[WEB ARTICLE] Kimata Syoya (JO1) - Elle Gourmet (6 January 2023) regular column (Part 2)

[dreamweavernyx]

And here's the rest of the interview!

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[Photo 14]

Begin the heart-to-heart talk!

Kimata: Hm, I wonder what we have in common…?

Kawanishi: I wonder… It’s often said that our relationships with the other members can be described using certain catchphrases, but I don’t really get it. (laughs)

Kimata: Ah, how about… I mean, look at us…

Kawanishi: Hm, what is it?

Kimata: I mean, our body size…

Kawanishi: Ahh…

[Photo 15]

Kimata: I mean, getting called the “shorties club” is pretty frustrating! (lol) The other members are just way too huge, it’s not that we’re particularly tiny, you know! The JO1 members are just so huge, they’re like whole entire walls, you know. Walls.

Kawanishi: The two of us have a pretty good build, don’t we.

Kimata: Yeah! Neither of us are particularly scrawny or anything.

[Photo 16]

Kawanishi: If anything, I’d say we have the most well-built shoulders in JO1. Ah, after Sho-kun, of course.

Kimata: Our shoulders are pretty broad, too!

Kawanishi: My shoulders are this broad without doing a ton of muscle training, too. My bone structure was like this from the start, and I’ll gain muscle from the smallest things. I mean, my right arm’ll get buff just from brushing my teeth. I’m thankful to my parents for that. (laughs)

Kimata: I used to do swimming in the past, and I eat tons! I beat Mame in arm-wrestling just the other day, you know!

[Photo 17]

Kawanishi: I guess something we both have in common is that we both compose music?

Kimata: H~m you mean like our interests are similar?

Kawanishi: Ah, but hold on… I don’t really talk about this kind of stuff. Like what I do (for fun).

Kimata: That’s true, you hide a lot about you, Takumi-kun. (laughs)

Kawanishi: (laughs) I wonder if you can call it ‘hiding’.

Kimata: You’re protective of those parts of you!

[Photo 18]

Kawanishi: I seriously never talk about them. Syoya, you tell everyone about what you do quite a fair bit, though. And when you do, I’m like, ah, he’s trying to get into the same stuff as me.

Kimata: And we talk about the equipment we want, too. I guess “creating things” is what we have in common.

Kawanishi: Well, we’re not that skilled yet, though. We’ll do our best.

[Photo 19]

Kimata: Well then, ELLE-san is cueing us to move to the customary section where we talk about what we respect about the other, or which part about the other we envy!

Kawanishi: I’ve got a long list of those. To tell the truth.

Kimata: For real?! I’ve got a long list too!

Kawanishi: For me, it’s your inquisitive spirit and your personality, probably. If you don’t know something, you won’t let it lie. You’ll immediately look it up!

Kimata: That’s true.

Kawanishi: For me, I’d be like, “I’ll just look it up later”, or “I’ll do it later”, but in the end I never follow up on it after…

Kimata: But at the same time, I guess that’s an aspect of me that may seem troublesome.

Kawanishi: You’re like a walking encyclopaedia, and you know all sorts of random trivia. You’re really passionate about learning.

[Photo 20]

Kimata: Something I’ve noticed about Takumi-kun is that you tend to work quietly on something behind the scenes without saying anything about it, and when you’re ready to present it you show it off with a bang. I think that’s really cool.

Kawanishi: I get really shy when I do that, though.

Kimata: That makes you even cooler, in my opinion.

Kawanishi: Ah, I’ve got one more. Contrary to how he may appear, Syoya’s really good at reading the atmosphere. It’s like he’s really paying attention to others. He gives off an impression that he’s always fooling around, or that he loves to tease others, but in reality he’s like this instead.

Kimata: I tend to go about things in a different manner from everyone else, I guess. I hate making other people feel uncomfortable.

[Photo 21]

Kawanishi: I think everyone else has noticed what you’re doing, though.

Kimata: Well, I’m pretty tough, so…

Kawanishi: Man, you seriously are tough! I find that amazing about you, too.

Kimata: I mean “tough” in a positive way, but there are some parts of me that are stubborn, too. I want everyone to be happy, you know. When I grow old I want to live a happy life. That’s all I want!

[Photo 22]

What do they think of each other?

Kimata: I think of Takumi-kun as our ace.

Kawanishi: Seriously? Th- thank you. For real…? Eh~ seriously?

Kimata: I think someone like that is essential (in a group). I want to support someone like that.

Kawanishi: Eh~ that’s pressurising. Well, I’m happy (to hear that), though.

Kimata: I mean, for real, I don’t want to just say that you have good sense and leave it as that. You draw the eye with every bit of your performance, and I think that’s great.

Kawanishi: As for Syoya… Even when there aren’t many people within JO1 voicing out their opinions, he’ll properly enter the conversation and give his two cents. When I see that, I do think that even though he keeps calling himself the “self-proclaimed” sub-leader, he might just be, in reality, our true-blue sub-leader!

Kimata: Well, I really love the group. I don’t want us to have any regrets!

[Photo 23]

Kimata: Takumi-kun is pretty cool.

Kawanishi: I mean, I tend to act more cool when we have interviews / photoshoots (like this). I mean, the real me is not cool in the slightest.

Kimata: You do say really hilarious things.

[Photo 24]

Kawanishi: That’s why… I think I’m pretty difficult, in the end. I’m a troublesome guy. (laughs)

Kimata: Troublesome?! I don’t think that in the slightest! But well, you’re cool and all, but you also say really funny things, and that really gets me.

Kawanishi: I’m funny, aren’t I?

Kimata: That’s right. (laughs)

[Photo 25]

Kawanishi: Syoya’s funny without even trying. So I think he’s really just funny as a person. Someone who tries hard to be funny is… (Sato) Keigo-kun, maybe.

Kimata: Ah, that’s true. Keigo-kun’s smart, after all. I guess it’s a little (mean) to say that he tries really hard, though.

Kawanishi: It’d feel like we were telling tales about him. (laughs) Well, that’s why I say that you’re really funny, Syoya.

[Photo 26]

If they were to discuss their current worries…

Kimata: If we had to discuss something that troubles us… I tend to find it difficult to write lyrics. I guess that’s what troubles me. Takumi-kun, how do you go about it?

Kawanishi: Hahaha. Hm~, I wonder…

Kimata: I often write them down if any good ones cross my mind when I wake up. Like, if I had a really good dream, or something.

Kawanishi: I’ve not really said this to others before, but… When we’re on the highway, in the car, I tend to look outside a lot. I’ll think a lot during times like those, and when something good hits me I’ll make a note of it.

Kimata: Takumi-kun, you’re always sitting in the special seat, after all.

Kawanishi: I usually sit in the passenger seat.

Kimata: I guess it does feel really nice when you sit there.

Kawanishi: It does feel really good. When you wind down the window and feel the breeze, it makes you think about a lot of things.

[Photo 27]

Kawanishi: I wonder what I’d like to ask Syoya about… I truly don’t know anything about food. I’ll know when I eat food that tastes nice, but I don’t know the least thing about how to find good food, and so I tend to give up. How do you find places that serve good food?

Kimata: These days you can find a lot of them on social media! Like there’ll be posts that say like, “Our top XX picks!”, and stuff. I tend to see those pop up together with the things I usually view on social media, so maybe they don’t pop up for you because you don’t usually look at this kinda stuff.

Kawanishi: Hm~. I guess I’ll start by looking at social media!

Kimata: I wish I had the time to go out and find these places on my own, though.

Kawanishi: Nobody has that time, man.

[Photo 28]

How do they feel about JO1’s 4th year…?

Kimata: Since it’s a new year, is there stuff aside from performing that you think you’d like to try this year?

Kawanishi: Hm… I was thinking I’d like to seriously go for acting lessons.

[Photo 29]

Kimata: For me, I had the opportunity to do voice acting work, and I’d like to do more of it. It would be great if I could actively go for auditions (for voice acting jobs).

Kawanishi: Also, gaining experience. I’d like to experience a wide variety of things this year. Let’s do our best in 2023!

[Photos 30-35]

Next issue, we’ll have a sushi pairing in a restaurant with a luxurious ambience

In the next issue of “Real Thoughts with Kimata Sushi”, where our 5th guest will appear, that fashionable member will join us at a restaurant with a luxurious ambience! It’ll be a fresh experience, pairing sushi with drinks ♡

[Photos 36-39]