December 16, 2007 Shonen Club Premium: Interview with Yuichi Nakamaru part 1/2

[masuda_takahits]

Now I am proud of myself who did it.

Since he mentioned about their history, how the fresh juniors think of their seniors, and what he thought at that time when the other juniors got their debut earlier than his group, I recommend to read this not only for those who loves Nakamaru, but also for those who love KAT-TUN and even who loves the other group, especially my most favorite group NEWS, since what he talked there is worthful.



Taichi(T): Well, we hardly have talked before.
Nakamaru(N): Yes, yes.
T: I have played baseball with Kamenashi-kun.
I think I have worked with Akanishi-kun and Taguchi-kun at the drama.
N: Ah, yes.
T: Have I?
N: Yes, you have.
T: Koki-kun came to our concert, when he was working for the drama with Nagase. So we talked there for a while.
I really haven't talked with Nakamaru-kun.
N: I'm sorry.
T: No, you need not apologize about it, for it made me looking forward to talking with you.
When you took the audition, how was it?
N: I applied for the audition as my friend in school recommended me to do it, and as it sounded fun.
T: Oh, was he succeed?
N: No, she was a girl.
T: Girl.
N: Yes, that girl recommended me.
T: How old were you at that time?
N: I was in the 3rd grade in the junior high school("14-15 years old).
T: 3rd grade in the junior high school.
N: Yes, and she prepared everything. My resume, photo, and so on. Then what I needed was to seal my impression.
T: So, you were so-so popular among girls in your school.
N: No, not at all.
T: No no no, in Johnny's, usually idols, well, I'm also an idol, anyway, give strange answers.
When they were told "you must have been popular", they answer "no, I didn't". They must have been popular!
... I was fairly popular.
N: Really? Ah, I see.
T: My popularity was the peak when I was in junior high school. I was the most popular in my whole life at that time.
Well, did that girl slightly love you?
N: I don't think so. But she was really a close friend of mine in the same class.
T: I see.
N: Then I applied, and we excited as I told her that "I got an invitation!"
T: Oh.
N: Then, I told her, "so, I'll go there."
First of all, at the very beginning of the audition, Johnny-san said something like "I am Johnny".
T: Oh, in front of the all the examinees, did he say "I'm Johnny"?
N: Yes.
T: I've never heard about it from others.
For us, the first impression of him is a mysterious middle aged man walking around with a juice.
Others too, so your experience sounds new to me.
N: So, at that time, when I listened him saying "I am Johnny", I thought "I got something to talk about to my friends".
T: Well, did you have less interest to be an idol ad that time?
N: No, actually, I used to watch idols on TV and Takizawa-kun and others were Johnny's Juniors at that time, and their world was brilliant, so I thought it was cool, but I thought I would have nothing to do with such world.
T: So, when did you start to think about your activity seriously as your job?
N: I took my audition in November 1998, and possibly at the end of 1998, there was a concert by Kinki Kids.
It was my first time to watch the concert, and also to appear on it, and at that time, the two in Kinki Kids were really cool. Even I was shocked.
Then, I thought it must be mazing if I would be able to become like them.
At that time,
T: Your speech lost fluency.
N: Yes.
T: You got such a shock even your speech loss fluency.
N: Yes, at that time, I found my goal.
T: But at that time, Juniors must have been great.
N: They were great.
T: There was Takky.
N: Tsubasa-kun, Yamashita-kun, the future members of Arashi, and so on, there was many stars indeed.
T: How was the atmosphere at the lesson? There were those such as Takky too, weren't they?
N: Yes, as you know there was a place to leave our baggage.
T: I don't know. Is there?
N: You may know there was a grand piano. Near there, the superior Juniors such as Takizawa-kun left their baggage, but we couldn't go there.
T: You felt you shouldn't go.
N: There was a place we couldn't enter.
T: There must be a sign 'DANGER' seen by yonger Juniors.
N: Yes, vaguely.
And, the waiting room becomes better depending on our growth.
The most superior Juniors such as Takizawa-kun had the largest room with a sofa and TV, and drinks were always prepared there. It looked gorgeous.
But, lower Juniors were given a corner in the make-up room, and for the lowest, the stairs were given.
T: Really?
N: And of course, I experienced the stairs as a waiting room. I aspired for the superior waiting room.
T: You wished to become able to use the room with a cushion, TV, and drinks.
N: Yes.
T: Trivial! Your dream sounds trivial.
N: Yes.
T: Not for a debut, but for drinking with a cushion there….
N: Yes.
T: Trivial….
N: Well, but I really aspired for that room.
T: What was your first unit, no, group?
N: That was 'B.B.D.'.
(B.B.D. - best beat dancing, established in about 2000)
T: It sounds like an abbreviation.
N: It was from 'Best Beat Dancing'. Joannhy-san named it.
T: It sounds nice, 'Best Beat Dancing'. Who were in that group?
N: Ueda has been with me since then. We were in B.B.D. just before we got gathered as KAT-TUN, and Koki joined us at the last moment before were gathered into KAT-TUN.
T: Koki Tanaka.
N: Yes.
T: So, when was KAT-TUN established?
N: Well, 6 years ago.
T: Were you told by Johnny-san something like "you are KAT-TUN since tomorrow", as usual?
N: I had heard that he was planning to establsh a unit by back dancers of Koichi-kun at POP JAM TV program. And aiso I had heard that I would possibly join in it.
T: I see. I have the same impression as what you told me.
KAT-TUN has an impression of the unit group born in POP JAM.
N: Yes, it's true.
T: Well, now, as we are in NHK which had broadcasted POP JAM, how about watching the old films?
N: Okay.
T: Let's laugh loud by watching them.
N: Eh, really? I see.
T: There must be the ones which will make us laugh.
N: I want to watch them.
(MUSIC JUMP, December 20th, 1998 O.A.)
T: That is you, isn't it?
N: No, that is Koki. I am at the front.
Ah!
Wah, I look awful.
T: Nakamaru-kun was 15 years old at that time.
N: Awful. This is awful. Uah, auful. This one is awful. Awful! Eh!
(MUSIC JUMP, February 7th, 1999 O.A. 'KISS YOU, KISS ME')
I got shivered.
T: Who is he, at the front. Were you playing the guitar?
N: Ah, I'm with a guitar. Yes, it's me, Well, I,
T: There is Ninomiya. You are at the back of Ninomiya, but you surely didn't play the guitar.
N: No. At the audition, as I played a guitar as my hobby when I was in the 3rd grade of junior high school, I wrote 'guitar' for my hobby on my resume.
Then Johnny-san said "you must be able to play the guitar".
(MUSIC JUMP, July 25th, 1999 O.A.)
T: HAHAHA!
N: I was just a kid!
(N on the VTR) "Today, I will try to become the King with spirited eyes."
N: Uah, I don't look serious.
(MC Toma on the VTR) "Well, now, the King with spririted eyes by Nakamaru-kun, ready, go!"
N: Well, I shouldn't have done that.
T: There must be some Juniors who had their own space which yonger ones couldn't enter as you mentioned before.
N: Yes.
(MUSIC JUMP February 13th, 2000 O.A. 'Boogie Woogie Cat')
N: Ah, this was my first time to hold a microphone.
T: You must have been happy.
N: Yes.
We were wearing our own clothes.
Awful.
Ah, that one was Ueda.
T: Ueda.
N: Yes.
Ah, that is Koki.
T: He hasn't changed.
N: Yes.
T: His performance hasn't changed since then.
N: I was desparate at that time.
(POP JAM December 15th, 2001 O.A. 'Be Cool')
N: Ah, I had already been KAT-TUN.
T: You are refined. You had really changed.
N: People changes, indeed. We look quite different from before.
(VTR end)
T: Some included you who was young. The one you were dancing when you were 15 years old.
N: Yes, I haven't watched it for a long time.
T: How was the King with spirited eyes?
N: No, it shouldn't have been done.
T: How about trying to do it now.
N: No, I can't.
T: Can't you?
N: I can't do that.
T: Well, we just have watched its film slightly, but was POP JAM important for you?
N: It was.
It became a great experience.
As Koichi-kun was always leading us, well, really he was like our teacher, he was a good model.
T: Well, but there must have been some who spoke bad about KAT-TUN, mustn't there?
N: At first, Koki was always saying that he wanted to leave from KAT-TUN.
T: Well, as once Kamenashi-kun had talked about it, how about watching it?
N: All right.
(Shonen Club Premium: March 18th, 2007 O.A.)
T: How was the relationship among the members when KAT-TUN was just established?
Kamenashi(K): Koki wanted to leave from our group.
T: He wanted to leave? Was that because he was gathered with his juniors?
K: He seemed to be unpleasant with wondering why he was in such a group.
For example, when we work as back dancers of our seniors, at the backstage where we change our costume at the middle of the show, there was a siqn 'KAT-TUN' written on the gummed tape.
He tore off the letter 'T' on that gummed tape.
T: Ehh?! Which 'T' did he tear off?
K: The one after '-'.
T: Uwah!
K: He cut his letter with a cutter, and took off.
T: Uwah, interesting. To express his thought that he was not still a member of KAT-TUN.
K: Yes.
T: To say that he would never be a member of KAT-TUN?
Wao.
K: So, everybody looked not positive.
(Film end)
T: ... He talked like that.
N: Well, Kame explained well.
T: Oh, really?
N: He is good at explanation, really.
T: I guess, the relationship among the members will become complecated, if there were some who were not positive and who wanted to leave.
N: Well, Koki is actually a senior than the generation of KAT-TUN. A liile senior. He is the most senior.
T: Ah, I see, yes, yes.
N: As he was in the same group as Yamashita-kun, Ikuta-kun, Hasegawa-kun, and Kazamakun, he must have felt that he was downgraded.
T: I see.
N: Then, at that time, Koki didn't associate so much with Akanishi and Kamenashi.
So, we intentionally, consciously went to eat together.
T: You brought them?
N: Yes, I prepared for such opportunities.
T: It would be unpleasant if the relationship among the team or group would get broken up.
N: Yes, I would feel unpleasant.
T: But, what changed the relationship better? Did it become better as the time went by? Or....
N: Yes, gradually our relationship became better as time went by. Well, first of all, we had a chance to hold a concert as KAT-TUN.
So, we had to manage it. At the discussion for it, we had serious fights.
T: Did you guys fight?
N: yes, we fought often.
T: Ah, I see.
N: Yes.
T: Though you got a chance to hold a concert.
N: Well, yes, since before.
So, from about when the concert started, we started to have a thought that we had to work as a group, and possibly all the members thought we have to work seriously when needed.
T: Then, your debut was in 2006.
N: Yes.
T: And the establishment was in 2001.
N: Right.
T: So you had trained for 5 years.
N: Yes, for 5 years.
T: Was that long for you?
N: Actually, I started to wish my debut from 1 year ago.
Well, before us, NEWS and Kanjani got their debut.
T: Kanjani got debuted too?
N: Yes, they did.
(NEWS… debut in September 2003, Kanjani Eight… debut in August 2004)
T: Hah, well, even NEWS wasn't established until their debut.
N: Yes.
T: So, KAT-TUN was established earlier, but those which got their debut earlier were NEWS and Kanjani.
N: Yes, right.
T: You must have got impatient.
N: Yes, I got impatient.
Well, when NEWS got their debut, actually I heard about it when I woke up in the morning and from the news, well, the news, the news on TV.
T: You are a good punster.
N: No, no, I had no such intention. Well, I heard from the TV, the news program. At that time, I stayed in Akanishi's home, and you know it was a big shock.
T: Like, "wait, you guys got the debut first?"
N: On that day, after that, I went to eat sushi with Akanishi.
T: Why?
N: Well, as....
T: To celebrate them? "Congratulations"?
N: No, I thought that was our end. Since they got debut before us.
T: "As NEWS got their debut first, let's eat sushi anyway"?
N: Yes, we decided "let's eat sushi, anyway".
T: I don't understand you!
N: I agree.
T: You ate to release your stress.
N: Yes, yes.
T: You might have thought that you would retire after eating something delicious.
N: Well, but, at that time, we three, with Akanishi and Kame, went to ask Johnny-san directly about it.
T: Ask what?
N: "Why NEWS?"
T: Wao!
N: We didn't ask him such direcly, but, how did we....
T: "Why NEWS released their CD first".
N: "We want to ask you the reason of it, and how will we become?", something like that.
T: Oh.
N: "As there was no explanation, we feel anxious unless we will have it".
T: Who suggested to go to ask him?
N: Possibly that was Akanishi. Akanishi and Kamenashi talked about it, and I just took advantage of their action. I was like, "ah, okay".
T: You thought it must have been better to join them.
N: Then, we really went there. Surely.
T: So, how was his answer?
N: Then, at that time, Johnny-san said, "well, wait, wait, you guys are okay".
Umm, what did he say at that time… something like, we needed not hurry.
He told us that we were okay to just continue our work just like us, and it sounded understandable.
T: It was a good decision for you to ask him.
N: Yes.
T: You must have been relieved after asking him.
N: I got relieved.
T: You may feel comfortable if you felt relieved from the anxiety.
N: So I could continue to work without being sulky.

(To be continued)

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[masuda-takahits.livejournal.com]

He's Taichi Kokubun from TOKIO. :)