We Still Subbing

  2020 - 2022 Q When the group was renamed into Sakurazaka46 in 2020, what did you think of, Matsuda-san? Matsuda: I don’t really remember what I thought of… it’s not that I completely have no memory of it, but even now I still don't understand what feelings I was feeling back then. I was sad that Keyakizaka is ending, and I had no idea what will happen with Sakurazaka in the future. The only thing that doesn’t change was to give my all to everything that is happening in front of me, so while I continue to give my best every day, but if you ask me how I was feeling back then, then I don’t understand when I look back to it now, that is how it’s like. It was something that I have never experienced, so I think that a lot of emotions were mixed in. Q What is your earliest memory as Sakurazaka46? Matsuda: I wonder… I remember well how our first activities overlapped with Keyakizaka. Even though we are preparing for Keyakizaka’s Last Live, because we will need to immediately start our ac...

  The drop of the spring rains moves in sync with her movements. The expressions and emotions can only be felt in that moment and place. The presence that was brought out from the friction between her natural radiance and internal conflict. Q: It feels like you just graduated from high school a while ago, but now you are 20 years old. Airi: That’s right~, I have been looking forward to turning 20. A little while ago, I was thinking  “Wow, I won’t be in my teens anymore-” but even when I graduated high school, my way of thinking did not change that much, so I imagine that I will probably enter my twenties the same way - just as usual (※ The interview was conducted before her birthday) Q: In terms of your growth, do you think the experience you have had hosting the radio show “Sakurazaka no Sa” for half a year until last March had a big impact? Airi: Right…. The first broadcast was pretty much a disaster (laughs), but as we did more episodes, I thought, “I talked this much alrea...

  2020 - 2022 Q In an interview last year, you said that you took the group’s renaming into Sakurazaka46 very positively, so were you not feeling anxious at all in that situation when it was still not clear what lies ahead for the group? Yamasaki: No, I did feel that. All the songs included in our debut single are different from one another, and I often discussed with members on which path we should take as a group. So when we were asked “What is Sakurazaka-likeness?” during interviews, we didn’t really know how to answer that. We didn’t know where our differences with Keyakizaka were, so to say, what should we say to be our strengths, there were so many options that it was difficult to sum them all into one. Q After the new year, the group releases its second single “BAN”, and as you start doing group activities in its fullest such as holding the first tour, what were Yamasaki-san thinking in the period? Yamasaki: Generally I did everything with a feeling of enjoyment, but how to ...

TEAM A Q: You guys are the three that can be described as “Soft and Gentle”. Tell us about  your memories from the training camp, the colour of the 4th generation, and also the dreams you each hope to fulfil one day. Inaguma: It’s been a while since it was just the three of us, but it feels so relaxing. It feels like we can be ourselves as fellow 19-year-olds. Yamakawa: Since we also shared the same room, we have so many memories from after our lessons too… right? Meguro: Yes, yes. Whenever I was tired from lessons, I was always saved by both of you and your kindness and unwavering strength. Inaguma: Me too! When I don’t have any confidence and feel down, the two of you would say “That’s not true!”, which encouraged me to do my best until the very end. Q: From the point of view of you three, what kind of “colour” does the 4th generation have as a team? Yamakawa: Everyone’s so gentle and cheerful. But at the same time, deep down, they’ve all got really strong minds too. Meguro: Righ...

  Buying juices for you Q Inoue-san, back when you were still just a Keyakizaka fan, what was your image of Koike-san? Inoue: From the POV of a fan, despite her cutesy image, she showed a cool performance on stage like she was a completely different person. Personally, I thought her melancholic expressions were incredible. I was proud to be someone from Hyogo, just like her.  Koike: I’m glad to hear that. Q And then after entering Keyakizaka46, several 2nd generation members were added into the formation. Inoue: As several 2nd gen members get to join music shows [performances], I learned as I watched them across the screen. The members that had performed with the seniors and the seniors were getting to know each other while I was getting flustered as I couldn’t bring myself to speak with them, Mii-san reached out to me. It was really reassuring. Q Koike-san, do you remember this moment? Inoue: I do. Rina-chan drew a penguin on her greeting card, so I asked, “You like penguins!...

  She spent five years as the trunk of Keyaki. She spent five years in Sakura, looking for her own way to bloom. As winter becomes spring, and the islands take on new colors in this new “saizon”--you’re no longer here. Q  First of all, thank you for all the hard work over your last ten years in the group. Due to various things, Koike-san has become the “anchor” of the first generation. How do you feel about that? Koike: To be honest, it still doesn’t feel real that I’m graduating. But, I think that back during the filming of TokuDare? There was a time where we all happened to be discussing the topic of who would be the last to graduate. Back then, most of us answered with “Fuu-chan” (Saito Fuyuka) (laughs). I myself never thought I’d stay in the group for ten years, so I was the most surprised to find myself as the last (1st generation) member. Q A while back, in the video uploaded to the Sakurazaka Channel Youtube page where Koike-san and Fuyuka-san entered the storage room h...