Japan’s main Live Earth event was held Saturday at the Makuhari Messe convention center in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo. The only major problem was when fans rushed forward during the Linkin Park set, knocking over barricades and forcing the band to leave the stage for 15 minutes. Koda (photo, 24) was the main local artist and gave a typically dynamic performance. In keeping with the global warming theme, she went with the hot pants look. The full lineup of for the 9-hour, 78-song show was: Genki Rockets, Rise, Ayaka, Otsuka Ai, Ai, Xzibit, Abingdon Boys School, Cocco, Linkin Park, Koda Kumi and Rihanna. A separate event was held at the Toji temple in Kyoto on Saturday night, featuring a one-time-only revival of Sakamoto Ryuichi’s legendary band Yellow Magic Orchestra, Michael Nyman and Rip Slyme. Over the 24-hour period, shows were held in Sydney, Shanghai, Johannesburg, London, Hamburg and Rio de Janeiro.
• Talento Yasuda Misako (25) admitted yesterday that she and actor Kashiwabara Shuji (28) have split up. Appearing on the Sunday morning live show “Akko ni Omakase!”, she revealed that they had broken up at the end of May. “He’s a really kind guy and I respect him, but, well…love is difficult, isn’t it?”, she told the show’s veteran hostess, Wada Akiko (57). Insisting she was over the split, she said it was a mutual decision. The pair met in 2005 when they co-starred in the movie adaptations of the popular manga “Luna Heights”, and they started dating last summer.
• Talento Hasegawa Rie (33) is tight-lipped about her rumored romance with rapper Rino Latina II (33). Appearing Saturday at a PR event for Pedro Almodovar’s latest movie “Volver” in a pink summer yukata, she refused to answer questions about the first reported romance since her split with actor Ishida Junichi (52) at the end of 2005.
• Traditional musicians ZAN recently performed at an event to promote the release of their U.S. debut album “Shiku”. Featuring Kominato Akihisa (28) on vocals and shakuhachi, and Ichikawa Shin (31) on koto, the group had to overcome the April 2006 death of its leader Sunagawa Norikazu in a climbing accident. “Making our debut in the U.S. was a dream we all shared. We want the whole world to know about these wonderful Japanese musical instruments.”
• Chubby talento Uchiyama Shinji (25) has admitted that he is currently embroiled in a court case with his ex-girlfriend. The 30-year-old woman, with whom he lived for eight years, has sued him for ¥500 million in compensation following their breakup as well as unpaid wages from her job at the company he runs. Their split is said to have resulted from Uchiyama’s reported affair in January, though he has denied both the report and that the couple’s relationship was a common-law marriage. He has also disputed her claim for wages, saying she was paid for her occasional work for “Mago no Te”, a home nursing service.