If you're stuck in a dead end job but you have a "bright personality" and also know how to suck up to the rich, this could be your big moment.
We say that because Yusaku Maezawa, the Japanese billionaire entrepreneur pictured above, has unveiled a campaign in which he'll select a "female partner" to take on a journey around the moon with him. It's at this point that we should state that, at the moment, Maezawa is slated to be the first rider to take a trip on SpaceX's future deep-space rocket.
Further details regarding this bizarre goal are available on Maezawa's website, where this whole thing has been dubbed a "serious matchmaking documentary" called Full Moon Lovers, which will air on the Japanese streaming service AbemaTV.
So if you thought this sounded like a reality show then you were spot on.
“[Maezawa] has a long-held dream of going into space,” that website says. “He wants to visit such a special place together with a special someone.”
The site further goes on to state that the 44-year-old Maezawa is doing this because, despite all his professional success, pangs of loneliness are now seeping into his brain.
"I'm sure I've been able to acquire my share of money, social status, and fame along the way," the site reads. "But now I'm restarting my life. I'm 44 now. As feelings of loneliness and emptiness slowly begin to surge upon me, there's one thing that I think about: Continuing to love one woman.
"While it's something that is taken for granted by everyone, it's something that I haven't quite been able to do until now. When I got the offer to go on this program, I was first taken over by emotions of embarrassment and pride, and I thought about refusing the offer. The more I thought about it, however, I started to think a chance like this might not come around again.
"I started to think that this was a good chance to seriously face up to the idea of "continuing to love one woman" which I'd only really had a hazy image about. I made my decision and finally decided to go on the program.I want to find a "life partner". With that future partner of mine, I want to shout our love and world peace from outer space."
As for the requirements to apply, those are also conveniently listed. The big ones would probably be the age and the whole actually being willing to go into space thing, because the rest are subjective which means you could just lie. Not that you should. Anyway those are:
- ・Single women aged 20 or over
- ・Bright personality and always positive
- ・Interested in going into space and able to participate in the preparation for it
- ・Want to enjoy life to the fullest
- ・Be someone who wishes for world peace
The site also features a portal that'll allow you to click and apply. If you're someone who tends to procrastinate, you might not want to do that, because applications are due within the next few days. The schedule lays out the whole timeline for the contest, which is:
- ・Jan. 17: Applications end at 10am (JST)
- ・Jan. 25-26: Selection begins
- ・Mid Feb: Matchmaking dates with Yusaku Maezawa
- ・Mid Mar: Special dates getting to know Yusaku Maezawa
- ・End of Mar: Final decision on partner
As pointed out by The Verge, Maezawa and TBD are likely to journey into space via SpaceX’s next-generation Starship rocket. Back in September 2018 it was reported that Maezawa paid a lot of money to be the first private customer to board the ship once it was finished and set to have a crew. If you're somebody who's set to apply and are nervous about setting foot on a celestial body that only Neil Armstrong and—I don't know—some other people have ever walked on, know that the trip only calls for the rocket to send Maezawa and you around the moon before coming back to Earth.
At the time that it was reported that Maezawa plopped down dough for the trip, it was also noted that he was paying for additional seats that would take six to eight artists with him. "These artists will be asked to create something after they return to Earth, and these masterpieces will inspire the dreamer within all of us," he said back then.
Though celebrity estimates are often laughable, Forbes pegged Maezawa as being worth around $2 billion.
Other greatest and eccentric hits of his include paying more than $110 million for a painting in 2017, and also being the author of the most retweeted tweet in history (more than 4 million RTs) for saying that he'd split 1 billion yen (about $9.1 million) amongst 1,000 random people who retweeted that message. That actually happened last week.
As for Maezawa's newest competition (aka the thing this whole article is about), that was RT'ed by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Put another way, you should probably not apply unless you're really ready to prep for outer space:
At this point the SpaceX's maiden tourist voyage is tentatively scheduled for 2023, according to CNN.
