Cheeky Parade will perform their last ever solo show on July 12, 2018.

It was officially announced recently that the girl group will disband at the end of July and that they would announce details about a final solo show at a later date. Those details were finally unveiled on April 25. Members Marin Yamamoto and Mariya Suzuki who have been studying abroad in LA for almost 2 years will perform at the concert.

Full music videos for the group’s latest songs, Answer, marigold and I Don’t Care, which went on sale on February 14, were simultaneously posted on avex’s official Youtube channel.

Answer

marigold

The members had mentioned at several places that they wanted people to see the second halves of each music video, and at long last they’re here.

I Don’t Care

Let us burn Cheeky Parade’s final all-out concert with all 7 members and their music videos into our memories.

Cheeky Parade performed at Shibuya Womb’s limited period live “LIVE LIVE LIVE! VOL 5” on Friday 9^th June. As this was the last live in which Cheeky Parade band members Seran Mizorogi Momoka Kodakari will partake before leaving, it came to no surprise that the tickets were sold out. The venue was packed with fans eager to see the girls’ last performance together.

Cheeky Parade performed all their songs at this event and at the previous limited event “LIVE LIVE LIVE! VOL4”. After a lengthy 5 ½ years of being together, holding the stage with their gorgeous charm, this time Seran and Momoka gave it their all for each song.

The band kicked off LIVE LIVE LIVE! VOL5 with “WE ARE THE GREATEST NINE9” – a strong opening which shows their strong bonds. The singing arrangement focussed around the two members who will be leaving to study in LA. Each member layered their vocals with individual solos. Even though this was just the start of the show, you could see tears in the eyes of the performers. They continued to perform their singles “BUNBUN NINE9”, “C.P.U!?”, “Mugendai Shoujo A”, “Together”, “M.O.N.ST＠R”, “Hands up!”, “Shout along” and much more.

For the encore, they performed “Bokura ga No.1” and repeated “M.O.N.ST＠R” again. Although the original version of M.O.N.ST＠R does not include the vocals of Mariya Suzuki and Marin Yamamoto, this time they took part. All 9 band members in unity for their last song. 

Leader Mariya Suzuki exclaimed grandly; “I wish they didn’t have to leave. Let’s do our best as a five and be strong! We want to wait for Mariya and Marin. We wish all the best for Seran and Momoka!” Banter sprung up on the stage, making fun of Mariya’s grand words. “You’re not getting married”, said one member of the band. Momoka then exclaimed: “Stop fussing so much!” Until the very end of the performance, fans could witness the true nature of Cheeky Parade.

Since 10^th June, 5 members that are active in Japan have remained in Cheeky Parade. Including Mariya Suzuki and Marin Yamamoto, who are leaving to study in LA, there are 7 members. After 5 ½ years, are the band members, including Mariya and Marin, ready to face the continuing challenges of the world?

Related article：Cheeky Parade’s members in Japan will now be five. Read the English translations of each member’s comments

Related article：Cheeky Parade’s “Teleportation Live” video from SXSW has now been released!

It was announced that the idol group Cheeky Parade’s members in Japan will now be five in total.

Cheeky Parade was formed in 2012 with nine members. Marin Yamamoto and Mariya Suzuki were in LA for study and the number of the members of Cheeky Parade who work in Japan was seven but Seran Mizorogi and Momoka Kodakari have decided to quit the group on the 9^th of June, 2017 and so the members will become five in total.

Comments by all the members including the two members in LA were upped on Cheeky Parade’s official web site.

It was a sad announcement but through their comments they showed their fans their firm cohesiveness.

※From Cheeky Parade’s Website

Japanese▶http://www.cheekyparade.jp/news/detail.php?id=1049368

 Seran Mizorogi

Firstly, I would like to say thank all our fans who always supported our group. I think everyone was surprised by this announcement and I think there are a lot people who disagree with this outcome. I talked to the members, staff and my family before I decided to quit the group. I feel nothing but thankfulness for all the people surrounding me. I am sorry that I have to announce such sad news. The things that I experienced as a member of Cheeky Parade and all the support we got form our fans and the members of the group are all very important to me and I will never forget these things. Thank you for supporting me until now. I would appreciate it if you could continue to support Cheeky Parade from now on.

Momoka Kodakari

I am sorry to announce such sad news all of the sudden. And I am sorry to let you down. While Marin and Mariya were studying abroad, I thought about a lot of things. I talked to the members and staff a lot and decided that I must go my own way. There must be a lot people thinking, “Why now?” I think the decision I made is very selfish. I am very sorry. I could be a member of Cheeky Parade only because many fans supported me. Thank you for supporting me even though I am immature and cannot do a whole lot. The experiences I had over these five years is something that I will never forget in my lifetime. Again, thank you for supporting me until now.

Asami Watanabe

I feel sorry for our fans who have been supporting our group. We talked a lot and decided to make this decision. After the 10^th of June, we will wait for Marin and Mariya to come back to Japan and rejoin our group. We will try our best to measure up our fans expectations.

 Yuna Sekine

I feel sorry to our fans to have to surprise you with this announcement. It is very sad but we (the members of Cheeky Parade and Seran / Momoka) decided to take a different path. From now on, we will wait for Marin and Mariya to come back from LA. Although we feel anxious, we will try to expand the group so please continue to support us from now on.

Rino Shimazaki

To our fans.

Sorry to surprise you with this announcement.

We (the five members of the group) will try our best until Marin and Mariya come back to rejoin our group.

Yuriya Suzuki

I am sorry that we will not be able to fulfill our promise that we (the nine members of the group) will stand on a big stage again. From now, the number of members in our group will become five until Marin and Mariya come back. We will try our best so please support us and thank you for supporting Seran and Momoka up until now.

Hina Nagai

To our fans. Sorry to surprise you with this sudden announcement.

We talked a lot about this.

We decided to respect the opinions of the two of them.

I would appreciate it if you could continue to support the “new” Cheeky Parade consisting of 5 members from the 10^th of June onward.

Marin Yamamoto

I would like to say thank you to our fans who have always continued to  support Cheeky Parade. It is sad that we cannot show the nine members of Cheeky Parade anymore but the “new” Cheeky Parade will try hard to fill in the empty paces so please continue to support us from now on.

Mariya Suzuki

It is sad that we cannot say “WE ARE THE GREATEST NINE9!’” and “The best NINE9!’” anymore but we will try our best. The two of us studying in LA will try hard to fill in the blank. Please support Cheeky Parade.

Currently, Cheeky Parade is holding a fixed term live “LIVE LIVE LIVE!” at Shibuya WOMB LIVE.

They are holding a live concert that will be divided into two sections, one in May and the other in June performing all the songs and Mizorogi and Kodakari will quit Cheeky Parade after performing all the songs at “Cheeky Parade LIVE LIVE LIVE VOL5” that will be held on the 9^th of June (Fri).

Related article：Cheeky Parade’s “Teleportation Live” video from SXSW has now been released!

Related article：Interview: Having performed at the CBGB festival and currently gaining international attention, just who are “Cheeky Parade”?

Cheeky Parade have begun their series of concerts titled “LIVE LIVE LIVE”, with vol.0 recently being held at Shibuya WOMB. The group are now moving onto the next installment, vol.1, which will come in the form of battle of the bands.

The vol.0 show began with a big mirror ball in the center of the room and a huge screen on stage. Tickets were sold out; there was a huge line of around 300 people waiting to enter the venue, eventually packing it out. The girls pumped everyone up by playing a list of Cheeky Parade hits, such as “SKY GATE”, “Tactics” and “Colourful Starlight”.

During the middle of the concert the girls made use of the club space to enact short skits, and member Seran Mizorogi even tried DJing for the first time, all of which amounted to a new kind of performance from Cheeky Parade.

In the final part of the performance, as if they were showing their true ability, they concluded with a string of powerful songs, including “Hands up!” and “Lost+Found”. Everyone also celebrated during the encore for member Yuuna Sekine who turned 22 at the end of September. This was truly a special event.

Vol.1, the next installment to the concert series, will be a battle of the bands against Hige Dri VAN. Pitting against Hige Driver with songs such as “Check It Out”, which is hugely popular even overseas, and their latest single “Hands up!”, it will be interesting to see how the two groups get along. The fact of how they are both so different is attracting some serious attention!

■Information
Official Website: http://www.cheekyparade.jp/

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■Related Article: Interview: Having performed at the CBGB festival and currently gaining international attention, just who are “Cheeky Parade”?

http://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/20142

■Related Article: MOSHI MOSHI INTERVIEW: Cheeky Parade

http://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/10171

Cheeky Parade is part of the Avex idol label “iDOL Street”, the second idol group to come out of the label. The group have gained attention both within Japan and overseas for their great vocals and energetic live performances, having performed even in Paris and LA. We interviewed for of the Cheeky Parade members, including Yuriya Suzuki, Yuna Sekine, Seran Mizorogi, and Momoka Kodakari, about two of the members going to study abroad, their latest song “Hands up!”, and their thoughts on their overseas performance.

・First of all, please tell us a little about the group “Cheeky Parade”.
Sekine: “Cheeky Parade” is a nine member group that have been together 4 years this year. Two of the members are currently studying abroad in Los Angeles so we are working with seven members for the time being. Just as our name suggests, we are “Cheeky”, always being mischievous and high energy on stage. If you’re able to come and see us live, I think you’ll know what we mean.

・What kind of songs do you play the most live?
Mizorogi: We perform a lot of songs that everyone can enjoy together! If you hear our music, you’ll be able to forget all the bad things.

・What are the members of the group like?
Mizorogi: We have a lot of very energetic and loud members (laughs). I think the music studio is quiet once or twice a year!
Suzuki: And that energy really comes out on stage! All the members are really lively, and it’s the same on stage. It’s a lot of fun.

・The other groups that are with the idol label you are on are accepting new members, but it was decided that Cheeky Parade wouldn’t accept new members and continue with who you have. What’s the reason for this?
Suzuki: I think because we have ties with each other and we all really get along, and because we’ve been able to come as far as we have together, so it wouldn’t really work if it wasn’t the 9 of us.

・Cheeky Parade seem to be really keen about performing overseas, having gone countries like America and France.
Kodakari: Of course we’d be active in Japan, but going overseas has always been our dream! We were able to go to New York, France and Los Angeles last year and the year before. We were able to learn how people overseas do their thing during performances. I’ve really come to want to spread Japanese culture even more overseas. There are so many Cheeky Parade fans in France that support us, and it’s that which makes me want to return the favour to our overseas supporters.
Suzuki: There really is a Cheeky Parade fan community in France. There’s a French music program that ranks the most popular Japanese songs. Lots of French Cheeky Parade fans voted for us and we placed 3rd in the rankings!

Two of our members, Marin Yamamoto and Suzuki Mariya, are studying abroad in Los Angeles, but once they come back having studied English, I think we’ll be able to become an even stronger group overseas.

・What do you think will be the secret weapon that determines your success overseas?
Kodakari: Music that will get everyone going! When we went to New York, nobody knew who we were, so I wondered what would happen, but as soon as our music came on everyone people came over to watch and were really enjoying it. Even though they didn’t know the lyrics, I feel like it really resonated with them. Music can connect with anybody in the world. Even though the song is in Japanese, if the melody and rhythm are good then it can bring together that many people. I was really happy.
Suzuki: Cheeky Parade have fun choreography and we all jump together a lot during performances, so performing overseas made me want to come up with more fun songs that foreign people can enjoy too – songs that get your body moving, even if you don’t understand the words.

・Are there any songs you’d like people to remember when you perform overseas again?
Mizorogi: I wonder… (laughs). Our new song “Hands up!” is a rock song that even people who don’t like idol music can enjoy, so if there are any people overseas that don’t know about idol culture, I think they’ll be able to have fun with that song. There’s a lot of parts where we dance together, so if they keep listening to our songs, watch our live performances and music videos and learn the dances I’ll be very happy.

・It’s impressive that you wear pajamas in “Hands up!”
Suzuki: Pajamas are popular in the overseas fashion world at the minute, so we tried adopting the latest fashion. On the other hand, with regards to spreading Japanese culture overseas, when we go there we go wearing kimono.

・Finally, please leave a message for your overseas fans.
Sekine: Even if you don’t understand what we’re saying during our performances, you’ll be able to forget anything and everything and have fun just by watching! I want to start going overseas more, so it’s fine if you don’t know our songs, just come and see us and I have confidence that you’ll love us!
Kodakari: We haven’t been overseas wearing these pyjamas yet, so we will perform wearing them, so I’d like all of you to wait for us wearing your pyjamas (laughs).
Suzuki: “I love music”, “I love having fun”. These are feelings that everyone feels and that connect with anyone in the world, so I would be grateful if you can have fun through Cheeky Parade. If you’re someone that likes to have fun, I’d most definitely like you to come and see Cheeky Parade!
Mizorogi: We plan to make Cheeky Parade become bigger and also to become famous overseas, so please be sure to keep an eye on us!

Cheeky Parade Official Website
http://cheekyparade.jp

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■Related Article: Lucky 7s all round — Cheeky Parade’s new formation of 7 celebrates Oricon Daily Ranking of 7th place achieved by their new single released on 7th September!

■Related Article: MOSHI MOSHI INTERVIEW: Cheeky Parade

Cheeky Parade members Marin Yamamoto and Mariya Suzuki have embarked on their study abroad trips to LA, leaving Cheeky Parade as a 7-member group. “Hands up” was released on 7^th September as the first single of Cheeky Parade as a 7 member group. On the first day of the Oricon Daily Rankings, this single was ranked 7^th place, launching the new group out into the world with a lucky 7 start!

■Related article：MOSHI MOSHI INTERVIEW: Cheeky Parade

The new single “Hands Up” carries the hot atmosphere of Cheeky Parade, making for an energetic rock tune. During Cheeky Parade’s outdoor festival which was held in summer, the guest seats were swarming and buzzing with excitement. In contrast to this powerful song, the girls wore pop-pastel style pyjamas on stage for a fresh, outgoing and challenging appeal! During the performance, Cheeky Parade showed a cheeky stomach flash which really got the fans talking!

The new DVD release features footage which has not been uploaded onto YouTube! Even in the midst of a hot summer, the girls dressed in long sleeves and pants and sung for their fans, subsequently celebrating their success with a bare midriff style pyjama party!

Just watching the overly friendly and playful girls is enough to heal you! This weekend, member Momoka Kodakari will start to work as a regular host for FM Shiga’s “e-radio 20th Anniversary SHIGA IDOL COLLECTION ～2016 Summer～”. She will also attend a release event at Lazona Kawasaki and with the new single in her hands, has made plans to perform in the Kanto and Kansai regions!

■Hands up! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Jbzo-JWsJI

■Official website:

http://www.cheekyparade.jp/

■Related article：Cheeky Parade finally perform in Paris, and give an unforgettable and powerful line-up with the force of all 9-members!

Last year, we saw a fantastic performance from and response to Cheeky Parade’s live show at “MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON FESTIVAL 2015 in PARIS”. In the run up to their performance at this year’s JAPAN EXPO, there was an ardent offer. It has already been made known that the group will drop from 9 members to 7 as a result of members Yamamoto Marin and Suzuki Mariya announcing their plans to study abroad in LA for two years. Because of this, the two of them decided to join the other 7 members to form the original 9-member line-up for their performance at JAPAN EXPO in France.

On the first day (July 7th), Cheeky Parade member Shimazaki Rino, who loves France, greeted everybody in French: “Bonjour! Ca fait longtemps!” (Hi! It’s been a while!)

The group’s new appointed leader, Suzuki Yuriya, then said nervously but with all her effort, in English, “Thank you for coming to see us today! We’re really happy to come back in France!”, to which the audience responded with warm and welcoming round of applause and cheers.

The first day of the event saw the group perform “BUNBUN NINE9’”, “Together”, “Cheeky dreamer” and more, for a total set-list of 9 songs that focused on their poppy and cheerful main tracks.

The final day of JAPAN EXPO brought 4,000 Cheeky Parade fans running for a chance to see their performance, where they performed various familiar and well-known tracks, from “SINFONIA” to “C.P.U !?”

The sophisticated opening of Cheeky Parade’s performance featured the French national flag, where the heat and excitement in the venue headed towards its climax throughout the performance from the very first song.

The girls performed hit after hit, such as their track “Check it out”, which reached No.3 on “NOLIFE”, a French cable TV channel which reports on French J-pop culture.

Suzuki Mariya and Yamamoto Marin gave some comments in English during the MC. Mariya stated, “It’s our last live with original members for a while, because two of us will go to LA for schooling.” Both girls then raised their hands and said, “We are leaving Cheeky Parade for schooling in LA for 2 years”, after which Marin promised that they will return to the stage again.

Even during the last half of the concert, the excitement in the venue never let up once and only continued to grow stronger as Cheeky Parade continued to play high-tension and catchy songs such as “Colouful Starlight”. During the song, the members said “Ça va?” in French, which evoked huge crazy cheers of joy. As the performance came to its final stage, Suzuki Mariya, who will be studying abroad, took the centre to sing “Together” and “WE ARE THE GREATEST NINE9’”.

Mariya and Marin descended from the stage and lamentingly dashed to high-five fans to mark the next two-years they would be separated from them. Cheeky Parade have not once had a member line-up change in their 4 and a half years they have been together.

Even if they are apart, Cheeky Parade will always have 9 members. Even France puffed out their chest to say that these are the greatest 9 members, and gave a round of applause to them for having magnificently sang in front of 4,000 people, an applause from everyone regardless of being from a different country that suggested they were about to crack and break.

The group’s newly appointed leader, Suzuki Yuriya, then mustered her strength and delivered a heartfelt message while crying, saying “Thank you for giving us the greatest memories. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. We hope to see you in France with nine members. We will continue to do our best, so we hope to receive your support.”

After the performance had ended, calls for an encore echoed and echoed.

Due to certain conditions, the group weren’t allowed to do an encore, but they reappeared on stage once more to shout “Vive la France”, which gave a very fitting end to their 10-song performance.

【Comment from Sekine Yuuna】
Playing JAPAN EXPO has always been our heart’s desire. I’m so happy that all 9 of us were able to stand on that stage together. We were finally able to have our wish granted. I am so happy.
I will continue to work hard so that all 9 of us can perform in Japan, and return to France and overseas once more.

【Comment from Suzuki Yuriya】
Although our performance at iDOL Street Carnival was our last true time together as 9 members, I really felt the love reach us from the people of France. I am so happy that we were able to do this final show in France!
Marin and Mariya will be studying abroad for two years and so I will also work hard!!
And then after they come back, I really want us to become the greatest 9 in the entire world ☆

【Comment from Yamamoto Marin】
Although me and Mariya will be taking a temporary break from Cheeky Parade to study abroad in LA, I am truly happy that we were able to do this final performance before leaving in France at JAPAN EXPO, something we have always dreamed of!
This next two years will feel lonely not being able to perform live together with everyone as 9 members, but I will power up and work hard so we can play in France again!

【Comment from Suzuki Mariya】
This was mine and Marin’s last live show before we go to study abroad.
So I am over the moon about that we were able to create the opportunity to perform together again!!
When I get back from studying abroad I want to become fluent in English and talk with the people of France. I really do!
I will most definitely come and see everyone here in France again after these next two years. As Mariya of Cheeky Parade. Thank you for giving me such a happy time♪

Keep the promise of after two years.

■Official Website: http://www.cheekyparade.jp/

“Cheeky Parade” will be hitting the stage at Europe’s biggest Japanese culture festival “JAPAN EXPO 2016”. The source of this cool Japan movement will be in in Paris, France. At the release event which was held in Lalaport Kashiwanoha, the leader of Cheeky Parade Yūna Sekine, who was the MC at the event, announced that the last international live performance of their group of 9 will be at JAPAN EXPO 2016.

“Cheeky Parade has an announcement for everybody! We will be performing at JAPAN EXPO in Paris, France in July! We received a hot offer from the organisers of JAPAN EXPO after they noticed us performing at a MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON event in France last year. Thanks to this opportunity, we are continuing our overseas activity as a group of 9! Our last performance in Japan will be at iDOL Street Carnival on 25^th June!” she announced.

■ Related article：Festival Report: J-pop Culture Fans Blown Away at MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON FESTIVAL 2015 in Paris and London!

Last year at MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON FESTIVAL 2015 in PARIS, Cheeky Parade fans were stampeding and parading all the way from the airport. During the live performance and even at the special after event, the girls were pumped up and this energy was sustained even during the goodbyes, so there’s no mistaking that they will deliver their best and most hyped-up performance at JAPAN EXPO!

Cheeky parade will be releasing their latest album on 1^st June and will also be holding a free event at SHIBUYA CLUB QUATTRO on that weekend which will be a send-off party for Marin Yamamoto and Mariya Suzuki, who announced their study abroad trips to LA. It is possible to enter the SHIBUYA CLUB QUATTRO event free of charge until the end of the day so please do check it out!

■JAPAN EXPO

Scheduled period： Thursday 7^th — Sunday 10^th July 2016

Website： http://japan-expo.com

※Cheeky Parade will perform live on Thursday 7^th and Sunday 10^th July

Venue：Parc des Expositions de Paris-Nord-Villepinte trade venue

■ Related article：Experience Japan first-hand worldwide with these upcoming overseas Japanese events & concerts!

Cheeky Parade turned 4 years old on February 19th. To celebrate their anniversary, they held a two-slot commemoration live event at Shinjuku Blaze on Saturday 20th February. The girls displayed their true idol potential and energy at the event, with two separate shows that had 2 completely different set lists being performed.

The first of the shows began with each of the 9 members scattering onto the stage wearing their pre-debut outfits. This was further accompanied by sound effects used by Cheeky Parade during their indie era, which took the audience by surprise and stirred the whole venue into excitement.

The show started with the girls performing their first original track “Cheeky dreamer”, which was followed by a string of songs released before their debut including “Tactics”. The set list was a time warp to when the girls first formed and played at SHIODOME AX. This was followed by a movie showing the time when it was decided that they would go major.

It was at the same venue they were playing this day, Shinjuku BLAZE, that their major debut was announced. The girls reminisced about their memories of that day before changing into their outfits made for their 3rd single “Mugendai Shoujo A” in which they began performing songs from their debut onwards.

Later on, the members changed into their most recent outfits and went on to perform “SKY GATE” and “M.O.N.ST@R” for a total of 17 songs, following their music career footsteps and setting in stone their 4 years together up to now.

The second show began with their most recent single “SKY GATE”. This was followed by “Kizuna PUNKY ROCK!!” and “Colourful Starlight”, showcasing the group’s maturity and how far they have come with their success. This performance had a very different atmosphere to the first slot and unrolled into their strongest and best performance to date.

The girls went on to perform their song “Fly higher” which, despite being an album-only track, boasts immense popularity. A special guest (…?) from overseas then walked on stage. It was Gainer, who appeared on stage for the opening of Cheeky Parade’s concert at Akasaka BLITZ last year. Gainer is known as the “exercise artist”. Together with assistants Rogie and Watanabe and the manager, Gainer had the audience exercising to the song “GARLIC&ONION”. She seems awfully similar to a certain member of Cheeky Parade… Gainer and the others then left the stage gallantly after dancing to the song.

The show moved on to the dance section of the concert which is always performed at the members’ one-man lives and tours. They danced to “DANCERS ANTHEM”, a heart popping dance track that makes you feel like you are part of a parade at an amusement park.

The group then performed a brand new song! Titled “Hungry”, the track is an upbeat rock track which shook the venue into an excited frenzy. From the beginning of the performance to the climax, the members displayed a thrilling performance of 19 songs that overflowed with Cheeky Parade personality. The day displayed an abundance of variety in every performance.

It has been announced that Cheeky Parade members Yamamoto Marin and Suzukiya Mariya will be heading to LA to study abroad at the end of June. Saturday’s show was performed with the knowledge of that future in mind, and there is definitely room available to want to see more of the 9 members perform together again. Cheeky Parade are scheduled to play a one-man live in Tokyo and Osaka in May. 2016 will most likely be a test for Cheeky Parade. Everyone is gazing at Cheeky Parade in anticipation to see how they will change and grow this year.

Speaking with artists who are on the radar on Japan’s music scene right now, we bring you another volume on the MOSHI MOSHI interview.

Cheeky Parade (aka Chikipa) have been on the up and coming, widely talked about for their “aggressive” live performance. Read on to find out what they’re all about on our interview here.

Interviewees: Yūna Sekine、Seran Mizorogi、Asami Watanabe Photos: Yuta Mukaiyama Words: Toshinori Tanaka（SHUTTER

ーーYou all performed at the MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON FESTIVAL 2015 in TOKYO last year, share with us some new things you discovered through taking part in it!

Sekine:  It was nice to see a lot of foreigners in the audience. We could tell that people enjoyed our music even if they didn’t understand the language, so that was one thing we couldn’t have discovered at our other performances. We really felt the need to reach out more to our foreign fans!

Mizorogi：It was crazy how so many of the foreign fans knew the calls! It always makes us happy to foreign fans remember some Japanese through our lyrics.

Watanabe：We’ve had our fans from France fly over to our meet and greets and our performances, they’ve even set up a fan club of their own and invited us over to perform…some of them would greet us with a “Yokoso” at the airport, etc. and we’re really grateful for all of it. Being active overseas has been a big dream for us since our debut, and with all that’s been said, we feel we’re slowly inching towards this goal.

ーーYou’ve performed in Paris, LA, Hong Kong, and New York. Any interesting stories there?

Sekine：We took part in an event called “CBGB” in New York, which was held smack in the middle of Times Square. But we were taken aback when we only saw 10 people at the venue…I remember we took a cardboard box that we found close-by and wrote a note on it to promote the event out on the streets. And so we started performing with a small crowd, but we saw the audience grow in size as we continued performing. They would actually stop and watch us perform. I realized it’s important to take on different stages because music transcends the language barrier.

Watanabe：So we usually fool around by drawing on each others’ faces (laughs) — when we were in New York, we were doing this at a restaurant and when we got back to our hotel room, we realized we were locked out (laughs). So we went down to the reception with our doodled-on faces and the staff there were laughing like there was no tomorrow, it was embarrassing…

Mizorogi：When we were in Paris, we went out to go shopping. We weren’t in the outfits we perform in or anything, but some people came up to us and asked if we were members from Cheeky Parade. It would better explain things if we were in our costumes, so we were delightfully surprised when these fans came up to us and knew who we were in our regular clothes. Oh, another thing in Paris. We opened the door to our room, and it was already being used by someone. We told our manager straight away and had our rooms switched in an hour or so, but the one we switched to was also being used by someone else…so it took three rooms for us to finally find one no one had checked in yet (laughs).

ーーAny differences between a foreign/Japanese crowd?

Watanabe：Definitely. The Japanese people know what the lyrics mean, so they’ll listen more to the lyrics and do the calls upon understanding the lyrics. But since the foreigners aren’t familiar with our language, they just take the music in and dance freely. I’ve spotted people doing the moon walk to our music (laughs). They just go with it.

Mizorogi：Yeah, I felt that in Paris too. Usually in Japan, it’s a call and response. We say something, and the crowd says something back. But in Paris, people would just shout something out when they felt like it. The timing of it all was very interesting, and you can definitely see the difference in culture by watching how people express themselves at shows.

ーーSounds fun (laughs). Tell us more about your local shows in Japan.

Watanabe：We performed at 14 different places with our label mates from iDOL Street (Avex’s idol label). We really travelled far and wide this year. It’s refreshing to perform in places we’ve never been to before, we can approach our shows with a sort of renewed energy. We also realized that not a lot of people know us from the local areas of Japan, so we’d love to tour nationally and eventually be prestigious enough to do a dome tour.

ーーTell us a country/city you’d like to visit in the future.

Mizorogi：Somewhere near the waters!

Sekine：Yeah! Australia!

Watanabe：Yes!

ーーAustralia’s great! How about Asian countries?

Sekine：Korea!

Mizorogi：For sure!

Mizorogi：Oh, and Russia too. I’ve got this sophisticated image of Russia, but I hope to obliterate that with an energetic performance. It’s too cold in Russia, so we’ll be perfect to heat them up! (laughs)

Sekine：Brazil too. Isn’t Brazil the furthest point from Japan? Right on the opposite side of us, if I’m correct. It’ll be amazing to travel far, and I feel Brazilians would know how to jive to our music. The flight will be tough, but we’ll bring a load of manga books (laughs).

Watanabe：There seems to be a lot of people who perform at Singapore. We’d love to perform there too.

ーーHave you been on the look out for foreign pop culture?

Sekine：I love K-POP culture. Their performance, their outfits, their sets…just watching them takes you to a different world, and there seems to be so much hope is shoved into their works, that’s what keeps you completely hooked. There’s a lot to learn from them.

Watanabe：We took part in Comic-Con while we were in New York and it made me remember how I was obsessed with “Power Puff Girls” back when I was little. They’re still adorable!

Mizorogi：I love BIGBANG. Their performance is amazing! Each and every member also seem to have a unique quality to them. I know we differ in gender, but their performance is something we’d love to adapt and make our own.

ーーHow would you describe Japanese pop culture if you were to put a term on it?

Sekine：Omocha-bako (box of toys)! It’s hard to distill Japanese pop culture and say “this one thing is it.” It’s a concoction of different elements like Anime from Akihabara, or idols, like us.

Mizorogi：One of a kind, I guess? It’s something you’ll never see in any other culture. “Kawaii” is a really interesting cultural concept that we’ve nurtured. I also feel only the “fittest” aspects survive cultural trends, but don’t you feel Japanese pop culture appeared out of thin air? Japanese people are so inventive, and it’s incredible how foreigners actually want to incorporate our culture into their own lives and visit our countries because they’re so struck by it all.

Watanabe：Beautiful! I’ve come to realize that there are many things that are normal to us, that won’t appear “normal” in the eye of a foreigner. Like how our toilet seats are heated (laughs). Travelling abroad has made me realize that we’re really meticulous about things. For example oshuji (calligraphy writing), ocha (tea ceremony), yamato nadeshiko (an idealized Japanese woman).  Oh, which makes me recall the time we did Oshuji in France. We would ask for the person’s name and write out their name in kanji, randomly picking kanji that we thought worked well. They loved it!

ーーGive us a shoutout to your fans abroad!

Sekine：There are hundreds of idols in Japan now, but we’re really proud of what we create, and we’re confident you’ll get hooked to us once you take a listen. Keep your eyes out for any upcoming events and if we’re in your country, definitely come out and hang!

Watanabe：The ultimate Chikipa strength is our performances. I think we’re a unique bunch, it’s impressive how they got all of us in one group. But that’s an aspect we’d love for you to enjoy as well!

Mizorogi：Two things you need to educate yourself with: Chikipa and Japanese! If you want to ride the hype, this is the way to do it.