My daily life with the original diva

Compared to the phenomenal success of Hiroshi Kimura's debut single, Akina Nakamori's single sales were only so-so, falling short of her album sales from a while back.

The reason is simple: the love song written by Akina Nakamori and her brother Kisugi is too slow in tempo and the lyrics are very simple. It is very lyrical, but it is not particularly appealing to ordinary people.

With the record released and promotion underway, the next step is to see how the sales perform, which is the most nerve-wracking time, since no one knows how the sales will go.

On the second day after the album's release, Hanami He arrived at the office very early. The first week's sales were crucial; if the results were phenomenal, then subsequent sales, coupled with promotion, would be without any problems.

Hiroshi Kimura was also among the early arrivals. He was going to participate in a radio singing program today, naturally for promotional purposes. As for Akina Nakamori, I haven't seen her for the past few days. She's been participating in programs in other cities, and even when she came back, she didn't go back to the company. That girl is really too hardworking.

"How are you feeling, Kimura-san? We won't know the sales figures for the first day until noon," Hanami Kagami said jokingly to Kimura Hiroshi.

Shaking his head slightly, Hiroshi Kimura said confidently, "I'm so handsome and I sing so well, if no one buys my music, it's their loss."

That made perfect sense, so Hua Jianhe didn't ask any more questions and told him to hurry up and participate in the program, while he waited in the office for the sales situation.

However, before noon, around 10 o'clock, the sales department called, "President, please immediately notify Warner to restock. Many record stores have called to say they are out of stock. Yes, it's Kimura-san's debut single."

This news left Hanami He bewildered. She asked incredulously, "What? Are you sure? We sent out 150,000 tickets, and they're already out of stock?"

"Yes, President, the shortage is most severe in the Tokyo area. Please have Warner restock immediately, otherwise the record store owners will be furious, which will be detrimental to our future cooperation," the anxious voice said.

Now that Hanamichi was certain, he immediately had the remaining 50,000 copies sent out and then notified Warner Music to start recording more. Luckily, he had thought it would be a huge hit and had left Warner Music with some production capacity; otherwise, it would have been very troublesome to temporarily allocate resources.

After making the call, Hua Jianhe's heart started pounding. This time, he directly asked for 500,000 more copies to replenish the stock. There was no other way; the number of records sold on the first day was likely to exceed 100,000. Otherwise, the 150,000 copies that were distributed would not have gone out of stock so quickly.

"100,000 copies a day, and it's very likely to break 500,000 in the first week. If that's the case, then it's very likely to be a single that breaks a million copies. Am I, Hua Jianhe, really going to witness the birth of a music industry giant?" Hua Jianhe couldn't help but be excited.

A record selling over a million copies is already something most musicians can only dream of; a debut single selling over a million copies is unimaginable. Now that Hiroshi Kimura has the opportunity to achieve this, his future achievements are immeasurable. This one record alone is enough for him to become a top idol singer.

Excited, Hanami Kagami was about to tell Kimura Hiroshi, who had already gone to record the program, but he held back. The sales statistics hadn't come in yet, and he didn't know the exact number, so he decided to wait.

Finally, before lunch, the sales department reported the record sales figures for the first day: 107,000 copies of "The Most Important Thing" and 36,700 copies of "Letter from the Sunset".

"Nearly 110,000 units sold on the first day—that's an absolute miracle." Hanami Kaku was so excited by the numbers on the report that his hands were trembling. There was no way around it; if they could really break a million, not only would Kimura Hiroshi benefit greatly, but Ken-On would also reach new heights.

After looking at the sales figures of Hiroshi Kimura's single and then at Akina Nakamori's new single, Hanami Kaku calmed down a bit. The sales figures of Akina Nakamori's single weren't bad, but they weren't good either, because they were about the same as the sales figures of her previous album.

But this time is different. The two are being promoted together. Logically, Kimura's debut song being a huge hit should boost the sales of Nakamori Akihiro's singles, but that hasn't happened. So there's obviously something wrong here.

Akina Nakamori wasn't very satisfied with this single from the beginning, and even asked for a cover design based on her own ideas, but she refused. Now that sales are poor, the young girl will probably make demands again; she has quite a few ideas.

"Let Akiyuki handle this headache. I just need to know the good news. When Kimura comes back, he'll be very surprised." Hanami Kaku used the traditional Japanese skill of letting his subordinates handle the bad things while he only wanted the benefits.

Chapter Fourteen's first-week sales exceeded 500,000.

When Kimura Hiro returned from the show, it was already four or five in the afternoon. As soon as he entered the company, Hanami Hyuk immediately came out to greet him, his face filled with uncontrollable excitement as he said, "Kimura-san, it's a huge hit! The debut song sold over 100,000 copies on its first day."

Upon hearing the news as soon as he returned, Hiroshi Kimura was naturally very happy. This meant that his debut song was a great success and exceeded his expectations. "It's really good news. I haven't let my talent and hard work go to waste."

"Yes, Kimura-san's talent is absolutely top-notch, unmatched by anyone. If the first week's sales exceed 500,000, then your debut song will definitely break a million. Kimura-san, you know what that means, right?" Hanami Kaku was clearly still very excited, and actually flattered Kimura Hiroshi in line with his words.

This doesn't act like a company president at all. He's actually flattering his own artists. If other agency presidents saw this, they would definitely despise this guy.

He nodded slightly. If he had a single that sold over a million copies, he would instantly become a top idol singer. His status would change because of just one song. Of course, if his subsequent songs didn't perform well, he would quickly fall out of the spotlight. There are quite a few artists who debut at their peak.

However, he wasn't too excited. The main reason was that this song, "The Most Important Thing," had sold over 180 million copies in later years. It was also the third single released by the band "The Most Important Thing." It was promoted as the ending theme song for a TV Asahi program. Now that he was using his handsome face for promotion, he figured the effect would be similar, and breaking a million copies would definitely be no problem.

"So how are the sales of Akina-san's single?" Kimura Hiroshi asked.

At this point, Hanami Kagami's excited expression calmed down a bit, "Thirty-six thousand copies, which did not meet our expectations."

Surprisingly, there was no change compared to the historical situation. Even when it was bundled with marketing, it didn't change anything. Historically, the sales of this song were somewhat lukewarm due to its style and release time. It seems that Japanese people didn't like releasing a gentle and soothing love song in the summer. Although it eventually sold more than 400,000 copies, it did not meet expectations.

It was after this song that Akina Nakamori began to officially take charge of song selection, stage outfits, and album cover choices, which made her personal style stand out more and more, first becoming Queen Nakamori, and then becoming a versatile diva.

"Perhaps in the future, Akina-san and I will loosen our promotional restrictions, and also, we should release our songs at different times," Kimura Hiroshi suggested.

"Huh? Why?" Hanami asked, somewhat puzzled.

“If I promote with Akina-san, her fans might not be willing to accept it, which would hurt her. Also, releasing songs together would squeeze out promotional space, and the company can’t give both of us equal attention,” Kimura Hiroshi pointed out the drawbacks.

The deeper reason Kimura Hiroshi didn't say is that he has the ability to foresee the future. Next year, Nakamori Akina will change her style and the Queen Nakamori is about to make her debut. What's going on with a Queen always being tied to male idols for promotion? Is the Queen keeping a gigolo?

Hearing Kimura Hiroshi say this, Hanami Kaku thought about it for a moment and felt that it might make sense. "Then let's discuss it again when Akina-san comes back."

Unexpectedly, the discussion took four days. In the following days, in order to make his single reach one million copies, Kimura Hiroshi intensified his promotion and became very busy. However, he tried to avoid public appearances and television programs.

The record sales plummeted to 58,000 copies on the second day, but began to recover on the third day with 64,000 copies, 72,000 copies on the fourth day, and 68,000 copies on the fifth day. It was clear from these sales figures that breaking 500,000 copies in the first week was a certainty.

Akina Nakamori, who had been performing out of town for six days, finally returned. After working for six consecutive days, she looked extremely tired, and the baby fat that had been there before reappeared on her face.

Unfortunately, long hours of high-intensity work can be exhausting, and Akina Nakamori's way of combating fatigue is to eat. She loves to eat, so at this age when she is still developing, she sometimes gains weight and sometimes loses weight. But fortunately, this does not affect her beauty. She is cute when she is a little chubby and elegant when she is a little thin.

The following year, she began to control her diet and never gained weight again. In just one year, she shed her baby fat and immaturity and transformed into a woman of ethereal beauty.

"Ah, Kimura-san, you're really amazing! I heard your debut song was a huge hit, and it might have sold over 500,000 copies in its first week. Congratulations!" Despite being exhausted, Nakamori Akina congratulated Kimura Hiroshi with a smile.

"Thank you for your congratulations, Akina-san. Is it just a verbal blessing and no gift?" Kimura Hiroshi asked, feigning disappointment.

"Oh dear, I wasn't prepared. It's my fault, Kimura-san." Nakamori Akina looked very apologetic.

Kimura Hiroshi was a little embarrassed that his joke had been taken seriously. "It was just a joke, Akina-san, don't take it seriously. Let's hurry to the meeting room; we probably have something to discuss today."

They quickly changed the subject. Kimura Hiroshi and she walked ahead, with their assistants following behind. Kimura Hiroshi asked her some interesting stories about participating in shows and performing in other places, and the two chatted and laughed.

Upon arriving at the conference room, the two chatted for a while. Hanami Kagami then brought Terahina Akira in, first congratulating Kimura Hiroshi, and then discussing Nakamori Akira's song and Kimura Hiroshi's request for the two to disband their publicity stunts.

Akina Nakamori had known about the sales falling short of expectations for two days, so she wasn't too upset. Instead, she said, "I'm not very satisfied with the production of this single. I don't like either the album cover or the style of the music. Future album productions must take my opinions into account and make changes accordingly."

This involves handling the entire album production from scratch. No agency would accept an artist having such power. Hanami immediately objected, saying, "Ms. Nakamori, this is the producer's job. You just need to sing well. If you have any other requests, you can talk to your manager, Mr. Akiyuki."

"No, President, none of those producers' ideas meet my requirements. They must accept my opinion." On this issue, Akina Nakamori stood firm and showed no mercy to Kagami Hanami.

Hanami Kagami was about to refute, but before he could speak, Kimura Hiroshi suddenly said, "President, I think we should accept Akina-san's suggestion. She is special. The agency's previous strategy was to differentiate Akina-san from other idol singers, so why not stick to it?"

This was a clear show of support for Nakamori Akina. Hanami Kagami was immediately put on hold. If it were a normal newcomer, he would definitely tell him to shut up, but with Kimura Hiroshi's support, he had to consider it.

At the same time, he also sensed a dangerous atmosphere. If Kimura Hiroshi and Nakamori Akina continued to stand on the same side, it could be a bad thing for both him and Ken-on. Now it seems that it was a very wrong decision to promote them together.

"I'll consider this matter. Let's call it a day then. Akina-san must be tired. Go back and rest for a day. Kimura-san, prepare for the upcoming events." With that, he left with Terabayashi Akira.

Only Hiroshi Kimura and Akina Nakamori remained in the office. They smiled at each other, and Akina spoke first, saying, "Thank you for your support, Kimura-san."

"Sigh, we're friends, and I need your help. Besides, Akina-san is my rival. If I can't bring out Akina-san's full potential, then my victory would be rather tasteless." Kimura Hiroshi indicated that their relationship didn't require gratitude.

"Friends, rivals? It really is a complicated relationship," Nakamori Akina muttered quietly, then asked, "So, Kimura-san wants to unlink our promotional partnership because he's afraid that I, as a competitor, will drag you down?"

"Why would you think that? Akina-san, I'm the one who's dragging you down. You're much more popular than me now, and being tied to me will seriously limit your style development. Akina-san, you're a very unique one."

"And then there's the media. You know what they're like. They're always tied together, so scandals are unavoidable. For me, it might just be a scandal, but for Akina-san, it could be a huge blow. They've always been keen on sensationalizing female idols' sex scandals," Kimura Hiroshi said very seriously.

The Japanese media is so unscrupulous; they'll do anything for a viral headline, especially against female celebrities. They're full of malice; even if a man and woman have a meal alone, they can write about where they booked a hotel room. It's terrifying.

"So that's how it is!" This was the first time Nakamori Akina had seen a boy like this. He was trying so hard to consider others. He was truly a gentle boy. Nakamori Akina suddenly felt that her heartbeat was a little abnormal.

Chapter Fifteen: The Girls' Sneak Attack

"Breaking news! Ken-On's debut song surpasses 500,000 views!"

"The debut song of the handsome young man is a rock-pop song, which sold over 500,000 copies in its first week."

"Handsome Boys' Great Strike, Debut Song Sold 500,000!"

This week, Hiroshi Kimura's most important album sold 51.7 copies, a figure that would take many top idol singers a week to achieve.

The media, having mastered the essence of the later UC sensationalist headlines, used extremely surprised headlines to express their disbelief at Kimura Hiroshi's achievements.

The entertainment industry is also feeling the effects of this storm. Numerous TV stations and radio stations are inviting Hiroshi Kimura to appear on their shows. There's no way around it; he's already famous. Whoever invites him first is sure to get a huge boost in viewership.

Of course, the most shocked were the various agencies. They never expected that Ken-On would find another hot boy less than a year after launching the hugely popular Nakamori Akina. What kind of ability is that?

Johnny's, the agency that specializes in handsome male idols, had its vice president, Mary Kitagawa, looking at Kimura Hiro's dashing face and the terrifying sales of his debut single in the newspaper. Her expression was extremely displeased. It was really annoying that such a beautiful boy had been found by little Ken-on.

Just as she was wondering if she could find a way to poach this handsome young man, the office door suddenly opened, and Kondo Masahiko stormed in, newspaper in hand.

"Oh, my Yan Yan, what's wrong? Who made you angry?" Mary Kitagawa saw Kondo Masahiko and her wrinkled face was full of smiles. She called him Yan Yan affectionately and took his hand. The two sat on the sofa very intimately.

He picked up the newspaper, pointed to Hiroshi Kimura in it, and said, "That's him. He's the kid I told him about last time. He's super famous now."

At this moment, Mary Kitagawa remembered that when Kondo Masahiko came back last time, he told him that Ken-On had signed a new artist, which might affect their publicity plan. He never expected that the new artist would be such a handsome young man.

Now, Kondo Masahiko has come to her for a simple reason: he wants Mary Kitagawa to find a way to deal with this newcomer. He knows Mary has that kind of power, which is also the kind of power he has always longed to have.

But Mary Kitagawa didn't have that thought at the moment. What she was thinking about now was how to poach people. If she ruined the relationship first, how could she poach people?

Seeing Mary Kitagawa's hesitation, Kondo Masahiko immediately pressed his entire body against hers and whispered in her ear, "Mom, please help your son."

A jolt of electricity seemed to run through her; Mary Kitagawa's face flushed slightly. She patted Kondo Masahiko's thigh and said, "I'll help you, my son. Remember to come to my house tonight."

After hearing this, Kondo Masahiko felt a chill run down his spine. Although he was young and strong, Mary Kitagawa's desires were so intense that he was tormented to the point of wishing he were dead every time. At this moment, he wondered if it was worth it for him to go through all this trouble to deal with Kimura Hiroshi.

Kimura Hiroshi was naturally unaware of Johnny's affairs. He was at the appreciation ceremony with his manager, Tomioka Yukio. Yes, his manager was a man, and over forty years old.

However, he was not a member of Ken-On, but a publicist for Warner Pioneer. Kimura Hiroshi's first single was a huge hit, and Warner Pioneer saw his enormous potential, so they took the initiative to transfer their staff to be his manager.

Not only him, but also Akina Nakamori's manager, Yoshizawa Akira, was actually transferred from Warner Pioneer. This was because Ken-On was a small company with few experienced people, so they had to find people from record companies.

"Go on up there, Kimura-san, this is your first time meeting with fans." Tomioka thought the young man might be nervous about meeting fans face-to-face for the first time, so he quickly offered some encouragement.

With a slight nod, Hiroshi Kimura, dressed in sportswear, finally appeared on stage. Immediately, the thousands of fans waiting below erupted in a huge cheer, the vast majority of whom were girls, holding various support signs and banners.

"Kimura-chan, Kimura-chan!" they called out Kimura Hiroshi's voice with all their might, hoping to get a response.

Looking at the frenzied girls below, Hiroshi Kimura couldn't help but marvel at how the fan groups of this era were no less impressive than those of later generations, and even more capable of taking action. Of course, this was also inseparable from his handsome face; which girl wouldn't go crazy upon seeing him?

"Thank you for your hard work, my friends. Now, please follow along with my song and let's have some fun together." Without further ado, he began his performance.

Picking up the electric guitar prepared next to him, the music started, and the entire venue was instantly plunged into a rock 'n' roll frenzy. Kimura Hiroya was extremely active, his orange tracksuit allowing him to jump around freely, and he even walked to the edge of the stage to shake hands with the female fans.

His charisma and stage presence drove his fans even wilder, who screamed his name at the top of their lungs, completely obsessed with him.

While singing, Kimura Hiroshi thought to himself, "No, no, my charm is too great. These female fans are going crazy. If I were to date or get married in the future, they would really go crazy. It's no wonder that the girls are so infatuated; it's just that my charm is too amazing."

The song ended quickly, and he should have left the stage, but the fans were so enthusiastic that he had to sing it again to appease them.

Then came the autograph session, where he signed copies for fans who had bought the records. This is when the fans' enthusiasm really came through; most of them smiled and thanked him when they received the autographed records.

However, some were not satisfied, and two even tried to cross the signing table to launch a surprise attack on him and kiss his face. Fortunately, Kimura Hiroshi reacted quickly enough and dodged it. At this time, the security guards next to him came over to maintain order, and it was finally safe.

"How terrifying! What's wrong with these female fans? They actually want to kiss me. I'm still four months away from turning eighteen and coming of age. How could you do this? Wait, no, in Japan, coming of age is twenty. Goodness, you won't even leave me alone at such a young age."

Hiroshi Kimura decided that from now on, he would make sure the security guards stood closer to him at these autograph sessions. He might be able to dodge a single surprise attack, but he was afraid of groups of fans blocking his way. If that happened, the purity he was saving for his future girlfriend would eventually be taken away by these female fans.

After finally finishing the autograph session, Hiroshi Kimura still hadn't gotten a break. He had to go to the recording of a very popular variety show that night. There was no way around it; once you become famous, you still have to accept invitations from TV stations. Otherwise, if you don't get enough exposure, you might really fade into obscurity.