Utahiroba Jun in Quick Japan volume #107 (Part 3)
This section gets pretty heavy - just a warning. Part 1 is here and part 2 is here.
I'm not a professional translator and still learning Japanese, so please forgive any mistakes. I just hope I captured our Junjun's words in the spirit he intended. He is quite passionate.
QJ: However, even if you think “I’d like to do something for somebody,” it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be able to do it.
Jun: I have a driving force and that force is “love.” [Just a note: he uses 愛 here - Neko.] Though just as a word, it’s a little vague. Saying I want to do something for other people is relatively close to unconditional love.
QJ: But it seems that, in part, bands do things in exchange for fans’ love, don’t you think?
Jun: That’s a completely different concept. Asking for reciprocity isn’t “love.” For fangirls, visual kei enthusiasts - at some stage, love isn’t enough, you know? At the personality development stage, there could have been some sort of warping. And the reason I say it so explicitly, is because I’m like that. But even that kind of person can treat people with empathy. Like, wishing for one good thing.
QJ: Ah, it’s because you are charmed by that kind of face, Mr. Utahiroba, that so many people gathered for opening day [of Autumn Leaf].
Jun: Is that really the case, I wonder. I think the overwhelming majority were people who came with reasons like “It looks like Golden Bomber is opening a store!” I’m very grateful for that reason, too, though instead of “Utahiroba Jun,” I’d like it to reach the point where they come with an enigmatic purpose. Because of this, I can say with confidence that my fans are without exception gentle people who are empathetic towards everybody.
Each member’s fans have their own colors. For example, Darvish Kenji’s fans are mostly perverts. (laugh) As for my fans, I think they really get the things I say, like we’re comrades in arms. On opening day, although such a large number of people came that it was said to be troublesome, the chaos of the line was somehow sorted out. And that’s why I think that a lot of empathetic people were there.
QJ: I spoke with some number of customers at the opening and there were a lot of girls who wondered how they could be of some benefit to you, Mr. Utahiroba. If you compare that to the “kyaaa~~” of fair weather fans, in a sense, it’s quite “heavy,” don’t you think? Don’t you feel the weight of those fans?
Jun: Never. Rather, I’m very conscious of the fact that the fair weather fans will eventually disappear. When Golden Bomber first began to appear on television, the biggest feeling was that since we weren’t musicians and we were very lively, there were a lot of ways to handle us. It was such that even I, personally, thought it wasn’t a good situation. For us to be treated like musicians, what’s the best way to go about it? That’s “no laughing matter,” you know. Although Golden Bomber believes in using jokes, unfortunately, we’ve ended up coming close to the position of comedians. But because we don’t have the craft, there is no way that we can be funnier than a comedian. That’s why the most important thing ought to be the “no laughing matter.”
So, I’m like, “We need to sell more.” And the other members are like, “We want to sell!” and then the sudden shock of “We’re totally able to sell!” But in order to properly get to the point where we’re able to deal, it’s a necessity for us to sell records as musicians. It’s because of the fans who have been supporting us that we were able to appear on Kouhaku. We had massive support. And because of those fans’ love, the fair weather fans could disappear. So, when I wonder what kind of mark we can leave on the lives of those those fans who have helped us, I’m very happy. It’s like I can participate in the lives of those fans.
QJ: If you’re talking about “participation,” that’s crossing the line of simply fan and artist. That word implies a duty. There are aspects that won’t be “light” and aspects that will be a burden, if you ask me.
Jun: I see what you’re saying. But I’d like to help the people who are like, “If nobody’s around, I’m lonely. If somebody’s there, I’m tired.” Being lonely by yourself and wanting to die, somebody who feels like they have no place to belong to, in the world, there are many who feel like this. Fangirls, especially, can be emotionally jumbled, I think.
I'm not a professional translator and still learning Japanese, so please forgive any mistakes. I just hope I captured our Junjun's words in the spirit he intended. He is quite passionate.
QJ: However, even if you think “I’d like to do something for somebody,” it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be able to do it.
Jun: I have a driving force and that force is “love.” [Just a note: he uses 愛 here - Neko.] Though just as a word, it’s a little vague. Saying I want to do something for other people is relatively close to unconditional love.
QJ: But it seems that, in part, bands do things in exchange for fans’ love, don’t you think?
Jun: That’s a completely different concept. Asking for reciprocity isn’t “love.” For fangirls, visual kei enthusiasts - at some stage, love isn’t enough, you know? At the personality development stage, there could have been some sort of warping. And the reason I say it so explicitly, is because I’m like that. But even that kind of person can treat people with empathy. Like, wishing for one good thing.
QJ: Ah, it’s because you are charmed by that kind of face, Mr. Utahiroba, that so many people gathered for opening day [of Autumn Leaf].
Jun: Is that really the case, I wonder. I think the overwhelming majority were people who came with reasons like “It looks like Golden Bomber is opening a store!” I’m very grateful for that reason, too, though instead of “Utahiroba Jun,” I’d like it to reach the point where they come with an enigmatic purpose. Because of this, I can say with confidence that my fans are without exception gentle people who are empathetic towards everybody.
Each member’s fans have their own colors. For example, Darvish Kenji’s fans are mostly perverts. (laugh) As for my fans, I think they really get the things I say, like we’re comrades in arms. On opening day, although such a large number of people came that it was said to be troublesome, the chaos of the line was somehow sorted out. And that’s why I think that a lot of empathetic people were there.
QJ: I spoke with some number of customers at the opening and there were a lot of girls who wondered how they could be of some benefit to you, Mr. Utahiroba. If you compare that to the “kyaaa~~” of fair weather fans, in a sense, it’s quite “heavy,” don’t you think? Don’t you feel the weight of those fans?
Jun: Never. Rather, I’m very conscious of the fact that the fair weather fans will eventually disappear. When Golden Bomber first began to appear on television, the biggest feeling was that since we weren’t musicians and we were very lively, there were a lot of ways to handle us. It was such that even I, personally, thought it wasn’t a good situation. For us to be treated like musicians, what’s the best way to go about it? That’s “no laughing matter,” you know. Although Golden Bomber believes in using jokes, unfortunately, we’ve ended up coming close to the position of comedians. But because we don’t have the craft, there is no way that we can be funnier than a comedian. That’s why the most important thing ought to be the “no laughing matter.”
So, I’m like, “We need to sell more.” And the other members are like, “We want to sell!” and then the sudden shock of “We’re totally able to sell!” But in order to properly get to the point where we’re able to deal, it’s a necessity for us to sell records as musicians. It’s because of the fans who have been supporting us that we were able to appear on Kouhaku. We had massive support. And because of those fans’ love, the fair weather fans could disappear. So, when I wonder what kind of mark we can leave on the lives of those those fans who have helped us, I’m very happy. It’s like I can participate in the lives of those fans.
QJ: If you’re talking about “participation,” that’s crossing the line of simply fan and artist. That word implies a duty. There are aspects that won’t be “light” and aspects that will be a burden, if you ask me.
Jun: I see what you’re saying. But I’d like to help the people who are like, “If nobody’s around, I’m lonely. If somebody’s there, I’m tired.” Being lonely by yourself and wanting to die, somebody who feels like they have no place to belong to, in the world, there are many who feel like this. Fangirls, especially, can be emotionally jumbled, I think.