Hikaru Utada

[Twisted]

2 Years after her first best-selling album, Hikaru Utada will make the world a brighter place with her second album which is scheduled for release on the 28th of march.

On this new album you will find all her recent hit singles from "Addicted to you" to her new single "Can you keep a secret".

That last single is out on february 16 and it will be her first single in 8 months.

[thomas]

How convenient. ;)

Teen pop star Utada marries video director

=> http://home.kyodo.co.jp/all/display.jsp?an=20020906105

[moyashi]

19 and 34 year olds.

Ughhh, Japanese men.

Of course, congratulations and such but I still can't understand why such an age gap at young age like Hikaru's doesn't raise and questions.

hmmm ... he's just a year older than me .

[thomas]

Makes us jijis envious, ne? j/k
;)

[Olivia]

hey! don't be envious!
just think the opposite:
if he can, why can't you!


but what makes me more surprised isn't the age gap, but her age!... gosh, she's only 19...!

[thomas]

I agree Olivia, 19 is quite young. I hope it's really for love and not just for publicity.

=> http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content...59&display=all

Read the comments, lol.

[kinjo]

Yeah, this is a really funny trend in Japan. such pop female artistes, hardly mature, become instant success in their late teens. That in itself is a bit surprising thing.
On top of that, most of them get preggie before you could say Jack Robinson and get married out of the blues. Namie Amuro, Shiina Ringo (not yet married, is she..), the list would ramble on, I guess. Would they be so well prepared for marriage at 19? Is it that ppl feel "who cares, they would divorce when they get bored" .........
But one good thing in this trend would be that more Japanese women,aaw no, girls,would emulate their 'idols', get married, make babies and increase the alarmingly decreasing birth rate of Japan.

omoshiroina.........

[Olivia]

@ thomas
the comments on that news are unbelievable!... some of them funny, others, polemical

btw, what's her official web site?

[Shinmeiryu]

That slam to Namie Amuro and other stars that become pregnant before marriage was amusing. I suppose B.O.A. will be next to marry some 30+ year old guy in a few years?

[thomas]

Here's her official site

=> http://www.toshiba-emi.co.jp/hikki/

[moyashi]

hmmm, I couldn't get into the japantoday site. ... oh well.

The news said that her husband really like the way she thinks and what not. I wonder if there is any mention of her bank account? She has to have at least 30 million dollars US stashed away after taxes. No, I'm not trying to say he likes her money, probably her body but hell a cool 30 million a cute wife ... who'd say no?

Just today while visiting my wife and baby I met a couple. Husband and wife both 17 that had a baby at 4:25 AM ... hmmmm ... I feel sorry for them actually. 17 and the duty of being a father. They both quite high school a month or so ago.

Another factor that many forget. Women peak sexual at 30 ?? or so right ... her Husband is gonna like 50 or so ... I hope he has staying power.

lol ...

[thomas]

On the other hand they're in their early thirties when their kids graduate from highschool. Not bad....

[Olivia]

@ thomas
thanx for the info (web site)!


@ pregnant teenagers
isn't it relatively easy to do abortions w/ medical assistance? I don't know very well, but that's what I heard from my mom (who is japanese) when I once asked her about the japanese teenage pregnancy rate/statistics - cuz I wanted to compare it with the Brazilian numbers (you know, just to have an idea)

[Olivia]

sorry, I meant Japan, when talking about abortion...!

[moyashi]

Japan is a piece of paper signed by both ahem parents and about $800 US.

There might be a minimum age limit but I don't think they bother checking. Well, let's just say 16 is probably a no-no.

[rhymester*]

if she loves him she can still be with him without marriage, why the rush? yes she wants to spend the rest of her life with her loved ones, but no one is stopping her from doing so! haha well since she is married already, all i can do is wish her all the best and hope it works out!!

a friend of mine went to japan and he saw many young couples with babies, mmm don't they practise safe sex?!

[moyashi]

safe sex ??? oh! that only works when they've just met.
There's another thread on the boards here.

@ legal marriage age
women = 16
men = 18
Yep, straight up discrimination.

@ young age
Gettting married and having babies is like a dream for many young girls. Too bad nobody get's the idea that life is rough.

[Twisted]

Aah, i'm gone for a few weeks and then this happens:

Hikaru Utada (19) got married to Kazuaki Kiriya (34), photographer / video-director, thus scraping herself from the wantedlist of many men...

Seriously, i don't think anybody had seen this coming.

[thomas]

We were also wondering...

=> http://forum.japanreference.com/show...=&threadid=723

;)

[Twisted]

Hey, how could i have missed that one?

Can't trust cookies anymore.
I'm sure it wasn't highlighted when i checked the forum for the first time after my vacation yesterday.

[thomas]

There are some vB cookie issues, and I should really upgrade to the latest version, but.... I'm too lazy.
;)

[Twisted]

Well, it was wrong for me to be away from the forum for such a long period of time.
I shouldn't do that again... ;)

[moyashi]

With the pace recently 2 days can put some serious hurt on you. I was gone for a bit while back and had 4 pages of new reply's to go through. What a pain that was.

[thomas]

Hehe, I know what you guys are talking about. I'm getting more and more reluctant to turn on my PC when I come home, LOL.

Just kidding, no, I'm not, well, I am... not sure.

[Twisted]

I have to admit that i don't read everything anymore, like i used to do at the start of this forum. I try to follow as much threads as i can, but unless being an advisor becomes a paid daytime job (when, Thomas, when?? ), it's hardly possible to follow all.