Person in focus: idol group KAT-TUN
"I'm slowly realizing that many people are congratulating me." (Kamenashi)
Celebrating the 15th anniversary of their debut, they will participate in the Kohaku Uta Gassen for the first time.
"I feel a strange connection (to the Tokyo International Forum)." (Nakamaru)
"If Grandma was still alive, she'd be happy." (Ueda)
It was a fulfilling year. They were chosen to participate in the Kohaku Uta Gassen for the first time. One day in December, the three of them all said the same thing: "Thank you."
"I'm very grateful for the special time I get to spend here. I want to live up to that. I've had to deal with a lot of emotions in the past, and I've moved on." (Kamenashi)
"It was full of good things. A lot of people tried to make the 15th anniversary a good one. I've never had good memories of our anniversaries, but I think this is a great year that will wipe those memories away." (Nakamaru)
"I feel that the 15th anniversary was not about us, but more about delivering the current KAT-TUN to everyone, and as a group, it was a time of gratitude and celebration." (Ueda)
There were many twists and turns to get to this point. Formed with six members, the group got off to a spectacular start, becoming the first artists to perform a solo live at Tokyo Dome before their CD debut. However, members started to leave the group, and in 2016, the group became the current three members, Kamenashi Kazuya, Ueda Tatsuya, and Nakamaru Yuichi. They also went through a 1 year and 8 months recharge period.
"I think each of our motivations has changed over the years, but I feel that the timing of our 15th anniversary has allowed all three of us to work together at a high level." (Nakamaru)
On New Year's Eve, they will take the stage of the Kohaku Uta Gassen for the first time. The venue is the Tokyo International Forum. A place with which they have a strong connection, having held their first solo concert there before my debut.
"For the past few years, I've had a strong desire to cherish the fact that the three of us are now working together and to cherish each and every event. It has always been my responsibility and aesthetics to spend the 15th anniversary in a good way, so I am very honored." (Kamenashi)
The three " indomitable " members have had their fill of bitter and sweet, so what will they see on stage for the first time? (Writer: Komatsu Kaori)
U: It was during Corona, but it was great to be able to see the fans' faces and express our gratitude for the 15th-anniversary nationwide tour. During the live stream, we received many messages from the fans. When I saw that on the screen, I was so glad that we had kept going and that we hadn't made a mistake. We made our own decisions and walked our own path, but there are times when we wonder if it was the right one. It was a moment when I felt a lot of things, but I felt as if I had been running hard and had been recognized, and it was a moment when I started to relax.
K: More than anything, I'm glad that I was standing on stage as KAT-TUN that day. Because it was streamed without an audience, I was able to express my feelings for the fans very directly. I have a tendency to act cool when I stand in front of people (laughs).
N: It was great to be able to have time to interact with the people who support us, both in the stream and on the tour. Even though the audience was not allowed to speak on the tour, I could feel their energy, like "we're watching". It was also nice to feel the great energy of so many people towards our goal of making our 15th anniversary a spectacular one.
Reaffirming each other's thoughts
It's been fifteen years since your debut, you know each other very well. However, the three of you had a chance to talk about it again on our regular program, "Nani Suru KAT-TUN?".
N: Usually, the three of us don't talk much. During the overnight location at Kanazawa for the tv show, we talked over drinks about what we've been up to. At that time, I was able to confirm that my feelings for the group and my appreciation for the people around me are the same.
U: As for the unity of the group, I believe that we are all connected by a thick thread deep inside, and I have no doubt about that. It's just that it was a location where we could see what each other was thinking, so it was valuable. We were able to confirm that we were working towards the same vector with a sense of gratitude.
How do the three of you feel about each other and your roles in the group?
N: Each has its own personality. Kamenashi has experience in acting, hosting, and singing, and Ueda has been doing martial arts for a long time. However, they're not the type to joke around when talking (laughs), so I think I took on that role when we became a group. Personally, I thought there's a big sense of urgency. I want to challenge myself to do whatever I am interested in as long as I have time. I believe that video editing skills will be useful in the future, and the one-man stage play is a place to give shape to my ideas, but I also think of it as a place to test KAT-TUN's live performance.
The desire to contribute to what you want to do
U: Nakamaru has the ability to push things to the limit, a true craftsman. Editing videos and drawing, a daily series of small details. I think it's genuinely amazing that he's been making such efforts for so long.
K: I think Nakamaru has the biggest appetite for what he wants to do, and his yes/no attitude is very clear. But when the three of us line up like this, he looks the most normal because there's a blonde (Ueda) and a little quirky guy (Kamenashi) (laughs).
U: (laughs) Blonde.
N: (laughs)
K: (laughs) It's also true that he has been doing human beatboxing since the time there were six of us, and maybe that's what gives him the sense of urgency he's talking about.
N: My initial motivation was to see how I could stand out among the many juniors, but I believe that trying to do something with a sense of urgency is a kind of ambition, and that hasn't changed. I like to come up with ideas, and I don't like to do things like "I want to do this later, not now" because something will definitely come up at that time. But whatever we do, it's very easy because we already know what each other is trying to say.
I've come to rely on others
U: I don't really pay attention to the people around me. I don't feel like I have to do this or that in a group. I just try my best to do what I have to do. But once I start, I don't tend to give up. I continued to do martial arts in my private life, which gave me physical strength, which I found to be an advantage. I feel like the jimusho is helping me to use my strengths in my work.
K: It's not for me to say, but I think Ueda-kun's capacity has become much wider than it used to be. I'm sure there are also more things you can forgive. You're deeply devoted to your work, and the colors you want to show have changed with each era, but I don't get the impression that the fundamentals have changed.
U: Yeah. I used to be a person who didn't rely on anyone, but now I do. Maybe I've simply become an adult.
N: We were entrusted with the responsibility to think and do things on our own from our junior years. Before our debut, we already had an idea of what we wanted to be like, so when adults suddenly came in and gave their opinions, it felt wrong. Ueda-kun, in particular, may have had a strong sense of this. We are doing it peacefully now.
U: Kamenashi-kun has always had a high level of professionalism. I'm sure he had a strong sense of how things should be, and I think that's what has kept him going.
N: He was the first among the members to have a strong belief in the group. He has kept his motivation high ever since, and I haven't seen him lose heart much.
K: Not really. In my opinion, the two of you are working harder than me. Since I was a teenager, I have often been asked to stand in the middle, and it has been a journey that I feel has created my position. In this situation, I sometimes felt that our aspirations as a group were not coming together well, and there was a part of me that was putting pressure on myself. There were many times when my heart would break (laughs), but I wouldn't work in that state, and I just couldn't breakthrough. In fact, I've never been the type of person who says "I don't like it unless it's this way". It may seem like I'm the one who does it the most though (laughs). I believe that is why I have received so many different jobs. In 2021, I had the opportunity to do some intense work in a new environment, including MCing a variety show. I don't think it's time to close the door on my potential yet, and I need to develop it one by one, so I'm struggling with myself every day, and it also extendeds to the future of the group.
Because there's trust
K: My theme for the past few years has been to entrust myself to various people, including members. I feel that a lot of people are really taking care of the current workflow, and in other words, if I can't trust them, I can't entrust them with my work, so I consider it a strength to have such relationships.
U: I've also noticed especially in 2021 that the help of the people around me has been a great support for me. I've also been able to delegate to others, which is something that has changed.
K: However, when we were six, five, and four people, I said "now is a good time" but I don't feel that I could continue to do that. There were times when I struggled with that, and I spent a lot of time doubting myself. I appreciate your words of enjoyment for us now, but I can't dip into that yet. I want us to be a group that more and more people can enjoy, so I don't think I'll ever be satisfied.
N: I, too, have not changed my vision of "getting more people interested (in the group)" since debut. Plus, there is the practical aspect of how much longer I can continue my activities. My hope is to do this forever, but I don't know what will happen, and there is also the issue of age. That's why I want to do things with the mindset of immediately putting ideas into action as soon as they come to mind.
U: I've been ready to work with the three of us for a long time now, and I feel like we're heading in the same direction now.
K: It has been a strong motivating force for me to be a part of the group on its 15th anniversary year, and to make the members who quit the group a little proud of the group they were once a part of. But now that the three of us can look in the same direction and talk, and after experiencing the 15th anniversary, I've come to realize that it's not right to be tied down to that. In March 2022, when we enter our 16th year, I hope that our new relationship will blossom even more.
N: Yeah. We do talk about the 16th year, but I think the gratitude we feel now will also be the driving force to start anew.
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