My daily life with the original diva

“That’s right, we’re two assassins.” Kimura Hiroshi couldn’t help but make a joke from their movie.

“Yes, we are assassins,” Nakamori Akira said with a grin.

As victims, Mieko and Noriko wished they could strangle the two pranksters in front of them. All they wanted was some gossip, and they had to suffer such persecution.

"Niko, let's stay away from those two from now on. I always feel like they're a bit crazy when they're together," Mieko whispered in Noriko's ear.

Nodding in agreement, Noriko said, "They're becoming increasingly abnormal. If necessary, we can send them to see a psychiatrist."

After all that commotion, the car finally quieted down. It took them a good half hour to finally arrive at the apartment building where Kimura Hiroshi lived. Tomioka Yukio was already there, waiting for them downstairs, idly reading the newspaper.

The group went upstairs. Kimura Hiroshi had already prepared the ingredients yesterday, so it was time to show off his culinary skills. With the help of Nakamori Akina, he made eight dishes. When he finished cooking, Akio Yoshizawa, who had been sent to the agency earlier, also arrived.

He could only sigh in silence at Kimura Hiroshi's prank, then channeled his anger into his appetite and ate a hearty meal.

This was the first time their group had such a formal private dinner. Everyone enjoyed the meal, especially Akina Nakamori, who loved these kinds of gatherings and had a great appetite, including for drinking. After three or four drinks, she was stopped by Hiroshi Kimura from drinking any more.

Goodness, she used every trick in the book to get him to have a couple more drinks, but Kimura Hiroshi didn't give in until she offered him two homemade ice creams. In the end, everyone had a great time eating and drinking, and the meal lasted until 11 p.m.

In the end, only Kimura Hiroshi, who hadn't been drinking, escorted them all home. He had work to do the next day and couldn't stay out too late.

Chapter 142 The Newly Emerging Rival

"I love you and all that, but you didn't even invite me."

A beautiful night with candlelight

If there is dance music, we will become stars.

In the recording studio, as Hiroshi Kimura listened to the intense accompaniment, he couldn't help but sway his body to the rhythm. The martial arts moves he needed to perform for the song flashed through his mind, making his singing seem like a real dance, both passionate and joyful, which was then perfectly recorded by the microphone at his lips.

Outside the recording studio, in front of the massive and complex recording equipment, Warner Pioneer's record producers listened to every word sung by Hiroshi Kimura, ensuring there was no background noise or singing errors.

"Wanna hold me tight? I'll give you the most romantic thing. Wanna dance tonight?"

The song recording reached its climax, which required a relatively high pitch. If one's vocal condition was not good, it was very likely that they would not be able to sing this part and their voice would crack. However, this was not a difficult thing for Hiroshi Kimura. After a year of training, he was able to challenge much higher pitches.

A few minutes later, the recording of a song was finished. Kimura Hiroshi saw the staff outside giving him an OK sign through the glass, knowing that the recording had gone smoothly. He breathed a sigh of relief, took off his headphones, walked outside, bowed, and asked, "Thank you everyone for your hard work. How was the recording?"

"So far, it sounds fine. The sound quality is much better than the previous two times. And when Kimura-san sang and swayed to the rhythm, that strong feeling of wanting to dance was also there. I can only say that it's very good. Kimura-san can feel it for himself," said the Warner Pioneer record producer with great satisfaction.

The first two recordings went well, but the producer felt that it didn't evoke the feeling of wanting to dance. So this time, they asked Kimura Hiroshi to try shaking to the rhythm in the recording studio, imagining himself dancing. They thought that this might create that feeling during the recording. Kimura Hiroshi took this advice and shook in the recording studio, and the effect was surprisingly good.

Putting on his headphones, Hiroshi Kimura started listening to the recording himself. This recording was indeed much better than the previous two. His singing performance was excellent, and there was no problem with releasing it as a record.

After listening, Hiroshi Kimura breathed a sigh of relief. "Then this version of the song will be chosen for this performance. Next is the B-side. I'll rest for half an hour and adjust my condition before recording. Thank you for your hard work."

"It's nothing, it's just our job. Kimura-san, please go and rest," the producer said very politely.

This is a scene rarely seen in other record companies, because record producers have a lot of power and are almost responsible for the entire production of a record.

Their immense power also leads them to frequently abuse it, treating singers very rudely, especially young singers with little experience. They would often hurl insults at them, particularly when the recording didn't meet their standards. Singers would often be brought to tears or even suffer emotional breakdowns from their verbal abuse.

Hiroshi Kimura is an exception, because he writes and sings his own songs and chooses his own style, which is allowed by Warner Pioneer. This results in the record producers having very little power; they can only give him some suggestions but have no decision-making power. That's why they are so polite to him, because Hiroshi Kimura can replace them at any time. After all, who the producer is doesn't really affect him much.

During the break, Hiroshi Kimura took out the sheet music for the B-side track "Silhouette Cannot Dance Now" and silently sang along while looking at it, making sure he could finish the recording as quickly as possible later.

Just as he was looking at the sheet music, Yukio Tomioka came over, sat down next to him, and asked softly, "How's the single recording going?"

"Side A, Eat You Up, has been recorded. We're going to record Side B soon. We'll try to finish recording the album today. Oh, and we need to get the album cover shoot ready. I'll be there tomorrow or the day after. What do you think about the photoshoot wearing the checkered suit that Akina-san brought back?" Kimura Hiroshi said without looking up.

"A checkered suit?" Yukio Tomioka suddenly seemed to have thought of something and quickly said, "No way, Kimura-san, don't you know that you have a very strong rival recently, the newly emerging band Checkers? They wear those checkered suits the most when they perform. If you wear them too, people will think you are imitating them."

These words drew Kimura Hiroshi's attention away from the Checkers. He remembered the Checkers band very well because they were the only male idol band in history that could compete with Nakamori Akina in the mid-1980s, of course, only in terms of record sales; they couldn't compare at all in terms of honors. They often wore checkered clothes when performing, so they were also known as the Checkered Band.

"The Checkers band? They debuted last year, right? Isn't the lead singer that young man named Fujii Fumiya? He's handsome, and he deliberately leaves a small wisp of hair on his forehead. He's a bit short." Kimura Hiroshi confirmed with Tomioka Yukio, afraid that his appearance would change something.

Nodding, Yukio Tomioka said, "Yes, this Fujii Fumiya may be short, but he has a lot of energy when he sings. Also, Kimura-san, although you are practically invincible among male idols right now, you still need to pay attention to your rivals. Their single 'First Tears' released at the beginning of this year sold over 650,000 copies. Just this past May 1st, they released a new single 'First Sorrow,' which is also selling very well. It should be able to take the top spot on the sales charts this week."

Wow, Kimura Hiroshi never expected that Checkers could rise to prominence under such immense pressure. They're really amazing. When you have talent, you don't have to be afraid of others' strength. It's truly remarkable that this band, composed entirely of ordinary friends, has achieved what they have today.

"Wow, they're really amazing. It looks like Akina-san's number one spot on the sales charts is in jeopardy this week. I'd really like to get to know them. We're all young people, so we could exchange singing tips," Kimura Hiroshi said, stroking his chin.

Yukio Tomioka was speechless. "I told you that the purpose of this band was to provoke you, to make you feel a sense of crisis, to avoid your position being threatened and to make you pay more attention to your record career. But you actually want to get to know them after listening to them. Really, is it true, as Mieko said, that you are not quite right in the head?"

"Keep an eye out for me, Mr. Tomioka, and see if there's any opportunity for me to participate in a program with them. I'd like to get to know them," Kimura Hiroshi instructed.

Among the male idols in Japan during the 1980s, there weren't many who could catch Hiroshi Kimura's eye. Checkers was definitely one of them, and Shonentai was another. However, those guys were from Johnny's Entertainment, so it was best not to get too close to them. Checkers, on the other hand, was someone he could try to get to know.

Of course, that wasn't his only purpose. He also had another, very secretive one: to gossip. Kyoko Koizumi and Checkers' lead singer, Fumiya Fujii, had a relationship, which was reportedly their first love. Although they didn't end up together, Kyoko Koizumi still couldn't forget Fumiya Fujii decades later. She wanted to see what kind of magic this short but handsome man possessed.

Of course, if possible, he actually wanted to bring the two of them together. After all, Koizumi Kyoko's love life hadn't been smooth either, and there were even reports of her keeping a married man as a mistress. He really didn't want to see that, since she was Nakamori Akina's best friend.

Chapter 143 Film Editing Completed

However, Kimura Hiroshi's predictions were somewhat off. In the first week of May, Checkers' new single "Initial Sorrow" did not dethrone Nakamori Akina's "South Wind" from the number one spot, but only ranked third on the sales chart.

It wasn't until the second week of sales that "The Initial Sorrow" successfully surpassed Akina Nakamori's "South Wind" to top the sales chart. After dominating the charts for four weeks, Akina Nakamori's "South Wind" dropped to second place.

At the beginning of May, among pop singers, Checkers became the only two male singers to enter the top ten of the record sales chart. Besides them, there was also Koji Tamaki's Anzen Chitai. Both of them are bands, not solo male singers.

The rest of the list consists almost entirely of female idol singers, including Akina Nakamori, Seiko Matsuda, Kyoko Koizumi, Momoko Kikuchi, and many more, truly a scene of female dominance over male dominance.

Last year, Junichiro Taehara, a top solo male idol who could compete with female idol singers, has started to decline rapidly this year. In just five months, he has released two singles and one album, but none of them have reached the top of the sales charts. His highest ranking was only third. He can no longer compete with these top female idol singers.

Currently, the only solo male idol singer who can rival female idol singers is Hiroshi Kimura. However, his new single won't be released until next month, and even so, he alone can't salvage much of the male singers' popularity. It's inevitable that female idol singers will dominate the charts.

The golden age of female idols has arrived, but the record market has begun to decline in an unstoppable manner. The top-selling checkers only sold more than 80,000 copies a week, and at the beginning of the year, it would have taken more than 120,000 copies to take the top spot. Last year, it would have taken more than 140,000 copies.

Akina Nakamori, who has dominated the top spot on the charts for four consecutive weeks, has only sold 360,000 copies of her single. Based on the current trend, the sales of this single are likely to stop at less than 700,000 copies. This was unimaginable before. Just two years ago, when she was number one for four consecutive weeks, the sales exceeded 700,000 copies, and the total sales should have exceeded one million.

The market is shrinking, but competition is becoming increasingly fierce. As numerous idol singers dominate record sales, many agencies and record companies are starting to cultivate a large number of idol singers in order to compete for this market. After all, they will go wherever there is profit, which is the norm in the entertainment industry.

As a result, the number of male and female idol singers who debut each year exceeds several hundred, with female idols making up the majority. However, many of these idol singers fade into obscurity soon after their debut because their records simply cannot be sold, with some selling only a few dozen copies or even none.

They can only be quickly removed from the entertainment industry by their agencies, without even making a ripple. Only a very small number, or a dozen or so, can truly become popular and appear in the public eye more frequently. But it is this very small number that stimulates agencies to invest heavily in idol singers.

This is undoubtedly the most intense competition in the idol industry. New idol singers want to get a chance to stand out, while the top-tier and leading idol singers are afraid of being defeated by new competitors. Everyone is desperately squeezing into this track, striving for maximum exposure, because only with enough exposure can people recognize you, like you, buy your records, and then become famous.

However, there are exceptions. Kimura Hiroshi, the most popular male idol at the moment, is still following the path he has set for himself and is not seeking too much exposure. While everyone else is busy appearing on TV shows, he is in the film editing room of Toho's subsidiary watching the film he starred in for the first time and the first film he invested in. It has already been fully edited.

The person he watched it with was Takeshi Kitano. Although the two often argued during editing, sometimes to the point of redness, those were all work-related disputes. In private, their relationship was fairly good, even though it involved a lot of interests.

Finding a friendship in the entertainment industry that is completely free from self-interest is incredibly difficult; it's like finding a needle in a haystack. After all, it's a huge arena of fame and fortune, and nothing is without its stakes. If someone can avoid a falling out and stand up for you in a crucial moment, that's a true bond of life and death. As for friends, someone you can talk to and get along with is enough.

Having watched it from beginning to end, I have to say that even though it was edited exactly according to the original script or even the original movie from his memory, there were still many differences. Fortunately, the impact wasn't too great, and the movie still had the feel of the original movie from his memory. It was just that some parts had been localized for Japan, but the problem wasn't too serious.

"Ugh, this editing is really mediocre. It's so fussy and childish, like a woman with constipation. It's really annoying." Takeshi Kitano couldn't stand anything about this version of the film, which was edited exactly according to Hiroshi Kimura's requirements, and he had nothing good to say about it.

Upon hearing this, Hiroshi Kimura was displeased. This was edited according to the original film by world-renowned director Luc Besson. Although you are also a world-renowned director, you are still a bit inferior to him, not to mention that you are still a stand-up comedian. You are far from being a famous director. How dare you question Luc Besson's vision?

"Oh, since Kitano-san thinks this editing is bad, then please edit your own version, call it the director's cut. After the movie is released, we'll release your director's cut and see whose version is more popular," Kimura Hiroshi said bluntly.

"Whose version is more popular? Need I say more? It's definitely you, the top male idol. Even if I edit my own version perfectly, it probably won't be as good as this kid's." Takeshi Kitano chuckled. "Wouldn't it be a waste for me to edit it again? Let's just leave it like this. Anyway, those viewers aren't here to see the movie; they're here to see your and that girl's faces."

These words sound like an admission of defeat, but they are also accusing Kimura Hiroki of being unfair and sarcastic. As expected of a comedian, he really can't stand to lose even the slightest bit with his words.

Rolling his eyes, Kimura Hiroshi was too lazy to continue arguing with him about this matter, and said, "The editing is finished, so I'll leave the special effects and rendering to you. You must finish all the work on this movie before the end of June. Toho is really pushing us hard."

"No problem, I'll definitely finish everything by the end of June, don't worry about that. After all, this is my first film as a director, and I won't be careless. But have you prepared the theme song and insert songs for this film? Don't let me down." Takeshi Kitano patted his chest to assure him that he had no problem, while questioning Hiroshi Kimura's work ability.

"I won't have any problems here either. I'll deliver the theme song and insert songs to you within two weeks. I'll sing the theme song, and Akina-san will sing the insert songs." Kimura Hiroshi naturally had no problems either, since he had already chosen the songs; all he needed to do was arrange and sing them.

The next and final stage of the film's production has been arranged. Now, all that's left is to wait for the promotional activities after the film is fully completed, followed by its release.

Chapter 144 Shooting Music Videos and Movie Theme Songs

The arrangement of the new single took almost a week, while the recording of the album was completed in just four days. The next issue is Warner Pioneer's production, which Kimura Hiroshi doesn't need to worry about.

Warner Pioneer is very confident about this energetic dance track with a pure Western style. However, considering the recent sluggish record market, they are conservatively planning to produce only 500,000 copies in the first batch, and will reprint if sales exceed expectations.

With the album recording completed, the next step was to create the accompanying music video. This was Kimura Hiroshi's second time directing a music video. His first one was a purely vocal music video, which he was very dissatisfied with. Although 200,000 copies sold out quickly, it ultimately failed to deliver the modern music video he envisioned.

This year, the modern music video genre, pioneered by Michael Jackson, finally began to circulate in Japan and was widely accepted in the music industry. Warner Pioneer finally found him a professional filming team and fulfilled its previous promise, so there were no more obstacles to the filming of the music video.

"This time, we plan to sell the album and music video together in a limited quantity of 200,000 copies. The remaining 300,000 copies will be sold as a single album. However, the price of this combination will be much higher than before, around 7000 yen. I don't know if fans can accept this price." Yukio Tomioka presented the sales plan prepared by Warner Music to Hiroshi Kimura.

When Hiroshi Kimura, who was preparing to film, heard the price, he felt it wasn't too high. After all, a record costs around 1500 yen and a videotape costs 4000 to 5000 yen. Although his music video was only a relatively short one, it wasn't much cheaper. In other words, their premium was actually very limited.

"If this price is for a limited edition, I think it should be acceptable. You know, my previous music videos can now sell for 6000 yen on the secondhand market. When we sold them before, they were only 3500 yen. They were too cheap. Now someone else is making that money again," Kimura Hiroshi said with great heartache.

If he had known his music video would be so popular, he shouldn't have priced it so low in the first place. He knows he receives royalties for every music video, and the higher the price per video, the higher the royalties. Selling it too low meant that the money went to scalpers, which made him very resentful.

Yukio Tomioka thought Hiroshi Kimura's words made a lot of sense. Since secondhand films were so expensive, there was no reason to lower the price of newly filmed ones. "Okay, since Mr. Kimura has no objections, then the price is settled. I will talk to Warner Bros. By the way, are the theme song and insert songs for the movie ready?"

"It's ready, it's in the bag. Mr. Tomioka, go check it out. I'm about to start recording the music video. Everything's ready. Producer, we can begin filming." Kimura Hiroshi shouted after warming up.

The MV producer Warner hired was a newcomer who had graduated from film school not long ago and had worked as a photographer for a film crew for a year. He was very nervous about being asked to shoot the MV for Hiroshi Kimura. He had actually prepared well in advance while Hiroshi Kimura was at his event, just in case he delayed Hiroshi Kimura's schedule.

"Ah, Kimura-san, we're all ready here, let's begin," the producer responded loudly.

Since this time the song is a Western-style dance track, the theme of the music video is naturally dance, but it also has a certain storytelling element.

It's actually quite simple. Take a high school student from a rural area who has loved dancing since childhood, but his family doesn't accept it. They think that students who like dancing are delinquents. However, he enjoys watching people dancing on TV. When he learns that there is a dance competition in his city, he resolutely goes to participate and invites his parents to watch. He dances to "Eat You Up".

His parents had never seen their son so energetic, especially his confident and passionate dancing on stage, which was completely different from his usual quiet and even somewhat timid self. They were so impressed that they began to understand their son and support his dancing.

Although the plot is acceptable, it is still a very novel thing in this era, after all, there are not many music videos like this nowadays.

Hiroshi Kimura had seen Akina Nakamori's NV film, which was extremely rough and simple. It was just Akina Nakamori standing in the wild, surrounded by wildflowers and weeds, singing while picking wildflowers. If you didn't know better, you would think it was just some girl filming for fun. There was nothing else. It was even far inferior to the glamorous stage music videos he had filmed before.

While story-driven music videos are accepted in Japan, not many people are actually making them, since they haven't sold very well there. Kimura Hiroshi is the first to do something so formal, which is understandable given his previous successful music videos.

Today's main focus was filming his dance segment. To showcase the dynamism and charm of the dance, he was sprayed with water to mimic the marks of sweat, and he was also wearing a low-cut V-neck shirt that revealed the sweat on his chest and the muscles on his arms. This half-covered, half-revealed approach was naturally intended to attract the attention of female fans and let them experience the allure of Hiroshi Kimura's physique.

Selling flesh but not actually selling it, being secretive and coy—this works not only on men but also on most women, especially those who grew up in Japan where erotic content is prevalent.

There were many female staff members on site. When Hiroshi Kimura started dancing to the music, they were immediately drawn to the filming location. Many of them even stared intently, showing that Kimura's strategy was very effective.

Not far away, Yukio Tomioka had already sat down. Seeing this scene, he shook his head. Women, they're not that different from men, they all like to watch this kind of thing.

Stopping paying attention, he lowered his head and began to look at the two songs prepared by Hiroshi Kimura. The first one he looked at was naturally the theme song prepared by Hiroshi Kimura, titled "PLANET". He recognized the English word, which means planet. He then looked at the sheet music, which was a very obvious pop song, and the lyrics also began to show a clear Hiroshi Kimura style.

The so-called Kimura Hiroshi style is characterized by profound and meaningful lyrics. The lyrics of this song are about planets that orbit the sun. After burning everything for the sun, they eventually decide to leave it. It is actually a rather sad love song, but it does resonate with certain elements of the movie.

In the movie, the male protagonist dies for the female protagonist. At the last moment, he decides to send her away and gives her all the money he earned as an assassin, hoping that she can live happily in this world. In the end, he succeeds, but he also dies, just like the lyrics say, burning everything and then leaving forever.

"It's really a sad song. It would be very suitable as a theme song. If it's paired with a movie, the sales should be pretty good. Oh, right, there's also an insert song for Akina-san. Should we release it as a separate album? That way, we can maximize the profits." Yukio Tomioka couldn't help but start having some creative ideas.

Previously, this was unheard of; almost all movie theme songs and incidental music were sold on a single record. However, recently, Yukio Tomioka has received too many unconventional ideas from Hiroshi Kimura, which has led him to start thinking differently and want to develop them separately.

“No, doing that would damage their popularity, and Toho probably wouldn’t agree either. They don’t want the movie’s box office to be affected by the record.” However, Yukio Tomioka quickly abandoned the idea because this kind of money-grabbing behavior was really too much, even more so than the current practice of bundling record releases with music videos.