Billboard Japan

Billboard Japan’s Women in Music initiative began in 2022 to celebrate artists, producers and executives who have made significant contributions to music and inspired other women through their work. The WIM interview series has highlighted female players in the Japanese entertainment industry, with the first 30 conversations released in book form as a Billboard Japan Presents collection by writer Rio Hirai.

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As the project strives to shed light on the status quo of the Japanese entertainment industry and to explore ways the working environment can be improved for women and everyone involved, it welcomes views from people of diverse backgrounds. For the latest installment, Hirai interviewed Kiyoshi Matsuo, an award-winning music producer who began his career as a music writer from his university days and switched to producing in the late 1990s.

A prominent figure in the industry as one of the driving forces behind the R&B and soul music movements in J-pop, Matsuo has contributed to numerous hits including those by MISIA, Hikaru Utada, SPEED, and more. Also known for his opinions on politics and other topics often avoided by the majority in the business, the outspoken music producer and writer shared his views on some of the issues he sees in the Japanese entertainment industry while opening up about the journey of how he formed his current stance on the topics he feels strongly about.

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You speak out on various social issues inside and outside the entertainment industry while working as a music producer. When did you first become aware of such issues? 

Until the late 1990s, I used to work mainly as a writer and journalist introducing Western music to Japan. I’d spend a third of the year in the U.S. and U.K. doing interviews and then bring the material I collected back to Japan to write articles. I used to incorporate almost all of what I covered in my writing, but it was hard to find media that would carry articles with political and social content.

When I was doing those interviews, the most exciting discussions I had with artists were about politics and social topics. For example, even when I made the appointment to talk about a new album, if the U.S. presidential election was coming up, the topic of conversation would be all about the election. The music I was fascinated with — R&B and soul — is the music of African Americans. For them, the matter of who would become the leader of the country was very important, and they probably always felt the connection between politics and society and their own lives.

Not being able to write about what those artists felt was important back in my own country was frustrating, but I gradually became busy with my career as a producer and stepped back from doing interviews. Ever since then until now, I’ve felt at various times that something was wrong with society, and now that I’m at this age, it’s like I finally feel it’s about time I said something about it.

You hail from the southern island of Kyushu, which is one of the regions in Japan that’s said to have a wide gender imbalance. Why did you become interested in gender gap issues even though you were born and raised as a privileged, healthy male in such an environment?

Vessels like the family you were born in or the company you work for aren’t the only things that nurture a person’s spirituality. Regardless of the environment you were raised in, I’m sure you encounter many people who bring you awareness even after you reach adulthood.

In my case, I got into soul music through jazz, which my father liked, and then encountered hip-hop, considered to be the newest music at the time, and became interested in African-American music in general. Eventually it became my job, and as I engaged in dialogue with people from various walks of life, I began to learn and think about the history and thoughts in people’s backgrounds. I’m a Japanese man living in Japan, married with children, and sometimes people say I’m living the life, but through music, I’ve always tried to imagine the views of the oppressed and those being controlled.

I see, so your perspective on society changed through music.

In my case, yes. But Japan today might not be too different from those days when I couldn’t write about artists’ political views as a journalist. Writer and philosophy scholar Ataru Sasaki tweeted on X the other day about how “after repeated calls to ‘not bring politics into music,’ we’ve brought the worst kind of politics into music.” Instances where Japanese acts come under fire for creating music videos using historical figures that instigated invasions and massacres are precisely the result of having eliminated social perspectives from music. I’m an optimist at heart, but I think the notion to “not bring politics into music” is probably connected to the country’s loss of international competitiveness.

From the late 1990s you shifted your focus to producing music, and it feels like the artists you helped launch their careers — SPEED, MISIA, Hikaru Utada, etc. — sang about themselves as self-reliant individuals, which was a clear departure from the trend of the “idol” singers that had been the mainstream up to that point.

Songs by idol singers at the time were mass products aimed to become mega-hits, so they reflected the largest common denominator of the public’s preference. So it could be said that those songs were heavily tinged with the thinking around gender roles in Japan at the time.

On the other hand, if the female R&B singers I helped as part of the team had one thing in common, you could say they all seemed to be walking on their own two feet. R&B itself is of course a genre that’s been around for a long time, and in the late 1990s when it was first gaining momentum in Japan, the top 10 songs on the U.S. pop charts were almost entirely dominated by R&B. Japanese artists were also looking up Janet Jackson, Lauryn Hill, and TLC in their heyday. And those new J-pop artists weren’t being made to sing songs that other people wrote, and that probably led to that sense of being self-reliant.

I wonder if one of the reasons why the gender imbalance in the Japanese entertainment industry continues to exist is that the public doesn’t seem to be very interested in mature female artists, meaning it’s a matter of capacity and literacy on the side of consumers.

People who grow up watching Japanese idol singers in their adolescent years, being taught that “this is how girls are supposed to be,” most likely aren’t going to start listening to mature female artists after they outgrow those idols. I feel that nowadays, people prefer songs that are easy to understand rather than those with a mature perspective. I like lyrics written by Rokusuke Ei (“Ue wo muite aruko,” aka “Sukiyaki” etc.) and Michio Yamagami (“Tsubasa wo kudasai” etc.), and they often depict profound emotions that make you feel like you’re watching a movie in a three-minute song. Sometimes I want to try that kind of approach, but don’t get the kind of reaction I’m hoping for when I do, perhaps because people aren’t looking for perspectives with depth and delicates gradation in new songs.

There’s also the long-standing reality of management positions in the Japanese music and entertainment industry being dominated by men. What do you think is necessary for women to thrive in the business?

I think it’d be better to institutionalize a system to guarantee a certain percentage of women, like the French Parité Law (that mandates the equal inclusion of men and women on lists of candidates). When I was interviewing artists in the U.S. in the ‘80s and ‘90s, I sometimes heard from African Americans in their 30s and 40s that they were the first among their relatives to be admitted to college through affirmative action, even though they came from families that had been forced into slave labor long ago. They told me passionately that their mission was to write songs about what they’d seen as someone living in such an era. Affirmative action means taking positive steps to eliminate discrimination, and in Japan where the gender gap index is so low, I think that’s necessary.

Yes. Like the way music opened your eyes to the distortions of society, it can be a very effective approach in changing people’s minds. That’s why the structure of the industry that produces it must change.

During the pandemic, we often heard the phrase “fuyou fukyuu” (unnecessary and non-urgent). It’s true that music and entertainment can be considered unnecessary and non-urgent. But if politics and economics are the major arteries, music gives flexibility to people, like capillaries. A society that lacks flexibility and openness is cramped and suffocating, don’t you think?

—This interview by Rio Hirai (SOW SWEET PUBLISHING) first appeared on Billboard Japan

On Billboard JAPAN’s “Niconico VOCALOID SONGS” 2024 mid-year ranking, announced on June 7, Yoshida Yasei’s “Override” took the top spot. This chart tracks the popularity of Vocaloid songs on Niconico, ranking the top 20 based on data such as the total number of plays, the total number of videos, the number of comments, the number of likes, and other figures, multiplied by coefficients developed by Billboard JAPAN. Chart results have been published on a weekly basis since December 7, 2022.

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Sasuke Haraguchi’s “HITO Mania” took the No. 1 spot on the “Niconico VOCALOID SONGS TOP20” for the first time on September 20, 2023, keeping its position for 18 consecutive weeks, a new record for the chart. This had a huge impact on the Vocaloid scene. However, on the January 24, 2024 chart, “HITO Mania” was dethroned by Yoshida Yasei’s “Override,” failing to reach the 19 week mark. What’s important to note is that while jon-YAKITORY’s “Konton Boogie,” Sasuke Haraguchi’s “Medicine,” and nbaji’s “Sukina Souzai Happyou Dragon” then took the number one positions, “Override” made a comeback, claiming the number one position once more. This is a testament to the song’s tremendous momentum. It combines a catchy, distinctively Vocaloid, unforgettable melody with lyrics that can be taken as lampooning society itself, taking the position that there’s no way to know what lies beneath the things people say. The music video, featuring Kasane Teto, makes quite the impression, packed with net memes. The popularity of “Override” also got a boost from derivative works.

◎Yoshida Yasei’s “Override”

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Not only have there been changes in the sound of Vocaloid songs, but also in the voice synthesis software used to make them. For example, KAFU, which was released as CeVIO AI voice synthesis software in July 2021, was based on the voice of KAMITSUBAKI STUDIO’s virtual singer KAF, and its use became a major trend starting in 2021. The Niconico VOCALOID SONGS chart has included Tsumiki’s “Phony” (2021), Hiiragi Magnetite’s “Marshall Maximizer” (2021), and Iyowa’s “Kyu-kurarin” (2021), all of which feature KAFU. In addition to Yamaha’s VOCALOID, there is now a growing range of voice synthesis software, including VOICEROID, CeVIO AI, and Synthesizer V. This wide selection has led to more diverse music.

The mid-year chart for 2024 has been taken by storm by songs featuring Kasane Teto in particular. There’s Yoshida Yasei’s “Override” (No. 1), Sasuke Haraguchi’s “HITO Mania” (No. 2), Sasuke Haraguchi’s “Medicine” (No. 3), 32ki’s “Mesmerizer” (No. 6), nbaji’s “Sukina Souzai Happyou Dragon” (No. 7)… The chart is top-heavy with songs that use Kasane Teto. A major reason for this boom is the commercial release of Synthesizer V AI Kasane Teto on April 27, 2023. This voice synthesizer, which can produce more human, realistic vocals, began as an April Fool’s hoax: in March 2008, users on the 2channel message board announced the creation of new Vocaloid software named “Kasane Teto.” Coincidentally, the free UTAU voice synthesis software had been released in March of the same year. With UTAU, it was possible to use the voice of Mayo Oyamano, who provided the fake vocals for the prank, as a voicebank. With this, Kasane Teto was launched as an “official” voice synthesizer. As if to celebrate the 15th anniversary of this serendipitous beginning, the chart for the first half of 2024 is packed with Kasane Teto songs, whether made using the Synthesizer V version or the UTAU version.

Listening again to the songs in the chart, a few other interesting commonalities spring up. The first that stands out is the way that net memes and common phrases are sprinkled throughout. For example, these include “Override,” whose video appears to be a homage to Surii’s “Telecaster B-Boy,” “HITO Mania,” which takes a poke at modern society using familiar, cut-and-pasted expressions, and “Konton Boogie,” which includes the nostalgic 2000’s meme “What is that? Does it taste good?” From the early days of the Vocaloid scene until around 2015, lyrics were often direct, telling a story, as can be heard in ryo’s “Melt” or Scop’s “Irony.” However, in recent years, Vocaloid songs have had a growing tendency to use metaphors, symbolism, and difficult lyrics. We live in an age in which the things that people say are often taken in isolation, divorced from their context, shared and spread, and interpreted in unintended ways. Perhaps this is what is behind the new trend of Vocaloid lyrics becoming strings of abstract expressions. In the comments, people provide various interpretations, attempting to unravel the messages lurking within these abstractions. The massive hit “HITO Mania” typifies this, with deep lyrics that can be seen as skewering society, carried by a clipped audio backing. Its lyrics bear wide room for interpretation.

◎Sasuke Haraguchi’s “HITO Mania”

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The Vocaloid scene, which sprang from Niconico, is very welcoming to all kinds of derivative works, such as dance and vocal covers. “Sukina Souzai Happyou Dragon” took the No. 4 spot in the Neta Kyoku Tokosai (“Joke Song Festival”) category in VocaColle 2023 Summer. Parody comics and art by artists like the manga creator Sakamegane caused it to trend on X (Twitter), and its popularity exploded. User-generated content now holds the key to becoming a hit, and in some cases creators themselves actively encourage the creation of derivative works. For example, in the comments of his video “Override,” Yoshida Yasei provided tips for creating derivative works. nbaji wrote in the description box of his own videos that derivative works and parody songs were welcome. Moves such as these have accelerated the sharing of the songs. The killer tunes of the Vocaloid scene aren’t just the product of high musical quality, but involve various interwoven factors, including derivative works.

The chart for the first half of 2024 features many unique songs with the unique passion and individuality so typical of Niconico. It will be one to remember and it’ll be interesting to see what kinds of new killer tunes will one day dethrone them.

—This article by Mio Komachi was planned for publication in June 2024, but Niconico service was suspended due to a cyberattack, and is instead being published in September 2024

Grammy-nominated music producer TOMOKO IDA spoke with Billboard Japan for its Women in Music interview series, featuring female players in the Japanese entertainment industry. The WIM initiative in Japan launched in 2022 to celebrate artists, producers and executives who have made significant contributions to music and inspired other women through their work.

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One of the few female music producers in Japan and abroad, TOMOKO IDA co-produced the first track “obstáculo” on Puerto Rican music producer Tainy’s debut album DATA in 2023, which was nominated for Best Música Urbana Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards. As the first Japanese woman to be nominated for a Grammy as a music producer, TOMOKO IDA shared her thoughts on why female producers are in the minority in the music industry.

How did you become a music producer?

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My mother was a music teacher and I took piano and dance lessons since I was six years old. When I was in the second or third grade, the (J-pop) dance and vocal group ZOO was popular, and I became interested in 90’s hip-hop and new jack swing. I also longed to go to New York after watching music videos and dreamed of working in the U.S. someday. Time passed and I began DJing, then a few years later, I started performing as a beat maker using a MPC in a two-woman duo. It was rare to see women performing with a sampler at the time, and people were excited to see our shows when we performed overseas. When it was time to find a job after college, I considered working for an ordinary company, but my mother said, “Why not do music?” and encouraged me, so I chose to work part-time and focus on making beats.

Why did you decide to become a music producer rather than an artist that performs in front of an audience, even though you debuted in a duo as a MPC player?

Performing live with a sampler and DJing requires flexibility and instant response on the scene, but I have always loved making things and am better at taking my time to create something. Plus, I hadn’t heard of too many female music producers, so I wanted to spearhead it. By 2016, I started to focus more on producing.

You’ve produced music for famous J-pop artists such as AI, Daichi Miura, SixTONES, and EXILE TRIBE, as well as music for fashion advertisements. Could you tell us what you do as a music producer?

I sense that the definition of a music producer has been changing with the times, and it’s also different from country to country. In Japan, the definition seems to refer to people who produce everything from the concept and selection of members [of an idol group], like Yasushi Akimoto and Tetsuya Komuro, but in the U.S., if someone makes a track, then that person is often called a music producer. In my case, I’m often asked to produce music by artists who’ve already established their careers, so as a music producer I try to produce music that will make those artists shine brighter.

A lot of the songs you produce for Japanese artists are powerful. Do you think there’s a difference in the ideal image of women in Japan and America?

It does feel different depending on the country. For example, I have a feeling Japanese men find fragile women attractive. Maybe that’s why there are lots of songs and lyrics that lean towards that direction. But in the U.S., powerful women are more popular.

You accomplished an extraordinary feat in becoming the first Japanese female producer to work on a Grammy-nominated album. From your position, do you have any thoughts on how things could be improved to make it easier for women to work in the industry?

I still think it’s necessary for forerunners [like us] to pave the way. For example, in Japan’s hip-hop scene, Awich is currently leading the way and doing well as a female rapper. I think opportunities for women will expand if there are more people like her, so I’d also like to do my best as a music producer to make it easier for more women to follow suit. I’d like to see more Japanese people go out into the world because in the community of producers and songwriters in L.A. where I currently live, there are very few of us compared to other Asians.

The skills required for both performing with a sampler and being a music producer don’t seem to be too demanding in a physical sense, so why do you think there aren’t too many women in these fields?

It’s said that female producers make up less than 3% of the total even now. We use machines and computers, so maybe people think it’s mechanical and science-oriented. I don’t think it’s a hard job for women to do, but there are so few women that people seem taken aback to see me in the studio. I also seem to surprise people in a good way for my skill, because apparently Asian women look young for their age.

What advice would you give to yourself in the first year of your career?

I’d say, “Keep making music.” It’s not always easy to get your songs chosen when working as a music producer. Even when you’re personally offered an opportunity, only a few of the songs you write will make the cut. It might seem like a glamorous world, but it takes quite a bit of quiet dedication and you just have to keep at it.

What are your next goals?

I was able to become a Grammy-nominated producer, so I want to become a Grammy-winning producer someday. I don’t know when that will be, but I’ll continue to make music toward that goal.

—This interview by Rio Hirai (SOW SWEET PUBLISHING) first appeared on Billboard Japan

Born in Okinawa, Japan, in the year 2000, singer-songwriter YU-KA spent her early years in America and Switzerland. At age 15, she took up the acoustic guitar, and she started writing her own songs at age 17. She began truly throwing herself into music upon winning a special award in a movie theme song-writing audition. “Hoshizukiyo,” which she released in February 2023, took the No. 1 spot on Billboard JAPAN‘s “Download Songs” chart, making it her biggest hit. 

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The title track of her latest EP, Sunshade, was produced by ONE OK ROCK’s Toru and is the theme song of the TV series Smiling Matryoshka. The 24-year-old musician is equally focused on both her musical activities in Japan and overseas, bringing a separate mentality to each. Billboard Japan recently had the opportunity to talk to her about her latest release, an encapsulation of where she is now. 

What’s the concept behind the Sunshade EP? 

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YU-KA: When I wrote my first album, Brighter, a lot of the lyrics I wrote were really grand in scale. The most popular song on the album, “Hoshizukiyo,” was a soaring love song. With the new album, I wanted to make something more personal. I wanted to write lyrics about love at a one-to-one level — the level of “me and you.” The artwork reflects that, too. I’m not wearing some sort of gorgeous costume, just a T-shirt. It’s made up of natural photographs taken in everyday settings, cut and pasted together like a patchwork. I wanted to give it that handmade, unadorned feel. 

I just followed my heart wherever it led in writing “forget-me-not,” and I think it brings me back to my natural roots. The lyrics to “Clouds” are all in English, and I feel like that song ties in to my indie days. At the time, I was doing a lot of live shows, trying a lot of new things, like using a looper and matching English lyrics with simple chord progressions. I think the song’s sound is connected with that point of my life. On the flip side, I was re-examining J-pop when I wrote “Sunshade”, “Tsuraikurai,” and “One more time.” I like both Western music and J-pop, and I wanted to write music that lies somewhere in-between, but I also took on new challenges by working in the vein of J-pop. 

Do you have different aims when you’re singing in English than when you’re singing in Japanese? 

YU-KA: I rely a lot on whatever words the melody and the music bring out of me. Especially when I’m co-writing overseas, I tend to write the lyrics using words that I’m drawn to, or words I want to sing because of how they sound. With English, I find that very easy. In “Clouds,” I wanted to use a lot of words, like writing in a diary. You can fit in more words with English than with Japanese, so since I wanted to pack the lyrics in, English was the way to go. Also, I think writing a song like this connects to my own roots and really expresses aspects of myself. The song’s lyrics include “Tokyo” and “scramble crossing,” so even though the song is in English, I think I’ve put in elements that are a true-to-life depiction of my life in Japan. 

“Sunshade” has four lines that start with “Ne,” (a Japanese expression that’s similar to a softer version of “Hey”). I found that use of repetition in Japanese to be particularly effective. 

YU-KA: In the past, a lot of my songs mixed English and Japanese, but lately I’ve been feeling that just using Japanese alone sounds cool. The “Ne” part of “Sunshade” would have been easier to write if the lyrics were in English, but I focused on writing in Japanese, and, I think, that’s why I was able to come up with those lyrics. I’m particularly fond of that part of the song. Deciding what Japanese to use when working with a smaller number of notes is an interesting process. It’s like writing a waka or tanka (Japanese poems). I enjoyed figuring out how to express myself within those limitations. I think that, through this process, I’ve become able to express things that I couldn’t express before, when I was mixing Japanese and English lyrics. 

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You wrote the lyrics for both “Tsuraikurai” and “Sunshade,” and Toru from ONE OK ROCK wrote the music, right? I understand that you’ve written with Toru several times in the past, too. What were some takeaways from your latest collaboration? 

YU-KA: When I was making my major label debut (“lullaby,” produced by Toru), I was just working like crazy. I didn’t know which end was up. But working with Toru, I always have a wealth of experiences. For example, I’ll go in thinking I haven’t changed but it will open my eyes to how much I’ve changed, or I’ll go in thinking I’ve gotten used to something, and I’ll find myself butting up against a wall. 

How did the writing process go? 

YU-KA: “Sunshade” is a tie-up song for a TV series. The process of writing a tie-up song involves creating something that goes beyond your own abilities alone, so I feel like it brings a lot out of you. I wanted to make the lyrics a little cryptic, but then I thought that they needed to convey where I was, what I was doing, what I wanted to do. So the lyrics became more and more concrete as I worked on the song. That process of rewriting was also a lot of fun. 

You’ve travelled back and forth between Japan and other countries. You grew up in the US and Switzerland, and you travelled to Sweden when making the album. What aspects of Japan, and of other countries, do you like when it comes to environments for creating music? 

YU-KA: When I was in Sweden, I was working really fast, making one or two songs a day. It built up my explosive power — my ability to take off running. In Japan, on the other hand, I feel like I spend a lot more working with each song, struggling with how to improve it and constantly making refinements. When I co-wrote with non-Japanese people, I was worried that I’d be overwhelmed and just let myself get swept away, falling by the wayside, but actually the opposite was true — the core parts of me that are constants, and the parts that make me who I am, would remain. I write music before I talk to the people I’ll be working with, so the melody lines and the interactions I have while we’re working on the music are like a self-introduction for me. The way that I needed to instantly introduce myself through my music was a real eye-opener and helped me grow. 

You’ve performed at the SXSW for two years running, and you’re an active musician overseas. What kind of musical activities do you want to do in Japan and in other countries? 

YU-KA: As an artist, the way I am in Japan and the way I am overseas are like mirror images. When I’m in Japan, the fact that I lived overseas, and the way that experience affects my music, are like a part of my persona. Overseas, the fact that I’m Japanese and listen to J-pop sets me apart. I think that going back and forth between those two environments makes my own musical sensibilities more clearly defined. 

Going back and forth between Japan and other countries, I sometimes ask myself what it means to be true to myself, but I think who I truly am is what comes out of me when I just act naturally. That’s why when I’m overseas, I think of myself as a Japanese artist as I make and perform my music. I want to reach a position that I’m uniquely suited to and to create works that really convey what I intend, to both Japanese and overseas audiences.

—This interview by Reina Murakami first appeared on Billboard Japan

On Sept. 4, VK Blanka released his new album, Knightclub. In early 2024, he launched his first North American tour in nine cities throughout the United States and Canada. In July, he performed at the largest anime convention in South America, Anime Friends 2024, in São Paulo, Brazil, followed by his first Latin American tour, VK Blanka Latin America Tour 2024, in Santiago and Mexico City. This new album is his first in three years, released in the middle of this heavy overseas touring schedule. These overseas performances have had a tremendous impact on him, which comes through in his music.

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How was your first Latin American solo tour?

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It was so fun. It’s the other side of the world, so there was a whole different type of excitement. What really stuck out was everyone shouting out their love for my music. In Japan, for our shows, we try to create something of a journey, but the audiences in Latin America were amped up the whole way through, regardless of the show’s flow. That made me feel great.

So you can feel differences in countries’ national characters through the audience reactions?

Right. In Japan, there’s this feeling of humanity and spirituality. In Latin America, whether it’s Brazil or Mexico, everyone’s always so cheery. With North American audiences, sometimes they’re going crazy but sometimes they’re cool and collected. All that comes through in the shows. For the Middle East, in Saudi Arabia everyone’s shouting “Yeah!” So, in that way, it feels the same as North America, Latin America, and Europe…except that no matter how energetic the show is, the audience is all sitting back watching it from these cushy seats. Then, when the show ends and you say “Thank you so much, Saudi Arabia!” they give you a standing ovation. In their culture, the way you watch a music show is the same as the way you’d watch a play. I think those differences are really interesting. In that sense, playing in places other than Japan is very stimulating.

In countries like Saudi Arabia, clothing can’t be very revealing, so I’m guessing these cultural changes could also affect wardrobes.

Yeah, they did advise me about that. You can’t wear shorts, so I wore full-length pants, despite the heat. But in town, you’d see Europeans wearing shorts and jogging like it was no big deal (laughs). So there were people from countries who didn’t care about things like that, but since we’re Japanese, we took care to dress the “proper” way. You’d see that gap, as well, in lots of places, which was interesting.

Have these experiences overseas brought about any changes in your own lifestyle?

Yeah, they’ve changed the way I think. Of course, I’ve become more interested in different countries, and my experience has brought things like social situations, politics, economics, and culture closer to home. For example, now if I see that there’s a demonstration happening in France, I know where it’s happening, and I think about the friends I have there, that are my own age. I wonder what they think about the situation. Performing overseas, you establish a lot more connections like that. I feel like, without even being conscious of it, I’ve become more “borderless.”

What’s the meaning behind the title of your new album, Knightclub?

I like giving my albums cool names, like “wizard” or “Devil” (laughs). So, in line with that, I was originally thinking of naming it “Knight.” But then I decided to give it a more musical title, so I took “night club,” which has a cool feel, and then I put a “k” in front to make “Knightclub,” which would also have the double meaning of a legion of knights.

The first song, “Yomigaeri (with Noriyuki Makihara & ayaka),” has a spiritual feel to it. What’s it about?

That wasn’t the kind of song I set out to write from the start, but it ultimately ended out with this theme of life and death. Ever since I was an elementary school kid, I’ve thought about what it means to live, and what it means to die. I feel like my outlook on life and death has come through with the different experiences I’ve had.

“Daddy (Dying in NY)” is an English language song on the album that starts out with a chaotic soundscape. What’s the story behind it?

When I was doing a show in Europe, one of the fans shouted out “Daddy!” I didn’t know what it meant at the time, but when I looked it up later, I found out it was a sexual come-on for a hot guy. I talked about that on the North American tour, too, and then one day I played this show in New York. The show was incredible, and it was the last of the tour, so at the end I felt totally spent. That’s why I gave the song that name, like “a hottie dies in New York.”

“High Love” is a standout song, sung entirely in falsetto. You did the whole thing, including the chorus, yourself, right?

Right. I recorded the whole thing in my home studio. When I debuted, what set me apart was how much falsetto I used and how high I sang. The music I wrote after my debut was more flexible, but one day I realized that I’d never really gone full-steam since my debut song, “Slave of Love.” I wanted to use that same approach again, so I wrote “High Love.”

“Never Run” has an 80’s feel to it. What can you tell us about this song?

Los Angeles musician Josh Cumbee, who mixed the song with me, said “There used to be groups whose music all used this beat, so if we use it, it’s going to sound retro.” I found that pretty surprising. It wasn’t my intent to revive an old sound, I simply thought that it was a great rhythm, the kind of rhythm that could always get people moving. The lyrics to this song are also all in English, and the audience really got into it during our Latin America tour. It’s hard for foreign audiences to sing along to Japanese songs, but this song was surprisingly easy even for audiences in Chile and Mexico. The song showed a lot more global potential than even I’d expected, which I think is fascinating.

“Fortress” is a beautiful, soaring ballad. What were you trying to express through it?

The theme is “defense,” which, in a way, is a passive act or mentality. In the song, I tried to embody this concept not of defending or bearing something out of weakness, but instead because if you go all the way in your defense, then you’ll be unrivalled.

So playing piano and singing are where your true musical roots lie?

Even now, the piano is always my main instrument. That will probably never change. But the direction I use when I perform is changing. Actually playing live shows, it’s really constricting being trapped behind the piano the whole time. I want to move around more and be more active, so there are parts of my approach that are changing little by little. One thing that is true for both my first album and this album is that I handled all the arrangements myself. Recently, I’d been asking lots of different people to work on arranging the songs, but with this album, I’ve come full circle and did all the arrangements myself again. That’s one connection between the new album and my first album.

“Matane” is a simple song with very intimate vocals. I feel like it gives a glimpse of the true you.

I took a straightforward, genuine approach with “Matane.” When I wrote it, I thought it would be a good song to end the album with, and I hoped that it would linger with the listener, even after it ended. My concept for it was to create the same feelings that I hoped the audience at one of my shows would have as they headed back home.

What do you see in your future?

I want to create great music, for everyone to listen to that music, and to put on shows in every city. Other countries are no longer a mystery to me. The world is now my home, so I think it would feel wonderful to put on a complete world tour, playing in cities in Japan, Latin America, North America, the Middle East, Europe, and Australia.

—This interview by Takayuki Okamoto first appeared on Billboard Japan