Comedienne Shizu-chan (Nankai Candies) will star in an NHK drama series this summer. Currently untitled, the drama tells the story of an OL who takes up boxercise to help relieve her stress, and she ends up becoming a heavyweight boxer.

The show will air in NHK's Thursday 8:00pm slot, starting on June 19.

Rock guitarist Tomoyasu Hotei is temporarily teaming up with hip-hopper KREVA and Tokyo Jihen bassist Seiji Kameda. Calling themselves "The THREE," they are doing the theme song for Shinji Higuchi's upcoming remake of the classic Akira Kurosawa film, "The Hidden Fortress" (original title "Kakushi Toride no San Akunin").

The movie was announced back in October, with Jun Matsumoto, Masami Nagasawa, and Hiroshi Abe leading the cast. The film's title is now being reported as "Kakushi Toride no San Akunin: THE LAST PRINCESS."

The creation of a three-man unit for the theme song is a direct reference to the "three villains" ("san akunin") of the movie's title. Their song, which is currently untitled, is a mix of rock and hip-hop. It will go on sale May 7, three days before the film opens in theaters (May 10). Hotei will also be releasing a separate "spinoff" version of the song as a digital single.

Singer Eiko Matsumoto announced on her blog that she gave birth to her first child, a son, on Thursday. Matsumoto has been married since July 2006 to Chihiro Imai, a former member of the band Something ELse.