DAI@NITE-WRITER
Translated by duncan
March 2007

Last year’s nationwide arena tour recorded the largest mobilization number in her history! This year opens with a sudden single release. An album and tour are also near at hand. As Namie Amuro does more and more power up, again Woofin’ urgently approaches! Strong collaboration with the charisma brand Stussy also reappears in a large special feature. The queen is running at full speed in 2007, don’t take your eyes off her lustrous figure!

How was it being photographed with the terrific motorbikes this time?
Ne ~, it was terrific (laughs).

They cost over $100,000 (for some reason in a low voice).
How could anyone ride one!? I feel like that. I couldn’t afford to! (laughs).

Do you ride a motorbike?
Never! Motorbikes are scary. I once did a movie scene in which I rode on the back of a bike, actually driving as they filmed me riding on the back of it. Scary scary, I remember my face was quite tight with fear… (laughs).

But for concerts and such, shouldn’t you have a motorbike? (laughs)
Actually had an idea to use a mini-bike several years ago.

Oh, Amuro-san herself enters on it? (laughs).
No no (laughs).

Speaking of concerts, the tour must have been tiring.
Yes. Thank you.

I saw it twice. Previously I think the concert configuration evolved constantly over the course of the tour, but this time I thought it didn’t change from the beginning….
That’s right, this time it didn’t really change from the beginning. With such a detailed thing perhaps I thought too much about a simple stage.

From the start the degree of completion was high, I suppose. What’s your impression now the tour is over?
It was enjoyable. Wonderful. Concerts are always difficult to grasp at first, can see it feeling happens after 10 or 20 times. But this time could see it from time of rehearsal, my impression from the opening day it was easy to do.

It was the day after the first day of the Tour when we talked last time. So, were you able to reach the last step with your pole dancing? (laughs).
No (laughs). I tried and failed to do it (laughs). I didn’t do it after all (laughs).

Will there be another tour this summer?
Yes, there will be!

What plans are there now?
I hope to do something interesting. I plan to release an album before the summer, will do a staging to suit that I think.

Ah, an album is coming out?!
Yes, it is! Looking back, I regret releasing only one single last year. (laughs). This year [I’ll] work [harder]! (laughs)

This year you’ve started work early (laughs).The new album has what feeling?
Well, the songs collected so far are all really stylish. With the last album my primary thought was to be able to dance it live but the new album will have a more ‘adult’ feeling (laughs).

You think it has a ‘moving up to the next stage’ feeling… In a word how would you describe it?
Mmm, what feeling? More edgy than last time, in a word ‘rich feeling’

Ooh! ‘rich feeling’ sounds good!
I think it will be rich… probably (laughs). It feels like an album full of songs that could be released as singles.

Jacket also sophisticated feeling?
That’s right! I think it will be absolutely rich. Especially for a girl! I intend it to be THAT (laughs).

THAT?
It’s a secret (laughs). But maybe THAT is limited to girls (laughs).

Let’s not go too deeply into that (laughs). Still, final image is still being settled, I imagine.
It’s still half undecided (laughs).

That’s bad but good (laughs). Somehow a more varied image than before bubbles up, does it feel like that?
More than that, I had various thoughts on what shape it should have, this year I wanted to concentrate on it. It takes time for an idea to take shape, doesn’t it?

I see, to put it another way various things you’ve been nursing for some time will come out this year?
That’s right. It might have looked like I worked at a very leisurely pace last year, but I spent the time thinking about various matters (laughs).

Is that so? I heard you read many manga stories last year (laughs). But you were thinking a lot (laughs). Anyway, this year begins with the sudden release of the “Baby Don’t Cry” single …
Yes. It’s a positive, supportive song! That’s all (laughs).

That’s not all (laughs). What was the thinking with this timing of this song?
I hadn’t decided what to put out first this year, but when I received the story of a TV drama, this song by Nao-san (Nao’ymt) became it’s theme song

I see. It seems to me to be a type of song you’ve not done before, did it feel like that to you?
Maybe. Both “Baby Don’t Cry” and “Nobody” are sad though moving forward songs. It was a type that I haven’t sung up to now, using positive but more edgy words than before. Because “Baby Don’t Cry” is positive I tried singing it brightly, but then sadness was not enough, getting a balance was very difficult. The song isn’t such a fallen mood if I start singing from the beginning with a sad tone. Along the way I had various ideas, but in the end kept it simple when I sang it.

The PV also has a feeling not seen before, doesn’t it?
Well, it was very undecided. With it being a simple song make it an everyday world? What’s the theme? What color? (laughs). Saying to people “Isn’t it blue?”, How about a background of sky? and so on (laughs). The director had the idea “Walking alone through the town. A simple feeling, how about that?”. I wonder if it wasn’t a really fresh image for Namie Amuro.

It was really fresh. A simple yet positive start to 2007. And the rumour is that before the album your next [single] is near at hand…
Yes. The next is planned for Spring. It’s very exciting[?angry?]! Completely the opposite to the current [single].

I look forward to it! We had our largest ever number of applications for your special Stussy-wear present last time, how does it feel to do it again? Collaborating on both Mens and Ladies items this time?
It was really very cool. The bikes were terrific too (laughs).

Thank you. Finally a word to our readers. To the boys especially, please!
Um… next time I have concerts, by all means please come and have fun!