.

"Kimura-san, Akina-san, welcome! I heard you were releasing a record, and I was so excited I couldn't sleep all day. Look at my dark circles! I've been waiting for you here since early this morning." Yukio Tomioka was being incredibly exaggerated, making it hard to tell if he was genuinely happy or just putting on an act for them.

After exchanging a glance, Kimura Hiroshi said with a smile, "Oh, that's our fault, Mr. Tomioka. It's a real sin that we made you lose sleep because we were recording an album. How about this, we won't record it anymore, so that Mr. Tomioka can get a good night's sleep and that will lessen our guilt a little."

"Huh?" Yukio Tomioka was bewildered by Hiroshi Kimura's words. Wasn't he just expressing his excitement and his expectations for Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori? How did his kind words cause trouble instead? Hiroshi Kimura actually said he wouldn't record the single. This was terrible. If Hiroshi Kimura went back like this, he would probably have to leave Warner Music tomorrow.

The look of shock and disbelief on his face amused Nakamori Akina, who couldn't help but chuckle. She then patted Kimura Hiroshi on the shoulder and said, "Hiroshi-kun, don't take jokes so seriously. Mr. Tomioka took it so seriously. Honestly, don't joke around at work."

"Ah, my bad, I shouldn't have joked. Mr. Tomioka, please don't take it seriously. It's just that we haven't seen each other in a long time, I was just joking. Why did you believe it so easily?" Kimura Hiroshi hadn't expected Tomioka Yukio to take it seriously either, and after hearing Nakamori Akina's words, he quickly explained.

Only then did Yukio Tomioka's expression return to normal. He let out a long breath and said, "Kimura-san, some things are not to be joked about. You might scare people. For example, right now, because you and Akina-san are going to record a single, I and the other Warner executives are overjoyed. If you suddenly stop recording, then it will really be my fault."

"Oh, really? Mr. Tomioka, I haven't been releasing records much since last year. My popularity has probably plummeted. Warner is still thinking so highly of me. I'm really flattered!" Kimura Hiroshi was a little unsure about his popularity, after all, the Japanese entertainment industry changes too quickly.

At this moment, Yukio Tomioka was full of confidence. He said, "Kimura-san and Akina-san's popularity is beyond doubt. Even though they haven't released an album in a long time, it's still the same. So, you don't need to worry too much. Just focus on recording the album. Now, please come with me. Let's go and confirm the recording and release of the album."

They had already been talking in the lobby for quite some time, and it wasn't appropriate to keep talking there, so Yukio Tomioka led Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori to the conference room for a detailed discussion.

When they arrived at the conference room, there weren't many people there. It was just Yukio Tomioka, Hiroshi Kimura, and Akina Nakamori talking. The rest of the staff were taking notes and listening to what they were saying.

It's important to understand that when Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori release records these days, it's entirely up to the two of them. There are no producers or managers, and even if there were, they wouldn't be able to influence what records they release. So, when they hold meetings, there aren't many people needed. Hiroshi Kimura and Yukio Tomioka's collaboration used the same model.

The first thing to confirm is the single sung by Akina Nakamori. Since her single is already confirmed, it's the theme song for the drama series chosen by Hiroshi Kimura, "As You Are Here," and there's no way to change it. So there's nothing to discuss; we just need to confirm when to record it and before what time it needs to be completed.

When he arrived at Kimura's place, Kimura Hiroshi hadn't yet decided what singles to release, but he confirmed that recording for the singles would begin after May, with one single to be released in May and another in September, followed by an album. He wanted to finish filming the drama first, so he came over to confirm the schedule with Tomioka Yukio.

Although he didn't know what single Hiroshi Kimura would release, Yukio Tomioka was very happy that the release date was confirmed. With the date set, the single's release was a done deal, so there was no need to worry about Kimura not singing it. Tomioka knew that Kimura wasn't the kind of person who would break a promise.

Akina Nakamori, on the other hand, is in a bit of a rush. They've agreed to finish recording in April because Hiroshi Kimura has already instructed the drama production department of Wit's Power Studio to start preparing for the filming of "A Rare Friend". It's expected that the CD City romance drama will be filmed in March or April. Filming is that fast, so the record needs to be filmed in April to coincide with the production of the drama.

In this way, it was simple. The record recording was settled. Yukio Tomioka was very happy. He also liked this kind of meeting because it was easy and quick to make decisions. It didn't require much effort or time. It was a meeting mode that he only dreamed of.

After discussing the single, Yukio Tomioka also mentioned some collaborations that Warner Music wanted to pursue to Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori, but these weren't things that would require too much of their time and energy.

Warner Music recently saw how hot the record market was and wanted to release a compilation album for Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori. A compilation album is essentially a collection of their most famous songs, which is a re-release of old tracks.

Upon hearing this idea, Hiroshi Kimura frowned and said, "Mr. Tomioka, although releasing compilation albums is something many singers and record companies do, isn't this a way of exploiting fans and music lovers? After all, those who wanted to buy those singles have probably already bought them. Buying more would probably be paying for the singers they used to like, right?"

Akina Nakamori nodded in agreement with Hiroshi Kimura's words and added, "Yes, those record fans and music lovers have already bought them. Releasing them again would be a way of cheating fans out of their money, and I don't think that's a good idea either."

Unexpectedly, the couple had this idea, so Yukio Tomioka had to explain: "Kimura-san, Akina-san, yes, I have indeed bought many of the singles you have released, but they are all individual records, which is troublesome to listen to and requires frequent changes. If they are all put on one record, it will be more convenient for fans and music lovers."

"And it's not that we're trying to scam money from our fans. It's just that since you two got married, you haven't released any singles or albums. Many fans have written to and called our company asking if we could make a compilation album of your work so they can listen to it or keep it as a collection. If you two don't believe me, I can bring those letters over for you to see. Ms. Hua Mei, please go and get those letters we sent you about releasing a compilation album."

Seemingly afraid that Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina might not believe it, Tomioka Yukio asked the staff in the conference room to get the letters. The young lady named Hanami immediately ran out and returned shortly after, carrying a large cardboard box filled with letters wrapped in various envelopes. Tomioka Yukio gestured for her to place the boxes in front of Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina.

They simply picked up the letters and glanced at them. They didn't even need to open them; just by looking at the envelopes and stamps, they knew that the letters came from different people and different places. Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina were both a little surprised. They hadn't expected that so many fans and admirers still cared about them.

"It seems I misunderstood. I'm very sorry, Mr. Tomioka. In that case, let's release a compilation album. However, I want to put two new singles in the compilation album as a way of giving back to these fans and music lovers. The same goes for Akina's album. I think that should be fine, right?" Kimura Hiroshi naturally wanted to reciprocate this kindness, so he decided to give them two new songs.

Hiroshi Kimura agreed, which naturally made Yukio Tomio very happy, as it meant Warner would make a fortune again. However, he found it hard to accept that Hiroshi Kimura wanted to put new songs on the compilation album. Wouldn't it be better to release new songs as singles, which would generate a lot of revenue?

He knew that once Kimura Hiroshi made up his mind, there was no point in objecting, so he could only nod in agreement, not forgetting to sigh that Kimura Hiroshi's fans and music lovers were really lucky to have met such a generous singer.

Chapter 672 Confirming the Female Lead

Today, the production company, Baquan Studio, has a very mature film and television production team. After receiving the filming plan for Hiroshi Kimura's new TV series, they assembled a crew in less than a week, with everything from assistant director to script supervisor and lighting technician. They only need to wait for Hiroshi Kimura's script and the location before they can start filming.

Since the company's employees work so quickly, Kimura Hiroshi naturally couldn't hold them back. He spent about ten days writing the script and, while writing it, had the company send invitations to various agencies they had partnered with, inviting suitable actors to come and audition.

As soon as the invitation was sent out, the various agencies that had cooperated with Wit Studio couldn't sit still and immediately started to take action. The first thing they did was to ask what kind of actors Wit Studio needed. When they learned that there were two female leads, one who should appear gentle and shy, and the other who should appear rugged and generous, the various agencies immediately began to select their own artists.