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The story
Matsuyama Chiharu reportedly used his radio show, aired on the 20th, to call out to Namie Amuro — who retired in September 2018 — saying he “absolutely believes so many fans want to see her sing again.” The call came on the very day Amuro turned 49. On the 5ch Geinou/Sports Breaking News+ board, while some straightforwardly hoped for her return, many argued that her own decision to retire — made because of her fading voice and age-related limits — should be respected. The thread also spun off into speculation about what she’s been up to in the eight years since retiring, and about her actual reasons for stepping away.
Matsuyama Chiharu calls out to the “legendary diva,” eight years into retirement: “I absolutely believe so many fans want to see her sing again”
Singer Matsuyama Chiharu (70) appeared live on the 20th on his own FM NACK5 show, “Matsuyama Chiharu ON THE RADIO” (Sundays, 9 PM).
He called on Namie Amuro, the “legendary diva” who retired from entertainment in September 2018, to make a comeback.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
A hiatus would've been fine for now.
Did she do something shady or what?
Age-wise, she'd probably hit the ceiling of what that image could sell.
Honestly, good thing she got out right at the wire.
This way, only the cute-and-cool image sticks around.
Amuro-chan's charm really comes through best in her music videos.
Live shows tend to expose the rough edges.
No small appearances, no social media, nothing.
He's basically the same generation as Koji Tamaki and ASKA.
And yet he's got this senior-statesman vibe like he's a whole generation ahead of them.
He barely showed up on TV and stuck with folk music his whole career.
Sammy Sosa. (the MLB slugger whose skin notably lightened over the years, reportedly from bleaching cream)
Dancing on top of singing would be brutal.
She decided she wasn't going to drag it out like some washed-up old-timer, and she followed through on that.
People would just say she's lost her edge, and now that her kid's grown up, she's probably not hurting for money anyway.
That was the ending theme for the film "That's Cunning," where she shared the lead role with Yamaguchi.
Also, the newly elected governor Koja is a junior alum from Amuro's old school, Ishimine Junior High.
Nakai should've quietly had surgery and retired before he got sidelined.
Matsu-chan should get his surgery done and finally quit too, but he just can't stay out of the spotlight.
Even Shohei Ohtani should rest up, but he keeps wanting to play.
She'd changed up her vocal technique and was obviously forcing it.
People don't retire for no reason.
Basically, neither Amuro-chan's singing nor her dancing was ever top-tier on their own —
she said so herself.
More than anything, it was the decline in her looks that was the real limit.
– Drinking and smoking
– Not doing vocal training
– Illness
Probably one of these, but who knows which.
I get where Matsuyama's coming from, but isn't asking her to come back basically as harsh as asking Tsunku (record producer who lost most of his singing voice to throat cancer surgery) to sing again?
Back in the TRY ME and Aishite Masukatto days, her voice had such a rich, powerful, soaring quality.
Casually telling someone who hasn't sung professionally in years to just come back — Matsuyama, of all people, should know that without retraining even basic vocal cord technique, it's just not going to hold up.
Yeah, probably true.
She might still hit the gym, but without actually performing live, I'd think the skills just fade.
At this point she'd probably be out of breath after one song and one dance.
No, come on — singing live while dancing like that is impressive.
Compare that to today's standards, lol.
Right, neither her dancing nor her singing was elite on its own, but Amuro-chan took pride in the fact that no one could touch her when it came to combining the two into one performance.
That's a pretty clear-eyed piece of self-analysis.
I think that's exactly why she retired.
Energy-saving mode?
The way she belted it out in the '90s was so much better.
Around the SWEET 19 BLUES era, when she went on maternity leave, her voice was already pretty hoarse and worn out.
Background and key points of this discussion
Namie Amuro announced her retirement in 2017 and closed out her entertainment career with a final concert at the Tokyo Dome on September 16, 2018. Since then, she has kept no personal social media presence and made zero media appearances — an unusually complete, clean break for someone of her stature, which is exactly what brought the topic back up in this thread. Matsuyama Chiharu, who made the comeback appeal, is a 70-year-old singer born in 1955, a folk-music veteran and longtime radio host. His comment was made purely on-air, and there’s been no response from Amuro herself. In the thread, the simple wish to “see her again” ran up against the view that her decision to retire on her own terms — citing her declining abilities — deserves respect, with the latter view appearing to dominate. It’s also worth noting that Amuro has never officially stated her reasons for retiring; specifics like health issues or vocal decline remain speculation.
※This article is compiled and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports Breaking News+) thread “[Entertainment] Matsuyama Chiharu calls on Namie Amuro, who just turned 49, to make a comeback: “I absolutely believe so many fans want to see her sing again”.”
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