~All about Aqours~

Here we go! Best friends 💙 Here’s Aikyan 😘✨✨✨ You were so cute today! I love you 💕

Aikyan’s reply:

MARiA-chan ♡ I had my eyes on you the whole time! You were so cute~I love you!

This interview was featured in Rikako Aida’s first photobook “R.A”, released 24 July 2018 from Shuueisha.

This photobook was shot in LA, where you used to live as a child. You’ve travelled to LA for work before, haven’t you?

Yes, I’ve been to LA every year for the past three years (laughs). But as I was travelling for work, I wasn’t able to make my way to the area I used to live, or Pasadena, which I often visited with my mother.

When I spoke with you prior to the shooting of this photobook, you told me a little about Pasadena, and we ended up shooting on location there. Of the shots that made the final cut, the photos where you can be seen riding on the back of a coyote or walking around town were taken in Pasadena.

I hadn’t been to Pasadena since the time I used to live in LA: it was my first time visiting in over ten years. That bronze coyote statue has been there since the time I lived there. I was impressed that it hadn’t changed at all.

When we were shooting in Pasadena, I recall you saying to me “there’s a bronze statue of a coyote around this corner”: you showed us around town with such accuracy it left me dumbstruck at how well you remembered the place.

I do remember quite a lot from when I used to live in LA. I was there from grades two to five of elementary school. Kids are quite sensitive to their surroundings at that age, so I remember those years clearly. Add to that the fact that it’s a completely different environment from Japan, and I can’t recall many times in my life that have hit me so hard (laughs). But walking around Pasadena this time, I didn’t remember the town being so small. I’ve grown bigger myself, so I’d chalk it up to my perspective on things having changed compared to back then.

Right. I suppose that is how people change over more than a decade. This book is your first photobook, so did your approach to it differ from the times you’ve done gravure shoots for magazines?

There was a difference, yes. Rather, I should say that my mindset has changed gradually over the past year or so. You were among the same staff I worked with on the two cover shoots for Weekly Young Jump (YJ) and were also involved with producing this photobook, so I should ask: were my expressions really stiff during those initial stages?

Now that I think back on it, perhaps just a little bit (laughs).

My photographer has always told me “don’t try to act for the camera. It’s best if you just do nothing.” When I look at other people’s photos, I want to see their natural expressions, so I try to be conscious that I should act as naturally as possible… When we were out shooting on location, I felt that I needed to do something, so I started doing things like peeking into shop windows. My photographer could tell what I was trying to do straight away (laughs). Ever since my first cover shoot, he’d tell me things like “you don’t need to do things you have no interest in” or “pay no attention to the camera”, which has been very beneficial in helping me learn.

This was the first time you’ve done a swimsuit or lingerie shoot.

Being my first time, I was nervous. I’m not terribly confident in my figure so I had no idea how to best show off the swimsuit… But the first swimsuit shoot we did was at the beach, so I think all of the photos we took were of a very natural me screaming things like “aaah!” or “the water is freezing!”(laughs)

That’s the swimsuit shot at the very beginning of the photobook. We shot in the morning, so at first, I had hoped for you to just get your feet wet because it was a bit chilly outside…

But as soon as I saw the ocean, I just wanted to jump right in and I ended up getting my photographer soaking wet in the process. (laughs) We’d come all the way to the beach so I wanted to leave with photos of me enjoying myself.

And before the poolside shoot, we discussed that we wanted photos of you splashing your feet in the water, but…

Once I’d gotten changed and we headed to the pool, my photographer said “OK, get in” (laughs). But the water was warm so it didn’t take very long for me to start enjoying myself. The swimsuit I was wearing was just the right balance of not too grown-up and not too childish – I really like that shoot. You can tell it’s just me playing around and having fun – I think they’re such refreshing photos.

So, what goes through your mind when you see those photos of yourself in a swimsuit?

I don’t normally go to the beach, so I’d never actually seen photos of myself in a swimsuit before. That being the case, it was nerve-wracking waiting to see how the photos would turn out… But I think that in the end, they were all very well taken, which was a relief.

I think it takes a lot of courage for a voice actress to put out swimsuit photos of herself like that…

I couldn’t have imagined doing it until now. I think I said something to that effect when I first did the shoot for Miracle Jump, right?

Miracle Jump is a special edition of YJ and your first solo photoshoot was when you appeared in the February 2017 issue. I recall asking you if you were interested in doing a solo gravure shoot, to which you replied “um… you’ll have to let me think about that…” or something non-committal like that. (laughs)

I did, didn’t I? But after that, we (Aqours) did a group shoot for YJ and I ended up doing two solo cover shoots after that, so I think that opened my mind on the issue. I’ve come to think that “if more people will watch the works I have a role in because of this gravure shoot, and if I can expand the boundaries of my work, then maybe I should do it.” I’ve realised that there’s no need for me to be paranoid about protecting myself by shutting down the idea of wearing a swimsuit. I ended up with some amazing photos, so I can say from the bottom of my heart that I’m glad I did it.

I’m glad to hear that. Were there any memorable moments for you during the shooting of this photobook?

Firstly, the cover shot of the photobook. I felt like I remembered that road from somewhere. When I checked with my coordinator, I realised that I’d driven down that road with my mother long ago. That was an emotional moment for me.

That road ran in a completely straight line through the wilderness: a quintessential American landscape.

Not a single obstacle as far as the eye could see: it was very liberating. In Tokyo, we live surrounded by all sorts of things, so standing in that place was such a fresh and invigorating experience. The smile on my face that you see on the cover photo is the result of me being freed of all unnecessary thoughts and emotions. (laughs)

You had such an adorable smile on your face. Now, could you tell me what made the biggest impression on you during your visit to LA?

It would have to be the end of our last day of shooting, when we shot on a bridge near Pasadena.

You’re referring to the photos where you are wearing a red dress at night, towards the end of the photobook, right? That bridge is actually quite famous due to being featured in the movie La La Land.

Maybe because it was the last shoot of the trip, I was a little nervous. I was reflecting on all the things that had happened since I was a child… I was just a child when I used to live in LA and now, I’ve come back as an adult wearing this dress: the very thought of that made me tear up a little. I’m sure that the final session of the on-location shooting for this precious photobook will remain a great memory for years to come.

So now, I’d like to ask you a bit about your upbringing. Could you tell me what you were like as a child?

I was a very shy little girl. I wouldn’t talk to anyone except people I was close to. Even before I started attending elementary school, I was very conscious of the way adults perceived me.

Why do you think you grew up that way?

I think it’s because my mother treated me as if I were more or less equal to her. I can’t phrase it very well, but she didn’t baby me: I suppose you could say she treated me like a human being. That being the case, I didn’t really see myself as a child. I’ve heard that I learned to speak at a relatively early age too.

What sort of things did you like as a child?

I loved watching TV and always had a vague admiration for the entertainment industry since I was a child. I loved SMAP in particular: seeing them sing, dance and even cook on variety shows filled me with an amazement at how they could do practically anything.

So, you didn’t watch children’s cartoons, but rather regular TV programmes?

That’s right. At the time, I loved dramas starring Etsushi Toyokawa. (laughs) I remember watching video tape recordings of the drama Aoi Tori (Blue Bird).

That’s the show where Toyokawa plays the stationmaster of a railway station in the country and has an affair with the main female character!

That’s the one! (laughs) I used to tell my mother “I wanna watch that drama with the stationmaster!” We would watch it together every week.

What was your family like, by the way?

I’m an only child in a single parent family, so it was just my mother and I. My mother divorced my father when I was three, so I have almost no memories of him. My grandfather and grandmother were very kind to me so I never felt lonely, even without my father in my life.

I see. What about your mother? What kind of person was she in your eyes?

Half of the things about her I would absolutely adore and the other half I would be absolutely terrified of. That’s the kind of person she was to me. She would treat me as an equal, but when it came to certain things, she would worry about me so much it was frightening. Throughout my elementary school years, I had to carry a PHS (see note 1) with me and call my mother without fail when I reached school. But, being a kid, I’d be talking with my friends and forget to call her from time to time. That’s when the school would get a phone call asking “is my daughter at school today?”

Being the only daughter of a single mother, she must have been quite worried about you.

Now that I look back on it, I can empathise somewhat with the way she felt. The thing is, even as a high schooler, my curfew was 6 PM, so I couldn’t even go with my friends to Disneyland when they bought “After 6” tickets (see note 2). I think that’s when my rebellious period finally hit. (laughs)

That makes sense. What led up to you moving to LA with your mother in your second year of grade school?

I followed my mother when she moved to LA to study. She was only 20 years old when she gave birth to me, so she was still in her twenties at the time. Perhaps studying abroad was one of the things that she wanted to challenge during her lifetime. She had worked to save up money for the move, gone through all of the paperwork by herself and moved to America with her young daughter: when I reflect on it now I can’t help but be amazed. At the time, it was painful for me not being able to see my grandfather and grandmother for a while and I have to confess that preparing for the move and transferring schools was pretty tough. (laughs)

What did you enjoy about your time in LA?

We spoke about Pasadena earlier: my mother and I went there all the time to eat or shop. Aside from that, we would also frequently go on outings to an area of town they call Little Tokyo.

Were you able to speak English, by the way?

I couldn’t speak a word of English prior to leaving Japan. I think that daily conversation was about the extent of what my mother could manage. That said, I was enrolled in a regular local school in LA and used to show up to class with a dictionary in one hand. After continuing for some time, I found that the language came to me fairly quickly. I would say that I was able to speak it after one or two months.

It’s amazing how quickly children learn. Do you still have any friends over there?

I do. There was one girl that I was very close with. She was a family friend and even now, I still see her every time I travel to LA. She came to visit me at my hotel on the final night of shooting this photobook.

Really now!? Still, the level of motivation that your mother must have had to move to LA with her daughter is just staggering.

Oh yeah, she’s insane. (laughs) In my entire life, I haven’t met anyone as odd as her. We do fight a lot, but my mother supported me in the things I said I wanted to do and she’s my greatest counsellor when I’m going through difficult times. I’m so happy that she’s my mother and that I’m her daughter.

Do you still look to her for advice?

Yes. When I go to her for serious guidance then I know that she will give me solid advice.  I find myself wishing that she would be just as helpful the rest of the time though. (laughs)

Your mother must be an incredibly diligent person given that she saved up enough money as a single parent to move to LA and has raised her daughter so well.

She is. You could say that she doesn’t just live her life: she thrives. I’ve learned so much from her too. If there’s anything I’m not sure of, say, some paperwork that I have to submit to city hall, then she’ll guide me through what I need to do. I still rely on her for things like that.

So tell me, what was your life like when you returned from LA during your fifth year of elementary school?

That was about the time when I was scouted and I started working in the entertainment industry. I’d admired it so much since I was a child, and even though I wasn’t completely serious yet, I was keen to get my feet wet.

What sort of work were you involved in at the time?

I didn’t do any major work in that area, but I wanted to get involved with modelling. After a while of that, during my third year of middle school, I started to worry how I was going to live the rest of my life.

That was about time for you to start thinking about your future, right?

Absolutely. The answer I came to was that I wanted to continue living in the world of entertainment. I’d say I chose that because there wasn’t anything else I wanted to do and I didn’t yet have a clear picture of how harsh the industry could be. (laughs)

“Entertainment” is a broad field: what sort of work were you particularly interested in?

I wanted to act. The opportunity came during my first year of high school when I met a certain casting director. At the time, he was the director for a drama adaptation of a web novel, which I auditioned for.

Was that director also there to screen the auditions?

He was. He told me “you’re small, but I can tell that you’ve got energy and that you gave it your all” – he let me pass the audition. (laughs) After that, he started to look out for me and one day he asked me “our troupe is going to do a stage performance – do you want a part?” That was when I was in my third year of high school.

He remembered you even after such a long time?

Yes, he did. He taught me everything: not just how to act, but also things like how to greet people and manners that are unique to the entertainment industry. In particular, he told me to study more about acting, and I think those words were very impactful for me. Because of that, I was able to come to terms with what acting is really about. I’m really indebted to him for that.

It sounds like he worked very closely with you.

That’s right. But he was really frightening during training. He’d get so mad at me I’d worry that something might happen to me that would make me leave the industry for good. (laughs)  But from time to time, he’d be upfront in telling me “hey, you did really well today”. Those words were all the more believable because he didn’t normally compliment me. That made me learn to love acting even more.

When did you start being interested in becoming a voice actress?

It was when I was still acting as a member of the troupe. I had this conflict raging within me over whether I should continue acting on stage or in film, or if I should do more behind the scenes work as a voice actress.

When did you start to like anime?

That was after I started high school. There was a period where I couldn’t find enjoyment in anything and I was at my wit’s end with so many things in my life. I was going through a rebellious phase and would fight with my mother too. One day, when I turned on the TV, Gintama just happened to be on the air. Until then I was never the type of person to be interested in anime or manga, but for whatever reason, I was hooked on Gintama from that time on. I read the manga and started watching other anime too… I am who I am today because of that: I really think that watching Gintama that day changed the course of my life.

Did you become aware of voice acting as a profession immediately after watching Gintama?

I did. It made me think to myself “I didn’t know there was this complete other category of acting!” or “I had no idea that you could work in an anime!” (laughs) I hesitated for a while because I had no clue how to become a voice actress and the industry I’d been active in until then was quite different. Still, I couldn’t give up on it. It was then that I realised for the first time that this is what I really wanted to do.

All of that worry caused you to realise what you really wanted, didn’t it?

Yes. To be honest, there were parts of my life that I had lived passively until that point, but I felt for the first time that I wanted to take action. So I ordered some pamphlets for voice acting colleges in hopes of finding a place where I could study how voice actors and actresses approach acting.

What did your mother have to say about that?

At first, I kept it a secret from my mother and had the pamphlets sent to my friend’s house instead. (laughs) But, I was still a minor at the time, so at the end of the day, there wasn’t anything I could do to change my situation. That’s when I decided to open up to my mother about it. She didn’t oppose me, but I remember her saying “it’s sad that you won’t be working on TV, or somewhere that people will be able to see you.”

Generally, most people do have a mental picture that voice acting is a backstage role that doesn’t allow you to be seen very much.

You’re right about that. Personally, I would have been fine if I was simply able to work in the anime industry from behind the scenes. But now, I’m performing at concerts and releasing photobooks like this, so that makes my mother happy too.

Did you end up enrolling in a voice acting college after that?

It wasn’t really a college, but more so a basic course designed to develop the skills of people aspiring to be voice actors or actresses. That’s where I started. That said, that college is run by the agency I’m working for now and they were looking for people with acting experience. So they also opened a basic course one step below the college programme, which allows students or adults with no experience to learn: I was one of their first students. I did have some acting experience, but I wanted to learn beginning with the most basic skills that would allow me to become a voice actress.

So you more or less started learning from scratch?

That’s right. I was in the basic course for one year after which I moved up to the college. It was only then that I started to have opportunities to see the pros at work… I would watch them voicing incomplete footage and be filled with shock and awe.

During anime production, voice actors will usually dub over rough sketches of frames or incomplete footage while the final footage would be worked on by the animators in parallel, correct?

Yes, that’s correct. I didn’t know that at the time, so I was just in a constant state of shock thinking “how did she know that that was the right timing to deliver her line?!” or “am I going to be able to do this myself?” That was when I had a role in one particular scene with a lot of characters on screen: I was one of the voices in the background saying “wow”.

So when did you pass your first audition?

My first successful audition was for the role of Riko Sakurauchi in Love Live! Sunshine!!. I auditioned for the role while I was still at the voice acting college and found out that I’d passed just as I’d transferred to the agency. Love Live! Sunshine!! has a special place in my heart as the series I made my debut in.

Love Live! Sunshine!! is a mixed media project where the cast playing the school idol group Aqours, on which the series is centred, also dance and sing on stage. What did you think of that at first?

It was weird. When I was aiming to become a voice actress, I was convinced that I would be acting behind the scenes and didn’t at all imagine that I’d one day be doing all these things an idol would do. But, I figured that since this is what I’m doing now, I want to be the best idol I can possibly be.  

Did you have any prior experience singing or dancing?

There was a time where I dabbled in singing and dancing, but I had next to no experience. I ran into a lot of trouble at first due to my lack of stamina. It was so bad I would be hyperventilating after dancing for one song. (laughs)

But you’ve made so much progress that you can now keep up such a vigorous performance for multiple songs now.

I suppose that I did gain some stamina naturally just by continuing to perform, but I also made the effort to start jogging before Aqours’ first concert (held in February 2017 at Yokohama Arena). I had my doubts about what would happen if I continued the way I was going, so I decided to test how far I could run: it turned out that I couldn’t even manage two kilometres.  But as I continued jogging, I managed to increase that to five or six kilometres. I knew that I would be singing on stage, so I would hum as I ran as well.

You were able to grow so much because of all the effort that you put in.

I suppose so, but when our first concert rolled around I felt stressed and didn’t have any emotional leeway. Now, I’m able to pay attention to my expressions and how I present myself on stage, but I’m still thinking about what I need to do in order to take my performance to the next level.

Aside from your work with the Aqours cast, you’ve also been involved with other work such as dubbing films and doing narrations for music programmes. You’ve developed a remarkable catalogue of work recently!

I’m glad that my work has grown gradually over time. When I’m doing narrations, I have to ask myself “how do I say this word?” as I would when I’m acting, but have to approach it from a different angle. I enjoy myself wondering how I should read out different words. There’s a lot that I can add to introductions of songs or artists by bringing out their individual characteristics in the way that I introduce them.  

It’s different to acting where you have a pre-defined role, right?

Very much so. There’s a lot that I have to consider when I act, but it’s all based on the role I’ve been assigned, so I can’t stray too far off the path with that. But I can showcase more of my own little idiosyncrasies in narration, which I find to be really interesting. Now, I try to listen to a variety of voice actors and actresses who do narrations on TV to see what I can learn.

And what about dubbing?

Even before I started dubbing, I was a big fan of foreign dramas like The Walking Dead. So, I was elated when I got the opportunity to perform a role in the Japanese dub of Pacific Rim: Uprising. You have to match your performance with the real actors on screen, so there are parts of it that are more difficult than voicing an anime, but I do feel like I’m suited to this kind of work.

What about dubbing do you specifically think you can do well?

For better or worse, I don’t have a particularly unique voice, so I think a normal-sounding voice is one of the things I can offer. Comparing myself with people in the voice acting industry, I think that my voice sounds close to that of a regular human being and I like to think of myself as just a normal person, so I want to be able to leverage that more in the future.

On a different note, are you able to understand the English dialogue in these movies without subtitles?

It depends on the movie. I can understand things like romance films where the dialogue is mainly daily conversation. But when it comes to movies like the Harry Potter series where they often use words that aren’t typically used on a daily basis, I wouldn’t be able to understand those without subtitles. As for Pacific Rim… well, there are just so many names of fighter jets or robots I couldn’t keep up with it. (laughs)

To round out this interview, I’d like to ask about your plans for the future. What is the ultimate goal you’d like to achieve with your voice work?

I haven’t really given thought to what my “ultimate goal” is… I don’t think I’d be completely satisfied with acting no matter how far I took it, so I’d just like to continue with it for as long as I can. I haven’t done anything else in my life, so I don’t think I’d be able to work in any other industry.

Well, you have been acting since you were still in school.

That’s right. Besides that, I’ve always hoped to exclusively live in the world of voice acting, so in some ways I’ve restricted myself from doing other things. I probably could have studied voice acting while going to university, but at the time, I could only get into the mindset of “living in this world” by putting pressure on myself, so that’s what I did. I can’t afford to do a half-baked job because I’ve rejected all other paths in order to become a voice actress and I’m confident that my resolve is second to none.

Those are strong words.

At the same time, all the different work I’ve done until now has finally come together and here I am releasing this photobook: I think that’s really amazing. Normally, my job is to bring to life characters who live inside a work of fiction, but there’s a special kind of joy in leaving behind a work made by Rikako Aida as an individual. When I look back on everything, I’m glad that I put in the effort to come this far. (laughs)

When you first became a voice actress, you wanted to work behind the scenes: have your thoughts on that changed at all?

They have. In the course of my work, I’ve met so many new people and had the opportunity to tackle so many new things, so my values have changed to reflect the attitude that it’s OK for me to do this job. Besides, I don’t believe that there’s anything I can’t or shouldn’t do simply because I’m a voice actress. I hope that all kinds of different voice actors and actresses will be able to try their hands at a whole assortment of new challenges.

This photobook was nothing short of “new challenge” for yourself too.

You’re absolutely right. I suppose it would sound like I don’t particularly care if I said my attitude was one of “I’ll give it a try and give up if things don’t work out”, but lately, I feel that it’d be a shame not to try everything. Rikako Aida only lives once, so I want to do everything in my life that I can do and have the opportunity to do.

Note 1: A PHS (Personal Handyphone System) is a cheaper alternative to a mobile phone and so was popular in Japan as a means for children to contact their parents or guardians in an emergency. They have fallen out of favour in recent years due to improvements in mobile phone technology.

Note 2: Tokyo Disneyland sells “After 6 tickets” which allow entry to the park on weekdays after 6 PM at a significant discount to regular admission.

Thanks to Picup (@EiyuuPicup) for proofreading.

Scan provided by Picup. QC provided by Mega.

I started thinking, “I have to become strong for Yohane’s sake.”

Q: It’s been two years since the first season of the anime aired. Have these last two years felt long or short to you?

A: If I had to pick, it feels like I’ve been experiencing new things for a long time. When we’re preparing for a live that’s coming soon, it feels like it goes by really fast, on  the other hand, the period before the anime started airing felt really slow. While waiting for that story where everyone begins to move forward, I kept thinking, “Is it time yet?”

Q: We also got a closer look at the relationship between you and your rivals from the second season, Saint Snow, at the 3rd Live.

A: As a unit, Saint Snow has even more provocative performances than us in Guilty Kiss (GK), and they even have rapping in their songs. Those sorts of things aren’t what Aqours does, so it feels like a breath of fresh air. Also, they’re sisters in their first and third years, so us first years get a new friend who’s the same age as us, and the third years get one too.

Q: For the people who might gain an interest in Aqours in the future, is there a specific part that you want to tell them to pay attention to?

A: We put our all into everything we do, the dancing, the singing, the anime; you really can start from anywhere. But I guess that if you watch the 1st live, I hope that you also watch us as we are right now. (laughs). That way, I think you’ll be able to see how much Aqours has grown.

Q: What part of you individually has grown the most?

A: Mentally, I’ve gotten a lot stronger, maybe? (laughs) That’s thanks to Yohane, but it’s also thanks to everyone. I saw how weak I was and thought, “I can’t be like this for Yohane.” I felt like I had to get stronger for her sake.

Q: As a part of Guilty Kiss, what are you thoughts on the fanmeet tour this upcoming fall?

A: I feel a sense of freedom when the three of us in GK are together, as if we can do anything. (laughs). I want to create that feeling of being the “last boss” by making our singing and dancing even more powerful, but also make people laugh because of the personality gap during the MC.

Q: Do you ever discuss what you’re going to talk about beforehand?

A: We never do. We think it’s better that way since we’re able to talk more freely, but there are times where I feel like the fans get lost in what we’re saying, so I do worry about that sometimes. (laughs)

Q: Is there anything you want to do for the 4th Live in Tokyo Dome?

A: The venue is big, so I want to make sure that I don’t get affected by that. But also, since Yohane is a fallen angel, I always dream about when she’ll be able to fly. (laughs) It might be nice if she could spread her wings and enter the stage from above, while sitting on a swing.

Q: What thoughts do you have about “Thank you, FRIENDS!!”, the theme for the 4th live?

The first of two interviews in the recent Seiani. This one was Saint Aqours Snow themed.

Scans from Dyrea. QC from Mega.

“I can feel a ring around Aqours”

Q: Now that the 3rd Live Tour is over, tell us some of your honest thoughts.

A: It went by even faster than the 2nd Live Tour. We gave it our all, and had a lot of fun, but it still feels like there was a hole left in my heart. There were days after the tour ended where I would think “Oh, I guess there’s no rehearsal today?” (laughs).

Q: Were there any challenges you set for yourself during the 3rd Live Tour?

A: Definitely my solo song! Having everyone’s eyes on me in such huge venues, and basking in the glow of penlights in my color… just thinking about it makes me shiver. Being able to give input into the design of our performances made me really happy, too. It was a performance filled with things that we wanted to do, and so I wanted to let everyone fall in love with Yohane. I designed the performance thinking, “I want everyone to see how charming Yohane can be”.

Q: Was singing while sitting on a chair your idea?

A: Ever since I first heard the song, I had the mental image of sitting on a throne while singing, and the costume I imagined looked a lot like the SIF Punk Rock set costumes, so I suggested those for this performance. Also, the title of the song is “in this unstable world”, so I had the image of constantly going back and forth between Yoshiko and Yohane. It’s about what’s there between an angel and a fallen angel, so I also put a black and white wing on the back. Yohane was wearing white on the cover of Season 1’s Blu-Ray Volume 4, and I think white looks good on her. So I tried to convey the idea of Yohane and Yoshiko’s coexistence. I’m glad I was able to get that across in my solo song; the costume turned out even better than I imagined.

Q: Did you have any goals or challenges for the group songs as well?

A: I’m always performing to look like just Yohane does, but this live focused on Season 2, so I made it my goal to focus on getting the little details down. For example, in MY Mai☆TONIGHT, there’s the  “O” shaped mouths. It hasn’t really come up before, but in the song, there are a lot of places where we stress the “O” syllable, so I took a good look at how they’re done. I also made sure to check exactly how many times I need to wink, and I’ve become more conscious about what the other members are doing. I feel like I want to become a vessel to for Yohane to descend into and perform in.

Q: You’re really mindful about the details, aren’t you?

A: Right. There’s the “Yohane Bun”, but I also make sure my bangs are just like hers, and I dye my hair a little blue. I think it’s nice that I can become a vessel for Yohane, and let the audience connect with her, even for just one moment.

Q: Did anything in Aqours’ performances leave an impression on you throughout the tour?

There’s two things. One is definitely MIRACLE WAVE. I know how hard Anchan has been working, so I was really moved by her. At the moment of the jump, there’s a part in the choreography where she looks right at me, and I can see her holding in her emotions, and her nervousness right up close. I don’t know what kind of face I should show her…and when I see her expression, it makes me want to cry. But I feel like I have to cheer her up, and I think Yohane is the kind of person to do that too, so I always tell her “Go for it! You can do it!”. I’m so happy that she didn’t get hurt across the 3 venues and 6 performances.

Q: And what’s the other thing?

A: WONDERFUL STORIES. It’s the tour title, so I thought it might come sometime in the middle or at the end of the main performance, but it turns out that we did it at the end of the encore. I feel like the song being an insert song at the very, very end of episode 13 has a lot of meaning. It’s a summary of Love Live! Sunshine!!, as if the song was our curtain call. Having that be our last song gives even more meaning to the place that this franchise has brought us to. I think it’s really significant.

Q: How was performing on stage as Saint Aqours Snow?

A: I bet everyone was excited to finally see “Awaken the Power”, and I was really happy to be able to perform in front of everyone as Saint Aqours Snow! It’s an insert song in a very important episode of Season 2, so I think everyone had high expectations. Standing at center stage and being enveloped in everyone’s cheers felt really great… I was so surprised at how hyped up everyone was (laughs). It was fun feeling the power of the Numazu school idols and the Hakodate school idols coming together.

Q: From the 1st Live and the 2nd Live Tour, up until this 3rd Live Tour, what part of you do you think has grown the most?

A: I feel like our camaraderie has gotten even stronger. We were somehow able to make it through the 1st Live, but since then, our bonds have gotten even deeper. We went from being just friends to best friends, and from best friends to being like family by the time the 3rd Live Tour came around. Our individual feelings are all connected, and I’m excited to see where we’ll go from here.

Q: And what comes after becoming family?

A: As Yohane would say, everything will become one…something like that. (laughs).

Q: Do you feel like anything about Aqours has changed or grown with the 3rd Live Tour?

A: We do two days at every venue, and the first day is always nerve-wracking, but when I look at everyone’s faces, they look like they’re having fun. It’s different from the debilitating nervousness we felt during the 1st Live; even though we’re nervous, I can feel that we’re enjoying ourselves. I might feel pressure, but I also feel like I want to have fun. It’s probably because I feel like everything will be okay when I’m with everyone.

Q: You mentioned becoming “like family” earlier. Your bonds must have gotten a lot stronger since then.

A: I can feel a ring around Aqours. Of course, there’s the ring that we form right before every performance, But also, the bonds between all of us in Aqours, and everyone in the audience who comes to see us, form an even bigger ring around us. That makes me feel at ease.

Q: Lastly, what do you think are Aqours’ strongest points?

A: There’s the “ring”, but also, our unity! Our performances are never something we make by ourselves. Whenever we rehearse, I never feel like our performance is fully completed. The fact that people come to our lives and get excited is what completes it. I think that’s one of the charms of Aqours, and it’s our strongest point.

I’m excited to see where these deepened bonds will take us

Q: Any memories from lives, fanmeets or overseas events?

A: At LA, the fans gave us a special surprise with their penlights by making a rainbow. I wasn’t sure about how well we would be accepted in a different country, but that showed us that everyone was happy to see us. When I saw it, I just started crying.

Q: Did anything fun happen during the 3rd Live Tour?

A: During rehearsals, Aida Rikako-chan fell right asleep while we were backstage (laughs). It was really funny, so everyone was taking pictures and videos. But then her eyes started opening and she kept sleeping with her eyes half open (laughs).

Q: Any thoughts from the Hakodate Unit Carnival?

Happy birthday again, Shuka! This time from my timezone (•̀ ∀ •́)ﻭ✧

“I remember nothing from the last episode’s recording. That’s how close I was to Chika-chan at that moment.”

It’s been half a year since the second season of the TV anime ended, huh.

Already?! Time really flies~ Actually, since our fan meetings and events continued even after the anime ended, “the end” hadn’t really hit me. However, our 3rd Live setlist centered around the anime’s story, and after we performed that in front of the fans, it finally felt like the curtains have closed on that particular chapter.

Looking back on the story now, how would you describe the second season?

This might sound like a really simple answer, but it was an anime telling the stories of both Aqours themselves and everyone else at Uranohoshi Girls’ High School. “The story of Aqours themselves” was a story of growth, telling the story of the nine Aqours members going beyond their simple admiration for μ’s in the first season. I believe that in the second season, Aqours was able to soar towards their dreams by their own means. Ruby-chan was able to take a huge step forward after fashioning Saint Aqours Snow. Meanwhile, the three third years also made an important decision. Without anyone realizing, even Chika-chan gained the ability to take a step back and observe everyone around her (laughs). There were many times I just went “Eh? What happened to her?!” (laughs).

The way she speaks also matured a little, right?

Yup, that’s right! She’s still the idiot that we all know and love (laughs), but you could acutely feel the determination she had to pull Aqours through from how direct she was, as well as her will to struggle to the very end. She’s become a really cool girl…

Then, what about the second part, “the story of everyone else at Uranohoshi Girls’ High School”?

Our single Thank You, FRIENDS!! was just released the other day, and the coupling song that came with it was titled No. 10. Whenever I record any song, I’d always talk it out many, many times with Chika-chan, and I’d sing it after carefully considering the emotions behind the song. I’m convinced that Chika-chan wrote this song thinking that “Everyone else in Uranohoshi is Aqours’ tenth member”.

So you’re saying it’s a song directed at everyone from the school?

Yup. They always look forward to Aqours’ lives, and their feelings for Uranohoshi Girls’ High School is definitely no less intense than Chika-chan and the rest of Aqours. I’m sure that Chika and the others were only able to look forward and continue working hard during episode 7 because of their words of “Win Love Live!, to leave our school’s name in history!” So, No. 10 is a song of gratitude towards them, and that’s why I think the second season was a story of everyone at Uranohoshi Girls’ High School.

I see. Speaking of which, there was a scene in episode 13 where Chika-chan expressed her gratitude for her now closed-down school, right?

The scene before WONDERFUL STORIES, right? Chika-chan went into the school alone with an “Excuse me~” before hearing the flashbacks of Aqours’ members… I really liked that scene, since it captures her thoughts of sacrificing her entire school life to school idols and Aqours’ activities perfectly. I always concentrate way too hard during the voice recordings for Love Live! Sunshine!!, so I usually don’t remember anything from those recordings. I especially don’t remember anything about the recording of episode 13 (laughs). That’s the extent to which I became Chika-chan.

What did you feel on Uranohoshi Girls’ High School’s last day?

Chika-chan and the others may have accepted it, but I still felt really lonely. It felt even more emotional than my own graduation ceremony. I even think that my own graduation ceremony felt so emotionless now (laughs). Of course, it’s not as if my school life was boring or anything. I sacrificed as much of my youth to karate as Chika-chan did. I was so focused on that one thing that I gained the title of “karate idiot” (laughs). That’s precisely why I felt the same regret and sadness as Aqours did, and I’ve also learnt and grown a lot from that…

There are a lot of parts of the series that you can relate to.

That’s right. I was the type to think “I want to have a sparkling youth” from the very beginning, so we were really alike. Precisely because of that, I really think that what you experience after seeing something through to the very end is something you cannot find elsewhere. I’m really thankful to Chika-chan and the others for reminding me about the importance of persevering. I also believe that I’ve become an even stronger person through this series, even more so than when I was a student, myself.

Moving on to another topic, out of the 11 members of Saint Aqours Snow, who do you think is the most similar to you when you were still a student?

I wonder… Answering this is a little embarrassing… I guess it’d be Leah-chan. She always tries her best at everything, right? And she’s strict with herself. She has this trait of never giving up on anything, and she’d protect that fervently. I guess that’s why we’re similar. She also has her weak side. Like how she had such a huge resolve for winning the Love Live!, but she also possessed an emotion close to fear for if she lost in the preliminaries, and could never perform as school idols with her older sister ever again. I can relate to that feeling very well, actually. When I was still practicing karate, I would always be thinking about how I’d be able to beat people stronger than me, but I was also battling the regret and fear I’d feel if I lost and could no longer compete in the tournament. That’s why I decided to practice as hard as I could so that I would not lose, no matter how difficult it was. I believe that I, like Leah-chan, have this trait of being harsh on ourselves.

More than your characters or speech patterns, it’d be more accurate to say that your hearts were similar.

You’re right. I guess you could say that the way we conduct ourselves is similar. Now that you mention that, maybe Leah-chan is also the fighting type, like me… (laughs)

Last question. If school idols existed when you were a student, would you have become one?

Definitely not! (laughs)

That was a quick response. (laughs)

This may be a little hard to believe, but I’m really bad at doing anything in front of an audience. Even now I still can’t believe that I’m being featured in a magazine like this, or that I’ve performed on stage in front of tens of thousands of people. It’s not as if I hate doing that, of course, it’s really fun. But, honestly, I still can’t believe it now.

That’s an unexpected answer.

If school idols really existed, I’d be the one who supports my friends who are aiming to become the champions in Love Live!. Things like “Leave it to me! I’ll bring everyone to go support you!!” (laughs). I’m sure that being in a position to support someone from the shadows suits me much better.

“The second season told the stories of both Aqours themselves and everyone else at Uranohoshi Girls’ High School.”

We asked questions related to words that form the acronym “SCHOOL”!

TL Note: Don’t worry too much about the letters, they’re all nonsensical…

S - Start

Hardcore workouts! I started doing these because of the backflip. The backflip would fail if I didn’t put all my energy into my abdominal and arm muscles the moment of the jump. That’s why I decided to push myself to do these workouts so that I wouldn’t injure myself or fail at the backflip.

C - Can’t stand

I can’t stop myself at all when I decide that “I want to eat, now!”. The option of holding back doesn’t exist within me! When I feel like eating Kukuru’s, I won’t put anything else into my mouth!! In a sense, this is really worrisome… (laughs).

H - Happy

When I get to eat a meal with my family. Me attempting the backflip really worried my family. It was Father’s Day on one of the days of the Osaka leg (at Osaka-jo Hall), and my father said: “You coming back safely is the best present I could receive”. Those words really made me feel blessed.

O - Over

Every live, I have to overcome the nervousness within me that blots out all other thoughts (laughs). This is something I learnt from karate, but being able to hear “You can do it!” from yourself is really important. That’s why I always cast this spell on myself!

O - Oblivion

The other day during rehearsals, I read “4th” as “yonsu” (よん, yon, four in Japanese) (laughs). Even my members thought that was really bad, so after we all had a good laugh, I wrote furigana for a lot of the English words. I really am similar to Chika-chan in this way (laughs).

L - Live

Being able to create the most enjoyable moment with everyone there during a live! I’m always surprised at all the cheers we received from the fans, and they sometimes show us some really surprising things, so I’d also like to return their surprises with our performances!

TL Note: Japan uses a system of era names tied to the reign of the current emperor. Emperor Akihito, who ascended the throne in 1989 (Heisei 1), is expected to abdicate the throne on April 30, 2019. Thus, the Heisei period is expected to end with Emperor Akihito’s abdication of the throne. This year, 2018, is also known as Heisei 30.

“I would like to go to Numazu for the last summer of the Heisei period.”

Is there anything in particular that you’d like to do during the last summer of the Heisei period?

During the Heisei period, I got to know Love Live! Sunshine!!, as well as a girl known as Takami Chika-chan… I’ve had the opportunity to go there many times, like during the start of the TV anime, but I’d like to visit Numazu again, the place this franchise takes part in, for the last summer of the Heisei period. Not to do anything in particular, but just to sit on the beach and space out while looking out to the sea.

Aside from once again experiencing the place where the series takes place, do you also enjoy looking at the ocean?

I’ve always liked the ocean. But, the number of times I’ve been to one can be counted on the fingers of one hand. I think the time I visited Numazu before the TV anime started was my third time ever going to the beach? Though I have known how to swim for the longest time, and I often go to pools or rivers.

What were your thoughts the first time you visited the sea at Numazu?

The sea was just so close, so close that your feet would just get wet after walking a few steps from the beach. That really surprised me at first. It made me realize that Chika-chan, who has lived her entire life close to the sea, must have a really wide perspective. Usually, after working in the city for some time, your field of view will naturally shrink, or that’s what I’ve realized over the years. Perhaps it’s because you’re surrounded by so many tall buildings, so it’s easy to feel like you’re trapped amongst them.

You’re right.

It’s because of that experience that I felt a sudden sense of freedom when I’m in Numazu. That’s why, my first thoughts after seeing the natural, beautiful ocean spread out in front of me was a desire to re-create Chika-chan, who has lived in an environment completely distinct from mine, from scratch. That’s what Chika-chan sees in Love Live! Sunshine!!; that’s what Chika-chan has shown me; that’s what I want to see once again.

Maybe you’ll have a completely different experience from all your previous trips.

I think it’ll definitely be different. The first time I went there was like an adventure with the members of Aqours, and it made me wonder what kinds of things we’d see in the future. The next time I went there, after the first season of the TV anime ended, felt completely different. It felt as if all the sights were painted in a different color, so much so that I was surprised at how different it was. I could acutely feel the richness of the greenery there. The second season, which came after that, felt completely different as well. Perhaps that was because I was now acting after breathing in more of the air that they would have inhaled.

If you get the opportunity to visit Numazu this summer, do you have anyone in particular that you’d want to go with you?

Not in particular. To me, it just feels like I’m going to meet Chika-chan. I truly believe that she lives there. It’s as if we just couldn’t meet up because our paths just happened to not cross on that day. When I’m walking around, maybe Chika-chan is sitting at home. Maybe she’s helping out at her family’s ryokan. We just didn’t see each other because our paths happened not to cross. Going to Numazu naturally puts me into the world of Aqours. I’m acutely aware that I’m breathing the same air as they are, and that’s precisely what I want to experience.

Since I’m sure you’re busy with many things, it would be nice if you had the opportunity to do so. To bring up another topic, there’s only ten months left in the Heisei period. It sure doesn’t feel that way, right?

You’re right~ It’s the first time I’m experiencing a change in era. I didn’t even expect to experience something like this during my lifetime… It makes me a little excited. Though it’s not as if anything will happen to me because of it (laughs).

As we shift from the Heisei period to the next, is there anything in particular that you want to not change?

Oh, if you’re asking about that it has to be the games (laughs). I’m pretty sure I’ve came into contact with almost all the game consoles released in the Heisei period. Though I was born in Heisei 8 (1996), the first game console I encountered was either the Game Boy or the SNES (Super Nintendo Entertainment System).

I just had someone look it up, and apparently the Game Boy was released in Heisei 1 (1989), while the SNES was released in Heisei 2 (1990). You could say they were released right at the beginning of the Heisei period.

That’s why, actually, I didn’t experience both the Game Boy and the SNES when they came out. But, when I visited my grandmother’s house, there were a ton of game consoles there, and the first game console I came into contact with was probably either one of those. I probably approached them out of curiosity, maybe with something like a “What’s this?”

That means you’ve seen the evolution of game consoles throughout the entire Heisei period, huh?

I guess that’d be true (laughs). That’s why even though people around my age will think of the Game Boy and the SNES as really old, I don’t think that way. It’s because I was familiar with those game consoles from a young age. In fact, I don’t do so well with the latest game consoles. The controls have become so complicated that I can’t wrap my head around them (laughs).

The number of functionalities included with each game console advances at a breakneck speed, doesn’t it?

Yeah, I can’t even catch up with them (laughs). Last time, all it had was a D-pad. I’d be satisfied with just being able to run when I’m holding down the B button.

I couldn’t agree more (laughs).

I’m really confused by the newer controllers out there. Actually, I’m also not that good at using smartphones, and that has caused me quite some trouble. I often get the other members of Aqours to teach me how to use it, since there’s a lot of them who’re really good at it.

Err… If I remember correctly, you’re the second youngest in Aqours, right? (laughs)

You’re right (laughs). Sometimes, strangely enough, it’s as if there’s a generation gap between us. The speed at which they send LINE messages is really frightening, and I often can’t keep up with our group conversations.

What do you do when that happens?

I give up (laughs). That, or I just reply with stamps. That happens quite often, actually.

Continuing on the topic of generation gaps, is there anything you find particularly surprising when comparing the past and the present, especially in the performing arts and music industry?

My father really liked Nakamori Akina and songs from the Showa period in general, so I do listen to those, but when comparing those to recent songs, the songs nowadays have a much faster tempo and a much higher key. I find that even anisong performed by male artists have their keys going higher and higher nowadays.

Now that you mention it, that does seem to be the case. I’m surprised you noticed something like that.

Perhaps this is due to the influence of vocaloid music, which I listened to when I was still a student. Most vocaloid songs have a really fast tempo and a really high key, right? Experiencing that probably broadened my worldview quite a bit, and it probably made me more sensitive to the differences between vocaloid songs and other songs.

Maybe you’re right. Also, vocaloids and utaite also started their rise to fame in the Heisei period, huh.

Yup. Even just a few years ago, having multiple singers cover a single song and release it was completely unimaginable. Now there’s even times where popular covers of vocaloid songs are used in advertisements. Vocaloid songs becoming such a widely accepted phenomenon was also one of the significant changes of this era.

Talking about widely accepted presences, voice actors, like yourself, also gained widespread acceptance in the Heisei period.

I do agree that the way we’re regarded has changed. That’s precisely what enabled the uprising of new content such as Love Live!, in which the cast and characters are linked. I really think that all young girls aspire to become magical girls when they’re small, and believed that they’d be able to use magic when they grow up. I myself really love Disney, so I actually believed that I could become a mermaid when I grew up (laughs). Thinking about it that way, I believe Love Live! has become a presence to grant one of those wishes we had when we were young. Looking up to the school idols in the show, not just giving them a voice, but also being able to dance and sing on stage for real… Such an environment existing in the current timeline, and being in one where one can look forward to more of such content is something that’s really amazing.

You were involved in stage productions before this, right? I heard that you decided to go into the voice acting industry because you thought it was better not to reveal your face.

Yup. That’s because I have a complex about my physical appearance. Sometimes I still find it hard to believe that I’m able to perform on stage like this. I sometimes wonder how this situation even came to be (laughs).

You get shown on such a large screen during lives too (laughs).

I was really really embarrassed about that at the start! About having my pictures taken for magazine features too. But, being able to bring Love Live!, Aqours, and Numazu to an even wider audience just by us moving is a really amazing thing, and I’m also really grateful for everyone out there who supported us. That’s why, rather than feeling embarrassed about it, I’m glad to be given the opportunity to ride on these waves of change.

“The fans really have a very big presence within me”

Let’s move on to our second theme for today. “If there was a dictionary entry with your name”. What would you want to be written under the entry “Inami Anju”?

I knew I wouldn’t be able to come up with an answer to this question on the spot so I prepared a little for it. Give me a moment~ (looks at smartphone).

You prepared an answer beforehand?

Yup, since I was told the question (laughs). Err… What did I write down again? Got it. “Someone who loves acting and singing”. I thought just having that would be enough. Since I don’t want to draw too much attention to myself.

That’s a surprisingly simple answer.

Maybe you’re right. Actually, there’s a little more. “She doesn’t possess any special abilities in particular, but once she decides to do something, she’ll never give up and eventually see it to the end… Or that’s what she thinks, but she’s fundamentally pessimistic”.

Oh, you even thought of a punchline.

Yup (laughs). Basically, I’ll keep going at the things I love, and I won’t give up once I’ve decided that I’m going to do something. In essence, I have that “never give up” attitude. But, my insides are like a Slime. Mentally, I’m completely useless.

I see (laughs). In particular, what are some instances in which you’re mentally weak?

That’s pretty much every day. I pay too much attention to the small details. During work too, I constantly say things like “I should’ve said that differently that one time.” to myself pretty often too, and reflect on what I should have done all the time.

But that’s definitely the kind of reflection that’ll lead to you growing, right?

I wonder… Thinking things like “I should’ve said it this way since the audience can’t see my face” after a radio show, or “Wouldn’t that ad-lib have been more natural?” after a stage performance. Those kinds of thoughts constantly pop up in my head every day. I think about many other things too, so you could say that I have too many worries to count. That goes for my regrets too.

When those kinds of thoughts grip you, are you the type that can bounce back instantly?

Well, I’m the type to recover slowly. I become pretty down in the beginning, and go into this spiral of pessimism. “Why couldn’t I say that at that time? Did you really think that you could express yourself that way?!” Something like that.

You’re really strict with yourself, huh. But, in the end, wouldn’t you say that more often than not you end up overcoming that to become a better person?

At first, I end up going “I can’t take this anymore!” but eventually I get past that and move on. I tell myself that “I have no choice but to do it, so I’ll do it,” and that’s how I force myself to recover. Whether I eventually end up becoming a better person because of that is something I wouldn’t know myself. I think that I’ve become a little more optimistic after hearing words like “Anchan, you’re really good at this!” from my manager, my family, and my fans around me. I have this attitude of never giving up and continuously challenging myself because of everyone around me. Letters and messages written by my supporters have always been very important to me, and they really motivate me.

Of all the praise you receive from your fans, what kind of praise makes you the happiest?

Each and every letter makes me think that “I’m glad I did this,” but if the letter praises me in those aspects in which I put in particular effort, I’ll go “He gets it! I really worked hard on that!” It’s partly the joy from my efforts being visible to my fans, and partly just the joy of being able to communicate with someone.

Are there also cases in which you were praised for something that you were unaware of?

That happens a lot, actually. When people say that they enjoyed some surprising aspect of me, I go “Oh, so that’s what they think about it.” The fans who teach me about the portions of myself that even I’m unaware about, they’re really important to me as well. To someone as pessimistic as me, the optimistic voices of all my fans out there make them seem like my heroes. All my fans out there are my heroes.

“I sang it with my gratitude for Chika-chan in my heart.”

Aqours’ 3rd Live Tour ended in July. Please give us a few words about that.

If I were to summarize it into one sentence, it’ll be that Aqours has become really big. The feeling of “Team Aqours” was really prevalent this time, and it felt like a completely different world from our 1st Live or our 2nd Live Tour.

What was different in particular?

I guess since the 1st Live was our first, it felt as if we were being put through some sort of test. All of us were put under quite a lot of pressure, and I’m sure everyone was nervous. The 2nd Live Tour that came after that was a tour that showed off all the different colours of Aqours. It felt as if we were overcoming challenges that we’ve never experienced before with the fans by our side. The 3rd Live Tour after that was overwhelmingly about our group power, or at least that’s what comes to the forefront of my mind. That, I can be sure of.

You performed on stage with the group power of the nine of you?

Yup. I’ve always been supported by all of them, and it’s because of the eight of them that I’m somehow able to stand in the center as a leader. This time, we became very good at supporting one another. The sense of unity we created was truly amazing, and that’s what I constantly felt throughout our rehearsals.

This has caused quite a stir on online news platforms too, but you performed a backflip as part of the choreography for MIRACLE WAVE, just like Chika-chan did in the TV anime. You managed to replicate each and every aspect of it perfectly, didn’t you?

To me, succeeding at the backflip in MIRACLE WAVE was something that had to be done to pass the torch on so that the live could continue. That’s why I felt like I could not fail, that sense of danger was constantly present within me. I’m convinced that Chika-chan felt the same way. Since Chika-chan was able to do it while holding the same feelings within her, the option of failure never existed within me.

That’s some really strong resolve you had.

MIRACLE WAVE was our sixth song, and there were quite a few difficult portions which came before that. There’s the fact that Kimi no Kokoro wa Kagayaiteru Kai, which every one of us thinks is difficult, was the song right before it, the fifth song. Also, the block before MIRACLE WAVE was the first time all nine of us performed three songs in succession without any breaks. After that was MIRACLE WAVE, which served as a bridge from the first five songs to the songs beyond. Being able to face such a scene with the team spirit we built up was a good thing, I believe. It’s during difficult times like this where the eye contact between us becomes the most significant.

In the midst of your 3rd Live Tour, Aqours also went to Los Angeles for their first one-man live. I heard that it was rather rushed, but what were your impressions of the live?

It felt like a moment in a dream. It was really fun and touching at the same time.

Aqours’ power has reached even the fans there, huh?

Since we were bringing something made in Japan all the way to the USA, I was uneasy at first, since I was unsure whether we were able to bring it there. On top of that, it was a performance best encapsulated by the nine of us going “We’ll do it! Just you look!” I believe that we were able to give that emotion a physical form.

Looking towards the future, Aqours’ first performance in Tokyo Dome has been confirmed for this November. What kind of song is Thank you, FRIENDS!!, the theme song for this live?

When I first heard this song, I was surprised that it sounded nothing like an Aqours song, in a good way of course. I’m sure that Aqours wasn’t able to sing a song like this up till now. It’s very adult-like, or you could say that it’s a song that we’re only able to sing because of how much we’ve grown over the years. That’s why I’m really touched that we’ve finally come to a point where a song like this can be released, both for Love Live! Sunshine!! and Aqours. I believe the song has its impact precisely because we’re singing it now. Just reading the lyrics alone makes me emotional, and I poured my emotions of gratitude towards Chika-chan into the song when recording it. I deliberately sung some parts of the song as if they were words that were difficult to say, and I also paid a lot of attention to how I performed it.

It felt like it was still really far off when it was first announced, but Tokyo Dome is only four months away!

You’re right! Oh no! (laughs)

Has the reality hit you yet?

When I first heard that we’re going to do it, my mind was completely blank. My mind just couldn’t process it. But, after a little while the weight of what we’re going to do has begun to sink in. There’s definitely some uneasiness and pressure, but I can’t hold on to those feelings forever, and I can’t perform on stage like that. Moving forward, I’m going to consider many things, like what I should do during these days leading up to the performance, and what I can do to make it an even more enjoyable performance for everyone. I’d like to create this live in consultation both with Chika-chan and all the members of Aqours.

To close off, what are your impressions about the word “live”?

“How about doing something like this?” “I want to do something like that!” Coming up with different ideas together to create an enjoyable live. I believe that’s our gift to everyone who’s coming to support us. Of course, it’s also an opportunity for us to strive for greater technical heights through our performance, but not thinking too much into it and trusting the path that brought us here to shout out our love for the things we love, that’s what a live is. I believe just creating a moment like that is enough to make me really happy.

“It’s because of everyone around me that I’ll never give up, that I’ll continue paying attention to the small details, that I’ll continue challenging myself.”

Born on February 7, Inami Anju stars as Takami Chika in Love Live! Sunshine!!. Aqours’ new single, Thank you, FRIENDS!! releases in August. Their 4th Live will be held in Tokyo Dome on November 17 and 18. The countrywide roadshow of the movie Love Live! Sunshine!! The School Idol Movie Over the Rainbow will begin on January 4, 2019. Inami Anju will appear in the recitation musical drama rendering of the famous series Cyrano, which takes place on August 8, 9, and 15.

From the September 2018 issue of Seiyuu Animedia.

I was most nervous for the first song out of our setlist.

Q: First, what are your thoughts looking back on the 3rd live tour.

A: First of all, above everything else, I was really happy to be able to experience things through Chika’s perspective.  Continuing the 2nd tour, I was very happy to be able to go to various places and perform.  Personally, I was really nervous since we started rehearsing.  But after we successful performance at the Metlife Dome, I was relieved.  I was able to relieve all the tension and I was able to enjoy the remaining performances.

Q: What do you mean you were nervous during rehearsal?

A: These concerts followed along with season 2 of the anime, so the songs from season 2 were the focus of the concert.  One one hand “I’m happy to be able to perform these songs with everyone” on the other hand, there was pressure from not being used to the songs.  I couldn’t really calm down until the end of the first performance at the Metlife Dome.

Q: I see, do you remember the MC portion on the first day?

A: I said, “I’m back!”, didn’t I?  It was the same place as the final day of the 2nd tour.  It’s like a dream come true to be able to perform at such a big venue again.  I think being able to say “I’m back” somewhere other than Numazu is pretty blessed.  Also, the feeling that everyone was waiting got through to us, so I ended up yelling that out (lol).

Q: What was your state of mind the moment “Mirai wo Bokura ha Shitteiru yo” started?

A: Honestly speaking, I was at MAX nervousness during that opening (lol). We’d performed the song a few times before, but this was the first time we did it in full and there’s also my solo, so I just got more and more nervous.  I also had the feeling that we needed to give everyone a feeling that the concert started and we wanted to do it with a bang.  I also worried, “What happens if I get too into it and my voice betrays me?” (lol).

Q: Well, once the song was over were you able to calm down a bit?

A: I guess (lol). Since the falling hook [song term, idk] is Chika’s solo, I wasn’t able to relax till the very end, with that, after I finished singing, I thought “yes! We made it through the first song!” and it felt like a burden off my shoulders (lol).

Q: Chika’s “One More Sunshine Story” was the top batter on the first day of the 2 day concert.

A: Yep.  With that I had a strong feeling that “I’m passing the baton to everyone!”.  On the other hand, after my turn I was able to simply enjoy everyone’s solos.  “Hanamaru’s cute!” “Yohane’s here!” “Riko-chan’s so pretty!” (lol).

Q: A complete fan’s POV (lol).

A: For real! (lol).  But viewing them objectively like that, my thoughts and loves for Aqours grows stronger.  Everyone’s outfit and performance differs, it gives you a sense of Aqours’ individual personalities.  Given that, it makes me feel that all these personalities gathering to become really gives birth to something amazing.

Q: Chika’s costume was cute.

A: Thank you!  A lot of thought went into it. “Should we make this solid mikan-colored?” (lol).  There are a lot of cute Chika-like elements incorporated into the costume.  Chika wears a BIG ribbon in “Mirai Ticket” and “Yume de Yozora wo Terashitai” right?  I love that Chika-chan.  So I had them include a hair ribbon for my solo costume!

Q: Were there other costumes you liked?

A: “Miracle Wave”.  While I love shocking pink, I liked big heart with Aqours written in it across the chest, despite it being so basic.  I was happy because we hadn’t had a costume like this one before.

Q:  Speaking of “Miracle Wave”, you showed us all a backflip.  I think those acrobatics were a highlight of the concert.

A:  Of course I was happy from all the applause from the fans at the venue, but on the first day when I landed the backflip and seeing everyone in the members crying and being happy for me made me very happy.  Truth is, I wasn’t able to tell everyone I was going to challenge this up until the very end of rehearsals.  I didn’t want to worry everyone, until I got it down perfectly, I thought I would persist by myself.  Truthfully, there were times it felt like I was going to break.  But in the end I safely did it and hearing “I’m glad” from all the fans and the members made me glad I went for it.

Q:  After you jumped you said, “Chika flew!  This is the power of Aqours!” didn’t you?

A:  I said it (lol).  If I succeeded, I decided I’d definitely say “Chika flew!” I wanted to convey the happiness from Chika’s success and I also wanted to express some of the dialogue that I have with Chika within me.  So that line was spoken both to Chika-chan and to myself.  And “This is the power of Aqours!” was something for the members.  In the first place, attempting a backflip all came from Chika doing it in the anime.  If she did it, there was no way that I wouldn’t.  But if I were to do it, I definitely didn’t want to worry or sadden the members.  Despite myself, I’m the leader after all (lol).  On the other hand, I did want to see everyone happy so I stepped up to the challenge.  Even with that reason, success was a result of the feelings of our 9 members, without a doubt it was due to the power of Aqours.

Q: The sense of unity of all 9 of you was expressed clearly throughout the entire show.

“Let’s do it!” was what we felt regarding Tokyo Dome.

Great work on the midsummer tour. “I was born in the summer, but I really can’t stand it. I want to just shut myself at home, cool off in front of the A/C, watch movies and take afternoon naps. But because I had stuff to do as Aqours, I couldn’t do any of that (laughs), and with how busy I was, before I knew it, I began to think, “Summer is never gonna end, is it” (laughs).

Is there anything that you feel can help you weather the summer heat? “I have a lot of watermelon at home, and I eat them right after I take a bath, so when I buy watermelon for my workplace, I feel like I can make it through too.”

By the way, do you add salt to your watermelon? “No, I don’t really understand the people who like doing that… They say it adds to the sweetness, but isn’t watermelon normally already sweet? If you want to make it sweeter, I think it would be better to add sugar instead (laughs).

Moving on, as of July, it’s been two years since the first season of Love Live! Sunshine!! aired on TV. “It really passed by in a flash. There’s been a lot of happy things, but there’s been a lot of frustrating things as well. We had taken over the name of Love Live! from our great predecessors Muse, so there were a lot of preparations for us since the beginning, which we heard a lot of voices about. However, the 9 of us were able to share in all our frustrations, and it really felt like we would be able to overcome whatever struggles we had. It would’ve been way worse if we were alone.”

In November, you will be performing in Tokyo Dome. What do you feel about that? “We were given the opportunity to perform on the large stage at Yokohama Arena for 1L (2017), but it didn’t feel like something we could just be glad about, since it didn’t feel like something we gained through our own hard work. That’s why, despite our fear and uncertainty, the pressure to fulfill our task of putting on a good show kept on pressing down on us. But now, for the live at Tokyo Dome, our outlook on it has become much more positive, like “Let’s do it!"”

And so because of all your hard work, you’re confident that you have finally reached Tokyo Dome? “That’s right. We don’t know if our current level is worthy for Tokyo Dome, but what we do know for certain is that we’ve tried our hardest until now, and that is why we’re confident. Of course, we’re nervous beyond the point of nervousness, but we’ve stood on so many stages up until now, so no matter what other stage is there for us, we’re going to take all the irreplaceable experiences that we’ve had so far, and we’ll definitely be able to do our best.”

Where do you think Aqours’ charm point lies, Aida-san? “We’ve had the chance to do a lot of things, such as gravure, but I still think that the best part of Aqours is our music. It’s an important factor that attracts both people who’ve watched the anime and those that don’t even know about it. If you’re reading this B.L.T. magazine and you have even the slightest interest in us, please check out our music. If you like what you hear, then do check out the TV anime, then after that, I hope that you’ll want to come to one of our lives as well. Please come to our live at Tokyo Dome!”