New book claims that Hamasaki Ayumi had a relationship with Avex chairman Matsuura Max

Matsuura Max and Hamasaki Ayumi back in 2005

It was always known that Avex chairman Matsuura Max and singer Hamasaki Ayumi were close.

Matsuura recruited Hamasaki to Avex, even went as far as to send her to New York for vocal training before she released her first album.

Impressed by her talent of writing lyrics (as the two corresponded via e-mail), he even let her write her own lyrics.

He was the first true person that believed in her talent.

In fact, in 2004, when Avex had a major controversy in which Matsuura considered leaving Avex Music Group due to feud with Tom Yoda (who founded Avex alongside Matsuura and Suzuki Kazunari).  Hamasaki said if Matsuura left, she would follow.  This led to the stocks of Avex plunging and Tom Yoda resigning in order to end the feud.

It didn’t take long for Hamasaki Ayumi to become Avex’s financial savior as the TK era was slowing, Amuro Namie got married and went on hiatus at the time and as for Hamasaki Ayumi, she accounted for 40% of the sales that Avex was earning in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s.

On August 1st, a novel titled “M Aisubeki hito ga ite” (M There is a loveable person) by Komatsu Narumi (who wrote a book on YOSHIKI, about GReeeeN’s “Kiseki”, Nakata Hidetoshi and many more) reveals that Hamasaki Ayumi and Matsuura had a relationship.

The novel features Hamasaki Ayumi’s past from her debut and past interviews and a lot of detailed information which many readers will discover about Hamasaki for the first time.  It goes into the special relationship she had with Avex chairman, Matsuura Max.

Hamasaki was asked, “Have you ever had someone you loved so much once in your life?”.  Hamasaki answered, “Yes.  I loved one man so much that I destroyed myself”.

Also, how in the past, she was to debut in a group with three to four people and whn she used the stage name Hamasaki Kurumi, how the death of her grandmother affected her and also her father leaving her when she was four-years-old, and her mom having to work to support the family, while she lived with her grandmother.

As for comments on SNS, some figured there was a relationship between Hamasaki and Matsuura, especially when she said she would leave Avex if Matsuura left.  Others thought that the man she loved so much was TOKIO’s Nagase Tomoya, who she had a relationship with: