「35th Series」Interview with Chisa

This article is translated from an interview done with Girl Next Door’s Chisa by Yahoo!
Translation by Rinoa

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“At 18, I used to dance constantly from morning to night. Also with my friends we used to have independent lessons.”

What is your idea of an artist at the age of 18 years and the circumstances you thought they would be placed? Serial 18 years old invites various artists and guests to talk about their memories. The 35th guest, Chisa shall be releasing a new single on the 5th August 『Be your wings/FRIENDSHIP/Wait for you』

“The year with the most experiences”

“I’d say at 18 was the year where I experienced the most things. It was that year that I graduated from high school and started living alone.”

She wanted to advance towards the path of dancing, by choosing her own future, she decided to go to a school of dance.

“At that time dancing was a temporary activity and I started practicing more. I studied dance at school during the day, but with the attitude that it wasn’t enough and so I started getting self-borrowed lessons from the rented studio with a friend who came home from school. Until I went to a professional dance college, I was only doing jazz and ballet genres, however after reaching the point where I started attending school, I started dancing to rock, hip hop, house, rock, acrobatic and dance. I learned a lot from other genres.”

“Thought becoming a nursery teacher. “

Chisa had been learning dance since she was in kindergarten, and she was determined in advancing seriously on the road of dance and decided to go fully into jazz in high school.

Chisa's cover art

“Liking dancing in any case, getting together to dance together with your best friends after school was pleasant. So when you focused on the learning environment at school, I was just dying to simply concentrate on dancing with delight. When determining one’s course, I though that my parents wouldn’t allow me to live on my own or attend a specialised school.I think at that time they hoped that I chose to be a nursery teacher rather than choose the world of dance.”

But when they saw how honestly her willingness to learn to dance was strong, they showed no opposition. “If you want to have it so much, go for it. Good luck”, they told her.

“I had a support of my parents so I could not give up.”

“Because there was such a strong support, I absolutely couldn’t give up. Therefore I took my classes seriously and worked hard and focused my attention on any auditions which interested me. In the auditions for the leading part for a certain musical one must reach new heights. One must give oneself greatly since the characters were quite different from me. I started to yearn to sing at the center, while performing from there, at the stage.”

She had a good relationship with her friends, when at the time of the audition everyone was a rival. However being 18 years and desperately chasing the same dream, is imprinted deeply in her memory.

GIRL NEXT DOOR will release a new single on the 5th August,『FRIENDSHIP』is something which draws from the memory of summer with friends while she was learning from her school of dance. As for the lyrics, they describe the feelings of failure, worry and frustration felt in every day life in youth and she feels like it’s a blur of the blood and effort of her past life as she related how “real” the lyrics feel to her.

(Transcribed by Takeiti Naoko)

About the author

Rinoa enjoys spending her free time writing articles, most particularly reviews, biographies and news articles. Her favourite artist is Ayumi Hamasaki but she enjoys listening to a wide range of musical talents from all over the world.