Music maestro Komuro ready to give new wife a spin (11 October 2002)

Komuro's ready to walk a new path with a new love.

Once upon a time, as every fairytale starts, Tetsuya Komuro adding his name to a CD virtually guaranteed it would be a massive seller threatening to become Japan's top-selling hit.

Once a Prince Charming of Japan's music world, Komuro sent shockwaves through the industry with his announcement that he had found his latest fairytale princess, Keiko, the lead singer of his band, globe.

Last week, the pair announced their impending marriage, which will take place in a Tokyo hotel late next month.

"Our friendship has deepened over the eight years of performing music together. We decided to walk the paths of our professional and private lives together," a joint statement announcing the marriage says.

Shukan Shincho (10/17) notes that while the announcement makes out as though Komuro and Keiko are finally tying the knot after polishing their relationship up over eight years of working together, that isn't quite the case. During the same period of time, Komuro married twice and also dumped his prodigy and live-in lover, Tomomi Kahala.

"First he married a celebrity, but parted with her after five years. Then in May 2001, he married Kiss Destination's singer Asami. They had a daughter together, but he gave her the flick in March 2002 after only 10 months. It cost him 1 billion yen in alimony. It was a shotgun wedding, but the only thing fired was Komuro's wife," an entertainment reporter tells Shukan Shincho.

As always, Komuro has this time once again chosen as his partner somebody with whom he had a close working relationship. But despite other relationships having failed in the past, some say this time the tale could have a happy ending.

"Komuro has put most of his energy into globe, the band in which Keiko is a member," an entertainment industry commentator tells Shukan Shincho. "The band was formed in 1995 and its debut album set a new sales record, moving 4.5 million units."

Komuro's name could once boast of being able to produce hits that would rake in estimates of 2 billion yen in sales. But those days are long gone. Tsunku, who produces Morning Musume and its myriad offshoots, has since claimed the title of king of Japanese producers. But Komuro is apparently getting his act back together.

"He failed professionally and in his private life, forcing him to have a rethink. While doing so, he found somebody who understands him who had been there all along," the commentator tells Shukan Shincho. "All that fuss over his marriages was basically just one big commercial."