On the morning of September 9, Yahoo News reported that prominent Japanese actress and singer Makoto Ogawa, a former member of Morning Musume, had unexpectedly revealed that she secretly married and had a child 10 years ago. According to a source in the entertainment industry, “In 2015, Makoto Ogawa was dating Takuma Makita, the bassist of rock band Wyse.
After leaving her management agency, the two got married and welcomed their first child. Although the couple have since gone their separate ways, Makoto Ogawa had never publicly disclosed any of this information to the media or her fans.”
The source further revealed that Makoto Ogawa’s son has now turned 10, while the public had always assumed that she had never married or become a mother. Even more surprisingly, the actress has already divorced her husband, and she had kept that part of her life completely private as well.
Now that the story has been reported publicly for the first time, Japanese netizens have been left stunned by the revelation that Makoto Ogawa had quietly married, had a child and eventually divorced without the wider public knowing.
A reporter from Smart FLASH recently approached Makoto Ogawa after she attended a theater rehearsal to verify the claims. In front of the camera, the actress openly confirmed the report, saying, “Oh, yes, I do have a child. He is a 10-year-old boy. In March 2015, I left the management agency I had been with since my Morning Musume days. After that, I registered my marriage to Takuma Makita, a member of the band Wyse, and we had our first child.”
The actress added that, until now, only her relatives and closest friends had known about her family life. Even within the entertainment industry, very few people were reportedly aware that she had married, had a child and subsequently divorced.
During her brief interview with Smart FLASH, the artist, who was born in 1987, also opened up for the first time about the reason for her divorce and revealed when the couple went their separate ways. “Everyone has different views and values. Once you become husband and wife, every family has its own problems. After talking and discussing things together for a long time, we decided to divorce in 2020,” she explained. She also revealed that her son is currently being raised by her former husband, saying, “My son is currently being cared for and raised by my ex-husband. He is growing up very well.”
Online, the public expressed shock over how successfully Makoto Ogawa had kept her private life out of the spotlight. Comments included, “I never imagined she was already a mother,” “Oh my gosh, I really can’t believe it. How did she manage to keep everything such a secret?” and “They have apparently been divorced for six years, yet this is only coming out now.” Others suggested that the secrecy may have been easier to maintain because the child lives with his father.
Born in 1987, Makoto Ogawa joined the popular girl group Morning Musume at just 14 years old. Unfortunately, she officially left the group in 2006, during its peak period. In March 2015, the artist unexpectedly announced her retirement from the entertainment industry. However, just one year later, she made an official comeback as an actress and has continued pursuing her acting career ever since.
Sources: Yahoo News