Yabu Kota x Yaotome Hikaru - SODA January 2020 (English Translation)
First of all, tell us about the highlights of this Dome tour.
Yabu: The Dome has a larger sense of scale, so of course there are things you can show while dancing, but I think it's a tour where the audience can visually enjoy it as a single work, including with sets and images.
Yaotome: When it comes to the songs from the album "PARADE", of which the worldview has been completed, we do interesting things regarding the direction.
Yabu: Everything was decided on by everyone exchanging all our opinions together.
Yaotome: Yeah. For example, regarding the costumes, everyone has a different degree of glitter adhesion and colour appearance, so we brought our opinions together.
Yabu: Sometimes opinions are divided, but everyone has the necessary presentation power at that time. When it comes to song selection, I don't just like it, I have ideas about the choice and arrangement. The discussion won't progress if you just deny it, so I think having an alternative is important.
Yaotome: It's an atmosphere where it's easy to come up with good ideas because we're ready to listen to people. It's a style where everyone says what first comes to mind.
Domoto Koichi also joined the production in Taiwan in October. What was some motivating points you received?
Yabu: Last year he watched our performance in Nagano, but because the company president passed away, it seemed as if he was thinking there was something he wanted to teach to his kouhai. So we decided to ask Koichi-san to direct the performance in Taiwan. As a result, we learned a lot.
Yaotome: It was fun to have a meeting with him, as we thought about the details together.
Yabu: Koichi-san is good at motivating the staff! He gave us an idea that we could never come up with and seemed impossible to implement, and the staff said, "That's a bit out of budget" and he said, "It's no cost to say it. So can you do it?" (laughs). The staff told me, "Don't be a copy cat!". But the experience has been great for this tour. (laughs).
Yaotome: I thought it was very important because trying to talk about only what is possible would reduce the scope of the idea.
Yabu: That's also the starting point of Johnny's, that Johnny-san thinks of something ridiculous and the staff tries their hardest to realise it. I was glad that Koichi-san also made "SHOCK" in this way and it felt natural.
In terms of live performances and stage performances, I have the impression that juniors have taken over Johnnyisms from seniors.
Yabu: I don't think the ideas and thoughts of the president is something that can be taken over by anyone alone. I think that it's very important for people who have felt the passion for making things to pass it onto the juniors. I feel that we shouldn't just be passive, but also take that role upon ourselves too.
Yaotome: I'm also interested in the juniors productions. Because it's already the backbone.
Yabu: When it's Countdown (concert), it's exactly in the middle, isn't it? The debuted groups will increase with Snow Man and SixTONES.
Then, please give advice to the juniors who are expanding abroad!
Yaotome: Last time I was in Taiwan, I thought it was good to remember Chinese and be able to to speak it the way I wanted to speak it. I can be understood in Japanese, but I think Chinese would've been filled with more heart. I carefully think about the words I want to convey and learn the words from my teacher, so I feel I can communicate again and and connect with fans.
Yabu: The staff in Taiwan also taught us "Thank you for your work".
Yaotome: But when I returned and told my Chinese teacher, he said, "It's better to not say that to your superiors" (laughs).
Yabu: It's a nuance where the president tells his subordinates, "You're doing really well" (laughs). Other than words, don't you think it's important to believe in our strengths no matter which country we go to? For Snow Man, they've been receiving Japanese-style direction from Tackey for "Takizawa Enbujou", and of course there is abdominal drums (taiko). They're good at dance and acrobatics, so if they show their selling points and strengths as they are, instead of being conscious of those for Asian markets, I think they'll get recognition.
Where do you feel the strength is in Hey! Say! JUMP now?
Yabu: When I listened to the completed album of "PARADE", I thought that everyone's singing skills had improved. There were many songs that required technical parts, but I thought Yuto didn't sing like this before, and he didn't have this kind of tone before. I think that the expressive power of each member has come along, and the depth of everyone's voice united in the chorus has changed.
Yaotome: It's not just songs, but also the individual appearance is getting stronger too. That's why it's easy to imagine when thinking about the composition for a live. When Yuya stands and sings, you can have an image of him being cool. I think this is why these feelings have increased dramatically in recent years, because each of us have a growing awareness of making our own things shine more.
The individual activities of all members are also fulfilling. Do you look at each others work and share your thoughts?
Yabu: The next day after Hikaru appeared on "Dance! Sanma Goten!" was rehearsal, and immediately when I saw him, I told him I saw it (laughs).
Yaotome: You did tell me. (laughs)
Yabu: It was really funny and I was roaring with laughter. There aren't many people who can create natural comedy rather than trying to force a laugh, so it was good to see a new side to Hikaru. I wanted to tell him this thought in person, not through message. And then I thought, "Oh! It will be rehearsal tomorrow!" (laughs).
Yaotome: (Laughs). When I went to see Yabu's play, I felt like a fan because I was moved by it and I wanted to see it closer. Of course, there was shock that was also transmitted to the back seats. It's a silly story, but Yabu has also become good at humming (laughs). Since I'm always listening to the voice closest to me, in the middle of the play or when it was finished, I thought Yabu's humming is good. I wanted to record it as it was and put it on a CD. Even during the rehearsals for the tour, I felt that not only the singing voice but also the choreography increased in expressive power, and I feel what Yabu, who has the experience from plays, puts out.
Yabu: Thanks (bashful).
This time, both of you are appearing on the front cover. So putting your current relationship into words...?
Yabu: I think it's a good sense of closeness. Not too close, not too distant.
Yaotome: Yeah, I think so.
Yabu: When I speak with Hikaru, those around us will feel like, "Uei~ Yabuhika" (laughs). I wonder... well, while it is one of the members, it's a strange relationship.
Yaotome: It's easy for each person to express their true opinion (laughs). This was also the case with the lives this time, so you can say normal feelings without being force. I think it's very important to talk about work naturally. Even if you work for a company or something, it's not that easy, right? It's the norm to go into work mode and talk about work, I think it's good to be able to relax and talk as human beings named Yaotome Hikaru and Yabu Kota.
The members have said you are like "a married couple who have been together for many years".
Yaotome: We aren't aware of anything, so it's difficult to name our relationship. I think it's a perpetual theme (laughs).
Yabu: It's not that we can't give a name because we have a bad relationship, but because we have a good relationship (laughs).
Yaotome: Even if we say in a few words, "good relationship", it doesn't fit. But it's that is not enough to say (laughs). It has a really unique atmosphere.
Yabu: I have various family and friends, but I think it's a relationship that's best expressed in words like a catch phrase. Without being moved by such things, you may come into contact as one person. When I was a child, I used to link shoulders and had a lot of physical contact (laughs).
Yaotome: I didn't have time to play with my friends, so I only played with Yabu who has always been with me. I think this happened because we were playing and working together (laughs), but I feel this is different from a married couple. There are people who become a married couple as childhood friends, but it is common for people to get married and get to know each other when they are a mature age, and deciding to stay together when they fight. That's why married couple is different, and partner doesn't fit. Given that it's like a duo where you have a brother, it's like a brother who is not connected by blood? But I can't decide which one is my brother, and I'm not a twin. After all, it's hard to name this relationship (laughs).
We tend to put a catchy name on a relationship, but it might be a relationship that can't be categorised.
Yaotome: Perhaps in the bottom of our hearts, we don't want to go into such an easy-to-understand thing. Maybe we want nothing more than to be "Yabuhika" that can't be described in other words.
Your 30's are coming up. You must be looking forward to it.
Yaotome: I'm jumping into an unknown world (laughs).
Yabu: It's a milestone, but I'm not very aware of it.
Yaotome: I can hear Johnny-san's words, "A child can become an adult, but an adult cannot return to a child." When I was little, I used to just say it on stage normally, but now I understand the meaning of those words. I really can't go back and I can only move forward.
Yabu: I want to have a good time in my 30's so I'm ready in my 40's. Rather than making a big change in consciousness, I think if you do one thing with all of your might, you can become a natural adult with depth.