Takuya Kimura
| Takuya Kimura | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 木村 拓哉 |
| Also known as | Kimutaku |
| Born | November 13, 1972 |
| Origin | Tokyo, Japan |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actor |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, harmonica |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Labels | Victor Entertainment |
| Associated acts | SMAP |
Takuya Kimura (木村 拓哉 Kimura Takuya?, born November 13, 1972), also known as Kimutaku, is a Japanese singer, actor, radio personality, and the member of SMAP, the best-selling boy band in Asia. He is regarded as a Japanese icon after achieving an unprecedented success as an actor and influencing Japanese culture and language, and established himself as the most successful celebrity in Asia.
A 1996 television series, Long Vacation, in which he landed his first lead role, became a massive success, creating a phrase called the Lonvaca phenomenon. He was given the title, "The King of Ratings", as his subsequent television series continued to generate high ratings and each show becoming a social phenomenon as they aired. Five of his most successful works are ranked in the top ten highest-rated television series in Japanese history. His 2001 series, Hero, is the all-time highest-rated program in Japan. He has also starred in blockbuster films, including Howl's Moving Castle (2004), Love and Honor (2006), and Hero (2007).
Kimura was born in Tokyo, Japan. He lived in Minoo, Osaka Prefecture until he was six years old and later moved to Chiba for school.
In 1987, at age 15, Kimura auditioned to enter Johnny & Associates, a talent agency that recruits and trains young boys, preteens to teens, to become singers and members of boy bands. After five of the other band members auditioning individually from 1986 through 1987, in autumn 1987, twenty boys, from ages ten to seventeen, were put together into a group called The Skate Boys, which was initially created as backup dancers for a famous boy band, Hikaru Genji. In April 1988, producer Johnny Kitagawa chose six out of the twenty boys to create a new boy band and named them "SMAP".
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