Save the best for last
QUEEN of J-pop Namie Amuro played her last overseas concert in Asiaat the Taipei Arena in Taiwan on May 19 and 20 where she sang hits like Hero, Baby Don’t Cry, What A Feeling, Showtime, A Walk In The Park, Love Story, Sweet 19 Blues, Can You
Celebrate? and How Do You Feel Now.
After the shows, the Japanese pop diva posted on her social media accounts a photo of herself with her dance crew members.
“My 2-day Taiwan performances finished off with a BLAST! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING DOWN!
Did you enjoy the shows as much as I did?! Next time, Let’s go to Tokyo!! Let’s keep the party going ... AND... build memories together that will last FOREVER!!!”
Amuro announced her retirement on her birthday last year, just a few days after the 25th anniversary of her debut.
She will be bidding farewell to showbiz on Sept 16, 2018, just four days before her 41st birthday.
The entertainer, whose legal name is Namie Maruyama, made her debut in 1992 at age 14 as the lead vocalist for the all-female dance group Super Monkeys. The group’s best-selling single was Try Me (Watashi o Shinjite).
In 1995, the singer decided to go solo and released her first single titled Body Feels Exit. Her debut album Sweet 19 Blues, released the following year, was a chart topper.
She has since sold more than 38 million records in Japan alone, and her 1997 single Can You Celebrate? remains the best-selling single by a solo female artiste in Japanese music history.
Dubbed the Japanese Madonna for her meteoric rise to fame, Amuro has released 12 studio albums, 47 singles, 14 video albums, 10 live albums and 102 music videos.
She has one son from her marriage to ex-husband Masaharu Maruyama of Jpop band TRD. – Seto Kit Yan