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  How Each of Them Will Come into Bloom It has been a year since the Sakurazaka46 3rd generation members passed their auditions. The blossoming individuality of the eleven members is bringing new life to the group. The sensational girls are forging their own trajectory of growth. — It’s been a year since the eleven of you first met each other as members of Sakurazaka46’s 3rd generation. Now, I’d like you to talk about the future while looking back at the past and also the present. First of all, shall we start with talking about which members have changed from their initial impression or shown you a new side of theirs while spending time together? Mukai: I wonder… Surprisingly, we still have the same vibes from when we first met, so I think there are only a few members who have changed their impressions by a lot. Yamashita: That’s right… Everyone already showed their true colors from the beginning, so I feel like we’ve barely changed. Murai: It’s just that we were divided into two group

  Q As Sakurazaka46’s second Tokyo Dome approaches, shall we look back at the last 1.5 years it’s been since the last Tokyo Dome? Rena: So many things have truly happened, like how we performed overseas for the first time, and how I was selected to be the center of the 5th single title song “Sakurazuki”. Thanks to all the support the Buddies have given to us, as a team we can head toward the same direction together, and we were able to experience so many things that it is unthinkable it all happened within 1,5 years. Q It’s probably like that because the group released 4 singles in the past year, from “Sakurazuki” to “Ikutsu no Koro ni Modoritai no ka?”. All in all, that’s a single every three months, not to mention the concerts in between. Rena: It was certainly one production after another. I’m truly grateful that we are able to stay busy in such a blessed environment. Q I think that being entrusted with being the center of “Sakurazuki” must have been a very important event for you i

Q What does Fujiyoshi-san, who has been appearing in dramas and a movie in-parallel with your activities in the group, think of the past 1,5 years that have passed since the last Tokyo Dome performance? Karin: It felt very fast. As you said, I have been able to try a lot of different things, and it feels like a year has suddenly passed as I was giving my all and working hard. Q At least it doesn’t feel slow, right? (laughs). Speaking of which, as you go back and forth between the filming site and your group activities, did you see a new side of the group Sakurazaka46? Karin: If I must say it in one phrase, then I felt “an encounter”. I have been only working within the group, so I’ve been not only with the members but also the staff members, and that’s all I knew about. It felt like I was in a school, and then I went outside for a bit. And from there, I was able to learn a lot of things. Q It might be a bit rough to group acting, which you described as “in the outside world”, together

  Tamura stands on reflex (Jouken Hansha de Tamura Tatsu) Q It’s been three years since we talked for a BRODY feature, and it’s been three and a half years since the show was renewed. How does Tsuchida-san see the current Sakurazaka46 members? Tsuchida: They haven't really changed much from before. These past eight years, we would meet twice a month, so I couldn’t feel any dramatic changes from them. But well, there are moments where I look back and think, “This girl is speaking more than before”; but there is no way a person could dramatically change in two weeks. If that happens, then Sawabe and I would make fun of them like crazy already (laughs). Q I feel that the viewers have been saying that “SokoSaku” is becoming funnier in the past two years. Tsuchida: As someone who’s a part of it, it actually still feels the same as before. It's the homeground for the members, so I hope that they can relax– in a good way, show themselves just as they are, and have fun. Whether it is i

  - The other day, blt graph had an interview with Tamura Hono, in which she talked about your significant presence. The span of one and a half years since the previous Tokyo Dome concert also marks Matsuda captaincy, how do you feel about this period yourself? Matsuri: Like what has been said, it also happens to be the period of time since becoming a captain, and as I have been able to experience various things, I’ve started to think “Maybe I’ve been able to act a little more captain-like”. Of course I was happy to hold our first Tokyo Dome concert, but at the same time there were uneasy feelings, like “we’re not on this level yet”. However, this time it became a “Alright, we’re going to stand there!”. And this mentality has been solidified by responses like “It’s fine because we have worked hard to get this together”. This made me feel particularly happy. - When interviewing Tamura, I was impressed by the way you gathered the members to ask about their individual goals and make them

I've been asking everyone this question, but for you, Morita-san, has the time since the last Tokyo Dome concert until now felt long or short? “I can’t believe that only a year and a half have passed, it feels like much longer. Especially last year, it felt like time was passing faster than ever in my life. I even wondered if other members felt the same way (laughs), but I was determined to approach each thing carefully.” You have been busy with combining your regular activities and the production of live performances, leading to hectic days. Amidst all this, have you noticed any changes in the group over the past year and a half? "I feel that the relationships among the members definitely changed with the third-generation members joining us. Many first-generation members graduated during this period, and the second-generation members have also changed a bit now that they've become seniors. Although it was always very lively before, it feels even more cheerful now." I