Hirano Sho and Two Others, Growing Disparity in Number_i: Dark Clouds Surround Takizawa Hideaki’s Production Methods
From May 11, a commercial for Suntory’s “Beer Hall” featuring the three-member group “Number_i,” consisting of Shiyou Hirano (27), Yuta Kishi (28), and Yuta Jinguji (26), has been aired, attracting much attention. One year after leaving “King & Prince” in May 2011, the three members have been the talk of the town in their new home.
They made their distribution debut with “GOAT” in January of this year, and have appeared on numerous commercial music programs; on April 15, they took the special stage at the world’s largest music festival “Coachella” in the U.S. On May 27, they released their mini album “No.O─ring─” and in June The group will hold a live concert at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo in June with the album in tow.
With their breakthrough, Hideaki Takizawa (42), president of their entertainment agency TOBE, is trying to take Hirano and his group to the next stage.
He is thinking of expanding into China. On April 21, Takizawa sent the seven-member group “IMP.” to a music festival in China’s Sichuan Province, and on April 23, the president himself visited the operator of the Chinese version of the SNS “Weibo” to build a pipeline with local music and IT professionals. I believe that he is trying to get Number_i, which also has momentum in TOBE, to play an active role in China,” said a source from a record company.
When Hirano and the others announced their departure from “Kimpuri” in 2010, they revealed that one of their reasons for leaving was their strong overseas orientation. For these three, the “China expansion plan” is likely to be a stepping stone closer to their goal.
In recent years, K-pop artists have been expanding into Southeast Asia, where there is a large population of young people, and then into the U.S. and other markets,” said Takizawa. Takizawa-san may also want Number_i to perform at music events and live concerts in China and other Asian countries in order to expand into the U.S. and Europe.
