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frozenmikan · 1 year

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Liella! Cross Talk 03 - Date Sayuri, Aoyama Nagisa, Suzuhara Nozomi

Check out the original interview in the LoveLive! Days Liella Special, available for purchase on Amazon JP here.

An interview with the voices of Shibuya Kanon, Hazuki Ren, and Sakurakoji Kinako. We asked them about how they feel now after starting from the open auditions and overcoming the same hurdles together.

Interview by Okada Moeka

I feel like Kanon-chan grew so much throughout the second season that I’m being left further and further behind

It’s been half a year since Liella! became nine. Has the group’s atmosphere changed since then?

Aoyama: I think we’ve settled down a little compared to when we first started out as nine. Now that we know what everyone else is like and what kind of people they are on the inside, we’ve managed to figure out the appropriate distance between us.

Date: We really were trying too hard back then, weren’t we? (laughs) Feels like we’ve settled down and are now much more comfortable with one another.

Suzuhara: Like, the first-generation members have always just been a group of people on the other side of a screen, so… Now that we’ve gone for meals together, I find that I can be quite frank when talking to them.

Date: I’m actually quite shy, so I’m not very good at initiating conversations. I decided that I might as well just be myself from the very start if putting up an act wasn’t going to work anyway, so I just treated everyone like I would have when we only had five members.

Aoyama: I’m also not very good at starting conversations, so I kinda get that (laughs).

When was the first time that it truly hit you that Liella! now has nine members?

Aoyama: When I watched the archive for our release event.

Date: !! (Nods with eyes wide open)

Aoyama: What’s with that reaction? (laughs) Now that we have more members, it’s not so easy to grasp what everyone’s facial expressions are like during dance rehearsals, unlike before. Of course, we do have recordings of the rehearsals, but you can’t really see everyone’s expressions clearly from that alone. So, when I first watched the recording of the event… That was when I felt like we could reach even greater heights together as nine.

Date: Yeah! I felt the same way right after the event. During the rehearsals, I usually focus only on what I was doing, not to mention the fact that we were wearing masks. So hearing our fans’ comments and watching the archive after the event was when it first hit me. It was also the first time I felt truly grateful that we had become nine.

Suzuhara: I watched Liella! perform as five for quite some time, so for me, a Liella! with nine members just didn’t feel right, probably even more so than the first-generation members. Watching the archive of our release event finally made me think, “Maybe I can call myself a part of Liella! after all…” more often.

It sounds like you’re still in the process of discovering what it means for you to be part of Liella!.

Suzuhara: I spent a lot of time thinking about that, but there’s a part of me that’s still chasing after the five-member Liella!. A Liella! with nine-members is still Liella!, of course, but there are times when I think that they’re just not the same. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, though, so I’ll continue chasing after them!

This question is for the two first-generation members: is there anything that’s different about performing on stage with nine members instead of five?

Aoyama: It’s amazing just how much more reassuring it is to perform when there are more of us on stage. When performing as five, sometimes it shows on my face that I’m thinking about what my next line is, but now I feel like I can put on a more natural expression when performing.

Date: She’s right. You’re also really close to the person next to you! Our second release event was held in the same venue as our first event, Hajimari wa Minna no Sora, but the stage felt much smaller than before. Of course, part of it was because the seats were now filled with all our fans, but it felt like the stage had become more colorful than before. It really has gotten livelier, hasn’t it?

Suzuhara: We’ve all been strung along by Ookuma Wakana’s passion.

Date: Passion? (laughs)

Suzuhara: She can make very big movements with her head. I’ve always wondered how she manages to do that, and I even asked her that very question today during practice. Looking at her makes you realize how much fun it is to perform on stage, and seeing that in turn has made me want to make even bigger movements when I’m dancing, to use as much of the stage as possible and to make everyone enjoy themselves as much as possible. I’m sure Wakana’s dancing has infected the rest of the group, and Liella!’s dance moves now have much larger movements thanks to her… (voice getting softer with time)

Date/Aoyama: What’s wrong?! (laughs)

Aoyama: I totally get you! (laughs) Actually, I think it’s precisely because Kumachan dances so dynamically as Shiki-chan that her dancing shows off something different from just Shiki-chan’s dancing. She made me start thinking more about how I can incorporate her strengths and look even more like Ren-chan when I’m performing on stage.

Date: Kanon-chan doesn’t really have that much of a link to dancing story-wise, I guess. Now that we’ve become nine, I’ve spent more time thinking about how Kanon-chan would dance, more than I used to for our 1st Live Tour and 2nd Live. That’s one of the things I’m chasing after at the moment. Up until now, I’ve pushed through by just trying my best to have as much fun as possible, but now that she’s in her second year and trying to win Love Live!, I’m sure she has thought about how she should perform to achieve that goal, so I’m trying to figure that part out by re-watching parts of the anime.

How was your first time performing on stage, Suzuhara-san?

Suzuhara: I had loads of fun! I couldn’t picture in my head what it’d be like to actually perform on stage during the rehearsals. I did appear on stage for the fan meetings, but that experience wasn’t linked to actually performing live. I now know that performing live is really, really fun! I found myself naturally smiling when dancing, and I’m so overjoyed at being able to stand on stage as Kinako-chan that I find myself fully enjoying myself. I’ve always loved singing and dancing, so finally being able to do that, finally being able to show everyone that made me really happy as well.

That was when I felt like we could reach even greater heights together as nine

This may be a sudden question, but is there anything about the others here in the interview today that you particularly admire or would like to be able to do too?

Suzuhara: I’ll go first! I really admire Sayuchan’s loud voice—

Date: Loud voice?!

Suzuhara: I’ll talk about some other things later! (panicking) When we’re in a circle, or when push comes to shove, the way her voice resonates through the room is just so cool, which is something I really look up to. That, and her communication skills are top notch! Though I’m pretty sure she’d argue otherwise.

Date: That’s the thing I’m the worst at!

Suzuhara: She’s really easy to talk to, and talking to her is always so enjoyable, so I really like that about her. Her singing and dancing is amazing too, so I really look up to that part of her as well! As for Nagichan, she can do anything.

Aoyama: No way.

Suzuhara: I wanna do a segment where we try to find out just what it is she can’t do.

Date: I wanna join in too!

Aoyama: No, please~

Suzuhara: Oh, and she’s also really good at sports, which I really envy. I’m terrible at sports, so… She really can do anything. In fact, what is it that you can’t do?

Aoyama: There’s a whole lot I can’t do! I can’t speak Chinese or Spanish, for example.

Suzuhara: And that just makes you even more amazing! …That’s all.

Date: (Laughs) Guess I’ll go next. I feel like Nagichan knows herself really well. I’ve learned so many things from just talking to her. She speaks from her own experiences and gives really good advice on what I should do in every situation, and that has helped me out countless times. The other day, she recommended that I eat some meat—

Meat? You mean protein?

Date: Yeah! She says it a lot, things like, “You gotta make sure you get enough protein!” I’ve started incorporating more protein into my diet thanks to her, and I feel a little more cheerful than I used to be. So I have her to thank for that.

Aoyama: That’s such an interesting thing to talk about! (laughs)

Date: And, as for Nonchan—

Suzuhara: You don’t need to force yourself, just skip me… (softly)

Date: Now that we have nine members, our group definitely has more prominent personalities than before. When I first started out, I used to compare myself a lot to the others around me. Things like wondering why I couldn’t do something even though someone else could do it without any trouble. But Nonchan is different. She has a very strong sense of self, and seems to work towards improving herself step by step without ever comparing herself to someone else. Am I making any sense?

Aoyama: Totally get you!

Date: Oh, and because she doesn’t really say much about what she’s thinking, she has this cool, mysterious aura about her. Being able to use what she observes in others and converting it into something of her own is quite an amazing quality, and something I’d like to be able to do as well.

Suzuhara: (While slowly shaking her head, in a soft voice) Thank you……

Aoyama: I guess I’m up last. For Sayurin, it’s gotta be her smile. I’m sure her fans already know what I mean. She’s just so cute when she has this huge smile on her face! Her very presence brightens up the atmosphere in the room, so she’s definitely a natural idol. Every word she says to her fellow members is also filled with kindness, and she can always find just the right words to say. She’s a kind soul that brings with her a soothing atmosphere no matter where she goes.

Date: I’m gonna cry…… Thank you so much!

Aoyama: That really is something that’s unique to Sayurin. Nonchan, on the other hand, is a really strong person on the inside, though she doesn’t show it often. At first, I had no idea what she was thinking. But, now that I’ve spent more time with her, I’ve realized that she has a really strong sense of self. Now that we’re close enough to be frank with each other, I’m really glad that she speaks her mind to me. She’s even more diligent than everyone thinks, so I do hope she can relax just a little. Don’t push yourself too hard!

Suzuhara: Really~? But am I really pushing myself too hard? I find myself tensing up quite often, so I want to learn to relax like Nagichan does.

Going back to the original topic, did anything in particular stand out about the release event?

Aoyama: Our previous release events didn’t have an audience, so being able to perform directly in front of an audience made me really happy. We performed Watashi no Symphony in the audience seats during our first release event, so when the second-generation members were performing the first verse, I had flashbacks to when I sang the same lines standing to the right of the audience seats.

Date: We all performed Watashi no Symphony together, but I’m sure it resonated so strongly this time precisely because the second-generation members were performing it. It made me realize just how much the mood of a song is affected by the people singing it. I’m really glad we got to hear a version of it with the second-generation members.

Suzuhara: I was watching as a member of the audience when the first-generation members performed the song during their first release event, so that came to mind. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect myself to be standing on stage singing the same phrase I saw Sayuchan sing from where I was sitting in one of the audience seats in a corner. I’ve always thought, “If that was me performing, there’s no way I’d be able to sing that phrase,” so I was really surprised when I found out that I was assigned those starting lines. I practiced that part again and again, but I was still very nervous… How are you even supposed to sing those lines?

Date: Huh? But the release event is already over! (laughs)

Aoyama: You did great!

Suzuhara: Even though I spent so much time practicing, I felt like my mind would be completely blank when I actually got on stage. But being able to sing those lines was, to me, a really big accomplishment and my success story for this release event.

Date: There wasn’t an audience when I sang it, so you’re really amazing, Nonchan!

Suzuhara: It’s a precious song for the first-generation members, and also a very emotional song for the second-generation members and all the fans, so I was really, really nervous…!

The theme printed on the teaser visual for the anime’s second season was “Chasing after them, surpassing them.” How did you interpret this theme?

Date: In the teaser illustration, the second-generation members were chasing after the first-generation members, so that’s how I interpreted it. The second season of the anime really gave off the feeling of “Liella! is nine,” so I’m now convinced that it also has something to do with striving to become a better version of yourself, as well as the relationship between the cast members.

Suzuhara: The second-generation members took on this challenge with a similar mindset (laughs). But, hearing Sing! Shine! Smile! made me wonder if it’s the entire school that’s chasing after and surpassing something together, as a whole.

Aoyama: I too interpreted it as being broader than just referring to the second-generation members. I think the second season is a story of Liella! achieving something together as a whole. I guess you could even extend that to the entirety of Yuigaoka moving forward together.

I’m so overjoyed at being able to stand on stage as Kinako-chan that I find myself fully enjoying myself

I believe you’re all now in the midst of rehearsing for your 3rd Live Tour. Suzuhara-san, is there one goal or target in particular that you’d like to achieve during this tour?

Suzuhara: There are too many to count. I really love singing and dancing, but on the technical side of things, I still have a long way to go. I want to improve as much as I can given the time we have to prepare. We’ll be performing quite a few songs with pretty difficult choreographies for our 3rd Live Tour, not to mention Go!! Restart, in which only Kinako-chan performs with all the first-generation members… I’ll do my best during practice so I can get through it with a smile on my face!

We actually asked the first-generation members this same question in the Liella! special.

Date: I mentioned how I couldn’t do the Starlight Prologue twirl, didn’t I? (laughs) I didn’t manage to do it in the end either, but I think the most important thing was not panicking. I performed that twirl with all kinds of negative thoughts in my head, like how I’m wasting everyone’s time, or why I couldn’t do something as simple as this… But I realized that just enjoying myself and not thinking about anything negative while performing usually went better.

Aoyama: I think I talked about not being sure whether my facial expressions looked natural. But, seeing with my own eyes how everyone was supporting us naturally put a smile on my face, so I can now stand on stage without worrying about that. Now, my goal is to perform in such a way that even if all of us were performing with the exact same hairstyles and costumes, anyone watching would be able to tell at a glance that I’m Ren-chan. Of course, dancing dynamically or very energetically is bound to attract attention, but I don’t think that’s how Ren-chan would dance.

Suzuhara: When watching our dance recordings, it’s always so easy to pick out Ren-chan! So you are paying particular attention to that!

Aoyama: Thank you!

Suzuhara: I actually think I’m too similar to Kinako-chan… When I first saw the script for the anime’s second season, her actions and words made me think, “...are they writing about me?” There are times when I can’t tell where the border between the two of us lies. Which emotions actually belong to me, and which are Kinako-chan’s?

Date: The two of you really are alike.

Aoyama: That’s amazing. But I don’t think that’s a bad thing?

Date: Whether or not I look like Kanon-chan… That’s something I’m working on too, actually. I feel like Kanon-chan grew so much throughout the second season that I’m being left further and further behind. Up until now, just having fun took every ounce of my effort, so I too am trying to find out how I should be moving to look more like Kanon-chan, and how to get closer to that.

Last but not least, a message for the fans!

Suzuhara: Our 3rd Live Tour will be the second-generation members’ first live tour, not to mention our first live tour after we became nine. Right now, I’m more nervous than anything else, but I’ll do my best to enjoy myself so much that I forget all about my nerves! I hope I can show how much I’ve grown since the release event, and put on a performance that stays in everyone’s minds as an amazing one even after it ends. I hope to see you there!

Aoyama: It’s our first time going on a live tour with all nine of us, so I hope to be able to say wholeheartedly that I really enjoyed myself. We’ll push each other to even greater heights and I’ll do my best to put on a performance even better than our release event!

Date: After our 1st Live Tour, the way I think about things changed completely. I’m sure our 3rd Live Tour will also become the starting point for some sort of change, so I’m looking forward to it. As the nine of us go around the country, I’m sure we’ll experience both fun and painful things, but I hope to not let the negative emotions overwhelm us and complete the tour while keeping the importance of having fun ourselves at the forefront of our minds. Yuina-san is coming along with us as well, so let’s get through this together!

Translator: xIceArcher Quality Check: Yujacha (@yujachachacha)

#love live superstar #liella #date sayuri #sayurin #aoyama nagisa #nagichan #suzuhara nozomi #nonchan

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frozenmikan · 1 year

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Pre-3rd Live Photo Session and Interview with Liella!'s Second-Generation Members! - Suzuhara Nozomi (voice of Sakurakoji Kinako)

Just like in the second season of the Love Live! Superstar!! anime, which ended in October, Liella! has gained four new members to become nine. Right before their first live tour as nine, we bring you this photo and interview series with the second-generation members of Liella!. In the first part, we’ll be interviewing Suzuhara Nozomi, the voice of Sakurakoji Kinako. While looking back on her nervousness at being the first out of the second-generation members to be pulled into the world of the Love Live! series, she conveys her thoughts to the juniors that she’ll get to meet in a future that has yet to come to pass.

I knew I had to become more like Kinako-chan

It’s been a while since Season Two of the anime came to an end. Looking back, how did you feel before it started airing?

Suzuhara: I was just really, really afraid. Since it was the first time in the history of the Love Live! series that new members would be added to an existing group as “second-generation members”, I had no idea how everyone would react, and that made me really, really uneasy. When the clock ticked down to about a week before the first episode would air, I started getting so nervous that I had trouble eating sometimes (laughs). Since Kinako-chan appears and plays a really important role in the first half of the anime, particularly in the first three episodes, I constantly felt the pressure of having to bear that responsibility. That’s why I was probably the most stressed out of all the second-generation members. There’s also the fact that I’ve been a huge fan of the Love Live! series for quite some time, so I knew I couldn’t mess it up.

Was there anything particularly difficult about voicing Kinako?

Suzuhara: Kinako-chan is much more expressive than I first thought. I remember being surprised that she wasn’t actually the calm and collected type. Usually, what I’m thinking doesn’t really show through my expressions, so I knew I had to become more like Kinako-chan.

You’re right, her expressions do indeed change at the drop of a hat.

Suzuhara: Indeed. That’s particularly true for Episode One, so just keeping up with her changing expressions was quite challenging. There’s a scene in that episode where she dashes up a flight of stairs together with Shiki-chan, and I spent a lot of time thinking about how I should express that. During my lessons, I had my manager pull me along by my hand, and even when I got back home, I asked my older sister to do the same. I’m sure she was wondering what was wrong with me… (laughs)

Aside from Kinako, did the introductory scenes or lines of the other members leave an impression on you?

Suzuhara: Shiki-chan’s and Mei-chan’s Episode Four really left a deep impression on me. Personally, I really love Shiki-chan, so when the episode aired, I was constantly muttering “She’s so cute, she’s so cute…!” as I watched (laughs). I guess I’m somewhat envious of Shiki-chan and Mei-chan’s relationship… I’m not the type of person to have many friends, so I feel like having someone who’s that close to you is quite a wonderful thing, which left a deep impression on me.

Living out Kinako's growth in the anime

Just like in the anime, I believe you too were constantly playing catch-up with the first-generation members during the recordings. Were there ever times when you felt the “one-year gap” between the two groups?

Suzuhara: Of course; I feel it all the time. I didn’t have any acting experience, so I put all my effort into observing the first-generation members, even taking notes sometimes, to figure out how everything went. My top priority was to catch up with them as soon as possible.

Do you remember any interaction with the first-generation members in particular?

Suzuhara: Once, I was heading home from a recording together with Liichan (Liyuu), and we hadn’t spoken a single word to each other on that day. Because of that, I wasn’t feeling all that self-confident, but right when we were about to go our separate ways, she told me “You’ll get better, you’ll get better”. Those few words hit me more than any number of other words would have. After she said that, I had a smile on my face right until she left, then broke into tears right after that (laughs). For the first half of the anime, I’d usually leave recordings with a heavy heart, but those very words were the ones that kept me going.

That interaction sounds like it’d be a really touching scene if it was part of the anime.

Suzuhara: She was just so cool back then. Saying those words just as I was wondering whether I should be saying something made me realize that she truly is my senior after all. Even though I was really down in the dumps up until then, those words managed to make me think that maybe, just maybe, I could do this after all, so I’m really grateful for what she said.

Did anything about Kinako change throughout Season Two?

Suzuhara: I think the biggest change would have to be her stamina. In Episode One, she got tired from just walking around a little, and couldn’t even do a proper sit-up in Episode Two. Although she had trouble keeping up with her seniors’ running pace, she already managed to join them in a live performance in Episode Three. I’m currently rehearsing the song that she performed in Episode Three, Go!! Restart, for our tour that’ll start in December, but I’ve realized that singing and dancing at the same time to that song is really tiring (laughs).

Basically, you’re currently living out Kinako’s growth in the anime.

Suzuhara: Her being able to do all that with a smile on her face really touched my heart. Her smile too, don’t you think that she’s just so cute? After performing the song, Kinako-chan looks at Kanon-chan and smiles, and that smile is just so cute… Even though she was so reserved back in Episode One…

I guess Kinako does seem to be the one holding the first-years together.

Suzuhara: I wonder about that… But, Mei-chan becomes a fangirl the moment she sees something school idol related, Shiki-chan’s way of thinking is leaps and bounds ahead of a normal person, and you wouldn’t really say Natsumi-chan “really has it together”... I guess now that you mention it, out of the four first-years, Kinako is indeed the most normal (laughs).

I want to support my future junior

The third season of the anime has also been announced. Is there anything you’d really like to see Kinako do in the next season?

Suzuhara: I’m sure she’ll be getting some juniors too, so I think Kinako-chan trying to act like a senior is a must-see. But, I somehow have the feeling that she’ll get made fun of instead. She’s the only one that doesn’t really have an aura, so that’s something I’m quite worried about (laughs). But, Kinako-chan managed to discover her dream because Kanon-chan invited her to join Liella!, so I’m sure I’d be in tears if Kinako-chan becomes the one to reach a hand out to a junior.

I believe the new cast member selected through the open audition will be one of your future juniors, so you’ll be getting a junior both in the anime and in real life.

Suzuhara: It’ll be my first time getting a junior, so I still can’t really imagine what it’ll be like, but since she’ll be joining through the open auditions, I’m sure she’ll be really uneasy. I too was a ball of nerves until I met the other second-generation members, so that made me realize how important having friends is. That’s why I want to support the new girl, to lend her a helping hand when she needs it. I hope she relies on me whenever she needs to… Ever since the news for the auditions for the third-generation members broke, I’ve been wondering out loud to everyone around me about what kind of girl will be joining us. I hope she’ll be a good girl… I’m actually really looking forward to it (laughs).

Suzuhara Nozomi, from Apollo Bay, was born on November 1 in Miyazaki Prefecture. She debuted as a voice actress through the Love Live! Superstar!! open auditions as the voice of Sakurakoji Kinako. Her hobbies include reading manga, visiting bakeries, and playing card games. Her skills include calligraphy, drawing illustrations of girls, and being ambidextrous.

TL: xIceArcher

TLC/QC: Yujacha (@yujachachacha)

#love live superstar #liella #suzuhara nozomi #nonchan

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