Spring Occasion (Taniguchi Airi interview in blt graph vol. 111 (April 2025 Edition))
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 already, so it might be just enough”, and when I looked at the staff, they gave me the OK sign. It’s not exactly the internal clock, but I gradually developed a sense for the time. And also, I think finding my way to avoid stumbling over words was a sign of growth. More than singing and dancing, the radio is where I felt the strongest sense of accomplishment this half a year.
Q: Yamazaki Ten-san also said on the show that “(Airi) was easy to talk to”. Did it feel like you were naturally tossing the conversation back and forth?
Airi: (Murayama) Miu, who appeared on the same episode as Ten-san, also said to me, “Airi, lately your responses have been genius” (laughs). I was trying to be as responsive as possible with the other members, so her comment made me really happy. But it was not a show that was created on my own… and Ten-san’s atmosphere made it easy to work with her, it made me want to learn from her.
For me personally, it happened at the time when I had just gotten used to it, so to be honest, I wished I could have continued a bit longer, but thinking about the group, I know it is important for the different members to have those kinds of experiences. I hope when I have another chance again, I will be able to make use of it. That is how I was able to change my thinking.
Q: That’s wonderful. Come to think of it, we are entering the third year since the third generation has joined— time really does fly, doesn’t it? (lol)
Airi: I really feel the same way. Recently, the third generation got together to celebrate the graduation from High School and University for Yuzu (Nakashima Yuzuki), Matono Mio and Mukai Itoha.
We also played the video of “Natsu no Chikamichi” during it… and we were all like “Wow, we look so young and fresh!” and “So cute!” – It got pretty lively (lol). We had cake and party poppers, and while chatting together, we were watching the music video of our songs, and everyone was like “This feels nostalgic”. But since our feelings have changed compared to the time we shot the MV, we found ourselves watching it with a different mindset.
Q: It may be a bit too late in mentioning this, but the 3rd-gen members really get along so well.
Airi: Yes, even I was surprised. I was thinking, 'I didn’t know people could get this close with one another.' How should I put it… Right now, all I feel is a sense of comfort, I can’t imagine us fighting or drifting apart from each other. But also at the same time, I can sense that we are each slowly growing up and becoming more independent. We also learned to talk with more respect to each other, and it feels like our bond has become even stronger.
Over the past two years, I feel like we have broken through our walls and shells (Lol), so there is no need to put up any front anymore. I feel like we will be okay no matter what comes our way.
Q: Lately, everyone has been seeing you as the reliable one, but were you always in the position to be relied on from the start?
Airi: Ever since I first joined, people often told me I seemed really independent, but I think it was around the time of “Nan Rabu (short for “Nandou Love song no Kashi wo yomi kaeshi darou”)” that I started to become someone the others relied on (lol). There are a lot of 3rd generation members who are so “spoiled”. They are clingy and would say things like “Do this for me~” or “Help me with that~”, but I am not the type to ask for things like that, so I guess I naturally ended up becoming the person who takes care of everyone.
Q: What do you usually do when you want to lean on someone or be cared for?
Airi: But recently, I feel like I have gotten better at letting myself get spoiled by others. Mainly with my senpai like Morita (Hikaru)-san and Tamura (Hono)-san, and even among my genmates, Yuzu... has been someone I leaned on often since we joined. Lately, I feel I am getting more love and care from her.
Q: Being able to lean on Morita-san whom you respect so much, is a really big step forward, right?
Airi: But on the other hand, I feel like if my feeling of respect for Run-san (Morita) is too strong, she might pull away from me. So I try not to show it too much, but it still ends up slipping out sometimes (lol). Miu once said to me, “Airi, your love for Morita-san is so strong it might be overwhelming to watch”, but recently, I have had a lot of chances to talk with Run-san, so I think I have been getting better at relying on her. I was able to talk to her at Mii-san’s (Koike Minami’s) graduation ceremony and also at the after-party.
Also, Hono-san has been looking out for me since the beginning when I joined, so I’ve been able to rely on her too. I guess I didn’t understand what it meant to ‘lean on someone’ before — maybe because I’m the eldest daughter. But recently, I’ve started to feel that sometimes it’s necessary to lean on others. I also have come to realise that doing so naturally creates a comfortable and the right kind of distance between people."
Q: I think Ten-san actually mentioned this on the radio too, but I’ve always felt that because Taniguchi-san is so good at reading the room, she tends to understand exactly what she needs to do in each moment —and that might be why she’s not so great at relying on others.
Airi: Yes, I think I kind of noticed that too….Even during today’s shoot, I find myself thinking, ‘This is probably how I look like right now,’ and I end up viewing myself from the outside. I want to stop caring so much about that. But still, I can’t help thinking, ‘Would it be better if I did it this way?’ Maybe that’s just the kind of person I am..."
Q: Right after last year fall’s Third Generation Live, when we interviewed you, Nagisa Kojima, and Yu Murai, you also talked about your tendency to see things objectively, didn’t you?
Airi: I thought about it for a while since then, but the more I thought about it, the less I understood. So for a while, I tried not thinking about it at all—but then I ended up not thinking enough, and that just made me even more confused. So I figured I should just go back to square one, and now I’m taking a more relaxed, kind of ‘go with the flow’ approach—well, at least for now.
Q: Right, It would be wise to take a step back when you are unsure.
Airi: But, I think it was a bit tough, not being able to feel my own growth or to find areas where I can still improve. For example, when someone who is not very good at singing or dancing improves, their growth is visible, right? But in my case, since I had been attending school (Entertainer School) at a young age, I already had a certain level of basic skills when I entered, so it’s hard for me to feel like I have grown, and I think it is also hard for others to notice it. Getting others to notice that I have grown is much harder than I had imagined, and lately I have been feeling just how difficult that is…..
Q: If you were to make a radar chart of your abilities, like a character in a video game, I think Taniguchi-san’s would be a well-balanced shape because all of her stats are high. That itself is pretty amazing, though.
Airi: Maybe it’s a bit self-indulgent to say this, but to me, people who have something that can make them stand out also tend to be the ones that shine. Even if there is something they aren’t good at, the fact that their stats still have some kind of movement that kind of thing draws people's attention too, doesn't it? If you think about it that way, then for people like me who are well balanced, the changes they have in their stats are harder to notice. I know it may be a bit too much to analyse myself objectively like this, but….
Q: That’s probably like wanting what other people have, from other people’s view, I think they are envious of Taniguchi-san, who has a high average overall.
Airi: I’d be happy if that were true…. But I think if I could just honestly accept myself and say “This is who I really am”, things would be a little bit easier. If I could be satisfied or at peace with my own performance, I think things would be different. But, I honestly don’t know how to feel like “Wow, I was really good today”. Even when I think, ‘I tried doing something a little different today, I wonder how that went” I quickly think calmly and go, 'No, something was wrong”.
I think I have talked about this before, but there is something inside me that automatically holds me back. Even during live performances, I never really feel like I am completely exhausted or think like “I might not have the stamina..”. Because I am scared to reach that point, my body ends up adjusting on its own. I want to know what my limit is, but even now, I still don’t know where it is. Sometimes I’d think “I danced with my all, maybe I can give it my all up to the very end!” but then once I catch my breath during the MC part, my breathing is back to normal…. So I have been thinking about how I can break through that barrier.
Q: That’s right, you said it before the 3rd gen live, didn't you? That you want to go to “the other side”.
Airi: That’s right, even during the 3rd generation training camp which happened right after I joined, Takahiro-sensei said, “I am curious about Taniguchi’s other side”. But I have been constantly wondering how to cross that wall. And even though the real challenges only start after I cross that wall, I am frustrated at myself who always stopped just right in front of it…
Q: However, from the perspective of “Standing on the stage until the end and giving it my all”, controlling yourself would be the right action, isn't it?
Airi: I understand that it is important too, I think the ideal would be to perform with the same output from the start of the performance to the end…… but even with a small difference of output, what I want is the explosiveness of expressions that can captivate the people in that moment. Lately, I feel like my performance looks the same in any song or any show–
Q: So, you want to bring about this transformation by stepping into an unknown zone..
Airi: I want to find something different, but… hmmm, it's like I am still unsure. Fans are always complimenting on how consistent my performance is, but deep down I want to find something that I can unleash at the correct moment, like “Here–!!”
Q: By the way, I sometimes think that if the current 11 members were to perform “Natsu no Chikamichi”, the song that marks the beginning for the 3rd generation that has Taniguchi-san as the center, it might look different now
Airi: Exactly, during the 3rd gen live, I performed while thinking “How would the current me express the protagonist of this song?” I think that the bright, cheerful vibe of the current 3rd generation members, me included, might have made “NatsuChika” sparkle a bit too much. In my image, maybe because the MV was shot in winter, it is a bit more grey-toned in my head. But the current version of NatsuChika we perform feels like a clear blue.
Personally, I feel like it might be okay to have a bit of the murky feeling on it, but if the fans liked the sparkly “Natsu no chikamichi”, then maybe it's a good thing too. What we hope to convey and what is expected from us are not always the same, and it makes it hard to define what the right answer is.
Q But there are some cases where fans want you to betray their expectations, in a good way. Fujiyoshi Karin-san said, “I’m scared that people will get bored of seeing the same thing over and over again”, and that’s why she wants to show a different performance every time. What does Taniguchi-san think about that?
Airi: Hmm, how should I put this… If I were to use my own words to compare how each of them show expression, Morita-san is as if she’s standing on water, and Fujiyoshi-san is like she’s being submerged in it. Or rather, something more solid than water… like being in mud. So I wondered what mine is like, and tried both approaches, but I realized that I’m not like that. I have to find my own expression that is different from the two of them.
Q That’s an interesting analogy. Speaking of which, what about Yamasaki Ten’s expression?
Airi: I think Ten-san’s might not be water, but ice. It’s like she’s happily gliding around on the ice with a smile on her face. Meanwhile, I can’t read the emotions on Morita-san’s face when she is standing on the water. I could sense these differences and characteristics, so I asked myself, “How should I be on the water?”. For example, I think it’s possible to only put half my body in the water, but just like one’s individuality, the way people put themselves in differs from person to person, so it seems difficult to find the right way to do so.
I do want to find mine, but there are a lot of things that cross my mind in the process, like maybe it’d be best to look at things with the bigger picture in mind. My position changes depending on the song, and the scenery is different depending on who I’m paired with in symmetrical positions, so right now I just feel like I’m approaching it from different angles and looking for different ways to express myself.
Q It sounds like you’ve been trying to find your next self for quite a while now. Ah, and what about Yamashita Shizuki’s way of expressing?
Airi: Shizuki’s is like watching the water from the side. She does try to submerge herself sometimes, depending on the situation and timing, but I don’t think she has solidified her style yet. But this is just the nuance of it, or rather, just what I’m imagining in my head…
Q No no, Taniguchi-san was just the first to put members’ expressions into words like that, so I found it interesting.
Airi: No, not at all… But the cameraman who photographed this shoot (Mae Kosuke) said to me, “You can respond quickly to requests to do this or that, so acting might be a good fit for you,” and I felt like I could take that as a little hint. Early on, when all the 3rd generation members worked on “BAN” (following the end of training camp), we decided on detailed settings such as how old the protagonist is, what kind of clothes she wears, what she does on a normal day, and having those details decided on made it easy for me to perform.
When I think about it, “UDAGAWA GENERATION” also has the clear concept of “cheerful and fun,” so that also felt easy for me to perform. Meanwhile, “I want tomorrow to come” has a scene change, or rather a part of the song where it develops differently and that’s something that I perhaps had difficulty visualizing in my mind.
Q I see. Speaking of which, has there been a concert that’s become something like a point of reference for you…?
Airi: I wonder if there is one… I do remember that it was easy to bring out my emotions for “Guuzen no Kotae” in “Shinzanmono”. The MV itself also depicted the suffering that the protagonist, acted by Fujiyoshi-san, is feeling so it made it easy for me to immerse myself in its worldview. But just when it feels like I’m one step away from reaching “the other side,” the song ends. If I were able to reach it at the time, the “present” might be different from how it is right now. But personally, even ignoring that, I still have a lasting impression of “Guuzen no Kotae” as something that turned out well. When I tried to express something that empathized with the protagonist’s emotions, I felt like “Ahh… Just a little more, and I could reach it.” I have not felt that again since then, so I wonder how it’d turn out if I could perform it one more time.
Q One and a half years have passed since then, so you might be able to experience something different. Taniguchi-san herself is moving on from her teens to her 20s.
Airi: That’s right! I feel like I was more natural in how I immersed myself in songs in the past. I want to break out of “the cube that is Taniguchi Airi” that’s formed in the past two years since I joined Sakurazaka, but I can’t figure out how to break through.
Q It might break down not out of your own efforts, but from external pressure.
Airi: Ahh… You mean that it might depend on my surrounding environment, or motivation from the other members, right? That said, I received a lot of inspiration from Fujiyoshi-san. For example, when we were performing “I want tomorrow to come,” when I saw Fujiyoshi-san’s expression of “being completely immersed in the mud,” I performed thinking “I can change myself too, can’t I?” Though in reality, I’m still struggling (laughs).
Q I mentioned this before, but I think that the “Masatsukeisuu” that you performed as double center together with Murayama Miu in the “3rd Generation Concert” was also a good opportunity for you.
Airi: I discussed things with Miu a lot back then, but Miu herself was unable to express “rationality” and ended up showing the “wildness” that is more like her… I thought that sincere feeling she had was nice. There’s also part of me that’s jealous of her sincerity. Because I can’t be sincere at all…
Q Is that so? That’s unexpected.
Airi: Yes, people may view me as sincere, but that’s just me trying to make myself appear that way. How should I put it… Even though it’s okay for me to let my emotions out of the box, I instead try to keep them inside, and consequentially I end up not even able to understand my own emotions. Sometimes they do come out of the box, but I’d say generally it always feels like they’re kept inside. That’s how it was before I joined Sakurazaka as well, but right after I joined it became easier for me to let them out. Even though I was able to let all my emotions out, lately I’ve gone back to keeping them inside again. Maybe it will change with the 4th generation entering the group, but right now I feel like I’m not able to be honest with myself.
Q You’ll have an increased sense of responsibility as a senior, so that might change your sentiment towards things.
Airi: That’s right… I myself want to openly express my emotions, like saying “I’m happy!”, but for whatever reason, right now it’s like I’m only facing inward toward myself, like maybe I’m just lost on what I should be doing.
Q: So you have a lot of worries that we can’t imagine behind that expressive face….
Airi: My facial expression changes a lot (lol), and I am thinking “This is fun~” but there is another version of me, another Taniguchi that is watching all of that from a distance.
Q: I guess you have a high level of metacognitive (t/n: awareness of self) ability…
Airi: Eh??? I am not really aware of that myself…… but it’s true there is this other Taniguchi who is always watching me saying.. “Is it okay for you to laugh this much??” or “Never cry in front of others”, so I always think that if that part of me is gone, maybe I can change myself… but it seems like she is not going away (lol) so I guess I will have to find other ways.
Q: Maybe if the other Taniguchi is a bit more honest, things could be easier for you.
Airi: I’d be happy if she could be a bit more honest, but I know she is observing things objectively and keeping things in check, so I guess I will just wait and see for a while.
Q: But I think being able to view yourself objectively is a strength in itself. If you can sort out what you are capable of and what you can do moving forward, maybe you’ll feel more at ease.
Airi: I hope it can be like that… Before I joined Sakurazaka, it was like I had a limiter for my expressions; even when I’d think I was smiling, in reality I looked totally serious. But since joining Sakurazaka, I’ve been able to let my feelings show through my expressions more, so now I just hope I can let go of whatever it is that’s still holding back my emotions. That’s the mindset I am trying to have right now, but at the same time I’d also like some tangible proof that shows I’ve changed (lol)
Q: Since the tour is starting and the days you will be on the stage are increasing, maybe you can see a whole new world…
Airi: Right, I realised now that when I looked back at around the 4th tour one year ago, I was absorbing a lot of things at once. But if I say it in a metacognitive way, I am visualizing myself from an outsider perspective. “Right now, I look like this in camera” or “My expression is captured by the camera like this and it looks like this in the monitor” I will think about all of that until I fall asleep. Well, once I fall asleep, the switch is off too, though..
Q: Murayama Miu-san also said that she thinks about expression every day until she falls asleep, you both sure are stoic people huh…
Airi: But when I am playing games or watching anime, my switch is off, so I wonder if I can switch it on and off at will. That said, even when I'm trying to stay fully immersed in a story, thoughts of the performance will occasionally flash into my mind. I’ve gotten into the habit of just forcefully flipping my switch off in times like that.
Q: You are fighting your own battle every day, huh? My impressions of you have changed.
Airi: I am often told “You have a sense of stability”, in a good way, and I am aware of that myself. Both mentally and also in terms of performance. But because of that, there is also this desire in me to break that image.
Q: On that note, I found it very emotional to hear that during the encore of the final show of the 3rd gen Live, in the last performance of “Natsu no Chikamichi”, Taniguchi-san showed her tears only to the members.
Airi: That’s right!! I was definitely wavering during that moment. But it was such a rare and precious moment… I probably have never shown my tears in front of fans– maybe... probably (lol)
Q: Exactly— I don’t have the impression that Taniguchi-san is someone who cries…
Airi: That’s right… the time I cried in front of someone was probably only during that last performance of “Natsuchika” and during the first training camp.
Q: Do you want to be able to cry in front of other people?
Airi: Oh, I don’t think so (lol). I think it is okay to shed tears for being emotional to a song, but I have a feeling that I don’t want to show my tears from personal emotions to others. So when I am in front of other people, I will hold my tears with grit.
Q: Is breaking it against Taniguchi Airi’s virtue?
Airi: That’s right, I feel like I will stop being Taniguchi Airi and be someone else. So maybe that is why I have been able to hold on to “the version” of myself that I want to be.
Q: Is that also why you have not changed your hairstyle?
Airi: Sometimes I try having bangs, sometimes I think of changing my hairstyle, but the other members are against it… “Having the parted bangs fits you, so no need to force a change, right?”. It made me think, “That might be right”, so I just kept continuing until now without any courage to change it. Whenever I think of cutting my hair, I often think “Never mind”. I think, as long as I don’t cut my hair right away as soon as I think about it, I probably won’t change my hairstyle at all. Maybe the next time I think about it, I should cut it right away...??? Well, I guess it will depend on how I feel at that moment.
Q: Have you ever had short hair?
Airi: I think I have always had this length. Except for the time when my parents cut it when I was little, I have always had my hair longer than shoulder length, with a bangless look like this. I also do things like half-up, twin tails or ponytails but I guess there has not been any big changes so people see that part of my “stable” image.
Q: But personally, it's not like you are looking for... That stability, right?
Airi: It’s not like that but, entering this year some fan said to me “You have become even more calm and composed”, so I am not really sure myself. But maybe I am gradually changing? I am also turning 20, so maybe little by little?
Q: Is there anything that you are expecting from the 20-year-old Taniguchi Airi?
Airi: I have always been telling myself “Don’t have expectations”. Because if you are expecting something and it does not come true, you will be disappointed, right? I have always felt like that since I applied for the 3rd gen audition because I don’t want to feel like that.. But maybe it is okay to expect a little bit for any kind of change? Whether in how I look, sing or dance. I do hope this year will be a year where I have a visible change. I do have big goals, but maybe I will keep them to myself this time (lol). My ideal is to be able to make it happen without putting them into words.
Q: I will be looking forward to the day that comes.
Airi: The reason I don’t want to say it is because there is the other Taniguchi who will have expectations watching me. That is why I admire Morita-san, who is wild and instinctive, I hope someday I can cross over to that side too.
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