[TOKIO] OVER 30's WORLD concert pamphlet - Joshima Shigeru (1 of 2)
It's been a while, but I'm finally back with a translation. I'm not sure how many of you like TOKIO, but I've always been meaning to translate more of their most recent concert pamphlet and finally got around to starting on it-- and who better to kick it off with than their own beloved Leader? The interviews are ordered by age of the members, and there are two sets, one on music/performing, and another, more personal one about their age (eg. turning 30, getting older).
I hope you'll enjoy reading!
OVER 30's WORLD concert pamphlet - Joshima Shigeru (1 of 2)
Even now, standing on a stage is still my dream.
I'm looking forward to our concerts so I can plunge into the midst of those lights soon.
Joshima Shigeru
Concerts are definitely special to me. Even when we're not in the middle of touring, it's a space I'm so attached to that I almost want to live on it. For me personally, it's almost as if I was born to stand on that stage and be bathed with light. I was 15 years old when I watched my senpais singing and dancing on stage and thought to myself that I wanted to plunge into the midst of those lights. Even looking at it from an objective point of view, it's still almost unbelievable that I'm standing there now. Something really clenched in my chest when we held our CD debut conference at the Budokan. That is why the Budokan is like a "home" to us. Of course, we get up on the stage with various different sentiments when we go to places like Osaka or Nagoya, but when it comes to the Budokan, there's an added feeling of "We've come home".
It's a bit embarrassing to say this out loud, but I think that "standing on the stage at a concert = dating with all our fans" (laugh). It's not everyday that you get to go on a fancy stage and share the same space as all the fans, wouldn't you want to dress up for it? Spending time on hair and makeup, agonizing over which clothes to choose... I think you'd be able to understand it if you're female, but you really want to look great before a date. For me, it means putting on a performance with feelings of dating every single person who came to our concert regardless of age. For last year's concerts, I used "red" as my lucky colour and used things like red outfits and guitars, but this year it's basically "my colour". Like "I'll dye you in my colours", so to speak (laugh). I can't help looking forward to it starting as soon as possible. I'm waiting excitedly for the day of my date with everyone!
Our tour this time around revolves around our singles. I was responsible for the lyric composition for one of those songs, "Subeki koto". I had to add lyrics to the music that Taichi had composed, and while I would normally come up with four or so versions with completely different situations, we were under time constraints this time so I could only manage a single version that might come close to the perspective I thought he wanted. Taichi's a pianist, so I consciously incorporated phrases that would touch the hearts of people who play the piano. For example, the part that went "adjusting the let-off". What I had wanted to say in "Subeki koto" was actually summarized in that phrase. "Let-off" is a technical term for the piano and it refers to the minimal distance between the hammer and the string; if that angle isn't adjusted carefully it won't be able to make the right sounds. Using that as a metaphor, "adjusting the let-off" has a meaning of "always prepared, always ready!". It's a phrase with a passionate message of "Even when it comes to work or love... adjust your let-off. What's more important is the time to relax" in life. "Adjusting the let-off" is also mentioned in the title as "Subeki koto (Something you should do)".
And when I heard "Taiyou to sabaku no bara" for the first time, I felt that it was a really refreshing tune. Considering that TOKIO is a band where everyone is in his 30s, the natural feeling that this melody had really suited us. Looking back now, we've been singing songs that had corresponded with our age all along. 15 years ago, we had a song which only a 15 year old Nagase could have sung, and now that he's 30 years old, I think he's become someone who can sing such a natural-sounding song without seeming out of place. I think we've grown more and more natural as we got older. If I have to give an example... a feeling of being able to nonchalantly wear a light jacket despite it being the middle of summer. We've become grown men now. Actually, there are quite a few common keywords in both the song that I wrote and composed, "Chikai", and "Taiyou to sabaku no bara". It made me feel that the life-sized figure of TOKIO which we ourselves see and our image when seen from the outside are extremely similar.
No matter how large the venues we perform at get, they will never feel different from the live house we sang at before our debut. The five of us only happened to stand on stage together; even now, our lines of vision and feelings are the same as everyone else's... at any rate, let's remove those walls and enjoy yourselves along with us.
I hope you'll enjoy reading!
OVER 30's WORLD concert pamphlet - Joshima Shigeru (1 of 2)
Even now, standing on a stage is still my dream.
I'm looking forward to our concerts so I can plunge into the midst of those lights soon.
Joshima Shigeru
Concerts are definitely special to me. Even when we're not in the middle of touring, it's a space I'm so attached to that I almost want to live on it. For me personally, it's almost as if I was born to stand on that stage and be bathed with light. I was 15 years old when I watched my senpais singing and dancing on stage and thought to myself that I wanted to plunge into the midst of those lights. Even looking at it from an objective point of view, it's still almost unbelievable that I'm standing there now. Something really clenched in my chest when we held our CD debut conference at the Budokan. That is why the Budokan is like a "home" to us. Of course, we get up on the stage with various different sentiments when we go to places like Osaka or Nagoya, but when it comes to the Budokan, there's an added feeling of "We've come home".
It's a bit embarrassing to say this out loud, but I think that "standing on the stage at a concert = dating with all our fans" (laugh). It's not everyday that you get to go on a fancy stage and share the same space as all the fans, wouldn't you want to dress up for it? Spending time on hair and makeup, agonizing over which clothes to choose... I think you'd be able to understand it if you're female, but you really want to look great before a date. For me, it means putting on a performance with feelings of dating every single person who came to our concert regardless of age. For last year's concerts, I used "red" as my lucky colour and used things like red outfits and guitars, but this year it's basically "my colour". Like "I'll dye you in my colours", so to speak (laugh). I can't help looking forward to it starting as soon as possible. I'm waiting excitedly for the day of my date with everyone!
Our tour this time around revolves around our singles. I was responsible for the lyric composition for one of those songs, "Subeki koto". I had to add lyrics to the music that Taichi had composed, and while I would normally come up with four or so versions with completely different situations, we were under time constraints this time so I could only manage a single version that might come close to the perspective I thought he wanted. Taichi's a pianist, so I consciously incorporated phrases that would touch the hearts of people who play the piano. For example, the part that went "adjusting the let-off". What I had wanted to say in "Subeki koto" was actually summarized in that phrase. "Let-off" is a technical term for the piano and it refers to the minimal distance between the hammer and the string; if that angle isn't adjusted carefully it won't be able to make the right sounds. Using that as a metaphor, "adjusting the let-off" has a meaning of "always prepared, always ready!". It's a phrase with a passionate message of "Even when it comes to work or love... adjust your let-off. What's more important is the time to relax" in life. "Adjusting the let-off" is also mentioned in the title as "Subeki koto (Something you should do)".
And when I heard "Taiyou to sabaku no bara" for the first time, I felt that it was a really refreshing tune. Considering that TOKIO is a band where everyone is in his 30s, the natural feeling that this melody had really suited us. Looking back now, we've been singing songs that had corresponded with our age all along. 15 years ago, we had a song which only a 15 year old Nagase could have sung, and now that he's 30 years old, I think he's become someone who can sing such a natural-sounding song without seeming out of place. I think we've grown more and more natural as we got older. If I have to give an example... a feeling of being able to nonchalantly wear a light jacket despite it being the middle of summer. We've become grown men now. Actually, there are quite a few common keywords in both the song that I wrote and composed, "Chikai", and "Taiyou to sabaku no bara". It made me feel that the life-sized figure of TOKIO which we ourselves see and our image when seen from the outside are extremely similar.
No matter how large the venues we perform at get, they will never feel different from the live house we sang at before our debut. The five of us only happened to stand on stage together; even now, our lines of vision and feelings are the same as everyone else's... at any rate, let's remove those walls and enjoy yourselves along with us.