*Last Idol 8th Single - Close Up Star Interview. This was posted on TV Guide's site on March 25th.
"Selected members from the Aki-P produced group, Last Idol"
(L to R: Rio, Wakana, Abe, Midori, and Airi)
Last Idol, the Idol Group produced by Aki-P that debuted in December 2017, is releasing their 8th single "I Know Love". The groups was formed by members who won one on one performance battles held on a TV Show of the same name. After their debut, the title song for the singles was decided by battles between Units. They also tried various challenges such as the "Art of Walking" for their 6th single. This time, they held their first Candidate System Audition Battle to select 18 members to sing the title song! We spoke with members ranked 1 - 5 (Abe Natsumi, Nagatsuki Midori, Majima Wakana, Yasuda Airi, and Oomori Rio) about their thoughts on recent events.
--First of all, please tell us about your feelings after the first Candidate System Audition Battle.
Rio: out of 41 members, only 18 would be selected. I felt I absolutely had to be chosen. However, I had allot of anxiety, so I rented a dance studio and practiced by myself. As a result of challenging myself and giving everything I had, I was chosen for 5th place. I want to do my best to make everyone happy that I was chosen for 5th!
Airi: The candidate system was announced on twitter and I was at a loss. I really hate fighting against other members. However, after stressing out about it, I looked at the fans who work hard, and I remembered that Idols can inspire people and give them hope. Because of this, I decided to do my best and was chosen as 4th place in the candidate system.
Wakana: I was chosen as 3rd place, but I want to keep in mind the members who weren't chosen, and I want to work without being content with the results. The members who didn't place in the 18 are really disappointed and I think they are determined rise up. In this way, the entire group can raise our awareness of how much fun it is being in an Idol Group. I think that's what is most enjoyable. I hope to inspire this kind of group with the atmosphere of this single!
Midori: When this Audition Battle was announced, some members were crying because they were scared, but I was happy and crying (laughs). I've been battling allot, so my feeling was like "Bring it on anytime!" I went through the audition with the mindset of how I can improve and what I could do to get chosen. In the end, I got 2nd place!
--Midori-san has a battle temperament (laughs).
Midori: That's right (laughs). In Last Idol, it started with a 1 on 1 performance battle. But recently, the whole group is working together to accomplish one thing and there were many new dynamics. However, I was itching for a fight and started getting a little crazy (laughs).
--How about Abe-san how came in 1st place?
Abe: I also needed some kind of stimulation so I felt like "it finally came!" and was looking forward to the battle. As a result, I was chosen as the center once again, but I feel more pressure than I have before.
-- The title song sung by the top 18 from the Audition Battle is called "I Know Love". This a new type of song for Last Idol, isn't it?
Rio: This is the first time we've done Rock song. It's really upbeat. We can get fans really excited with a song like this when performing it live!
Wakana: When we received the song, I thought "It's finally come!" I wanted to sing the kind of song that gets people to spin towels above their heads at Summer Festivals, so I'm really happy!
Airi: I usually listen to upbeat songs, so I was really happy when I heard "I Know Love".
Midori: The music is upbeat, but the lyrics are a bit dark. Personally, I think that's become the trademark of Last Idol.
--Following her work on the previous song "Seishun Train", Akane, the choreographer of the "Bubbly Dance" and coach for Tomioka High School's Dance Club in Osaka, has also done the choreography for this song.
Abe: Last time, we performed the dance for "Seishun Train" with a serious expression. This time, there are allot of smiling faces and I think you can see allot of cute expression from the members!
Rio: There's also a part for a free dance, so we get a chance to show our individual charms.
--"I Know Love" is an impressive title.
Rio: Actually, I'm looking forward to what abbreviations will take root. There are some fans who are already abbreviating it to "Loving" and "I Love", but because I'm from Aichi Prefecture, "Loving" is the best choice! If this abbreviation catches on, we may be able to do a collaboration with Aichi Prefecture! (laughs)
(*This is something that gets lost in translation. "I Know Love" is written in Japanese as "愛を知る" When the characters "愛" and "知" are written together like this "愛知" it reads as Aichi, Rio's home. The joke makes more sense if I write her sentence like this: Because I'm from Aichi Prefecture, "Aichi" is the best choice)
--Of course (laughs). In addition to this, Last Idol has been around for over two years since it's debut.
What kinds of things have changed for you?
Midori: It's a group that was the result of 1 on 1 battles, but now I think we all respect each other. We can look past ourselves and see good points in the other members.
Airi: I think recently that Abe-chan has become a Center that encompasses everything. I look at Abe's back and see her dance and sing perfectly and it feels like everyone in the group is connected to her and follows her every move.
Abe: In the past, I only thought of myself. After being in Last Idol, I think of the entire group. I'm really very shy, but Akane-sensei said "If you open your heart to everyone, it will become a better group." Because of that, I think I'm changing.
--Currently, Last Idol has a television program being broadcasted on TV Asahi with the duo Shimofuri Myoji as the MCs.
Midori: Shimofuri Myojo also mentioned our name on the radio, so I'm really grateful. Both of them are very kind.
Abe: I want to thank them for taking good care of us.
--In closing, please tell us your current goal as Last Idol.
Abe: The goal is to make Idol known more and more and one day to stand on the stage at Budokan.
Wakana: Naturally, I think standing inside Budokan will prove without a doubt that Last Idol's popularity is growing, so we'll do our best!
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