Single mom ex-AKB48 idol Kana Kobayashi no longer working as Ginza hostess

How many idols find true happiness? Of course, the majority who do tend to retire and live the rest of their lives in quiet obscurity.

The ones who remain in the news often do so because their post-idol lives are filled with hiccups, personal or professional. If you just read the celebrity news, you might be forgiven for thinking that all former music and gravure idols were divorced or rocked by one scandal or other.

Nonetheless, we suspect that divorce rates among idols is a bit higher than the general populace, perhaps because their jobs and the closed nature of the idol industry means they are not always socially well-adjusted and may struggle to meet “regular” people.

As we reported last year, Kana Kobayashi announced her quickie divorce from her husband, who was under arrest for fraud.

The 33-year-old is a former member of AKB48, joining the group right back in the mid-2000s near the very start. She remained in the group until 2016.

Her post-AKB48 personal life became a bit of a whirlwind. She married in July 2021, gave birth in March 2022, and divorced at some point afterwards (which she announced in January 2023).

The idol is known for her candor, being one of the few who openly admits to having had plastic surgery (and which might explain the angular shape of her face today).

Because her ex-husband apparently took all her money, she was left penniless and raising a child by herself.

To make ends meet, she turned to the means she knew best: her female charms.

Kobayashi started working as a hostess in Ginza at the club produced by retired adult video star Kirara Asuka.

But on November 14, the single mom announced that she would no longer do hostess work, and had quit the club. She said on social media that she now just wants to live a peaceful life with her child.

Her Instagram, at any rate, suggests a woman who looks younger than her years and seems to be living her best life with trips to Disneyland and Hawaii. It doesn’t indicate someone having financial trouble (nor someone tied down by a young child), so perhaps she was doing very well for herself in Ginza.

Which then begs the question: How will she earn money now?