10,000 character Interview: Fuji Ryusei
““I’m done with this,” I thought.“
Where were you at the time of the 2013 countdown?
I was eating dinner with my parents at my house. I got a message from my manager saying “The Kansai Jr’s. won’t be on it this year”, so I didn’t really give it much thought. And the filming for “Miss Pilot” had just finished, so I had this satisfied feeling of “Alright, I’m done!” and that it would be a good end to the year. Once the countdown was about to start, the apology mail from the 4 of them came.
What were you thinking at that moment?
I’m not sure. Well, in an instant, my mind went completely blank. “Huh…?” was all I could think as I spaced out. Even if they honestly apologized to me, I couldn’t think of anything to say in return other than “Not at all, not at all.” I put down my phone, wondering what I should do. For now, both my parents are right in front of me, so I figured I should tell them before the broadcast. “They’re debuting,” I said.
What did your parents say?
“What!? Why are you not in (the group)!” After that, I spent quite a few days feeling lost, and they looked after me as I was burning up, and didn’t come talk to me even once. Ah, but, I think they were gathering up their thoughts. I remember my Dad saying all at once, “If you’ve decided to quit, it’s okay to quit.”
But you didn’t give up on joining the group?
Yes, I didn’t.
After the countdown you talked on the phone with Kamiyama-kun and Hamada-kun, right?
Yes.
The two of them said you were the only one that hadn’t given up. That the words you said, “I’m going to do whatever it takes to get in. Don’t give up,” gave them a push.
Those two put me on too much of a pedestal(laugh). I certainly toild Hamachan and Kamichan not to give up, but there was a process. After I saw the broadcast, I thought I would tell Johnny-san that I wanted to be in the group too. If I don’t say it now, what would I do, I thought. But, I didn’t know how things were going at the countdown at the time, so to get a grasp of it, I called Yuma first.
So that’s how it was.
Since it was after they sent that message, it would have been tough for me to ask how they were doing, and it would have been tough for them to tell me how they were doing, so I figured I couldn’t ask them. Since Yuma was there and I get along with him well, I called him right after the broadcast was over. And he answered right away. He said this, right before I could say anything. The moment he answered, he said “Call Johnny-san right now!!” It seems that Yuma also had only heard about the debut at the countdown, right in front of his eyes. “What’s happening?” He asked me. Nobody knew the situation. “Anyway, call him right now!!” He said. Okay, I’ll give him a moment I thought. I waited until 10 minutes after the countdown was over, and called him. “Right now, I’m running all over the place, so I’ll call you tomorrow,” He told me. Johnny-san often gets really busy and forgets to call back. In that moment, I thought, “I’m done with this…”
“Even though I was a kid that could do it if I tried, I didn’t do anything.”
So that’s how it was. Alright, I am going to ask about you from when you were a little kid, okay?
Okay.
Were your parents nice? Or scary?
I think they were on the strict side. But I slid through that and acted naughty, going to play. When I ask them about it now, they say “It was all an act.”
As expected of your parents.
When I think about it now, I know I was loved. Especially since I’m the eldest, they put a lot of effort into events and things for me. I have two younger sisters, but in the end I was the one with more videos and pictures.
Is this a picture from Children’s Day? You’re crying a lot! (The picture in question is at the bottom of this entry)
I’m crying so much(in that picture) that it’s surprising(laugh). I really hated dressing up for Children’s Day and 7-5-3(TN: A holiday in Japan that chronicles a child’s growth by taking pictures when they are 3, 5, and 7 years old respectively). I wonder why I hated it. I used to run around naked(as a kid). I wouldn’t get into it until I could take off the costume. Because I was an idiot (laugh). I would run around once they had gotten the costume ready and showed it to me. And then one time, I ran out the front door, and I ran down the hall of our condominium completely naked. In the end I got caught, and they made me wear the helmet and armor, and the picture was taken of me looking like a weeping war general.
Did you get along well with your sisters?
We’ve always gotten along well from the beginning, and even now we go out for meals together and stuff.
Your second youngest sister has been modeling since she was very young. Weren’t you jealous of her?
I didn’t feel any jealousy at all. For me, what was more fun than that job was soccer. Our parents put us in dance school though, and we went together.
You wanted to become a soccer player from when you were little then?
In my yearbooks from kindergarten and elementary school, I wrote that I wanted to drive a fire truck. But not be a fireman(laugh). I’m often told now that I’m an airhead, but you can see a glimpse of that from that time.
Did you start having long hair from when you were in Kindergarten?
Just around the time when Kimura(Takuya)-san had the same kind of hair. I think my parents made me do it.
You were really popular in kindergarten, weren’t you?
I was the most popular I’ve ever been in my life! I had this girl that would always follow me around. She would show up with me in pictures too. I get easily embarrassed, so while in the pictures she is making this satisfied smirk, I’m not really smiling(laugh).
Were you a little timid around girls?
I was. At Dance School too, I was the only boy in a group of 10 girls. I was completely nervous. I didn’t want to be around only girls. The girls had a changing room, but since there weren’t many guys, the guys didn’t have a changing room. I would change as quickly as I could in the corner. Being there didn’t feel very good.
When did you start soccer?
When I was in 4th grade. I had good friends who were doing it, so we all just decided to go for it.
What kind of kid where you at school?
I don’t really remember. But I was excitable, and in P.E. class when we got to do games with balls, I would suddenly get really into it. Basketball, Futsal, Baseball, things like that. On my grades, teachers would often write “He can do it if he tries.” When I got to middle school, it changed to, “He can do it if he tries, so why doesn’t he do anything?(laugh)”
Did you forget things often then too?
I’m pretty sure I did. I’ve forgotten all the times I’ve forgotten things(laugh). So much so that the station I would use all the time’s station officer would say “Oh, it’s you again,” When I would come to ask at the lost and found.
“What’s with this enthusiastic guy with weird hair?”
You auditioned for Johnny’s when you were in 7th grade, right?
My parents sent in my resume without me knowing about it. But it seems they sent it 3 years before the audition.
So you didn’t know about it.
I didn’t. On the day of the audition, it suddenly rained and soccer practice was cancelled, so my Mom said “Let’s go to the audition.” But, back then, I was your typical teenage boy. “Huh, Johnny’s? Idols? No way, no way,” like that(laugh). Boys are like that at that age, aren’t they. So, for me it was like “I’m going to that audition on my own? No way no way.” I said that I wouldn’t go, so my mom said she’d give me allowance if I went. When I heard that it would be 5000 yen(approx. 50 USD), I said “I’ll go!” (laugh). Thinking about it now, it’s a good thing it rained that day, and that my mom offered me 5000 yen, but I didn’t have any motivation to go, let alone pass.
Even so, you passed, didn’t you. (laugh)
I was learning to dance, so I was quicker at learning stuff than the other kids. And then after they went over the dance steps, we had 30 minutes of free time, and I was slumping, sitting down in a corner. At that time, Johnny-san came right over to me. “You, you’re fast at remembering things.” He said to me. Even though he spoke to me, I gave him an unenthusiastic reply, and he got really angry. “You, stand up! I’m standing too!” He said. That stuck in my memory. This dude has a short temper, I thought (laugh).
Shigeoka-kun and Yuma-kun were at the audition with you weren’t they?
I didn’t really pay attention to the people around me, so I don’t really have an impression of Shige there. With Yuma, we were called up at the same time to have our pictures taken for a magazine. When we were filling out our surveys, he said to me, “We’re born in the same year!” but I ignored him (laugh). I’m sure he was thinking, “What’s with this guy?” But the second I saw Yuma, I thought the same thing (laugh). I mean Yuma had long hair but he made it all stand up, so I thought ““What’s with this super enthusiastic guy with weird hair?” Even though I had this weird, completely flat hair myself (laugh).
Despite that situation the beginning, you guys sure came to get along well (laugh).
I wonder what it was. Well, we were in the same group, we’re the same age, and we came in at the same time, so it gradually came to be.
Do you remember Kamiyama-kun being a leader at the audition?
I do. I remember thinking that even though he’s the same age as me, he’s really got it together. I really felt like he was a senpai from the start. Even though I don’t feel that at all now (laugh).
What about your Jr. activities after that?
After the audition, I was called to participate in the Kobe show at Kanjani8’s tour, but I said I didn’t want to go, so I didn’t. Right after that, there was a photoshoot in Hawaii, and since I didn’t participate in the tour, I wasn’t called for it. And then, I received a call from Johnny-san, saying. “I looked at your resume to call you but the lettering on your numbers is messy and I don’t know what it is!” “Huh? It’s this number!” I replied(laugh). And then, when I thought he was going to talk about the next job, he talked for 30 minutes, continuously asking “Why didn’t you come to Hawaii?” “I wasn’t called for it,” I kept saying, like that. “Why is he continuing to talk about this?” I thought. I only really knew his name, so I thought “What is with this guy?” at first (laugh).
You weren’t really into your Jr. activities at first, were you?
I think I was embarrassed of people saying to me “Huh? You’re doing Johnnys?”I would dance on Kanjani8’s programs and things, and sometimes my friends and other people who would see me would ask, “You were on that program, right?” and at first, my answer was “That can’t be me.” (laugh). I think it was around 9th grade that I finally acknowledged being in Johnny’s.
“ If I invited him right away, he’d come right away. (laugh)”
Kamiyama-kun said that you were really quiet at first.
I wonder what it was. Since everyone bonded so well at the Kobe performance and the Hawaii trip that I couldn’t go to, I didn’t want to force myself in. At first, during a rehearsal at Matsutake(Osaka Matsutake Kabuki Theater), I was called up during it and went. Everyone was acting like “eh, who’s that?” To be honest, at first I did my work feeling it wasn’t fun at all. I really wanted to go home.
So that’s how it was.
But, there was something complicated about it. Even though I did it with those feelings, my first time standing on stage and being bathed in the cheers of the crowd felt really good. I thought I would try to do my best, but I felt like even if I practiced as well as do other things, it wouldn’t do me any good. I didn’t want to do idol-like things like blowing kisses. But even recently, doing very idol-like stuff doesn’t seem like me (laugh). I think a switch came on in me somewhere. That I’m a Johnny’s. At first too, when I came on the stage in a tank top and sweats for a comedy sketch, someone made fun of me, and I cried in the back of the stage (laugh).
But you didn’t quit.
I still remember this feeling of being so happy when I received my first fan letter. At first I only got 2 or 3, but knowing that I had people supporting me made me happy. I felt like I should keep trying just a little more.
So it’s thanks to the fans that you are here today.
That’s true. And being put in TOP kids gave me a feeling of safety. At first I was put on my own, and I felt really lonely. I don’t get it, but even though I had just joined they were writing things like “Fuji Ryusei With Kansai Jrs.” I can’t do anything so stop it, I said. I really hated it, things like that.
It’s a good thing you were put into a group.
However, what I remember now was that there was a Jr I got along with pretty well. After lessons one day, I had plans to go and stay at his house. On that day, I was put in TOP Kids instead of this Jr. Even though I had plans to stay at his house, I thought about whether I should go or not. Friends are friends, so I decided to go. And when I went, it was mutually awkward, and the both of us went to sleep right away. It was complicated. I realized that if there is someone who is chosen, there is someone who isn’t chosen.
What about when you were chosen for Hey! Say! 7West?
For the first time, I felt like “Yeah, I’m doing this.” Because it was a Kansai group aimed at debuting. “I’ll probably debut with this,” I thought.
When Kotaki-kun joined the following year, the two of you got along well right away.
I wonder what it was. I think it was because he was easy to invite?! At first, that guy used a lot of formal language. He was the youngest, and he was easy to invite. If I invited him right away, he’d come right away(laugh). We used to go to movies and out to eat with Yuma, the three of us.
Even now, within the members, you get along especially well with him.
It’s easy to be with him. But somehow, I can’t really explain why we’re friends in words? He’s like a hometown companion. But during concerts and things, we were never grouped together. I would usually appear with Junta-kun, and Nozomu would come out with Akito-kun. We even asked the staff before, “Why don’t you group us together? There’s a demand for it!” (laugh). You know, everyone has their own feelings for hometown companions, so if we were grouped together, it may have been a little embarrassing.
I may understand that feeling.
Well, I don’t say it often, but his existence was pretty big (to me). Since Nozomu joined, Yuma started doing a lot of separate jobs. And in that way, he saved me(TN: he means that Kotaki was there when Yuma couldn’t be), even outside of work. No matter what kind of workplace it is, when he is there I can relax. When Nozomu’s role in “Kin Kyori Renai” was decided, as well as other times, he contacted me right away saying “I got it!” and when my role in “Again!!” was decided, we just happened to be together, and he said “You got the main role! Amazing!” Both of us were very surprised. He’s there before I even know it. That’s what he is to me.
The two of you have always been Shinme, haven’t you.
We’re both really tall so we both stand out in a bad way. Even when we just cross our arms to look high and mighty, it’s a different feeling for each of us. But sometimes we can come off as lazy(laugh). Shige has this constant flaring up motivation. That’s why the two of us get yelled at a lot. There was this one time we were rehearsing and B.A.D messed up, and even though we were matching with them, the choreographers said “There is no way those two could have messed up, so it must have been you two. Know your place!!” They got really mad at us. “We’re matching with them,” we said, but they looked at us as if we were slugs, and got even angrier. The two members of B.A.D apologized to us later, saying “That was our mistake”, and I told them “Say it with better timing!” (laugh)
Hahahahaha.
All of a sudden, we lazy boys got motivated(laugh). Even if we were able to perform in tours in the Kinki Area, the only people who got to go on national tours a lot were people like Shige and Kamichan. We were understandably upset about it, and talked to each other often, saying “Let’s make sure we get on the next one.” Gradually we were able to, and when we even got to do a song together, we really felt like we had done it. I’ve really spent a lot of different moments with that guy.
“That’s why I took a gamble.”
If you had a turning point in your Jr days, when would you say it was?
Hmm, I wonder…. I guess when I graduated high school it was pretty huge. I had classmates going to college and job hunting. Graduating high school is a crossroads in life. Even though everyone was doing their best at what they were doing, I had nothing to do on my days off. I had a really bad, dangerous feeling.
Weren’t you receiving pressure with your two sister’s activities?
I didn’t mind that much. People around me would say “Your sisters are more popular than you” though (laugh). I told them to do their best and truly supported them. My classmate’s existence was pretty big. That’s why I took a gamble.
A gamble?
When I graduated high school and turned 18, I appeared in the play “Shonentachi”. At first, I was a part of the August Matsutake members, but in the Nissay play in September, me and Nozomu weren’t scheduled to be in it. That’s why I called Johnny-san right away.
What did you say?
That I wanted to be in the Nissay play too.
That was your gamble?
I had decided that if I wasn’t in the Nissay play that I would quit. If I wasn’t appearing in it, then I would do some other job. Continuing is important, but I think there is no meaning in messing around and continuing. I didn’t want to be halfway into my 20’s and still be a Johnny’s Jr. I took a gamble and said straight to Johnny-san that “I want to be in the play.”
Did you tell him that if you didn’t get in the play, you’d quit?
I didn’t. If I said it, it wouldn’t have been fair. That’s why I only told him “I want to be in the play.” The rehearsal was set to start in the second half of August, and if I wasn’t called in, I thought I’d quit at the end of the month. And then I was called in. I decided that “I will try and take a step forward in this world.” That was pretty big. It was the first time I ever declared my intentions for something.
How was the Nissay play?
My role from August had been changed, and I got a comedic role. When the script came, I thought, “Is this for real?!” Up until then, I hadn’t really been assigned comedic roles. It was like a wake up slap, failing at delivering jokes. I thought Tsuka-chan was amazing. No matter how much his jokes would flop, he would persevere. I really relied on Tsuka-chan. If I was in trouble, I’d ask him to do something. Tsuka-chan’s joke would flop and then our part would finish. That guy is too much of a good person. I was super nervous after all. In a play, reactions come out right away, so I was scared and didn’t want to do it, I think. I was continuously nervous, so I think it wasn’t taken very well. That Nissay stage was a very disciplinary stage.
You appeared in the 2013 drama “Miss Pilot”, right?
It was so sudden and I was really surprised. But, I was happy. Finally, I could appear in a drama series. I was the youngest member working there, and so people would bully me(in a friendly, playful sense) a lot. The director did things like say “Ok, everyone, here, laugh randomly. I’m counting on you. Ready, go!” all the time. This was also pretty disciplinary.
Since you had to film “Miss Pilot”, you couldn’t appear in “ANOTHER”, right?
Yes, that’s true.
Did you hear the rumor that 7 members of the “ANOTHER” cast would make their debut?
I heard that rumor in passing. I was doing drama filming until the end of December after all. Everyone seemed to think that “We’ll probably be debuting with 7.”
And then, you went back home on the day of the countdown…
The message from my manager had a deeper meaning to it. Thinking about it now anyway. “The Kansai Jr’s. won’t be on it this year”, he said. Well, they certainly weren’t on as Kansai Jrs.
“Let’s try and gamble on that 1% possibility.”
Right after you called the president(Johnny-san) after the countdown, you thought just once, “I’m done with this,” didn't you.
Yes. I wasn’t planning on giving up, and I was planning on putting in the effort to get in, but I wondered, “Could I really get in?” I was really worried, but I felt like I wanted to try and gamble on that 1% possibility. I announced to Yuma that “I called Johnny-san and…” When I did that, I thought Yuma was so cool, saying for me that “You can definitely get in! 100%, you can get in!” A switch flipped within me with those words, and I decided not to give up. “I’ll work for it too, so it’s okay, you can get in!” He said that for me.
You called Hamada-kun and Kamiyama-kun after that.
That’s right. “I am not sure if we can do this but let’s put in the work. There’s no meaning in just watching from the sidelines,” I said to them. The next day, we had concert rehearsals. When I came home from rehearsals, I got a surprise return call from Johnny-san.
What did he say?
He rambled for about 30 minutes. “I’m going to make the 3 of you actors,” He said. I told him “I want to be in the group.” Of course it wouldn’t have been like “Okay, then we’re going with 7,” but I told him what I could tell him.
So that’s how it was.
From that point on, finally, I got in touch with Shige and Nozomu. They told me the situation with the 4 of them. Shige was working with all he had for us. Nozomu, despite being the youngest and dealing with that, he gave it his all for us. The person who didn’t want to give up from the start. It wasn’t me. The person who didn’t give up the most out of all of us, was Shige.
So that’s how it was.
And then the 4 of them, as well as Yuma all worked for us.
And then the 3 of you were called in for Naniwazamurai rehearsals, and that connected to the real presentation of your debut.
Yes, it flowed like that. When we presented our debut on stage as 7, I felt like it had all come together. When I saw fans crying for me, I really felt like we were supported.
How did you convey the news of the debut to your family?
I’m easily embarrassed, so instead of calling them, I sent them a text, and they were happy for me. I sent it to them as soon as I knew. I wanted to put them at ease as soon as possible. It was good for me too, but I was even happier to bring relief to my parents.
That’s good.
In the end, the me that is here now is here because he has been supported by many different people. When I’m coming home for the first time in a while after drama filming and things and say that I’m eating at home, my Mom will always make me a hamburger steak. It’s always at critical moments. One time, when a magazine asked what food I like the most that my Mom makes, I said it was a hamburger steak. Once in a while, she’ll make something different, but in the end, when it’s a hamburger steak, I get really happy. “She reads my magazines and is always thinking about me!” I think.
“We fit perfectly after all.“ “It feels good.”
What times do you think that you are glad you all are 7?
I think it often it when we’re all being moved somewhere in a car and things like that. I wonder sometimes if it’s okay for us to get along as well as we do. We talk a lot on those car trips. If our (volume) level is 10 in car trips, it’s 3 in magazines and on TV. That’s how much we talk.
Your level is 10 on TV and in magazines too(laugh).
Well, about 70% of it is dirty jokes, so it might be difficult to calculate (laugh).
Hahahahaha. Alright, from now on, what kind of group do you want to be?
First off, I want to increase the amount of people that know who we are. When people say hello to me on the street, they say “Ah, it’s Kanjani!” (laugh). I always answer, “I’ll forgive you, but it’s a little different. We're called Johnny’s WEST.” “Ah, you’re the cheerleaders!” they say(laugh). So that’s why first off, increasing the amount of people who know who we are is a goal for us individually and as a group. Each of us giving our best at our individual jobs also connects to that I think.
That’s true.
A goal for further ahead is to be a group that always gets along well with one another. If we could be as we are, unchanging, and continue to mature like that, that would be good. I want us to be the group that is always chattering away in the dressing room. So that we always get told by the staff that we’re too loud.
This is a specific detail, but do you think that if you hadn’t gone through all of that trouble, the 3 of you would have joined the other 4?
We wouldn’t have at all. The rehearsals for Naniwazamurai started before I had said I wanted to be in (the group). The first song we rehearsed was Eejyanaika. As soon as it was finished, the 4 of them each said it. “This is a perfect fit after all.” “This feels good.” I was so happy the 4 of them said that for us. The 3 of us felt the same way. In that moment, all of the trouble blew away.
In the end, the 7 of you are a perfect fit.
Because the 7 of us have always been together. Even if you asked me now how we came to debut as 7, I would have too many feelings about it, and would be unable to put it into words. But “Because we are a perfect fit” is the perfect fit, you could say. That is everything, isn’t it.
Edit: Baby Ryusei!:
