ayu x TA 15th anni. interview pics from TA magazine vol. 46

[Aderianu]

thank you for translation, tenshi no hane =)

[Kuronekomi]

thank you!
so Ayu's favorite videos are the same as mine Green and Mirrocle World
I hope for something similar for the new songs

[mizuki-7]

Green is definitely one of her greatest mv especially the beginning !

[oaristos]

Originally Posted by tenshi no hane

The first part~

Interview Translation 1/3:

Spoiler:

ayu x TA
INTERVIEW
ABOUT 15th HISTORY

A special plan has been realised to celebrate Ayu’s 15th anniversary! Ayu answered questions sent in by TA members about her music. Please experience the various emotions and thoughts Ayu puts into her work which you couldn’t have known until now.

Which song would you recommend to sing to someone you like?
Days comes to mind first. Maybe because it has the image of a love-struck maiden? The line, “Is it okay if I love you?” But if you’re singing to your long-time boyfriend, I guess you could sing it in the sense of remembering how you felt in the beginning..? (laughs)

When do you come up with the idea for the jacket cover?
First of all, it often doesn’t end up how I planned it. Usually I get a flash of inspiration during the actual shooting and things change more and more, I guess?

Please tell us your rules to decide an album’s song order?
That would… take a week to explain, you know (laughs). I have rules that I use every time, and certain albums will have their own set song order — I have quite a lot of different rules. But, be it an album’s song order or a live performance’s setlist, I have reasons for everything, so please try to look for them ♥︎

Does Ayu think of the design for the tour goods?
I do!

With what intention did you write Rule’s lyrics?
Rule is the theme song for Hollywood’s Dragonball. I thought “Goku is cool, huh” while reading the script. When I thought about why I felt this way, I realised it’s because he doesn’t let anything bother him, because he isn’t tied down by anything. That’s how the lyrics were born. In other words, Rule is like a collaboration between Goku and Ayu.

What song makes you think "This is Ayumi Hamasaki"?
Who…, I think? Both as Ayumi Hamasaki and as the real me.

What song gets you pumped up?
Feel the love — the song which I sang at the Countdown Live opening recently — really energised me. I sang it while thinking, “This song is really fun~”

If you had to pick one song which you’re unable to forget even now in these 15 years?
SEASONS. That’s because I feel like SEASONS helped to not only let everyone know the name Ayumi Hamasaki, but also the atmosphere in my lyrics.

Which song’s lyrics took the longest to write?
Hmm, nothing comes to mind right now. I think I would start again if it took too long.

What phrase do you feel the most for?
Who…’s chorus. I don’t think the current me could think of it. It’s really universal, how to say, I could sing it back then but also right now — I’m positive I’ll feel the same 10 years from now. The fact that I wrote such amazing lyrics when I was still quite young surprises even me (laughs).

What is Ayu’s favourite music video?
Right now GREEN comes to mind. ShimoKo shot the video and I really like its Shanghai atmosphere. In first place, ShimoKo’s music videos are really hard (laughs), but I also really like them. He always suggests unexpected things and his sense of art and fashion totally exceeds my imagination. I think it’s amazing. I usually hardly ever watch my own music videos, but there are times when I feel like watching GREEN or Mirrorcle World. Now I think about it, both were shot by ShimoKo, huh. I digress, but I have a feeling he directs by replacing himself with me. That’s why his directions are always really precise. Things like, “Take two steps and then please point your finger.” He says cut if I don’t do it exactly like that (laughs). He has a crystal-clear vision, and I’m like Shimoko’s other self as I move accordingly, how to say, I’m playing ShimoKo. That’s how it feels. But I don’t dislike this kind of AyuKo ♪

Thank you so much! That's an interesting interview

[Ryusei]

I'm curious what system she has for putting together the tracklists because mostly i can't see a pattern or reasons why certain songs are in certain places except for party queen and all of the intro-> first song combos

[truehappiness]

She seems to have a set "mood" for albums where things will develop in a certain way IMO.

[Evolution7/4]

Yeah like they just flow together so well. It's not always about "oh this means this and that" but rather the feelings each songs invoke have a clear beginning, middle , and end.

[tenshi no hane]

You're welcome, y'all~

Interview Translation 2/3:

Spoiler:

Are there any songs you wrote with TA in mind?
Many. Out of my recent songs, I’d say Pray. It seems the writer TsuriKo thought it was a song about an affair, but when it comes to TA, that might also not be completely wrong, huh (laughs). We don’t tie each other down. Because there’s always a bond between us whether we’re together or not — I wanted to express that kind of feeling.

My impression of a song can change depending on how I feel when I’m listening. Does the same thing happen to Ayu?
It does, it does! For example, when I’m touring, I can suddenly hate the part of a song which I loved last week. I don’t know why. There’s no reason. Sometimes I’ll think, “Ah, I hate this song today” or “This song is scary today”. Or, on the other hand, I’ll think a song is gentle although I previously found it difficult to deal with. I think it’s strange, as well. It happens quite a lot.

What’s your favourite jacket cover?
Eh~ aren’t there too many to pick just one? I like all of them, but if I had to pick one, I’d say Trust. It’s not square like the current format. It’s now a nostalgic single CD. I still love it. I don’t know why, though.

Ayu-chan is always busy. Do you write lyrics according to a schedule, like "today I’ll write"?
I do, because I have deadlines, but it never goes completely according to schedule (laughs). If I can’t get into the right mood, I could try for hours but I would still end up rewriting everything. I’ve learned this from past experience. That’s why, while apologising to everyone in my mind, I’ll simply wait for inspiration to hit me ♥︎

Which song did you write while feeling the strongest?
Thinking about it now, I can only remember songs when I felt weak (laughs). I guess they’re mostly born from weakness, and hardly from my confident side. I think strength is on the other side of weakness. And maybe, the stronger you sound, the more your weakness shows. Maybe it’s exactly because I’m weak that I want to create strong songs that boost me. Decision is a song that’s like that.

Is there a reason why all your song titles are in English?
The meaning would be really restricted in Japanese, how to say — for example, if I use RED instead of 赤, wouldn’t you wonder, “What’s the meaning? It’s not 赤, right?” I want to evoke more ideas that way.

What song makes Ayu feel more energetic?
During rehearsals and things like that, the song that often fires up me, the band and the dancers is Mirrorcle World, I guess. Chased by the tempo and melody, how to say, the song feels like being barraged with questions. We get really worked up (laughs).

What was your biggest mess-up during a music video shoot?
It wasn’t a mess-up, but Virgin Road was absolutely the hardest music video. We used realistic guns, which was scary, and when we shot the ceiling of the gas station, rubble came flying down. And during the explosion scenes, an explosion went off by mistake near me. In the end, it turned into a powerful performance, but if you watch the video again, you’ll notice I’m actually running away because I was genuinely scared (laughs).

Where do the words for your lyrics well up from?
I’m not at good at talking. I’m the type who usually doesn’t say much. But people all have their own thoughts and feelings, right? Rather than discussing those with others, I can understand them better by writing them down, alone — that kind of feeling.

How you would you express 15 years of music, aside from using the word "treasure"?
"History".

How do you decide on a song title?
There are times when I make up one myself, and there are times when I leave the title which the composer used for the demo as is, because the title already matches the song.

(or read on my blog)

We finally get an answer as to why she uses English titles. I had been wondering about that.

[truehappiness]

I wanna say songs like progress / Pray / Liar / etc. = the demo title, while STEP you / Lelio / Song 4 u / NOW & 4EVA were likely her doing.

[Aderianu]

Originally Posted by tenshi no hane

What’s your favourite jacket cover?
Eh~ aren’t there too many to pick just one? I like all of them, but if I had to pick one, I’d say Trust. It’s not square like the current format. It’s now a nostalgic single CD. I still love it. I don’t know why, though.

same question was at TA vol.45, her answer was "Suddenly, I love Trust cover♥"
here she goes with explanation)

[truehappiness]

The Q&A with Ayu at the end of the mags is always a bit interesting. Sometimes her answers can be kinda long too.

[mellody]

I've got some answers after reading all of these, but more questions have emerged in my mind.

So, GREEN & Mirrorcle World huh?
I wanna ask her opinions about other collaborations with Shimoko like... Lady Dynamite PV. Perhaps Melody as well.

[tenshi no hane]

The last part~

Interview Translation 3/3:

Spoiler:

How many lyrics did you write for TA?
I write for myself, but that’s for me to be free in my songs. Because that’s the place where I can be free — in that sense. However, doesn’t that in itself equal making songs for TA?

What is your large number of songs to you?
They’re children that are all standing on their own, independently.

Which song will you find yourself humming subconsciously lately?
Often Feel the love, I guess. But, for some reason, I hum the verse, not the chorus.

Do you remember anything special about the day you released your debut single?
I do remember the “poker face” period, but I was insanely busy and I don’t remember whether what I remember happened on the actual release date itself. I didn’t know anything back then. Adults would go round the record shops and bow their heads, standing next to me, saying “Please support Ayumi Hamasaki”. I thought it was normal for me to bow because this was about me, but I remember thinking bewilderedly, “Why do those adults have to bow too?”. I was grateful of course, but I think I was also quite scared, wondering what I was getting myself into. Because I got the adults around me involved, I wondered, “What’s the right thing for me to do from now on?” —

You have secret tracks of which the official lyrics haven’t been made public. Did you make those songs with that in mind from the beginning?
No. It’s not after singing either. It’s after writing the lyrics that I think I don’t want to see the lyrics in writing. I want you to listen to the words along with the music. I want them to exist only like that, how to say, the songs that I don’t want to put into writing become secret tracks.

What song took the longest to create? Not the lyrics, but the entire creation process.
Rainbow. We accepted phrases for the lyrics from TA. Creating the song with those phrases at the root took really long. Making a selection out of the large volume of words was really hard. And then there was the cycle of having the composer DAI-kun add and cut melodies for it. The sense of accomplishment was big when we finished the song, like “We did it~~!!”.

What were you thinking when you created SEASONS?
I don’t remember what I was feeling, because I had a very hectic schedule back then. I didn’t have the sensation that I had created a song that would receive so much love. But after a very long time I could admire the song, thinking “I was thinking about those kinds of things. I did good”. If I do say so myself (laughs).

Are there any other songs that you can’t sing anymore now, aside from Secret?
None in particular. I was even able to sing “poker face”, which I stubbornly hadn’t been singing, during my 15th anniversary performance. But I may not have been able to sing it without KO-chan’s choreography (laughs). I didn’t know how to sing “poker face” until then. But it naturally dug itself into the ranking*, didn’t it? (laughs). When the song got the new choreography, I finally felt, “I think I can sing it if it’s like this”.

* T/N: Fans could vote for the 15th anniversary tour setlist.

Compared to your debut and now, how did your feelings towards your fans change?
During my debut, every part of me was weak and I didn’t have any confidence. But now, if anyone in TA is unable to get back up, I’m confident and strong enough to lead that person by the hand. In the past, if I’d take someone’s hand, I would think “Where could I lead you to?” and we’d both end up lost. But I don’t have such fears and unease now. That’s the biggest change, I think. For example, we’ve changed from lovers to family? In the past, it felt like boyfriend or girlfriend — always feeling unsure and uncertain somewhere. But now we’ve become family and attained something unshakeable. That kind of feeling?

[rainbow_smile]

That's a very interesting Q&A! Thank you so much @tenshi no hane!! I thought it would never get a translation

I sometimes catch myself thinking that some of her seemingly romantic love songs could be interpreted as her singing to TA, and this Q&A made me wonder about this even more.

[//ABEST]

She seems to be very tied up with Mirrorcle World, i feel like it's like most ayu song to her maybe

thanks tenshi for translations!

[sitara]

thank you very much for the translation!!
these kind of interviews I love the most

[Evolution7/4]

Thanks for the translations!!

[truehappiness]

Originally Posted by mellody

I've got some answers after reading all of these, but more questions have emerged in my mind.

So, GREEN & Mirrorcle World huh?
I wanna ask her opinions about other collaborations with Shimoko like... Lady Dynamite PV. Perhaps Melody as well.

I can see it going like...

Ayu: "No comment on Lady Dynamite" probably or dodging question somehow and "WOW I loved doing it" for Melody.

[mi|kshake]

Great interview! Thank you so much for the translation! This is the type of interview I've been wanting to read from Ayu for so long - her favourite PVs, songs, album covers etc.

[Ryusei]

Thanks so much for translating this interview, it was very interesting to read.
Did anyone else think of kanariya at the question about what she can't sing anymore? Lol