Junnosuke Taguchi: New life on the edge with Rena Komine, his girlfriend of 15 years

In late October, a tall, handsome man appeared in front of a live house in Shimokitazawa (Setagaya-ku, Tokyo). It was Junnosuke Taguchi (36), formerly of “KAT-TUN,” looking around hunched over as if he were cold.

Taguchi left the venue after his regular monthly live concert. When the pick-up truck arrived, he waited with the staff for their cab, a gentlemanly gesture that has not changed since his days as a “prince character” in Johnny’s. After seeing the staff off, Taguchi disappeared into the night.

In March, he passed the mahjong pro test. In the midst of his dual life as an artist, he has reached a turning point in his private life as well.

In early March, a women’s magazine reported that he and Rena Komine (42), his girlfriend of 15 years, were living together in a one-bedroom apartment renting for 130,000 yen. However, a few months later, he ended his cohabitation with Komine. He is now living in a high-class apartment in Tokyo, where he is working hard at his job.

In fact, FRIDAY has seen Taguchi repeatedly entering and leaving her new residence alone. What was behind her decision?

Taguchi was arrested together with Komine in ’19 for violating the Marijuana Control Law. After that, one of the conditions for signing a business support contract with his current production company was to ‘liquidate his relationship with Komine. However, the March news report revealed that Taguchi had gone back on his word.

What put a crimp in the situation was a live concert held during the Golden Week holidays. Until then, the concert had attracted about 1,000 people, but immediately after the news of the cohabitation report, the number of people attending the concert plummeted to less than 100. It seems that they finally made a decision due to a sense of crisis in their work.

Will she be able to recover from the precipice?

From the November 25, 2022 issue of FRIDAY