| BACKGROUND
The previous (and first) time this magazine interviewed Tegoshi was for his role in ‘Shissou’, where Tegoshi made his debut in a movie as well as a leading actor and that was seven years ago.
The first part of the interview focuses on Tegoshi’s involvement in the big screen adaptation of ‘Hotaru no Hikari’.
ON HOTARU no HIKARI
Tegoshi’s character in ‘Hotaru no hikari’ is quite different from his own personality; the character’s more of a ‘fence-sitter’ and more indecisive than Tegoshi
The filming schedule in Rome was quite difficult too as there was a ‘3-4 day wait’ in between scenes and yet he had to continue filming as if there wasn’t such a break and bring the emotions/feelings from the previous scene (shot 4 days ago) into the next. At first he was like ‘what was that again?’ It took some time getting used to and he made sure he read the script every night)
When asked about the actresses working with him on the set, he said that Matsuyuki-san (the actress playing his sister) is a really lovely person and he was able to talk about random stuff with her. He described her as ‘pure whiteness’. The interviewer was amused by his description and got him to describe Ayase-san (the lead actress) in a similar fashion. He laughed and said that Ayase-san has the same gentle aura that you’d expect to see from her TV/CM/drama appearances and you would want to protect her. But at the same time, you’ll also be thinking, ‘Ah, this can’t be helped’ when you help/protect her, not unlike her character in the movie and how ‘Buchou’ (Hikaru’s manager and bf) feels about her.
(Trivial: Matsuyuki-san happens to be Massu’s favourite actress so he was really jealous that Tegoshi got the chance to work with her, as mentioned in one of the radio shows)
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ON ACTING
When comparing the different types of work he has been involved in thus far, he said that acting is the one he has least confidence in.
Tegoshi: For instance, when playing back recordings/videos for songs and concerts, there will be times when I think ‘Ah, I’ve sang well today’. Or for CMs, I would think ‘Ah, that’s a good expression!’ when reviewing it. But for acting, be it in terms of dramas or movies, I’ve always thought that I’ve fallen short somewhere and not been able to give myself 100 points. I’m still not there yet…
To make up for it, he would try the lines out, change them around, imagine and act out the scene repeatedly in his head while trying to conjure the best emotion/facial expression.
He recalled his first movie role in Shissou and expressed a lot of gratitude towards the director and his crew for all the valuable lessons he learnt. To him, that was an extremely valuable experience which he would never forget.
To round off this part of the interview, the interviewer asked Tegoshi what type of roles he would like to act in.
Tegoshi: There are roles I would like to try, such as those in a sci-fic movie such as ‘Terminator’ or those in a fantasy world such as ‘Biohazard’, ‘Dooms of the day’ or ‘Lord of the Rings’. Or that of an extremely evil character, such as the criminal in ‘SAW’, someone extremely cold and cruel…
Interviewer: Kind of psycho?
Tegoshi: That’s right.Especially because I have such a face. Someone who would be all smiley in everyday life but when a switch is turned out, ‘DON!’
Interviewer: That’s true.It would be scary if Tegoshi-kun was playing such a character.Someone who goes crazy just like that.
Tegoshi: I’d like to try that!! I’d like that. That’s why I was really envious of that drama which Nishikido-kun did…
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ON SINGING & ITS SIGNIFICANCE TO TEGOSHI
Interviewer: Next, I guess I’d like to ask what you think of singing. I feel that your strength in singing comes not only from your techniques but from your love for singing as well. What is singing to you?If there was no singing, what would have happened?
Tegoshi: If there was no singing, NEWS’ Tegoshi won’t exist.There won’t be Tegomass’ Tegoshi either…To explain it a little more, I think I won’t be able to enter Johnny’s at all.
ON TEGOMASS & SINGING
The interviewer asked Tegoshi about how TegoMass came about and its activities. To start off, Tegoshi gave a bit of background on how he was asked to sing with Massu as backup for seniors and at Junior concerts. Then the two of them got slotted into NEWS and debuted together with the rest of them. When NEWS went on hiatus, the management thought that since they could sing, why not have them perform as a vocal unit. Hence they were given ‘Miso Soup’ to sing. Apparently they were given some dance steps to do during the chorus of ‘Miso Soup’. However he felt that it was weird and asked to see if they could just sing and not dance. After all they do a lot of dancing as NEWS. That made the choreographer really mad but they got their way in the end, so ‘Miso Soup’ was performed without any dance moves.
After their debut in Sweden as the only vocal unit in Johnny’s, NEWS activities restarted. They were told that ‘Miso Soup’ was a one-off project so both Massu and Tegoshi thought that would be the end of TegoMass. When they were given ‘Kissu’ to sing, they were both pleasantly surprised and thought ‘Ah, we can continue as TegoMass’. And that’s probably how TegoMass really came about.
Interviewer: I think your (TegoMass) love for singing is strongly conveyed when the both of you sing.That, coupled with your vocal abilities, is probably what your management acknowledges as well.For someone like you, what do you think/feel when you are actually singing?
Tegoshi: (in deep thought) When I’m singing, it is probably the best way I can show myself. I am given a chance to do something I really want to do.Hence it’s not a fake smile, but more like me in my most natural/untouched (素) state…. My expression. That’s probably the difference between singing and acting. I always think that ‘I must do this or that’ when I’m acting for dramas/movies but when it comes to singing, my voice comes out naturally without thinking.
After each and every recording or concert, Tegoshi would go through the tapes and videos repeatedly to review them. He is very self-critical and would look for ways to better the performance. He attends vocal training lessons and for each song, he would explore and learn how best to reach each note. He confessed that he is quite a maniac when it comes to this. During the lives for TegoMass, he would be working very closely with the band members to see how the different instruments come together, which instrument should be emphasised at what point of the song etc. Night after night, he would email the band members to research on the different aspects/things. He also mentioned that this frantic emailing is something that Masuda is unaware of. He said that Massu is much more involved in the ‘show aspect’ (stage set-up, goods etc) while Tegoshi focuses on the music part. And that is how they divide and conquer.
Tegoshi was asked when he started to be such a maniac about music. He has always been interested in music and when he started harmonising (with Massu), he would take note of the different harmony lines and how the two of them would sound in the chorus. As to his interest in the background music/backup band, that started during TegoMass’ second concert tour. That was when he felt that he could have a little more freedom and say in their music, so he would be trying out the keyboard and drums and asked the band members things like ‘Would it be good to produce such a sound at this point of time in the song?’, in search of the note they can sing most comfortably in.
ON NEWS
He said that his role in NEWS is obviously singing. This is something that won’t be changed. No matter how much his throat hurts and even if he couldn’t speak, he would want to be able to communicate through his singing.
He also has an aim since he joined Johnny’s. He said that Johnny’s always has this image that it’s not about singing and he really hopes that he can try and change that. After all that was the image he had in mind before joining Johnny’s too.
While singing live isn’t easy and can be quite scary (there might be incidents such as forgetting lyrics and what not), he thought that fans do understand that such things happen at times. As long as he puts all his heart into singing and that feeling can be conveyed to the audience.
Be it in NEWS or TegoMass, he won’t split his effort into 50:50 or 60:40… To him, it would be 120:120.
To him , NEWS and TegoMass can’t be compared as they are quite different. While there will always be fans who think of them as TegoMass who reside within NEWS, he doesn’t really think that way. To him, when he’s doing TegoMass activities, he’s performing as a separate artiste from NEWS. Similarly, when he is doing NEWS, it is different from being in TegoMass. To be able to make such a distinction, he would like to be able to do more types of songs as TegoMass and continues to improve on his singing abilities.
ON SONG WRITING
Rather than being known as someone who is good in singing, he hopes to be known as a singer who sings good songs and be involved in the production of music, from composing to production of the album.
Tegoshi: While I haven’t done this for a single yet, I have had some opportunities in writing the lyrics and composing the music for some tracks in the albums. I really loved that. I really like to be able to compose a song with a tune that I want to sing.
He doesn’t have that many interests and tend to focus a lot on the few he has. He enjoys watching movies and listening to songs a lot
Though he loves listening to Western music, he refrains from using English in his lyrics as he feels that he won’t be able to convey properly to Japanese fans. He would like to be able to write lyrics that can speak to fans directly, songs that can bring a smile to them.
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ON NEW NEWS 新生NEWS
Interviewer: There was loud cheering when the new NEWS appeared during the countdown. Those were the feelings of your fans. What kind of discussion/talk does NEWS have these days?
Tegoshi: I guess it’s important to look at it from both sides.From the fans’ point of view as well as what we would like to do as a group and then to take it on from there. We have to consider both sides and not neglect any. We can’t just do things that we want to do and impose that on our fans; that isn’t good. As for NEWS activities, we haven’t done anything these days, be it albums or concerts where we could meet fans. We haven’t had any opportunity to meet fans… And that, I think, is a huge betrayal to the fans. They have been waiting for us and yet we have not been able to do a thing. We have to properly show our gratitude for their waiting.Instead of wishing for things to happen, this becomes something that we have to do. I’m someone who has a very positive outlook on life so during the period of inactivity, I took it as an opportunity to reflect. ‘If we could produce something good for the fans, something that would delight them; that would be great isn’t it?’ is what I think.
Interviewer:Yes, yes…
Tegoshi: Hence for now, even though we (NEWS) have been talking all this while, I think the first and foremost thing for us to do is to present our lively (genki) selves in front of our fans.
Next they chatted a little about JE countdown.
Interviewer:What kind of chat did the four of you had during the countdown?
Tegoshi: Everything, from clothes to other various things. Well, the other 3 of them do understand me quite well… (laughs) The three of them are extremely peace-loving people, who are gentle, kind and flexible towards everyone; personality which will love everyone. I’m not quite like that….
Interviewer:I see…
Tegoshi: Well when things get complicated or troublesome, or when we lost the direction, I would be the one to say things like ‘That’s enough. Let’s just get it over and done with’. I guess if I was a pacifist too, in that everyone was a pacifist, then NEWS would become a very ‘safe’ sort of group. That might be a little boring. (laughs)
He also mentioned about the significance of this year’s countdown. It was the first time they appeared as new NEWS in public, both in front of the audience in Tokyo Dome and those sitting in front of their TVs at home. He wanted to make a lasting impression within those few seconds hence he went with the very idol-like ‘Let’s love one another!’ during the intro.
He spoke a little about his first couple years in Johnny’s and NEWS. As he was the youngest member and has the shortest history, he wasn’t able to voice his thoughts and opinions on many things. And with just four of them now, while they all have different personalities, they could all voice their thoughts and make decisions together. ‘Kouhai-senpai’ doesn’t matter anymore.
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ON TEGOSHI’S DREAM FOR NEWS
Tegoshi: This year (2012) is when we restart our group activities. Though it isn’t a ‘re-debut’ I would like opportunities to ‘show our faces’ to fans. As I think of NEWS concerts as more of a a ‘show’, I would want to act out stuff, do impersonations of different artistes… There are a lot of groups in Johnny’s. While they are our friends, they too are our rivals at the same time. Well… I won’t want to lose to them (laughs) That’s for the sake of NEWS fans too. To bring the pride of NEWS to a higher level, such that when people think of Johnny’s, they would think of NEWS… I would like us to get to such a level.
ON TEGOSHI’S DREAM FOR TEGOMASS
Tegoshi: As TegoMass, I look forward to opportunities to do stuff that other Johnny’s groups have not done thus far. For instance, we were allowed to participate in ‘Music Fair Special’ and collaborated with various artistes. That hasn’t been done before in Johnny’s. For that sort of program, we wouldn’t be given a chance to participate had they not recognised our efforts. Participating in that type of show comes with a great deal of pressure too but I do love being under pressure. (laughs) I work well under pressure….
I want to create a TegoMass live where I can tell my family and friends and friends who are also fellow artistes, please come to the show as it would definitely be interesting. I would like to do that this year and next… And as we had gone overseas as TegoMass before (our debut in Sweden as well as appearing as overseas guests for a music awards ceremony in Taiwan), I would like to be able to have tours in Europe and Asia, with Japan as the last stop. After all, given that there are fans out there who have heard of us and listen to our songs, be it 10 or 100 , I think it’s only right for us to go and meet them. I would love to go and meet them.
ON TEGOSHI’S DREAM FOR HIMSELF
To improve himself and give his maximum effort in every opportunity that comes his way – variety programs, movies, dramas, singing, CM, concerts… He feels that he is very fortunate to be in Johnny’s, as he’s in an environment where he could try different things. And since he’s given the chance to do all these things, at the end of the day, he doesn’t want to be seen as ‘the one who can only sing but can’t act’. In order to improve himself, 24 hours aren’t quite enough. While he doesn’t know when he’d be able to achieve this, it is something he is working towards to.
Tegoshi: I would like to be by the side of my fans and not forgetting the feeling of gratitude. No matter what age I’ll be at, be it 30 or 40 years old, I would like to continue my work as an ‘idol’. No matter what kind of requests, as long as that is something that fans would like to see and be happy about, I would do it properly. And do it with my maximum effort. I don’t want to become someone who isn’t willing to do such things.
Tegoshi: I’m not someone who does things half-heartedly. Even in private, I always give it my all. When I’m playing soccer with my friends, or going out for meals and drinks with them, I will give it all to enjoy myself. I can’t quite do things halfway. For instance, during rehearsals before the actual shows, many singers would typically hold back during the rehearsal to preserve their voices for the actual show. But well… I ended up singing with all I had.
Interviewer:So you sang passionately during the rehearsals too?
Tegoshi: Even though I said (to the band), ‘Gomen, as I’ve got the concert later, I’ll be singing this lightly.Please make adjustments for that’, when the music came out, I ended up singing almost at my maximum level. I’m not very good with holding back. I’m really poor at it.
Interviewer: Tegoshi kun, you must live twice as much in one lifetime!
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LAST WORDS TO FANS
‘We have really made you wait all this while so I want to meet everyone real soon!’
credits to chrisyamapi@lj
Edited by Yuuko95 - 18/4/2012, 21:42
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