Tetsuya Komuro

, also known as TK, is a Japanese keyboardist, guitarist, singer, songwriter, and music producer born on November 27, 1958 in Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan. He is recognized as being the most successful producer in Japanese music history and introduced dance music to the Japanese mainstream. He was also a former owner of the disco Velfarre located in Roppongi, Tokyo.
He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in pop throughout the 1990s.
In the Oricon singles chart of April 15, 1996, he monopolized all the top 5 positions as the songwriter and producer, a world record. In 1995 he monopolized all top 3 positions of the copyright distribution rankings for the JASRAC Award, a record in Japan's music history.
At his peak as a record producer the artists he predominantly produced for came to be known as TK Family and at one time included Namie Amuro, hitomi, TRF, Tomomi Kahala and Ami Suzuki amongst others.
To date all in all records produced by him have sold more than 70 million in Japan alone.
== Life and career ==
=== 1979–1994: Early career and TM Network ===
His career started as a keyboardist for Speedway in 1979. In 1984, he build up TM Network with Takashi Utsunomiya and Naoto Kine. A year later, in 1985, his first solo work was the soundtrack Vampire Hunter D for the anime Vampire Hunter D, and his band, TM Network, did the closing credits song "Your Song". He subsequently composed other soundtracks such as Heaven and Earth and Seven Days War.
As a solo singer, Komuro released singles "Running to Horizon" and "Gravity of Love" in 1989. "Running to Horizon" topped the Oricon charts. "Gravity of Love" also topped the Oricon charts, beating out Seiko Matsuda's "Precious Heart." In 1989 and 1990, Komuro collaborated with Warren Cuccurullo.
As a composer / producer, Komuro wrote a song "My Revolution" for Misato Watanabe. The song received the Golden Award at 28th Japan Record Awards in 1986.
TM Network released single "The Point of Lovers' Night" on July 7, 1990. The single also topped the Oricon weekly charts, beating out Wink's single "Yoru ni Hagurete (Where Were You Last Night)."
TM Network changed its name to TMN in 1990. In 1991, he collaborated with X Japan's Yoshiki as V2. TMN once disbanded in 1994.
=== 1994–1997: Komuro boom as a record producer ===
By the early 1990s, Komuro was spending much of his time writing songs for and producing many other musicians and bands. He was also an early pioneer of dance music in Japan, and came to stardom in the 1990s as producer with a long string of hits with artists such as TRF (TK Rave Factory), Tomomi Kahala, Namie Amuro, Ami Suzuki, hitomi, Ryoko Shinohara and H Jungle with t. In 1994, he composed the musical score to the Japanese anime film Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie, based on the Capcom video game. Ryoko Shinohara sang the theme song of the anime film, "Itoshisato Setsunasato Kokorozuyosato," with Tetsuya Komuro. The single of the theme song was released on July 21, 1994. In total, the single "Itoshisato Setsunasato Kokorozuyosato" sold over two million copies on the Oricon charts. This score was removed from the US release of the film.
He was mainly helped in this task by the mix engineers Pete Hammond and Dave Ford. Both were working for PWL, which was the home of the British producing team Stock Aitken Waterman. Not only that, "TK" is also credited for the rise to fame of Daisuke Asakura, a popular Japanese composer, keyboardist and music producer who began his major musical career as a backup keyboardist for TM Network. Asakura is reported to view Komuro as his "Sensei" or "Teacher".
In 1997, he started his overseas career with the remix of the theme music for the Speed 2: Cruise Control Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, which Japanaese MMA Legend Kazushi Sakuraba later adopted as his entrance music.
=== 1998–2007: Following career ===
Komuro also released albums as a solo singer or musician and was involved in the bands Globe, Kiss Destination and Gaball. On December 31, 1998, his band Globe's song "Wanna Be A Dreammaker" received the grand prix award at the 40th edition of Japan Record Award. In 1999, Komuro, Utsunomiya and Kine reunited under their old name of TM Network, and remain active to this day.
Komuro worked in collaboration with French keyboardist Jean Michel Jarre from 1998 to 2001. The duet wrote the theme song for the 1998 FIFA World Cup Together Now as well as several other tracks and remixes. He and Jean-Michel also performed a concert on beaches in Okinawa on January 1, 2001.
=== 2008: Fraud ===
On November 4, 2008, Komuro was arrested and charged with fraud, for taking ¥500,000,000 in exchange for a promise to sell the copyright to his songs, which he had already sold to somebody else (which was Avex Group Holdings according to reports).Music producer Komuro arrested for copyright fraud › Japan Today: Japan News and Discussion Japan Today Retrieved November 4, 2008AFP: Japanese music producer Komuro arrested for fraud: reports AFP Retrieved November 4, 2008NHKニュース　借金返済に困り著作権悪用か (NHK News: Abuse of Intellectual Property Rights under Pressure to Repay Loans?), NHK News, Retrieved November 4, 2008 Reportedly, he planned to use the money to pay a portion of his ex-wife's alimony.Music producer Komuro arrested for copyright fraudKomuro faces arrest over fraud He admitted the fraud at his trial in January 2009.
In March 2009 Matsuura Masato, president of the Avex Group Holdings, recovered the losses for the plaintiff, paid him extra ¥100 million in compensation and a further ¥48 million in delay damages. Matsuura also stated that Komuro will work at Avex in a company position directly under his control.
On May 11, 2009, Komuro received a suspended three-year prison sentence. According to the sentencing judge, Komuro's acceptance of responsibility and the fact that restitution had been made greatly influenced the final sentence, and further went on to state that no good to society would come from Komuro's imprisonment.http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/world/news/e3i322daa247a5902fcc8959b529c234af1
=== 2009–present: Comeback ===
At the Avex Group Holdings' concert tour a-nation 2009, Komuro made a surprise appearance on August 22, 2009. He played a medley of his hit songs at the piano and later reunited on stage with his fellow members of the J-pop group globe, Marc Panther and his wife Keiko.
Komuro composed AAA's double A-side single "Aitai Riyū/Dream After Dream (Yume Kara Sameta Yume)." The single was released on May 5, 2010.
He composed almost all the songs on Love Songs, the 2010 album of Japanese pop-star Ayumi Hamasaki.
== Collaborations ==
Tetsuya Komuro worked with the following musicians. 
* AAA
* Namie Amuro
* Backstreet Boys
* Bananarama
* Blaque Ivory
* BoA
* Common
* Cuiling
* Dannii Minogue
* DiVA from AKB48
* DJ Krush
* Eriko Imai
* Gaball
* Geisha Girls
* Globe
* H Jungle with T
* Hitomi
* Ayumi Hamasaki
* Tamaki Nami
* Jean Michel Jarre
* Olivia Lufkin
* Tomomi Kahala
* Keiko
* Kimeru
* Kiss Destination
* Krayzie Bone
* Kumi Koda
* Seiko Matsuda
* Tak Matsumoto (B'z)
* Reika Miku
* Rie Miyazawa
* Arisa Mizuki
* Kaori Mochida (Every Little Thing)
* Mike Dierickx
* R9
* Ring
* Akina Nakamori
* Nile Rodgers
* Ryuichi Sakamoto
* Ryoko Shinohara
* Ami Suzuki
* Tohko
* Joe Lynn Turner
* TM Network (TMN)
* Takashi Utsunomiya
* Toshihiko Takamizawa
* TRF
* Yuki Uchida
* Misato Watanabe
* Y.U.M
* Yoshiki (X Japan)
== See also ==
* TM Network
* Globe
== References ==
== External links ==
* 
* Blogsite
* Tetsuya Komuro Official MySpace
* Tetsuya Komuro Infosite
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Category:1958 births
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