This is the 11th in a series on influential figures in the Heisei Era, which began in 1989 and will end when Emperor Akihito abdicates on April 30. In Heisei, Japan was roiled by economic excess and stagnation, as well as a struggle for political and social reform. This series explores those who left their imprint along the way.
Tetsuya Komuro's J-pop legacy had already been cemented by 1999. That year, the iconic musician and producer appeared in "Tetsuya Komuro History," a special television program that reviewed the highlights of his career up to that point.
Indeed, it doesn't take long to realize just how prolific Komuro was by the turn of the new millennium, with the show filled with chart-topping songs from his own projects and those created for other marquee performers.