Ishimori Rika interview from BUBKA June 2023 edition

 

Q Ishimori-san, what kind of childhood did you have?

Rika: I was always singing at home as a kid. We’d have songs that everyone had to sing in kindergarten, and even after going home I’d sing them by myself. I especially remember practicing “Jabujabu Ondo” for Girls’ Day. I have a video from back then too.

Q So you were alone often?

Rika: I played a lot with everyone in 1st and 2nd grade of elementary school, but starting around the 3rd year I started spending a lot of time alone.

Q What was the reason for that?

Rika: I don’t think there was really a reason for it. By junior high it became easier to spend time alone and that had become the norm, and the reason for that was the basketball club. Since it was an environment with only girls, I worried about the eyes around me and whether or not something I said could hurt someone’s feelings, so it became scary for me to speak up in front of a crowd of people. 

Q And you eventually ended up quitting the basketball club, right?

Rika: My father was a mini-basketball coach, and my sister was also an experienced basketball player, so I grew up surrounded by basketball. However, when I started playing basketball myself, I realized I wasn’t very good it because of all the contact in the sport. I became afraid of both “an environment with only girls” and “the game of basketball” and it started to make me feel weak.

Q And you felt that you were more relax whenever you were cooking?

Rika: I did. Ever since we started cooking in my junior high home economics class, I began helping with it at home as well. I’m the type of person who’s always lost in her thoughts, but when I’m cooking, I’m able to free my mind and focus on what’s in front of me, like “I gotta chop these ingredients,” “I gotta make it tasty.” That’s why I started liking to cook.

Q I get the impression you felt like you wanted to change yourself to become less weak.

Rika: I wanted to become strong and made the effort to change who I was. The fact that I wanted to be less weak is also why I got into reading. My parents recommended me some self-help books and non-fiction books written by people who had become strong, and through those books my way of thinking changed. In high school, I started to realize being alone isn’t necessarily a bad thing, so even though I had few friends in college as well, I was able to live with peace of mind. In the past, I was afraid of whether people would accept or reject someone like me, but now I think I’m able to handle it. 

Q Tell me how you came across Sakurazaka46 or Keyakizaka46 and what songs have had an effect on you.

Rika: I think I was in my first year of junior high school. I couldn’t sleep one night, so I went out of my room and went downstairs to the living room where my mother and older sister were watching “Keyakitte, Kakenai?” (TV Tokyo). At the time, I didn’t even know they were a sister group to Nogizaka46, and started talking to them about what kind of group they were. Before I knew it, I had gotten into them and was recording the show every week. I was just becoming an adolescent when their debut song “Silent Majority” came out, so I could really relate to it. When I started worrying about my future and what I wanted to do with my life, “Seifuku to Taiyou” really helped me through it. 

Q So what was the reason you decided to audition for Sakurazaka46?

Rika: The only idols I’ve ever liked are Keyakizaka46 and Sakurazaka46. Since they’re a group I’ve followed since their debut, I couldn’t imagine ever auditioning myself. I did attend the seminar for the Sakamichi joint audition since I thought I’d be able to meet some Keyakizaka46 members, but when I wasn’t seeded [privilege given to seminar attendees that are specifically chosen that allows them to skip the first round / document review and progress directly to the second round], I thought “Well yeah, of course” and decided not to apply. After that the coronavirus pandemic happened, so thought “I guess there won’t be a Sakurazaka46 audition for while,” but then applications for the 3rd generation opened. When I read the requirements for applying, I realized I was just barely within the maximum age for it and that if I hadn’t been born early in the year, I wouldn’t have made it. I thought “I have to apply, or I’ll regret it,” and took the audition as I applied for jobs. 

Q Did your mother approve of you becoming an idol?

Rika: She did approve of it and said “An idol isn’t something just anybody can become, so I think it’d be a good life experience for you.” However, because I am the way I am, she was worried about me and only let me apply on the condition that I’d only do it as long as it didn’t get too difficult.

Q Did your mother take care of you during difficult times?

Rika: I’m not very talkative at home, but a few times per year I have a long conversation with my mother about everything that’s going through my mind. She’s accepting of everything I tell her I’m feeling during those talks.

Q How did you feel standing in front of the fans at “Omotenashikai,” which was held on March 4th and 5th?

Rika: I had already talked with everyone through a screen at our online meet and greet, but I was happy I could talk to them directly for the first time. I could see everyone's faces better than I imagined. But it felt really surreal the whole time because I couldn’t comprehend the fact that I was really up on stage at such a huge venue. 

Q And just like during the training camp, you performed “BAN” as center.

Rika: The protagonist of “BAN” mirrors how I myself can be lazy. Maybe the fact that I’ve liked Sakurazaka46 for so long yet took so long to audition myself is one example of that as well. I was so nervous and scared that I was on the verge of crying, but I managed to snap out of it and perform regardless. There were a lot of Buddies who praised me for the “Didn’t we have a lot of time?” part. I didn’t rehearse that part and instead just let my emotions take over for it. 

Q What kind of idol do you want to be?

Rika: Even after joining Sakurazaka46, I still don’t have any confidence in myself. I feel that I want to be someone who gives energy to all the fans, someone who can be a support for everyone, but I’m a long way from becoming an idol that can do that. If I don’t like myself, people watching probably won’t like me either. I like strong women, so to start out, I’d like to work hard towards becoming more confident in myself. 

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Raw: anon

Translation: peezy

QC: toomuchidea