The next in a long line of Japanese stars, apparently. . .
Japan's Next Sex-Change Star?
A former member of the vocal group Toshi Itou and Happy & Blue held a press conference yesterday to announce that he had undergone a sex change operation. Takeshita Kousuke (36) worked as a host for about a year before joining the group from 1995 to 2004, and the event was held at a popular host club in the Kabukicho entertainment district of Tokyo. Since quitting the group, Takeshita lost touch with the other members as he underwent surgery and ongoing hormone treatment, and only contacted group leader Toshi (68) at the end of October. Toshi said he had been surprised by the news but insisted that he would helping Takeshita launch a solo singing career next year with the stage name Katharine. Last year, singer Nakamura Ataru (23) became the first artist with gender identity disorder to perform on NHK's annual "Kohaku Uta Gassen." With reportedly Toshi still heavily in debt (in the late 90s his debts were around ¥1.3 billion), he would no doubt welcome a chance to make a comeback with his group. Their biggest hits were in the mid to late 1970s.
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