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  Q This year’s ”5th YEAR ANNIVERSARY LIVE” has become a concert with the biggest scale in Sakurazaka46’s history, first can you tell us how you were feeling right before the show during the D-day?  Fujiyoshi Karin: Ten-chan, didn’t you… what was it again? The vice captain announcement. How was it? Yamasaki Ten: Uh, rather than that “Samidare Yo” performance was especially scary for me. (※On the day of the concert, “Samidare Yo" performance starts with Yamasaki Ten’s solo singing, with a new arrangement. ) All I could think about was regarding that. I wasn’t afraid at all regarding the vice captain announcement. Since it’s already been decided anyway, it’s not like I can do anything about that. But I’m really scared of performing “Samidare Yo”... they made time for voice training for me right up until the last minute.  Other than that, there are also so many things I had to do that I didn’t know where I should start first. I would write it all, think about that, rememberi...

  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 ...

  To reach the world   -How did you feel when you first heard that you would be going to Tokyo Dome? Yamazaki: I felt that it might have been too soon for Sakurazaka46 to stand on Tokyo Dome's stage. While I felt happy for Sugai (Yuuka)-san's graduation and that we'd be going to Tokyo Dome, I didn't feel like we'd done enough to be there. Only around 3 days before the performance did my feelings change. In the middle of all the Tokyo Dome rehearsals, I was reprimanded countlessly by TAKAHIRO-sensei and the production staff. It really made me fire up, so to say, it made me want to work harder. I think the other members also changed their mindsets. -What did you feel was lacking? Yamazaki: The tour this time has the major theme of “world class concert”. We put a lot of details into the production, sounds, and lighting, and we created the stage while synchronising with the staff members. However I felt like we, the members, were lacking the spirit of wanting to do our ...

  Hello again, I’m Yamasaki Ten. On the day of the photoshoot, the staff were sent into an uproar by how cute Ten-chan had become. She’s so cute! Ten-chan is slowly becoming even more beautiful, but let’s have her introduce herself again. We’ll explore this through questions sent in by our readers.

  Q1 Favorite color? Blue. I’m the type of person who changes her favorite color from time to time. But it seems that I often wear blue in Summer. There are many items with shades of blue in the new clothes I get. Also I used to be against blue eyeshadow, but during ViVi’s photoshoot I thought that it’s cute if I put in a little bit of it as a point. Q2 Favorite body part? Downy hair. I often receive a lot of styling from ViVi that makes good use of downy hair! I never thought of my downy hair as a charm point before, but I started to think that it’s interesting! Ears. I like how my ears are pointy like aliens. My ears are very soft, so when I want to relax or when I have a headache I would touch it and loosen up. Q3 Is your height growing? Yes. I’m about 167cm tall now. Recently my growth spurt has been bad. I couldn’t dance. I grew the most between 5th to 6th year of elementary school. I grew 13cm! Q4 Good part of your nails? How there is a feeling of cleanliness. Q5 Which beauty...

  Q&A Section Q1 What is something that changed from Sakurazaka46 after the renaming? Risa: I could feel how with the renaming, all the members have this feeling of getting a fresh start and trying to create again from scratch, that turned to a great sense of synergy, and brought a bright atmosphere flowing throughout the group. Ten: The costume has become gorgeous too, hasn’t it? It is very fulfilling how through the things that we have accumulated as Keyakizaka46, we can try new things again now. Q2 On the contrary, what stays the same? Risa: To continue delivering songs that put an emphasis on expression; that moves the hearts of whoever hears it; it’s something that’s unchanged in importance since the Keyakizaka46 days . I want to continue to take good care of it. Ten: Personally I can only think about changes. One of them is how I’m able to talk a lot with members. Shortly before the name change, I felt the need to strengthen the unity of the group, and I thought that it’s...

  picture taken from monthly preview available in ViVi's website 1. Where does your name come from? It seems that there’s a lot (that has been considered), but (they translated) number 10 into the english "Ten" so that it would be easier for foreigners to remember too 2. What comes to mind when you speak of “Ten-chan”? Long black haired? 3. Favorite part of yourself Ears 4. What do you want to eat right now? Nankotsu! 5. Is your height still growing? Please tell us stories from being tall I’m growing! When taking pictures of members, it will naturally taken from a higher angle, so it always feels like I could take (their) pictures more cutely 6. Please show ViVi Ten Camera photos you recently took Matsuda (Matsuda Rina-san), Yui-san (Kobayashi Yui-san), Hikaru (Morita Hikaru-san) 7. What animal would you compare yourself to? Monkey. I feel like we have similar ear shapes... 8. What do you want to eat on the last day of earth? I won’t eat (I want to end it with the feeling...

Yamasaki Ten, who is the only middle schooler in the Sakamichi groups, is the Center of Sakurazaka46’s “Buddies”. She is perhaps having one of the most intense “restart” days for a 15-year-old in Japan right now. While she has the courage to say “Not really” when asked about the pressure from being chosen as Center, on the other hand, she also says “I am truly bad at communicating my feelings to others”.  However, after going through a period of various changes, she said that she feels that “we have become much stronger both as a group and as individuals”. What was swirling within the heart of the wise 15-year-old before she was able to objectively look back on herself up to this point, stating that “I didn’t whine about anything, or rather, I didn’t know how to”. I can be stronger because I have “allies” “After all, without the people around me, I am still weak” Yamasaki Ten who boldly acts as the Center of “Buddies”, a coupling song of Sakurazaka46’s debut single “Nobody’s fault”...

For the youngest of both the group’s generations, Yamasaki Ten had been getting used to, and starting to love, Keyakizaka46’s live activities more and more. That’s why, the coronavirus’ impact in forcing a halt of all live activities this year had been nothing but frustrating for her. That’s also why Keyakizaka’s Last Live this 12th and 13th of October, aside from being the last of Keyakizaka’s performance, was also a ‘joyous two days’ for her. I was really excited when they told us we’d have a completely different subject (setlist) for the two days. Entering this year we only had our streamed performance in July; there was also the exclusive live for Aeon Card holders in September, but as I thought, to have a live performance after a long time with a properly done stage and full-scale direction, needless to say, the members really looked forward to it. When the talks first came up, we only had the rough image of things. When we were told “We’re going big with this live” made me really...