Takuya Kimura to release first music album since SMAP disbanded
Takuya Kimura, a member of disbanded J-pop idol group SMAP, recently announced that he will be releasing his solo album on 8 January 2020. He has been active as an actor and this will be his first music work since SMAP disbanded in 2016.
At the opening of his web programme on GYAO!, the 46-year-old star said very briefly, “I have an announcement for you all here. In January 2020, I will be releasing an album. Right, that’s all.”
Upon probing, Kimura disclosed more details about his upcoming music project. Apparently, music artists like rock band Love Psychedelico, guitarist Yoshiki Mizuno from Ikimonogakari and female singer-songwriter Uru, will be supplying him with a variety of songs. Kimura said that he will digest and incorporate the colours from these artists in his recording. Koshi Inaba from B’z will also be writing lyrics for Kimura.
Kimura’s original album is titled Go with the Flow. Along with the announcement of his upcoming album, his record company Victor Entertainment also released a short behind-the-scenes video on 29 Sept. The teaser provided a sneak audio and visual preview of his new song written by Uru, titled Sunset Bench.
What triggered Kimura to return to the music industry was actually his own radio programme Flow, which started in August 2018. The programme invites different kinds of guests monthly. Kimura’s close friend Koshi Inaba was the guest in December. In response to co-performing with Kimura during B’z’s concert in the summer of 2018, Inaba said, “It was only for a short while this summer, but I felt Takuya Kimura’s stage fever. I think it’s about time to see Takuya Kimura sing with all of his heart.” With these words, Kimura began his music project.
Since then, when the programme invites guests like Alexandros, Love Psychedelico and Naotaro Moriyama, music would become the topic and they would also offer to write songs. Furthermore, the audience of the programme frequently wrote in, hoping Kimura would take on some music activities.
Now that his music switch is on, Kimura even shed light on the possibility of a concert. “It’s been a while since I recorded songs. I finally got to exercise these vocal muscles. From now onwards, I will also be seriously considering having a live performance. Please look forward to it."
