Ex-AKB48 idol Mariko Shinoda announces marriage to ‘ordinary’ man

TOKYO (TR) – Mariko Shinoda, a former member of idol group AKB48, on Wednesday announced her marriage to an “ordinary” man in a letter posted on her fan club site.

Shinoda, 32, wrote that their marriage was registered on February 16. In explaining that her husband is not in the entertainment business, she wrote that he “is an ordinary man, three years younger than me.”

Shinoda added that they met in last October. “He later proposed upon our first time dining together,” she wrote.

The idol also said that her husband’s image about what makes an ideal family and vision of the future coincide well with hers. “I have a sense that I want to live my life together with him,” she said.

On Thursday, Shinoda posted a photograph of herself and her spouse on Instagram in which he has placed a dog in front of his face.

Shinoda joined AKB48 in 2006. Seven years later, she “graduated” from the group. She was honored at a ceremony held at the Fukuoka Yahoo Dome on July 21.