[Translations - Mag] Nino - Duet 2010.11

Do you have a particular set of guidelines in creating your concert opening speeches?
I just started saying "Welcome!" recently. It's the perfect word to usher in the fans who came to watch the concert. Since it's not appropriate to say "welcome" during rehearsals, I say "Thanks for the hard work!" to the staff instead (haha). The main aim of our opening greeting is to stir the crowd to riot. Each member has his own way of greeting the fans but I think variety is good.

What things do you bear in mind during your concerts?
Not to get injured. I keep that in mind especially when I'm doing dangerous stunts. But of course we're taking safety precautions for that. Every time I do dangerous stunts I remind myself not to think about different stuff like "I have to do this!!!" or "if I do this, something bad will happen" or "I'm a pro!!!". I just tell myself that getting injured will cause a lot of problems. I don't do these stunts because I like doing them either. I dread doing them. It's best not to be too daring.

How did you come up with your costumes for this concert?
Matsujun takes care of our group costumes. But I choose my own costumes for my solo performances. The theme of my outfit for this year's concert is "unity" which is also my solo song's image.

You mentioned in your previous interview that you already had a plan for the MC part of your concert. Were you able to carry it out?
What we did is classified information (haha). All I can say is that, it was a success! The goal was to make someone do something that he doesn't want to do. It went according to plan. That person really hated it. If I were in that person's place, I wouldn't have liked it either (haha). It was fun but I still don't know when we'd be able to do it again. The last MC part was amazing.

What were you doing while the other members were performing their solos?
Rest for a bit then move on to my next spot. It was more or less like that.

What was the most moving scene you saw in this concert tour?
The fans who came. The packed audience area was a very beautiful view. It made me feel grateful.

If you could describe your concert tour, how will you describe it?
"Boku no miteiru fuukei" (A beautiful spectacle)

How do you feel about your upcoming dome concert?
The nationwide concert is over but we just started with the "Scene" tour. It is endless... We're now off to different places.

What things did you get to see while you were doing your nationwide concert?
I guess it's... everyone? (grin) I saw a lot of heartwarming smiles.

Currently
Lately I've been busy with the drama "Freeter, Ie wo Kau" (The Jobless Guy Buys a House"). I'm currently doing a drama, a concert, and a movie. The drama's filming is going smoothly. Everyone's filming without complaints despite the heat. I'm filming my scenes with Ryuhei (Maruyama) bit by bit. That guy's amazing. He can probably survive anywhere so there's nothing left for me to teach him. He'd ask me to teach him how to do this and that but there's really nothing left to teach. We're all having a good time. Every time I have a scene with Takenaka Naoto-san who plays my father in the drama, we'd spend our break times talking and relaxing together. We also go out and eat. Of course, I also have "Ohoku". I'd like to thank everyone for their feedbacks... well, they were all good feedbacks. At least all that I heard personally. (haha) There are a lot of fight scenes in this movie so I hope everyone gets to find their favorite scene. (grin).

[Translations - Mag] Jun - Duet 2010.11

Do you have a particular set of guidelines in creating your concert opening speeches?
I don't really have one. Actually, I didn't make any. It won't sound interesting if I knew what to say beforehand. I just base it on what I'm feeling at that moment.

What things do you bear in mind during your concerts?
In our past nation-wide concerts, there were a lot of instances that I'd watch the sky transition. That's what I'd do when we're just singing on stage and we're not dancing. We'd start while the sky's still bright. After some time, the sun starts to set and I just notice that it's already getting darker. The penlights gradually become more visible in the dark. It'd make me look at the sky and think that it's already night time. Our concert last August started 10 minutes after sunset but the second concert had to start on time. We wanted to do "Summer Splash!" while the sun's still up.

Are you meticulous about the costumes that you wear in your concerts?
I am fashion conscious but I don't mind being not so trendy when it comes to our stage outfits. Those are just costumes after all.


Tell us something about this time's concert goods.
We heard that a lot of fans line up outside and wait for long hours to buy our concert goods and stuff. So we thought of including hooded towels in our list of concert goods to protect the nape from the heat of the sun. At first I was thinking, "why not make a cap and a muffler in one to protect the nape during the winter season?". We went through a trial and error process and in the end, we came up with the hooded towels. About the pin badges, the colors differ depending on the venue. We wore those on our tour shirts during the encore. We didn't remove them until the concert ended so we eventually had all the colors on by the end of the concert tour.

What were you doing while the other members were performing their solos?
Changing my outfit.

What was the most moving scene you saw in this concert tour?
Seeing the fans having a good time. We see that in each of our concerts though. It's not just us giving to the fans but we're also receiving a lot from them. They pump us up. It's like we're playing energy catch ball with them. It was electrifying. Normally, I don't do dramas this time of the year. But now, I am. Doing the drama and attending concert rehearsals at the same time is new to me. Those 2 things are like polar opposites. There's not much social interaction when doing a drama. The difference is refreshing.

If you could describe your concert tour in one word, how will you describe it?
It was super fun! Especially this year, I was busy doing a drama so performing in front of the fans was rejuvenating. Because of them, I was able to return full force to the shooting the next day. (haha)

How do you feel about your upcoming dome concert?
I'm so looking forward to it. We'll be having a different venue so we also have to do some revisions on the contents of our concert. I'll start planning after I finish filming my drama (interview done on the middle of September). We have to come up with a dome version so it's like starting all over again.

What things did you get to see while you were doing your nationwide concert?
In lieu of that, I got really pumped up while we were doing this concert because we got to see fireworks! (haha) There were 2 sets actually. The first one served as a special stage effect while the second set was the normal type of fireworks. We had a very lavish concert! Last year, while doing the "5X10" concert, they launched fireworks at the Meiji Jingu Stadium. It felt like we were "borrowing" their fireworks. But this time, we launched our own.

Currently
Nothing but work, as usual. There's this game that we play at the set of our drama. It's called "Ju-Jan" where the person who loses a game of janken (rock-paper-scissors) has to buy juice for everyone. We do it once every 3 days. I haven't lost the game yet. I don't remember paying for anything. (haha) At home... I got this scented bath oil as a present for my birthday. I think the scent has a therapeutic effect. I'd try putting in different massage oils into the tub once in a while but I don't usually put in scented oils cuz I don't go out of my way just to buy stuff like that. It's just that I received one for my birthday so I figured I should give it a try. It really has a calming effect. (haha). I don't really soak that long in the tub. You don't get anything from soaking too long anyway (haha). If you want to sweat, then you'd better get your body moving. I'm not saying that soaking in the tub to sweat is wrong. What I'm saying is that it doesn't suit me. I don't have the patience to do that! (haha)


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[Translation] Only Star - 2010.09.06

Scans: saobang2211@LJ

ONLY STAR: How does it feel now that the filming for the special episode of "Mannequin 5" is over?

OHNO: Thinking back, the judges' comments about my outfit weren't really that good. I seriously thought I was going to lose. It's been a while since my heart beat that fast!

ONLY STAR: In your opinion, how'd you end up getting second place?

OHNO: I guess going with the suggestion of the woman from the store wasn't such a bad idea.

ONLY STAR: Wasn't it because of the colorful outfit?

OHNO: Yeah that too, maybe the colors went well with my tan. (Haha)

ONLY STAR: (Haha) Let's move on to our readers' questions...

[Female, 15 years old]
How are you choreographing your new solo?

OHNO: I never thought that I'll be doing a song like that. I thought I was going to do a dance song but my new song has a slow tempo. But it's still a feel good song, which I'd dance to... or not...

ONLY STAR: So it's possible that you won't be doing any choreographies for this song?

OHNO: ... I haven't really thought about it yet. I'll start planning now. (Bitter smile). It's not the only thing I'm doing right now. We're going to have an album tour and it's been a while since I released a new song. I think it'd be better if I did it with the other members.

[Femal, 15 years old]
How did you feel when you first heard your new song "Love Rainbow"?

OHNO: It's a blend of Arashi's style with a fresh, new concept.

ONLY STAR: What's new about it?

OHNO: It's not really a grown up song but it's not a happy song either. It is subdued but the beat is good. "Love Rainbow" is a light song. It's easy to memorize, pleasing to the ears, and it's easy to sing.

[Feamle, 14 years old]
You are currently endorsing an electronic appliance, personally, what kind of appliance do you want to have right now?

OHNO: Nothing in particular.

ONLY STAR: Do you watch TV?

OHNO: Not much.

ONLY STAR: Do you watch the shows you're in to see how you did?

OHNO: No cuz I already know what's in it so I don't (haha).

ONLY STAR: What's the most important electronic appliance you have in your room?

OHNO: I just need to hear music playing all the time. That's about it. I can't think of anything other than that. I don't think I need something else though.

ONLY STAR: What kind of music do you listen to whenever you're out fishing?

OHNO: I don't know why but whenever I fish with my headphones on, I can't catch anything.

ONLY STAR: Is that so? Anyway, how did your CM's filming go?

OHNO: All I did was follow the director's instructions so it wasn't really that hard. He was like "Speak in a hushed tone like a Nopperabou", the facial expression just came with it. It's actually a no-brainer.

[Female, 14 years old]
You've been a lawyer then a cartoon character in your dramas. You've played a wide range of roles. But if you had to choose one, what role did you enjoy doing the most?

OHNO: I enjoyed doing all of them. "Maou" was challenging but it was fun. Each role was different. But if I had to choose one, it would be Kaibutsu-kun.

ONLY STAR: Why would that be?

OHNO: I went out a lot with Ueshima-san and Yashima-san. We weren't able to spend a lot of time together while we were on the set so we went out whenever we had some free time. It was really fun.

ONLY STAR: What kinds of stuff did you talk about?

OHNO: I'm already 30, Yashima-san is 40 and Ueshima-san is 50. We'd bond over alcohol. We'd talk about work, sometimes we'd talk about our desires to do a stageplay together... But the conversation stops along the way cuz we'd all be drunk and sleepy after a few bottles.

ONLY STAR: We'll definitely watch out for you stageplay.

OHNO: We'd most likely be doing a comedy. It will surely feel the same. There were also times when we went out to drink with the staff. But they'd all be huddled in groups while the 3 of us end up drinking together. We'd say "It's the 3 of us again!".