-- So it has finally gotten to 50 singles. How does it feel to be a part of the actual group Morning Musume who created this amazing record?
Michishige Sayumi: I didn't have any interest in being a celebrity at all, I just wanted to join Morning Musume. That dream came true, and to think that I even became the leader, I really never thought I would. Being in a group with such a history where the fans follow you really makes me happy. If you think of it like that, it's really moving. Considering that when I lived in my home-prefecture Yamaguchi, whenever Morning Musume was on TV I used to dance and imitate them. When I became leader, I got a congratulations mail from the first leader Nakazawa Yuko, and that made me realize all over again how amazing this is.
Tanaka Reina: I don't really think of Morning Musume's history and such that much, but I admired them which was why I was able to join the group. But even so, I really didn't think I'd be able to stay in the group for this long. But now that the 6th gneration is on top and it has come to that we have to take off with Morning Musume, I feel that "Finally we're here!". That we're on our 10th year and finally we're here. I wanted to get here earlier, actually, something like when were were 19 or so. (laugh) But, if I look back at it now, various things happened back then so it feels both as though it took too long but also happened too fast.
Sayashi Riho: I took classes in dancing because I loved Morning Musume. I used to look at the videos they have made and thought their dancing was really cool, it helped me in my studying a lot. I came to like them when I heard the song "Go Girl~Koi no victory~". The Morning Musume back then and the Morning Musume now have a completely different atmosphere. But, despite that I feel that Morning Musume is great. Right now it's the 6th generation members that are in the focus and will take off with us, but after them it's us from the 9th generation that are in line, so with that in mind I want to pull myself together and do things properly.
Iikubo Haruna: I'm of the generation that, if someone would say "Mention an Idol?" the answer would be "Morning Musume" so when I was a child I used to watch "Hello! Morning" on TV every week! When I passed the audition I was really moved, as I've grown up with Morning Musue and been seeing them everywhere, and they're a group who's even gone to Europe and have fans over there.
-- The 50th single that is "One two three" surprised me with being a very cool, electro song.
Michishige: When I heard the song for the first time I thought it was really cool. We've had many cool songs before this, but this one has a different feel from the others. Even before we started recording, I could feel Tsunku's fighting spirit in the song. That we got such a cool song for our 50th single, I could feel that they expect a lot from us so we sing in order to meet those expectations.
-- There are quite a lot of effects on the vocals in this song, which makes it even cooler, right?
Tanaka: When you listen to it on CD it sounds really cool, so it's almost as though I want them to use effects all the time. (laugh) It's like it really gets stuck in your head... or like that you think like "Oh, what's this?!". When I heard Renai Hunter I felt that I really liked that song, but this one too one that I love a lot! The key is quite high lately for the songs we sing, which is difficult, but singing like that gives more effect to the song so I like it.
Sayashi: For this song, Tsunku didn't finish editing until just a little before we had our first performance of this song. It's so noticeable that he does things really carefully for this song so that makes me think that we have to really do our absolute best on our part, too.
-- For Iikubo from the 10th generation, this is the third single, right?
Iikubo: Our first single was "Pyoco pyoco ultra" a really energetic song. So if you compare this to that one, it's more mature and I felt that I really had to work on my expressions in this one. I think that thanks to this song, everyone in the 10th generation were able to grow.
-- For this song you got a really cool dance, right?
Michishige: If we talk about the dances, actually the dance for "Renai hunter" was more difficult. But for "One, Two, Three" rather than difficult, it's really cool. It has got a dance that makes one be able to say "This is Morning Musume right now!" with confidence and show it on TV and such.
-- You've become a new Morning Musume with this single and you've got a new and refreshing feel to your voice as a group now.
Tanaka: I like the "Groove feel" we have right now. It feels a bit as though our voice got brighter or something. We have girls like Suzuki (Kanon) who has a deep voice and such, it makes the unisons sound really pretty. I sometimes look back at our old concerts, and the way we sound now is different from how we've sounded before, it sounds really pretty.
-- This single is a double A-side with the other song "The matenrou Show" and it has a typical Morning Musume funky-sound.
Michishige: I love this song too. It's a strong song. It has a bit of a mysterious and unique atmosphere to it. I think that the way that it's not only a cool song is quite Morning Musume-like.
Tanaka: For both the songs for this single, it's me and Sayashi who sings main. If I compare this to (Takahashi) Aichan, who I also used to sing a lot with, Sayashi is younger but I also think a lot that she's still just a child. But if you compare to how she sang when she just had debuted, her way of singing has changed a lot. Maybe thanks to that Aichan got changed for Sayashi, I haven't changed at all myself. I just think "It's fun to have a lot of parts to sing~ Yay!" that's all. (laugh)
Sayashi: As I am right now, I only stick to Tanaka-san and I can't compare at all. My experience isn't enough and she has to help me a lot on various things so I feel a lot that I have to work hard in order to be able to sing better and always be prepared.
Iikubo: This song is fascinating. But the steps and the moves for this dance are more difficult than "One, Two, Three" so personally I think it's more difficult.
-- The coupling songs are divided into generations this time, right?
(Watashi no jidai!; My era!)
Michishige: When I saw the title for our song, I thought that the era of 6th generation has finally come. Even though the title gives a strong feeling, the song itself is quite gentle.
Tanaka: Both of us got surprised. We thought that it would be a harder song, sort of, but it ended up being more like "Yay we'll do our best yay~" and we were thinking like "Are we going to sing this?" so we were surprised. But, if you read through the lyrics, I really think they describe us really well.
(Aisaretai no ni...; I want to be loved though...)
Sayashi: It's a mature song, completely different from what I expected it to be. It was a fun song to record, and I'm really happy we were given this song. So that we, the 9th generation members will become strong members of Morning Musume, we want to show that no matter what song we can sing it. The four of us share the same strong feelings about working our hardest to grow and become even better, so I think this might be our growing period.
(Seishun do mannaka; In the middle of youth)
Iikubo: The song we, the 10th generation members got is quite a contrast to the 9th generation's song, and is a really energetic song. It starts from "Yay!" and has spoken lines in the middle of it. It's really fun and a song that's easy to get happy from.
-- Lastly, which is the best way to enjoy this 50th single "One, Two, Three" and "The matenrou show"?
Michishige: Being able to be a member of the line-up right now that release this 50th single is really amazing. I feel that I can hold my head high and say that "This is the kind of song that the current Morning Musume sings!" with these songs, and I can say the same about the members so I really want for the fans of course, but for many people to listen to this song.
Tanaka: All of us feel really happy that this is the song we got first since becoming a new Morning Musume. And I believe that the fans share this feeling with us. Please take care of Morning Musume from now on too!
~ ~ ~
From all the 50 singles, choose your current three favorites!
Michishige Sayumi: "Koi no dance site", "Namida ga tomaranai houkago", "One, Two, Three".
"Koi no dance site" was the first Morning Musume CD I bought. I kept listening to it all the time, and I looked at the jacket so much that one could think it'd break. (laugh) "Namida ga tomaranai houkago" was the first song I got many parts in. I was very nervous and I got scolded a lot by my seniors, so to me it's a important song with many memories. "One, Two, Three" is the 50th single which is improtant too, but more than that I feel a lot of motivation from this song, which is why I chose it.
Tanaka Reina: "Renai hunter", "Naichau kamo", "Resonant blue".
"Renai hunter" is just so much fun to dance! "Naichau kamo" is a song I sang solo at a bus tour I had not long ago. And then I realized how great the lyrics are all over again, and almost cried a little bit. "Resonant blue" had a music video with a story line. I acted a lonely girl and the way that I strongly felt that acting was fun back then, left a strong impression on me.
Sayashi Riho: "Oosaka koi no uta", "Iroppoi jirettai", "Kimagure princess".
Lately I've been listening a lot to songs that were released before I joined, and these three are those I really like a lot. I listen to them on repeat for house whenever we're going somewhere!
Iikubo Haruna: "Happy summer wedding", "Mikan", "Pyoco pyoco ultra".
"Happy summer wedding" was often sung on TV when I was in kindergarten. I really loved it and sang it all the time. "Mikan" is a song I came to like a lot after seeing concerts. When I saw my own face on the cover for the "Pyoco pyoco ultra" single I was really moved, so it left a strong impression on me.
by Starra » Sat Jul 14, 2012 10:42 pm 
