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J-pop boy band IMP. dropped its debut single “CRUISIN’” on Friday (Aug. 18). The rookie seven-member group consisting of members Yuki Yokohara, Shunsuke Motoi, Takuya Kageyama, Taiga Tsubaki, Taiga Suzuki, Arata Sato, and Minato Matsui announced last month that they would sign with TOBE (“to be”) to pursue new forms of entertainment at the agency. […]

QUEEN BEE’s “Mephisto,” the ending theme for the smash hit anime 【OSHI NO KO】, has itself become a long-running hit song. The video for “Mephisto” performed by “Avu-chi, the Idol from Hell” on the YouTube channel THE FIRST TAKE reached 4.57 million views in less than a week.

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The heart of QUEEN BEE, vocalist Avu-chan, who is responsible for both the lyrics and the music to “Mephisto,” spoke with Billboard Japan for the first time. In this wide-ranging interview, she discusses 【OSHI NO KO】 and “Mephisto,” performing in a band, and QUEEN BEE’s full-fledged start as global band.

“Mephisto” is the ending theme for the anime 【OSHI NO KO】, and the song has become quite the hit.

Avu-chan: I think the anime introduced a lot of people to “Mephisto,” but even more than that, I think there were people who had heard of QUEEN BEE before, and “Mephisto” reinforced for them what a tremendous band we are. It was wonderful that Aka Akasaka and Mengo Yokoyari, who created the original manga, and the creators of the anime all supported us in handling the ending theme. It’s a strange feeling, like they recognized and validated the approach we take to life.

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The new song has given people an opportunity to see what an amazing band you are.

Avu-chan: Right. Just look at how many people are listening to our music. We’ve lit the flame of QUEEN BEE and kept it burning, and now we’ve been given this opportunity by something even bigger than us. But we’re not going to burn out, and we’re not aiming to fan these flames in new directions, working toward some new goal. We’re not going to allow ourselves to get swept away, we’re just going to quietly keep pushing forward.

Without getting anxious or restless.

Avu-chan: We knew that we could achieve synergy by pairing up with 【OSHI NO KO】. We’re very grateful for that. However, in the end we just want to do what we think is interesting — what we find wonderful. That’s going to be the path we continue to follow in the future. All that said, I’m amazed that “Mephisto,” which is just brutally honest, has been so widely accepted. It’s not just about idols, it’s about every kind of work. It’s about how we stake our lives on our work, how once you start there’s no turning back. It tells these truths in uncouth, unvarnished words. If people are enjoying it by making vocal covers and dance videos, I don’t know what to say.

What are your impressions of 【OSHI NO KO】, which recently aired its final episode?

Avu-chan: I think it’s wonderful how the original creators of the comic have enjoyed the anime adaptation, which has become a social phenomenon. But what 【OSHI NO KO】 is really depicting is a serious message of social reform, set on the stage of the entertainment industry. It’s so ironic that it became a hit overseas and people are like “Japan is so fascinating.” I guess one saving grace, in a way, is that the people who made it are brimming with love, and that our own music is part of it.

The love and passion the creators feel for their work is making the serious message of social reform into a hopeful message.

Avu-chan: Right. There are people who, when they talk about the entertainment industry, are like “Your job is being on stage, so you need to just grin and bear it.” They want to treat the entertainment industry as if it’s an anomaly.  【OSHI NO KO】 is directly challenging that idea, saying “This is a story that relates to everyone.” I think it challenges the viewers. But there are a lot of people who aren’t seeing it as a battle, which may be a reason for its popularity.

“Mephisto” is the name of a demon in German folklore, and appears in Goethe’s drama Faust. I’ve heard that you developed the concept of the song some time ago.

Avu-chan: From the time of the decision for the tie-in, I thought that the theme of “Mephisto” would be a great match for the anime. I was sure the anime would be great, and I was so confident that I cried with joy on being selected to provide the ending theme. I drew the motif from Goethe’s Faust, and I was influenced by authors who richly depicted the doings and passion of people — authors like Go Nagai, who I’ve enjoyed since I was little, and like Yukio Mishima and Shakespeare. I think those sensibilities lie at the heart of “Mephisto.”

So you’re expressing the doings and passion of people through music.

Avu-chan: I feel the same kind of passion in 【OSHI NO KO】 as I feel in the works of those authors, so “Mephisto” was a great fit for it. However, the music drew on that passion more than it drew on any specific information about the anime, so I didn’t think that many people would realize the intent behind it.

If you look at YOASOBI’s “Idol” as broadening the world of the anime, it would seem to me that “Mephisto” deepened it.

Avu-chan: Thank you for saying that. Drawing out context from a work of art — that’s our specialty. YOASOBI and QUEEN BEE have really just blown the lid off this! (laughs) I don’t think if this would’ve happened if our musical styles hadn’t been so different.

I’d like to talk to you for a moment about the band as a whole. You performed two live shows in the U.S. this April. Do you have your eyes set on establishing a full-fledged global presence?

Avu-chan: We hadn’t originally been thinking about that. I love the Japanese language and I’ve always felt it was important to sing in Japanese, so starting all over from the ground up, writing lyrics in English — that’s a decision I’ve struggled with.

Sure, but the situation in the North American market is changing. Song lyrics used to have to be in English to be successful, but now it’s no longer that hard to compete even when singing in your own native language.

Avu-chan: True. When we played in America in spring, I started to think that the passion and strength of Japanese could serve as our passport. We performed in Seattle and Los Angeles, and when we put on the kind of show QUEEN BEE usually does, the venues went wild.

Even though there were a lot of people who didn’t speak Japanese?

Avu-chan: Right. And another thing that people who praised the show all mentioned is that the audience had people of all races. There were senior citizens and little kids, and looking at how much fun everyone had, I thought “QUEEN BEE really needs to go international.” Of course, succeeding in Japan is itself no easy matter. However, I recognize that I myself am a melting pot of races. At the two shows, I got a glimpse of just why I should be performing to overseas audiences.

You want to be someone who stands on stage surrounded by people of every race.

Avu-chan: I just bare my heart for all to see. I think overseas success is still a major challenge, but I hope to stir up some chaos on a global scale.

Is there anything that you’d change in your efforts to go global?

Avu-chan: If I changed anything, people would notice immediately.  In our case, if you change yourself in order to curry popularity, then you’re left with nothing. We don’t want to use that kind of marketing approach.

Because that wouldn’t be true to QUEEN BEE.

Avu-chan: I’d like to think that we just can’t do things like that, and that’s one of our strengths.

I’ve heard that you already have plans for future overseas shows.

Avu-chan: Decisions about overseas shows are starting to get made, so in the future I think we’ll be playing abroad more and more.

In Japan, you’ve got plans to perform in festivals and events, and in November you’ve lined up a performance hall tour, “Juni-jigen + 01.”

Avu-chan: We’ve decided how we’re going to present ourselves in our shows, so now we’re working on internalizing that at the physical level. There’s a lot we still want to do, and we’re always thinking about what challenges to take on next. I feel like we have to keep updating ourselves, stimulating our own cycle of creativity, shedding our skin. If we don’t, we’ll die. I wonder what kind of beast we’ll have become at the end of this transformation.

It’s like QUEEN BEE’s own theory of evolution.

Avu-chan: The end result of evolution is collapse, so what I’m talking about isn’t quite evolution. What will lie at the end of this cycle of metabolism? I’m not going to hazard any specific guesses, but I’m really looking forward to seeing how it all turns out.

I’m sure there are a lot of people who are encouraged by how QUEEN BEE refuses to simply be satisfied with how things are, but instead is always taking on new challenges.

Avu-chan: Looking back, from two or three years ago until just recently, there were no discussions about tie-in songs. But even during that time, we were making our own music videos and keeping our focus on QUEEN BEE in all that we did. I think that all combined to put us where we are today. Right now, people are enjoying “Mephisto,” but I don’t see this as our peak. No matter what the situation, we’re just going to keep being on stage — that’s what we’ve made up our minds to do.

—This interview by Itsuki Mori first appeared on Billboard Japan

Japanese dance and vocal group ONE N’ ONLY dropped its new song “EVOL” digitally on Wednesday (Aug. 16). The latest track is an upbeat, passionate reggaeton-flavored number fitting for where the ever-evolving band currently stands.

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Billboard Japan chatted with the six members of the group celebrating its fifth anniversary this year — HAYATO, REI, TETTA, NAOYA, EIKU, and KENSHIN — about “EVOL” and also asked them to share their impressions from the group’s headlining Brazilian tour from earlier this year.

You toured Brazil this spring and performed for your fans there at last. Could you share your thoughts on the trek?

HAYATO: We were really happy to be able to go there to do our own shows instead of being part of a bigger event. We came up with a setlist with about the same number of songs as we do in Japan, and spoke to our audience completely in Portuguese. But when we first decided to tour three cities in Brazil, we weren’t sure just how many SWAG (ONE N’ ONLY fans) would be there. It felt so moving on our first day of the tour in Sao Paulo when we saw the faces our fans, knowing so many people had been waiting for us to come.

REI: Their reactions were amazing too, weren’t they?

HAYATO: Yeah. Everyone reacted so enthusiastically to what we did onstage. Everyone sang and danced and all those reactions were just awesome, so it was a lot of fun to do.

What about you, TETTA?

TETTA: To tell you the truth, I’m not completely used to performing live yet. [Laughs] I guess I’ll just have to keep doing it to feel truly comfortable with it. It was such a great experience, though, and I really felt the energy of the people of Brazil. SWAG in Brazil were so energetic and I couldn’t outdo them in that regard! I’ll do better next time!

HAYATO: Yeah, they were so full of energy.

NAOYA: I got injured a few days before we left for Brazil and couldn’t be a part of our performances. But everyone over there gave me such a warm welcome and I felt what a generous country it is. I actually wasn’t sure until shortly before we departed if I could come along or not, so I was so glad to have been able to be a part of it. And the band members all stepped up for me so I really appreciate them.

At what point did you feel they stepped up for you?

NAOYA: I had a chance to see them performing onstage when I couldn’t join in, and felt so proud to see the five of them commanding the stage with such vitality. Our SWAG had such power and passion, too. They let us know they were having a lot of fun, just like we thought they would!

EIKU: I thought it was a country overflowing with love. There was no reserved seating in the venues we played in, and everyone ran to grab the seats up front. When I saw that, it really hit home just how much our fans love us. Oh, and whenever one of our crew members crossed the stage before we went on, the crowd made so much noise!

HAYATO: Oh, yeah! Our crew was so pleased about that.

EIKU: Yeah. They went up there about four times on purpose and seemed to revel in all that attention. [Laughs] Each of the three cities we visited had different vibes and that was fascinating, too.

KENSHIN: When you stop and think about it, being able to tour on the other side of the planet is such an amazing thing. We had a special place in our hearts for Brazil, and it was such a happy feeling sharing the same space with our SWAG in that country.

You had two Portuguese-language songs in your set. Were your fans excited to hear them?

KENSHIN: They loved those the most! The way they expressed their excitement was awesome. But they were also hyped about our Japanese songs as well, so I felt that our songs were getting through to the audience. I’d love to visit again.

REI: Everyone was so upbeat! Their reactions to every single thing we did were just awesome and it was a lot of fun.

The group’s new song “EVOL” dropped this month. It’s also a really upbeat number.

HAYATO: I wish we could have performed this one during our Latin American tour!

Sounds like it would have been a lot of fun! Did you start discussing what kind of music to release next around the end of your 5th anniversary tour?

HAYATO: Yes. We’ve gone into depth about the concept for each song we’ve been releasing lately every time we produce a new one. For this we decided to come up with a summery track and incorporate a Latin flavor as one of the group’s new distinctive styles. It turned out to be a song with a catchy chorus over Latin and reggaeton beats, which suits us.

REI: When I first heard it, it took me by surprise because I’d never heard anything like it before. But I knew we’d able to express it and that we were the ones who could do it justice because of where we currently are as a group right now.

KENSHIN: I’m in charge of the opening lines and the rap part of the second verse. The track is built to hype people up and plunge them into the music. The sultry vibe of the second verse also has a summery feel to it, so I hope people enjoy that.

You’ve all probably matured as you’ve grown older since you first got started. Which member do you think has changed the most in that regard?

REI: I think EIKU is more attractive now.

TETTA: I know what you mean! EIKU is the youngest and it’s like he’s upgraded. First of all, he’s bigger in physique. Which means his style of dancing has changed and he has a man’s face now.

HAYATO: He’s gone from cute to cool.

REI: EIKU is probably the one who’s changed the most both externally and internally. He used to be the quiet type before, but now he steps forward a lot more.

TETTA: Oh, I know! That’s probably because he changed his bangs and began parting it in the middle. And then he changed again by dyeing his hair and stuff. By the way, I was the one who said he’d look better if he parted it like that.

So you’re saying he changed thanks to you?

TETTA: Yeah!

REI: Why do you always try to take credit for everything? [Laughs]

TETTA: I’m the type who says, “I knew them before they were big” more than anyone! [Everyone laughs]

EIKU, are you aware of these changes they’ve pointed out?

EIKU: I guess I am. I think the changes in the kind of songs we do now might have something to do with it, but I do think I express myself differently now… from around when I began parting my hair down the middle. [Laughs] I also study videos of other people performing in different ways.

What will the choreography for the new song be like?

NAOYA: We just began learning the moves. MONA, the choreographer who came up with the dance for Na-Yeon from TWICE’s “POP!,” is handling the dance for this one.

TETTA: We often had male choreographers handling our performances in the past, so I hope everyone enjoys our new catchy dance moves that are different from before. We’d love to see you dancing on TikTok!

NAOYA: Yeah, since the song is so catchy, too. It’d be great if you all have fun with it!

—This interview by Kana Yoshida first appeared on Billboard Japan